Tall caravans
Just watched an early 80s edition of the legendry game show Bullseye, don't judge me! The star prize was a large family sized caravan. It was at very most 2m tall, most current vans are 2.5m tall. I am not small and the interior height of my van is at least a foot above my head. Why are modern vans so tall, when did they grow, surely towing and stability would be massively improved if they were a few foot lower.
Comments
-
A lot of older caravans had pitched roofs, so the sides were much lower than present vans.
0 -
At 6ft I still bump my head occasionally on the door frame between the living area and the bedroom, even though the rail on which the door hangs extends only about 3 to 4" below the ceiling, so I can't say that today's caravans are excessively tall.
0 -
I have not noticed any height increase since I started 19 years ago?
0 -
I think it’s the shape which has altered. Modern vans are squarer with the walls being higher. It used to be the case that max headroom was only found in the centre of the van.
1 -
In part I would have thought it was down to the type of chassis used and larger wheels compared to way back as well of course as the more modern design?
David
0 -
I cannot see chassis and wheels having much affect ours in the past used to be 13inch wheels on crossply tyres now 14inch on lower radials and chassis were mostly mounted on coil springs suspension,the first indispension?we had was fitted to a very damp swift on a deep aluminium chassis that probably caused the damp with the way it flexed
0 -
Smaller tinnier wheels were the norm (did you wonder where the name came from?) and vans rode lower. They didn’t have all the underslung gubbins in those days.
You can see what I mean in my avatar pic.
0 -
They're more noticeably wider...............
0 -
-
... sits back smugly, as ours is 2m tall from ground level when in travelling mode, but pops up usefully taller within 30 seconds of arrival. Hence headroom inside, but no need to pay caravan tolls on French M-ways. I can't tell you just how tall, it's not here to measure, but we can get an old fashioned 6 foot visitor in easily enough. We're shorter.
The only downside is remembering to duck when using the door, which has to fit below the pop-top!
0 -
Having started caravanning in the 1970s and still going strong, I’ve certainly witnessed the growth of vans in every dimension. They have higher ceilings, something which was apparent in the 1980s, roofs no longer have a raised centre and an easily reached awning rail. Floors are higher to better accommodate increased length on sloping pitches and standard hitch heights have seen an end to pronounced nose up/ down towing attitudes. Today’s vans are wider, with some growing wider still of late. Weights too, preclude towing with a 1600cc Cortina. Though there are always exceptions such as the tiny Eriba without a washroom and the necessity for a two litre fuel injected engine. Today, luxury interiors abound and we’ve grown out of cut moquette upholstery with patterns burnt into locker doors. I can’t say that I miss the old days of broken gas mantles, cold water raised by a foot pump, and cooling milk in a bucket of water. But at the time, a caravan sheltered us from the rain, gave access to out of the way locations and homely cooking, just as today’s models do too.
0
