Motorhome enquiry
Comments
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Absolutely go for the auto option as long as it’s not the old Fiat Comformatic!
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Alde heating doesn’t seem to be common in motorhomes these days but bear in mind you are heating a much smaller space so ducted hot air is more than adequate. We had two coachbuilts and have now downsized to a PVC (collecting later this month). My (strictly personal) view is that a fixed bed is not compatible with motorhomes unless you are buying one of those giant coaches that pop bands use!
Generally there is a major difference between UK and continental motorhomes. UK weather is variable so internal living space is maximised along the lines of a caravan. Continental vans have smaller accommodation with a “garage” to house all the outside furniture you need to enjoy the sunshine.
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I have found that Alde heating tends to be used in the better designed and manufactured units. It is normally found in continental vehicles that have double floors - a major advantage in my opinion - and those equipped for use in tough winter conditions abroad. One big advantage I have found is the engine heat exchanger which ensures you efficiently have hot water and full heating whilst you travel and when you arrive. Also, generally speaking the Alde boilers are extremely efficient on gas.
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Changed to a Motorhome 20 months ago thought about it for a long time,after 40 years of caravaning it’s worked for me and my wife,it’s bigger than m/homes I first started looking at 7.41 meters long.A bus pass a garage and two folding electric bikes and a bit of planning helps Truma heating and being Italian well insulated,on board water tank and heated waste helps. it is a warm place to be.we don’t need to take our car .This may not suit everyone but for us it’s just fine ,when you arrive the whole cab and inside is warm .
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We enjoyed the Alde system but not sure we really maximised its potential, it’s very good for colder climes. Liked the engine heat exchanger meaning we arrived on site toasty warm in the habitation area. We have also had the Eberspächer heating which was very quick but a tad loud. Must say that for our usual experiences here in the UK the Truma system seems absolutely fine. In summer our AC unit is good on those few days of extreme heat but again a bit of an extravagance here in the UK. It does have a heating mode too which we have used but again it’s a bit noisy.
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Very apt photo TW-the place behind the VW is called The Little House.
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There’s no such thing as ‘little’ along there 😀
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I've been tentatively keeping my eye out for a suitable automatic but they are, if not scarce then few on the second hand market for the type of PVC that would interest us. I'm in no rush but you are restricting your choice by going automatic.
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We’ve had 2 auto MHs with the Fiat 9 speed TC auto boxes. They were good but I believe Stelantis have now dropped that box in favour of one of their own. We also had a Sprinter based MH with a TC box and our current is also a Merc TC box. Wouldn’t entertain anything else really.
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Wherenext
Obviously automatic motorhomes have been available for a long time but I think it only recently that they have become more common. Peugeot on which a lot of motorhomes use as a base vehicle have to my knowledge never done an automatic box, although there are rumours they will in the future. Because motorhomes start out being expensive manufacturers have often gone for the best value base vehicle. More recently Ford base vehicles have become popular and rather interestingly when Bailey introduced their Adamo range it was only available in automatic form. It depends whether you will be looking at new where it is easy to have the choice of an auto or whether you would be looking for secondhand where the choice will be more restricted. Any Fiat based motorhome older than about 5 years and classified as an auto will probably have the Comfort-Matic gearbox as mentioned by TW above.
David
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Thanks for your comments David.
There are various scenarios and factors that will go into our decision but one of the set ones is that any "van" will have to be automatic. OH wouldn't contenance having to drive a manual.
So at the moment we're just looking and information gathering. If I'm honest I'd love to be able to continue with the caravan. I have no problem towing with it and enjoy stopping in out of the way places but circumstances may/will force us to adapt. Maybe we'll get a PVC that will pull our caravan until I'm forced to sell the caravan. Maybe we'll get a small day or two motorhome. Who knows.
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Even though we stored our caravan at home, as we do with MH, it’s just so much quicker and easier setting off and getting home with MH, which is one of reasons we tend to use our MH a lot more than caravan. It’s always almost ready to roll, just usually needs water filling, throw in valuables, whatever clothes for how long/where we are going, we keep some clothes in MH, such as a waterproofs, comfy lounging clothes. Hoist the hound in, and that’s it, we are off. We keep food staples in our MH, jars, cans, condiments stuff that won’t attract mice, and shop for fresh stuff on our way, plus we go out in our MH nearly daily, so we aren’t carrying much weighty food in a big freezer and fridge.
Another advantage of going as small and compact as you are comfortable with, as it does make daily usage while away so much easier, as does travelling as minimally as possible. We have done three week tours easily, just moving around, so we are perfectly comfortable, but recognise that a small space, and putting up beds daily is not for everyone. But a 10 minute arrival, pitch to cup of tea is so easy, and it’s usually only another 10 minutes on that for getting away from site. Less if we use singles. You quickly learn to pick the best parking spots in car parks, helped by a bit of research for some places. A storage box won’t be for everyone, but it saves us a metre in length, as we can hang over verges, same with bikes on back. We have that flexibility. Garages are great for bikes though, more secure, but we just use caution where we park up. We are away and doing things as soon as we hit the road in MH. No having to drop off first on site, no worries about detours, we can change our mind attraction and route options as we go, which we really like.
We were never big Club type Site users, so for us, we didn’t sort of think about the “get to site, pitch up, settle in” formula with MH, as we only have a small van that we did tour with, from site to site, anyway. Minimal set up with that as well, even for a month in one place. We love being outdoors in all seasons if it’s dry, so couple of lightweight chairs and a parasol float our boat more than awning and a furniture set.
Lots of different ways to tour, all depends on what folks prefer.
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