Sterling or Coachman

I won't be buying a bailey again either 2016 Pegasus bought in May and back twice for repairs for 2 leaks RUBBISH 

So in a nutshell, UK made caravans are in the main shoddy with limited life span and German made vans are much better but at a price. Bit like the motor industry I suppose...(he said, lighting the blue touch paper and retreating a safe distance). 

...All manufacturers  are are suseptable to "problems" not just the UK  it is just that we in the UK want every new "inovation" fitted but still lighter than the previos model, and when you consder the thousands of uk vans that are in the UK ,the "problems "are not that many but as is human nature  a moan is about a perceived it seem is better than keeping quiet about being satisfied

So in a nutshell, UK made caravans are in the main shoddy with limited life span and German made vans are much better but at a price. Bit like the motor industry I suppose...(he said, lighting the blue touch paper and retreating a safe distance). 

I don't think that this assessment is at all fair. Adria's have a good reputation and they are not built in Germany. 

There was talk of Hymer setting up a low cost operation in I think Poland. I am not sure that this ever came to anything. Eriba touring were made in France but that factory was shut down and production went to Germany. 

But I still maintain that all caravans no mater what the supposed country of origin are still made from the same parts. 

I am sure the OP has found this thread most informative and a great help in narrowing down his choices 

So in a nutshell, UK made caravans are in the main shoddy with limited life span and German made vans are much better but at a price. Bit like the motor industry I suppose...(he said, lighting the blue touch paper and retreating a safe distance). 

I don't think that this assessment is at all fair. Adria's have a good reputation and they are not built in Germany. 

..The big Merc 4x4 is I understand is a rebadged US car 

Hi Bobrave we were in your position last year with our 2012 bailey unicorn Madrid  and agree with all your issues with it.

we went for the coachman VIP also looked at swift elegance but much preferred the coachman better build quality.

we love our new van and have no issues at all with it and would highly recommend coachman to you 

We have only changed one caravan having had it less than five years and that was because we had a fifth child and needed to get a five berth. 

...5 children, 5 berths. ...so you slept in the awning for peace and quiet? 

Thanks to everyones' advise. This is our 3rd new caravan and, it's fair to say, we're tired of loose trim, loose wiring, half tightened taps, leaking bodies etc associated with many of the UK manufactures. Although we're truly patriotic we've just ordered
a new Hymer van. Expensive but built like the proverbial brick outhouse and should last a lifetime. Thanks to Boff for the suggestion. Now...anyone looking for a Baliey Unicorn Valencia? 

Now I will worry that it won't live up to expectations 

what model did you go for btw?

Ours is with the leather but without the media pack.  

A couple of observations before I will start with the good. I wasn't sure about the hanging space by the door. Behind the TV it is actually super useful for coats and dog leads. 

The draw above the Alde boiler is a warming draw.  It has a radiator below it. This is great for warming plates and towels.  It's not so great for storing chocolatea in.  This is buried in the blurb and we didn't realise for a while and I couldn't understand
why the draw got warm   

The spotlights are dimable  I can't find this referenced anywhere and discovered it by chance but if you keep touching the button when they are on they dim  

Make sure the outside plug is a Uk 3 pin ours was original a continental and needed to be swapped  The 12v outlet is a hella type btw  

Inside there were no 12v plugs fitted originally   As we we spend a lot of time off ehu I some fitted By the dealer  The dealer also fitted a kitchen flap which does give a bit of work space   

Finally the one niggle we have had, the locking mechanism of the sliding door need very precise adjustment pay particular attention to it when you collect the van   That's about it really  

Sorry my tongue was firmly in my cheek. As we are on our third Hymer caravan  A 2015 590 GL which comes with the faults I mentioned.  Look at one lift the seats to take a look at wiring and piping.  You won't see any because it is all run in conduit it is
a tidy well thought out van in our opinion.

Others may hate it but the build quality stands comparison with any other van we have looked at.  It will go for its first service in a months time and there a couple of niggles that will need sorting, but nothing that has stopped us using it for 70+ nights
 in the first year. 

In the spirit of openess I thought I would list what I think needs addressing when. The van goes for its first service latter this week. 

1 The kitchen tap has come loose simply needs tightening up.  This might because my wife has tried to swivel a fixed tap.

2 There is an external plug in whale pump this has a loose connection, and needs a wiggle to make it work.  This was fitted by the dealer.

3. The push button latch on the internal door to the under bed storage doesnt always work

4 It is a bit tricky to lift the bed to get to the storage.  I think the guide rail needs to be about 2mm shorter.  To make sure it clears the chanel it runs in when the bed is extended.

5 Washroom sliding door needs adjust to make sure the door locks and can be opened the door hande need replacing which is a linked problem.  This is probably the most major problem.  But the door has a proper latching mechanism rather than just a clip to
hold it open when towIng. A bolt fitted to the door to lock it like the swift solution would be ann easy solution but inelegant.

6 The Alko wheel lock receiver need a tap running down to clean up the thread.  As the bolt binds although the wheel lock works

One of the shower panels fell off about third time out.  These are fixed to the frame with something called dual lock which is like velcro on steroids.  I fixed this myself cost me £10 lot cheaper than driving 100 miles to the dealer.

The van was a demonstrator so must have had some traffic and. a large discount. 

It needs to go back for a damp check to keep the warranty up.  Hymer are quite strict on the timing and only allow +/- 6 months  from the anniversary of the purchase date to get this done. 

I dont know a long list or a short list but it is what it is.  Obviously we would like to use it more but with us both working fulltime I dont think 70 nights is too bad.