Heartland RV Reviews (Pioneer BH170, Mallard, Prowler Lynx)
Everyone has an opinion. No matter the brand or product, you will find 3 sides to every discussion about those brands or products. There are the positive, the negative, and the in-between sides. If you have followed RV brands you know this industry is not exempt from these types of discussions.
Our opinion is that we will present both sides of the issue and then let you decide. On RV Insider an RV review website, Heartland received a 3.3-star rating with only the floor plan and towing/driving receiving 4 stars. This is out of almost 1000 reviews.
To learn more about Heartland and how it stacks up, just keep reading our article. It has the information you want to know about. RV Insider is not the only review website out there and another one gives the company very favorable reviews.
Heartland RV Reviews
Heartland RV Reviews
No matter how good a company is, it will always get a bad review from someone. Also, no matter how bad a company is, they will always have a customer who loves them and gives them a great review.
We are going to be as fair as possible in presenting both sides for Heartland as it gets its share of both bad and good reviews. We will provide a little background information so you can be well-informed before making your decision about this company.
1. Heartland History
The company was started in 2003 by a group of RV industry veterans. Their combined RV building experience reaches 125 years so one would think, they would know how to avoid the issues many RV customers experience.
Their first RV was the 2004 Landmark which was supposed to be a very luxurious model. The people at Heartland were not targeting middle class customers with their models.
It is said that Heartland became the 3rd largest 5th wheel manufacturer in 5 years so they must have been doing something right in the beginning. But things change.
In 2010, Heartland bought Fleetwood Enterprises and in the same year, Thor Industries bought Heartland. Initially, this did not change the company as it continued to grow for several years and produced some top of the line travel trailers, toy haulers, and 5th-wheel trailers.
Heartland has been under Thor Industries' leadership ever since. What you think of Thor may influence your opinion about Heartland RV.
2. Positive reviews
The most middle-of-the-road opinion on Heartland comes from one Heartland owner. He felt that all, not just Heartland, trailers were badly built. What is meant by that is that Heartland is just building its trailers to industry levels and not going the second mile for its customers.
Some more positive reviewers state that the fault lies not with Heartland but with the fact that the company buys Lippert frames. These frames, it is said, are not up to the job it is expected of them to do.
While people are giving Heartland the benefit of the doubt here, they still fault Heartland for not changing the specs on the frames or changing frame manufacturing to solve this issue.
Another reviewer gave Heartland 5 stars in all categories used by RV Insider. He felt that the quality of the trailer is what you make of it and if you do proper maintenance or not. He does not fault Heartland but RV owners for their problems.
Other owners also gave Heartland 5 stars saying that in their 5 years of ownership, they have not had a single problem with their trailer. The 5-star reviewers are all basically the same. They love their floor plan and bathroom design, it felt more like a home to them than a trailer, and on it goes.
Heartland does seem to put out some good quality trailers that make their customers very happy. However, this does not mean that Heartland makes a perfect trailer as you will soon see by the negative reviews.
3. Negative reviews
We will start off with one that appeared under one of our own Heartland article "are Heartland travel trailers any good?". The reviewer flatly stated that their 2022 Cyclone (4006) has been in the shop 42 out of 52 weeks of the year of ownership. They also say they had 13 pages of issues that were not addressed.
Another reviewer reported that a friend of his bought a Heartland 2017 Landmark 365, and had 30 warranty issues within the first 3 months. This figure went up to 80 after the first year. He also spent $128,000 on this trailer’s purchase price.
It seems that quality control may be lacking at Heartland RV as this is not the only time we have seen these types of warranty reports. One owner only had 3 warranty issues in 12 years not every trailer is going to be in the shop for repairs.
Another reviewer echoed some of the same problems as he bought his trailer new in 2022 and has only been able to use it for 3 weeks. The rest of the time the trailer has been in the shop.
The owner of a 2021 Trail Runner was just as negative in his report on the condition of his trailer. He said the paneling was falling off, the heater wasn’t working and a lock was not working.
Similar things have been said by the owner of a 2021 Milestone owner. He had a long list of items that did not work, fell off, and so on. This seems to be a common theme among 1-star reviewers.
Of course, we always take these reviews with some grain of salt as we are not present to see what the owners are doing that results in these types of experiences.
Heartland will not make a perfect trailer and even if they did, someone would not be happy with it and find some fault with perfection.
Heartland Mallard Reviews (M335, M32, M260)
The Heartland Mallard is a reasonably priced travel trailer. It measures roughly 22 feet in length and costs just over $22,000 for one model. Its weight is listed at 3800 pounds approx., making it a towable that will fit a variety of cars and trucks.
One reviewer gave it an overall 7.7 out of 10 rating with livability rated at 6.5 out of 10. But he felt the quality of the construction was very good and gave it a 9.0 rating. He also did not like the warranty coverage.
Another reviewer had a long laundry list of complaints about this trailer. Even though he had a lot of complaints, he still gave it a 4.2 out of 5 rating. He loved the towability, the floor plan, and the warranty support but gave it low marks for the quality of construction. He also gave it low marks for livability.
Another reviewer gave this brand an even lower score, going 1.8 out of 5 and nothing seemed to please him in his $45,000 unit. The best mark he gave was 3.0 for floor plan and towability. Everything else was sub-par.
A final reviewer went even lower as he could only give 1 star for the quality of construction and livability. He did make it to 3 stars for towing and floor plan but in the end, his rating was under 2 stars as well.
Heartland Mallard Construction
This is one of what Heartland calls an ultra-light trailer. Its weight, for one model, barely reaches 3500 pounds and it should be towed by a wide variety of vehicles. Its length is 21 feet 4 inches.
The trailer’s side panels are said to be made with twice the insulation value but do not let the word value fool you. It is not twice the insulation. Then instead of using wood for its studs, etc., the company has gone to a composite material that is supposed to save on the weight without losing strength.
This material is supposed to help you save on your fuel costs and absorb road noise so you get a quieter towing experience. Also, the company states that this trailer brand is built for the off-road experience.
The tires are said to be great for this type of vacation experience. Just for the Mallard Pathfinder, there are several floor plans to choose from. You can also select other Mallard brand names to see if those trailer designs fit your camping needs.
The regular Mallard can reach up to 22 feet 1/2 inch in length and weigh just over 4500 pounds. It is supposed to have excellent storage space as well. The aerodynamic design should help with fuel mileage and keep any towing risks to a minimum.
Generally, you have at least one slide-out in most of the floor plans. The longer you go, the more people you will be able to sleep with the 36+ footer being able to sleep up to 9 people.
Construction seems to be of standard materials and general RV construction methods.
Heartland Pioneer Reviews (QB300, RD210, RG26, RL250, RK300)
This trailer model from Heartland has a starting length of 22 feet 5 3/4 inches. It weighs under 3700 pounds for the smallest trailer making it one of the lightweights this company produces.
The aerodynamic design is made to cut down wind resistance as well as water deflection. Its front aluminum cage adds strength while cutting down on tongue weight.
However, the reviews by some owners are not good with the brand receiving only a 2.3-star rating out of 5 stars. The laundry list of complaints is consistent throughout the total amount of reviews. In other words, the company seems to be consistently bad when building this trailer.
One owner who gave this brand a 4,4- star rating said it fit their camping needs and was a trustworthy trailer to own. Another reviewer only gave it three stars and said the floor plan was the only positive thing they could say about this model.
Then another owner gave this trailer a 3.4-star rating but also said that the warranty did not cover anything that went wrong. A final positive review stated that the owners liked the spaciousness of the trailer and it fits their personal space needs just right.
But like other reviewers, they did not have anything nice to say about the quality of the construction. They also had nothing good to say about Heartland’s or their dealers’ customer service or warranty protection.
A lot of the 1-star ratings complained about the same issue. They were not happy with the customer service or warranty coverage they received. Others liked the floor plan and camping experience but could not get past the bad construction quality.
That seems to be the attitude of most reviewers who own this model of Heartland trailers.
2022 Heartland Pioneer BH170 Reviews (BH270)
The reviews are not that good for this specific model or the BH270 trailer. It just seems that the people who started this company had good intentions and when they sold out, they also sold out any quality control they may have had.
The specs look good as the starting length is over 22 feet and comes with a 502-pound hitch weight, a 4980 GVWR, and a dry weight of just under 3700 pounds. The amount of cargo you can carry is just over 1100 pounds.
Most people are reviewing the BH 270 model more than the BH 170. This may be a well put together trailer as the negative reviews are for the BH 270 and we may have found one for the BH 170.
Owners loved the BH 270 at first but as time went on, their opinion of the trailer went down. Very few had anything good to say about these trailers and they wished that they purchased a different model from a completely different brand.
The warranty coverage does not seem to be that good and according to the reports, even if you do have legitimate warranty claims, you may not get approval for months on end. Customer service seems to be lacking at Heartland RV.
That is a common complaint among RV owners for RVs in general.
Heartland Prowler Reviews (212RD, Lynx, 300BH, 195RB)
One of the biggest complaints about this model of Heartland trailer is the price. One reviewer felt that the suggested retail price is far too high for what you are getting in return.
The reviewer felt that this model is being built to price and not to quality for the most part. One exception given was the axles as they were rated more than strong enough for the total GVWR weight capacity.
This is an entry-level travel trailer that does not seem to offer any slide-outs. One reviewer thought that was a very good adaption and felt other RV brands should omit the slide-outs from their models as well.
It is said that the prowler model has been around for 50 years. But this model was revived by Heartland in 2010 when the company bought Fleetwood. Most of the history of this trailer model belongs to Fleetwood and not Heartland RVs.
The construction also seems to be basic as this is a trailer made with a wood frame and aluminum. The insulation factor is rated at R-value 7 which may or may not be good.
One nice feature is the exterior LED lights under the awning and the frame of the trailer. Then you have about 19 floor plans to choose between. The pass through storage on some of those models may be a deal clincher for some owners.
Common Heartland RV Problems
This company does enjoy a reputation that is quite high in the RV industry. They are known for being innovative and coming up with some inspiring designs. However, the company still suffers from some common problems found throughout its three trailer lines.
1. Leaks- these trailers are well-known to leak through the roof, the seals, and other common locations. The answer to this problem is to make sure all vents, etc., are well sealed
2. Slide-out issues- another weak spot in these trailers. It seems the quality of the manufacturing is not up to par and you need to lubricate often. Also, you need to inspect for damage and obstructions.
3. Electrical systems- these can include faulty wiring, bad lighting issues, and the battery failing to charge. Check the connections, look for loose wires, and other electrical solutions.
4. Construction quality- this seems to be the largest body of complaints as cosmetic work is slip-shod, and overall construction quality is not up to the money you spent on the trailer.
Most of this repair work should be done by you.
Some Additional Words
Heartland may have started off on the right foot and right path but since 2010, it may have strayed from the original goals and purpose of the company. But this seems to be a common theme as many independent RV-making companies start off well only to see quality control disappear when bought out by bigger RV manufacturers.
It is sad to see but it is a common theme in this industry.
