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 Topic: First time ever buyer
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15/7/2017 at 8:44pm
Location: West country
Outfit: Mondeo
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Sorry I didn't intend to start world war 3. I just think a newbie motor homer needs to be aware of the pros and cons of motor home Vs caravan.
Quite simply we have a small car doing 50mpg solo towing a small 2 berth caravan. We only have to tow it to the site and if the roads leading to it are too narrow for a caravan it would not be there.
Having arrived at the site, we can use our car doing 50mpg to go round every little lane we want to and park in a normal car park when we get to that quaint little seaside village.
We like being in the country so will always be away from bus routes and bikes are not for us.
So for us it's a caravan.
For others I can see the advantages of a motor home, but if a newbie buys one without appreciating the potential limitations they will not be best pleased.
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16/7/2017 at 4:41pm
Location: Shropshire
Outfit: Toyota Granvia (Wellhouse)
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You make some very valid points navver...
We went straight from tents to MHs..and even though we've used our campervans/Mhs very regularly and rarely stay put for more that a few days at a time, if I'm honest, if we had gone via the caravan route, I'm not entirely sure we would've then switched to a MH? We may've had a versatile "dayvan" as a tow vehicle?.. but I'm not convinced we would've opted to go the coach-built MH route..?
(at least, not until we were both drawing pensions and able to clear off around the Continent for months at a time, anyway).
The fact is, you can choose to "tour" or to "stay put", with either...
Although some MHers do like to think of themselves as adventurous, free spirited, road rebel types, the reality is a lot of MHs only spend their time sitting pitched up on campsites for the same duration as a caravan would anyway (that is, when they're not sitting depreciating on their driveways, being used as very expensive front garden ornaments! )...the owners of which would've probably been better suited to caravans,..if only they weren't too proud to admit it  ).
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16/7/2017 at 8:03pm
Location: South Wales
Outfit: Elddis Majestic 155
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Hi,
This thread is really interesting.
The caravan fraternity are quite rightly putting their best foot forward.
Pepe is saying he might have been swayed to a caravan had he gone down that route.
Capt Lightning, motorhomer through and through.
Myself, had both, mainly motorhomes but had one caravan.I find motorhomes more "user friendly" ,day off, nip down to the coast with a chicken salad,park up for a few hours and then home.
Having said that, Navver and Colin are right to suggest caravans finer points .
We all know, whatever we use it is an expensive choice be it tent,caravan or motorhome.
Best get it right first time.
Regards,
Greg
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Growing old is not for sissies
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16/7/2017 at 8:44pm
Location: Devon
Outfit: Dreamer(Rapido) D.55 select Plus
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Mickyk43: As you can see many varied opinions above!
Suggest you list your personal preferences and priorities. E.g. I will list what is specifically important to us:
1. Price/affordability!
2. Parking - essential that there is room to park on our drive.(& allows electric hook-up as required.)
3. Van small enough to park on a supermarket car park, friends' drives, and narrow enough for Devon lanes and Spanish villages! - our is 5.99M long and more importantly 2.12M wide. (A VW conversion will be smaller than this so good news for car-type use.)
4. Useage: We use our van all the year round not just for holidays but trips to friends/relatives, weddings, (& Funerals these days) all over UK and Europe.
5. Fixed double bed essential!
6. Good storage .. for mobility scooter,awnings, spare wheel, guitars, dog stuff,repair kits/spares and WINE.
7. 4 fully belted seats (sometimes take passengers/grandkids etc)
8. Safe travelling & sleeping space for our Spaniel.
9. We normally use sites with EHU but sometimes 'off grid' so have decent leisure battery and solar panel.
10. Hot water & heating - both gas and electric. Our current van fully 'winterised' - insulated/heated water tanks etc) As we normally on EHU our gas useage is minimal - 6Kg will last us at least 6 months.
11. Bathroom & toilet - that said we rarely use the shower as don't see the point of lugging water to & fro when most sites have good facilities. However shower area is useful for hanging wet clothes.
12. A decent 3-way fridge more important than an oven to us! (especially in Spain where 'eating out' is so cheap.)
Note we do not fit in with pepe's stereotype above! (Think he has gone over to the 'dark side' ! :-)
Whilst not exactly 'adventurous' we spend several months a year abroad (mainly Spain) - and very rarely plan the exact route or book sites ahead. We are very flexible (perhaps not bodily these days) and change our minds en-route depending on the weather or decisions to call in on friends or indeed to call in at the nearest Lidls/Aldi etc! We also venture onto mountain roads!
All this would be very difficult with a larger van and impossible towing a caravan! When we find a site worth staying for more than a few days we do 'stay-put' for a while but tbh we we like to move on fairly frequently. (Spain is a very big country) We did stay on one excellent site in February this year for over 3 weeks - but managed to hire a car for week very cheaply. In truth tho' I prefer to avoid driving completely once settled on a good site with like-minded people ( ...musicians and wine drinkers!) I also walk/jog long distances with our dog whilst my wife carries the essentials on her scooter!
We are now fortunate enough to afford a new Motorhome (but took us to age of over 65 to get there ..) As Capt said above - we go with our heart - we just love the freedoms and meeting folks by Motorhoming and camping. If we went with our 'head' we would probably not buy one - £46K would pay for a lot of package tours and B&B's!!
Re general costs we get 30mpg, insurance is £272, and currently we get free servicing for both the Fiat part and the 'caravan' part for 3 years ... special deal from our dealer.
Sorry so long-winded but hope it helps with your decision - Final note: Trust you really like 'camping' anyway?
P.s. (Edit) After we had carefully considered our specific requirements we ended up with a 'shortlist' of just one van that fitted the bill - the one we ended up buying in fact.
Post last edited on 16/07/2017 20:53:19
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The older I get the better I used to be.
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17/7/2017 at 6:04am
Location: South Wales
Outfit: Elddis Majestic 155
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Hi Micky,
My last two vans have had fixed beds, the last one (middle picture on my profile) was above a garage.
The storage space was immense but always the temptation to overfill.
I have spinal problems so the climbing down from the bed proved painful so we now have the Marquis (Elddis) Majestic 155 with a ground floor fixed bed (top photo).Big storage area under the bed.
The compromise with this van is the toilet/shower is smaller than normal but suits us.
Still plenty of room in the living area even with the fixed bed .
I like being able to flop into bed at any time but then there are people prefer the large lounge.
As regards who you buy off, obviously trade will give you certain guarantees that a private sale won't.
Not sure of your price range but whatever, trade or private get it checked by an expert, if there is any
objections to that,walk away.
Don't forget if you are hoping to take grandkids etc,make sure you have enough seatbelts. Our van only has driver/passenger which is laughable really but again suits us.
Good luck and happy hunting.
As I said previously, it might be beneficial to put your rough location in your profile.
Regards,
Greg
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Growing old is not for sissies
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17/7/2017 at 8:48pm
Location: Shropshire
Outfit: Toyota Granvia (Wellhouse)
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Quote: Originally posted by Mickyk43 on 16/7/2017
We definitely want a motor home, not caravan nor camper van....//....
The first big debate we are having is fixed bed (bedroom) or a bigger "lounge" with fold away beds. Is it better to purchase a first MH privately or dealer?
Thank you
Personally, we prefer a fixed bed. The *French bed layout in our last coach-built MH was spot on for us,(although being longitudinal, they can make for a slightly longer van).
Having to dismantle the lounge and assemble the bed/bedding every night peed me of with the rear lounge(only) van we had before it..
I also like a layout that has the ability to provide defined areas, that can be *used simultaneously(*and privately, if necessary).
eg Being able to close off an area of the van as a "post-shower dressing area", whilst leaving the kitchen, seating and habitation door clear to function.
(again, something the rear lounge coach-built we had couldn't provide...with it's loo/shower being directly opposite the habitation door!?)
What ever the layout, keep an eye on it's payload and individual axle ratings..and if it's "used" make sure all of the required warranty requirements have been met by the previous owner(s)
Post last edited on 17/07/2017 20:52:24
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18/7/2017 at 12:02am
Location: Devon
Outfit: Dreamer(Rapido) D.55 select Plus
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Quote: Originally posted by Mickyk43 on 16/7/2017
..... Is it better to purchase a first MH privately or dealer?
Thank you
Although good private sales are possible,I would suggest buying from a dealer - ideally one within say an hour of your home! A reputable dealer should give you some sort of warranty- say from 3 months to 1 year depending on age of van.
(Edit: Bear in mind that you are are also in a position to hint to the dealer that you may come back and part-ex for a newer van later!)
You should also get a proper handover demonstrating not only that everything works but how it works.(Some folks record the handover on a phone video etc.)
Do plenty of research on van types/makes that meet your 'best compromise' as well as dealers and perhaps ask for further advice on this forum - especially regarding bargaining points before you actually sign anything or indeed part with any money. As others have said it might be useful to put your location on your forum profile; not surprisingly there are both good and bad dealers as well as good and 'not so good' makes! (Lots of experience here - search on previous posts!)
Also, again as already suggested, take an experienced owner with you when your short list is down to one or two if possible.
Enjoy searching!
Iggy
Post last edited on 18/07/2017 00:25:52
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The older I get the better I used to be.
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