British caravans
Comments
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No axe to grind but from experience.
New Coachman Amara 2003 - Back to Factory for cracked panels/water ingress.
New Avondale Osprey 2006 - Back to Factory for new front and back panels/water ingress. Lots of issues with shelves falling off slats falling off...
New Swift Challenger 2010 - Water ingress fixed by dealer.
New Swift Challenger SE 2013, first trip bottom of drawers fell out, 3 months to replace, numerous other issues. First service damp on front windows, fixed by delaer, second service so bad had to go back to factory for major reparis. Lots of niggly issues
of bits falling off, panels replaced. But SWIFT were very good so would reccomend as you can talk to them etc.Knaus MH so far some niggly issues to be done in November but nothing major fell off yet...
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..So very true and they then would not get a "long term test van" for all the freebie holdays while on "test"
I'd like to know 'unusual things' such as whether the 9 litre boiler can give you enough hot water and sufficient pressure for a half decent shower, or whether the aerodynamics of the van have been improved for increased towing stability and decreased fuel
use.I am interested in crazy things such as where the really heavy items (fridge, oven, battery) are positioned to evenly distribute weight and help maintain a safe noseweight. There's more but you get the idea, none of these things crop up in magazine reviews
or on the little TV programmes that are on Sky.But I have a lifetime of asking awkward questions that do not always get answers!!!
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vanmaster seems a well built caravan might well be worth looking at and maybe keeping it a bit longer not seen a bad review on them
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Have you got a link BB?
Www.promobil.de
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vanmaster seems a well built caravan might well be worth looking at and maybe keeping it a bit longer not seen a bad review on them
Write your comments here... My last caravan was a Vanmaster, very nice but silly money and just as many niggles as any other van. Having said that I fell down the gap between the old and new owners of the company, it only lasted a few days but my warranty
disappeared into it. The new owners may have sorted out the more obvious problems, noisy water pump ,banging pipework, collapsing drawers.0 -
No axe to grind but from experience.
New Coachman Amara 2003 - Back to Factory for cracked panels/water ingress.
New Avondale Osprey 2006 - Back to Factory for new front and back panels/water ingress. Lots of issues with shelves falling off slats falling off...
New Swift Challenger 2010 - Water ingress fixed by dealer.
New Swift Challenger SE 2013, first trip bottom of drawers fell out, 3 months to replace, numerous other issues. First service damp on front windows, fixed by delaer, second service so bad had to go back to factory for major reparis. Lots of niggly issues of bits falling off, panels replaced. But SWIFT were very good so would reccomend as you can talk to them etc.
Knaus MH so far some niggly issues to be done in November but nothing major fell off yet...
We read elsewhere on here that we only hear of the UK built vans people have problems with, and that statistically is only a small percentage of those made.
As another statistic what percentage of the vans you have owned have had these quite serious problems, are you only mentioning the problem ones?
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No axe to grind but from experience.
New Coachman Amara 2003 - Back to Factory for cracked panels/water ingress.
New Avondale Osprey 2006 - Back to Factory for new front and back panels/water ingress. Lots of issues with shelves falling off slats falling off...
New Swift Challenger 2010 - Water ingress fixed by dealer.
New Swift Challenger SE 2013, first trip bottom of drawers fell out, 3 months to replace, numerous other issues. First service damp on front windows, fixed by delaer, second service so bad had to go back to factory for major reparis. Lots of niggly issues
of bits falling off, panels replaced. But SWIFT were very good so would reccomend as you can talk to them etc.Knaus MH so far some niggly issues to be done in November but nothing major fell off yet...
We read elsewhere on here that we only hear of the UK built vans people have problems with, and that statistically is only a small percentage of those made.
As another statistic what percentage of the vans you have owned have had these quite serious problems, are you only mentioning the problem ones?
Write your comments here...no these are all the new vans we have owned. There is another thread about lunar and from experience of both AvonDale and swift when they try to make them lighter they inevitably skimp and produce rubbish products that fall to
bits. Both of ours had lots of bits fall off on first use including bottoms of drawers falling out. The drawers are flimsy on cheap runners but our Knaus has soft close drawers on metal runners and they have solid bottoms.0 -
Going through our caravans we seem to have had little trouble
Piper no problems although not a lot to go wrong
Trophy two strip lights faulty, cheaper to replace them than go back to dealer though,
Coachman kept ten years and no problems,
Eldiss shower tray cracked and some overhead locker stays broke
Avondale a few things that should have been screwed in had wrong size screws but nothing serious.
Lunar other than aerial connection not pushed in no problems.
To be honest we have probably been lucky but I do wonder if the problem is we hear more from the owners with problems than those without.
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No maker of caravans is going to get it right 100% of the time. The question then becomes what is an acceptable level of customer dissatisfaction. If 51% of owners are happy does that make that a good reliable van? Would you risk your money ? I know I
wouldn't.I think that a parrellel existed when the J D Powet owner satisfaction surveys were published. About 10 years ago quite consistently Lexus came out top with a rating of arround 90% satisfaction. Coming at or near the bottom with a satisfaction rating
of arround 75% was a brand with a loyal and voceiferous followiing amonst caravaners. That was the brand was Landrover. But if you look at the figures 3 out of 4 LR owners were satisfied yet relative to alternatives it was not a reliable car.My points are caravan manufacturers make thousands of caravans we only buy one at the time so we base our judgement on a single sample point.
Lit is not possible to guarantee satifaction with any brand but it is possible to shift the odds slightly in your favour.
PS I was referring to LR quality in that past I have no idea what it's like today but considering the amount of investment Tata have put in and the number I see on transporters I assuming it has improved.
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Every one keeps saying about ten years water ingress warranty but I was informed that bailey give you six free then you pay for the other four not sure about other manufacturer's
Write your comments here...
It's Swift who provide a 10 year water ingress warranty, with no surcharge.
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Thank you for your explanation of 'bling' BoleroBoy, thought it differs greatly from dictionary definitions which describe bling as glitzy and ostentatious. Hardly a description of multi ring cookers, microwaves and dimming lights, which we have at home. You later post;
'but buyers need to look in the cupboards and under the beds for swarfe, unclipped electrical runs, pipework just 'bent' round a corner instead of being jointed properly, external lockers only six inches deep (cant get anything decent through it, even though the locker behind could cope), gas lockers that defy you to get a bottle in there, fridge doors fitted the wrong way round and hinder your access, mastic runs that look like theyve been put on by an apprentice (quite likely), leaking locker doors (a very popular one on one forum), these are the elements that need to be nailed down, within the cost of the van, well before a dimmer switch ever gets fitted.
By swarf, do you mean sawdust which doesn't sound like a deal breaker to me.
Our UK built van has all of the cable runs clipped or in trunking.
Pipes curved around corners offer less resistance to flow than elbows. Curved pipes are better practice.
None of our lockers, internal or external are less than 6" deep and none leak.
We can comfortably swap our Calorlite bottles, and the fridge door is hung on the appropriate side. Actually it's a German made Dometic and will only hang one way.
The underside of the van is clean and dry.
i enjoy cooking and fully use the built in facilities and the van has 5 drawers and two roll out baskets.
Maybe you should take a harder look at current UK built vans.
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We've lived happily all the year round in our 2015 Bailey Unicorn Cartagena and have not had any major problems with the caravan itself. Having said that, it is a bit of a tight squeeze getting past the fixed bed to the washroom. However, I believe the new models coming out for 2017 are wider, 8 ft. width instead of 7ft. 6 ins. So I wonder whether that may resolve that particular problem?
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Thank you for your explanation of 'bling' BoleroBoy, thought it differs greatly from dictionary definitions which describe bling as glitzy and ostentatious. Hardly a description of multi ring cookers, microwaves and dimming lights, which we have at home. You later post;
'but buyers need to look in the cupboards and under the beds for swarfe, unclipped electrical runs, pipework just 'bent' round a corner instead of being jointed properly, external lockers only six inches deep (cant get anything decent through it, even though the locker behind could cope), gas lockers that defy you to get a bottle in there, fridge doors fitted the wrong way round and hinder your access, mastic runs that look like theyve been put on by an apprentice (quite likely), leaking locker doors (a very popular one on one forum), these are the elements that need to be nailed down, within the cost of the van, well before a dimmer switch ever gets fitted.
By swarf, do you mean sawdust which doesn't sound like a deal breaker to me.
Our UK built van has all of the cable runs clipped or in trunking.
Pipes curved around corners offer less resistance to flow than elbows. Curved pipes are better practice.
None of our lockers, internal or external are less than 6" deep and none leak.
We can comfortably swap our Calorlite bottles, and the fridge door is hung on the appropriate side. Actually it's a German made Dometic and will only hang one way.
The underside of the van is clean and dry.
i enjoy cooking and fully use the built in facilities and the van has 5 drawers and two roll out baskets.
Maybe you should take a harder look at current UK built vans.
...Jc Whoops!! a sensible repost to the anti uk built LVs will not go down well in some quarters,
Ps we have 10yrs on our second new Bailey at no cost to us
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A lot is down to personal preference really. Having had a UK and a German van my experience is that the German one is of a higher standard of build quality but you pay the price in weight.
The key things I look for generally tend to be layout, bed size and storage space. I'm less interested in how they've hidden the cables.
Finding the right van is a bit of a minefield anyway and limiting my choice to only uk or only European wouldn't work for me at all
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JE I do not think build quality of some over the channel LVs is under question,and as you say it shows in the weights of them,which if fitted out with all the Uk "ensentials?"would really restrict what could sensibly tow them with,
This and other Knock uk Quality threads when taken in context is not how the majority of UK LV buyers see it ,with the Thousands that are sold each year and are then replaced in a year or two, because of the latest "Fad" or must have bit of "Kit",
The new build techniques of manufacturers,has improved the durability of LVs over the wood/tin/mastic of years ago same as cars and rust,
All "hand built" high volume of anything will be down to the "operator" at the time, and no matter how good quality control is a few will always slip through
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Jvb this is not a knock uk thread it was started as my experience in the uk caravans over the years deteriorating and I dont think many people will disagree
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The weights of the current uk spec German vans are dropping. The current Knaus starclass 560 comes in 100kg more than my 10 year old uk spec van. The Starclass includes a lot of kit that would be options in the non uk ranges.
My slight preference is for non uk vans due to payload, the ability to get what you want inside them and the bed lengths but it is only a slight preference. We have had no major problem with any van we've owned and anything that has needed to be sorted
was minor wear and tear issues.I'm not sure that we get a true picture of the reliability of uk vans from consumer surveys.
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My wife and I have been caravning for 36 years we brought our first one in 1981 and towed it with a austinaxi
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Jvb this is not a knock uk thread it was started as my experience in the uk caravans over the years deteriorating and I dont think many people will disagree
Write your comments here...
Having been caravanning since the 70s I completely disagree. Our first van, a 1972 Fleetwood Colchester was very basic, crudely finished and it leaked like a sieve, The next leaked a bit too, but was better finished. The third just leaked a bit around a
window which was easily fixed, the next didn't leak at all and was quite well appointed and built. There has been a steady improvement in water resistance, build quality and appointment over the years. And I, along with many others have enjoyed that journey
more and more.0 -
Youngsters then
Vans are far lighter size wise than then ,and loaded with "kit"and still far more damproof,
You have to put it in context,in the days when we bought our first second hand c/van (1969) it had one gas mantle, no electric apart from off the car no hot water except kettle/saucepan elson toilet,and a double bed that was swung down from rear wall(inovation),towed
with an Austin Cambridge circa 1962,the c/van was riddled with damp and the car rotted away,The last 3 vans we have had have been warm, waterproof,and had as good a bathroom and loaded with enough kit to be a mobile home from home
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In view of an earlier post that 'manufacturers can hardly keep up with demand' it got me wondering that if that is so where do all the unwanted/damp/obsolete caravans go? I've never seen a caravan breaker's yard.
There are breakers, Spridler, all around the country. There's a good one in Dorset who we've bought a couple of things from.
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Spriddler there just cleaned up and sold to us again lol
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In view of an earlier post that 'manufacturers can hardly keep up with demand' it got me wondering that if that is so where do all the unwanted/damp/obsolete caravans go? I've never seen a caravan breaker's yard.
There are breakers, Spridler, all around the country. There's a good one in Dorset who we've bought a couple of things from.
...There is one in South Wales
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Noted, TW and JVB.
I suppose now that I've set that in my mind I'll see breakers all over the place.
Good source of replacement windows maybe as my m/h ones are badly scratched by hedgerows etc. due to my dislike of main roads and penchant for taking the path less trod. I assume caravan and m/h windows are technically the same.............
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Noted, TW and JVB.
I suppose now that I've set that in my mind I'll see breakers all over the place.
Good source of replacement windows maybe as my m/h ones are badly scratched by hedgerows etc. due to my dislike of main roads and penchant for taking the path less trod. I assume caravan and m/h windows are technically the same.............
Write your comments here...My preference are motorways. Nice wide lanes without scratching from hedgerows, no sharp bends, no roundabouts, no traffic lights, a constant cruising speed without gear changes, which to me is a much more relaxing stress free
way to travel.0 -
Write your comments here...My preference are motorways. Nice wide lanes without scratching from hedgerows, no sharp bends, no roundabouts, no traffic lights, a constant cruising speed without gear changes, which to me is a much more relaxing stress free
way to travel.You are surely kidding aren't you, Malcolm?
I'd honestly pack it in if that was how I had to tour. The whole point for me is to stumble across the unexpected, the quaint, the sleepy hamlets, the tranquil rivers, the basic bars and restos, tootling past vinyards, fields of smiley sunflowers or maize. No
doubt being in a m/h, retired, and making 90% of my travels in France has some bearing on my preferences.0 -
Write your comments here...My preference are motorways. Nice wide lanes without scratching from hedgerows, no sharp bends, no roundabouts, no traffic lights, a constant cruising speed without gear changes, which to me is a much more relaxing stress free
way to travel.You are surely kidding aren't you, Malcolm?
I'd honestly pack it in if that was how I had to tour. The whole point for me is to stumble across the unexpected, the quaint, the sleepy hamlets, the tranquil rivers, the basic bars and restos, tootling past vinyards, fields of smiley sunflowers or maize. No
doubt being in a m/h, retired, and making 90% of my travels in France has some bearing on my preferences.Write your comments here...That's a good point Spriddler. A motorhome is a lot easier down country lanes than a large twin axle caravan!
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