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 Topic: are you happy with your caravan
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02/9/2015 at 8:44pm
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Joined: 12/3/2010 Standard Member
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Swift Charisma 560, 2008, bought new in 2009
Where to start??
3 Battery charger / mains units (Third one replaced by swift for a stelling unit after the dreaded nordelectronica problems
3 Episodes of Damp, all repaired by Swift, but second repair badly handled by Lowdham Caravans who basically lied to me for 6 months about the replacement parts:( and the damp re appeared in the same area as the first that Lowdham were supposed to have repaired?
Toilet seal leaked in the first year
Fridge tried to kill us 3 times, twice with carbon monoxide in the van (thank goodness for detectors, and yes it was supposedly serviced), 3rd time it packed up altogether causing food poisoning and despite numerous repair attempts and £300 in parts it is now gone and replaced with a compressor fridge and additional solar capacity for the off grid caravanning we do! Really bad sealing and ventilation/flue system on the Thetford fridges. Compressor fridge has got to be the way forward for caravans now. Really quiet, very cold in all temperatures, including above 25 celcius when normal 3 way fridges can struggle, and with an extra battery and solar we could easily cope indefinitely without hook up!
Hot water heater blown fuse, weird but been OK since?
"Chimney" on top of heater flue fell off in first year, not covered under warranty according to Swift???
Flush pump on toilet replaced twice under warranty, now with uprated pump and no problems. (anti freeze in the system over winter!)
Flush switch on toilet failed twice, now OK after repair by myself again
Front cabinet just fell to bits, so had to be repaired by myself again
All in all, not a great van. We often joke when we go away as to what will fail this time, but hopefully I have repaired most of the things myself and in my opinion it is a better caravan than new with the Mods I have done. I would be slightly reluctant to buy a swift again, but on the whole we do like our van now, and have had some great holidays in it!
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03/9/2015 at 12:00am
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Joined: 09/9/2009 Gold Member 
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Quote: Originally posted by akwillows on 02/9/2015
Swift Charisma 560, 2008, bought new in 2009
Where to start??
3 Battery charger / mains units (Third one replaced by swift for a stelling unit after the dreaded nordelectronica problems
3 Episodes of Damp, all repaired by Swift, but second repair badly handled by Lowdham Caravans who basically lied to me for 6 months about the replacement parts:( and the damp re appeared in the same area as the first that Lowdham were supposed to have repaired?
Toilet seal leaked in the first year
Fridge tried to kill us 3 times, twice with carbon monoxide in the van (thank goodness for detectors, and yes it was supposedly serviced), 3rd time it packed up altogether causing food poisoning and despite numerous repair attempts and £300 in parts it is now gone and replaced with a compressor fridge and additional solar capacity for the off grid caravanning we do! Really bad sealing and ventilation/flue system on the Thetford fridges. Compressor fridge has got to be the way forward for caravans now. Really quiet, very cold in all temperatures, including above 25 celcius when normal 3 way fridges can struggle, and with an extra battery and solar we could easily cope indefinitely without hook up!
Hot water heater blown fuse, weird but been OK since?
"Chimney" on top of heater flue fell off in first year, not covered under warranty according to Swift???
Flush pump on toilet replaced twice under warranty, now with uprated pump and no problems. (anti freeze in the system over winter!)
Flush switch on toilet failed twice, now OK after repair by myself again
Front cabinet just fell to bits, so had to be repaired by myself again
All in all, not a great van. We often joke when we go away as to what will fail this time, but hopefully I have repaired most of the things myself and in my opinion it is a better caravan than new with the Mods I have done. I would be slightly reluctant to buy a swift again, but on the whole we do like our van now, and have had some great holidays in it!
sounds more like a bailey,anyway,enjoy,guy next door has a swift,nice but his awning rail leaked,and its 4 years newer than mine.good looking van though
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i dont sell cheap tat.I sell tat cheap
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01/10/2015 at 1:08am
Location: Nottingham
Outfit: Lunar Solaris 524
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Those of you criticising the so called "moaners", has it occurred to you that there might be some justification in their moaning, which might just be justified criticism.
I have taken the trouble to count the number of second hand caravans I have owned since I started caravanning and I would say that I have been happy with the first seven, which were all second hand including the first one which cost less than 400 quid.
My current caravan, also my first new one, a Bailey Unicorn Valencia, purchased six months ago, is the most expensive mistake of my life.
I won't go into the numerous faults, but every holiday finds new ones and I started it off on a previous post not long after I bought it, so I won't drone on about it.
I have to keep it to try to get some money's worth before I can ditch it, but was it a YTS project or am I misguided in expecting some value for the 22 grand I parted with.
All I can say is that I will eat my own liver before I buy another Bailey.
I should say that the Dealers have done their best, the Service Dept. at least, although I can sense their embarrassment.
The Sales people are the same as sales people anywhere - full of bull**** and once they've got your money, they move on to the next sap.
Having said that, the paint job is nice, the lighting system is good and I've just had a nice holiday, but don't expect me to bull**** myself that I've got a good caravan - I've just got to live with it.
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jjg
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01/10/2015 at 2:40pm
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Joined: 15/7/2013 Platinum Member 
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To see if we would like the idea of caravaning we bought a 2002 Bailey Pageant Monarch which we have had for 5 years now, and it has been faultless. We love the van, and because of it we love caravaning.
Strangely, I spoke to a person in the trade recently, with many years experience, and when I told her what I had her words were "those were the days' a REAL Bailey" So what has happened? I am looking to buy a new van, brand new, and love the look of the 2016 Bailey Unicorn Seville, it is without doubt the best two berth to look at with the full height fridge and all. But reading the horror stories with new vans, not just Bailey I must add, I am thinking I may just revamp the old girl for a grand or so and keep her.
TBH, if I did spend that kind of money on a new van and experienced issues, I would personally kick in the doors of the manufacturer and cause them so much grief they will pay me to go away......I would never give up. If your product does not work it is not fit for purpose,take it back and demand a refund, involve the Consumer Ombudsman, Trading Standards, CAB, CCC/CC and this wonderful forum. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 gives you the right to a 30 day refund by law as of today also.
MAKE them wish they had never heard of you!
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