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We have just ordered a Sterling.

The bodies of the Swift Group and the Bailey's seem to be much better put together. Particularly where the side joins the front panel.

Then we just went for what layout suited us (still a Swift Group or Bailey).

Then we went for how the interior 'felt' and went for a sterling eccles with the Elite interior.

I never dreamed that buying a van could be such hard work but the show was definitley the place to do it!

Cheers

Basil

Andy,

No it's not just you, buying a van is damned hard work!!!!

Re your comment "I have wondered whether the dealer is more relevant than the actual make" I think that it's a combination of both, but, under the sale & supply of goods & services act,  your contract is with the dealer, not the maker, it is more relevant that you pick a good dealer.

I can honestly say that my dealer, Chichester Caravans of Nutbourne, have been outstanding in both the sale of and resolving issues with, the van, simularily, Bailey's customer service & technical departments have been outstanding as well.

The major issue I have is the foul taste of the water from the van, but thats not the dealers or Bailey's fault, thats a problem with the manufactor of the pipes, this is being dealt with under warranty later this month, the only other issues have been minor cosmetic ones.

What we all tend to forget is that there is now no UK caravan manufacturer who makes a caravan from scratch, they all buy in the components and assemble them, its only the design, graffics & more importantly, the care of assembly & the level of customer service/support that differentiates them.

I'm truly sorry that your Lunar has been such a disapointment to the extent that you feel you have to take a £5k hit on it, is that the part ex price? if so why don't you try to sell it privately before the replacement arrives?

What about Bessacar if you can afford one they are really well made, our friends have one and though I think the intrior looks a little old fasioned it is real quality.

 We had a Bailey because we liked the interior, the layout, and you get a lot for your money, but in my opinion the exterior isn't as nice as the Abbey but we figured we spend more time looking at the inside than the outside.

 I have to agree too that the dealer is as or even more important than the caravan make because you are stuck with them for the next few years with servicing e.t.c. yes other places may pick up your warranty and servicing but they will only do yours when they can fit it in between their customers.

   Good luck let us know what you choose. 

One of the reasons we chose ours was the smooth one-piece thicker aluminium sides.  No seams (which could allow water ingress) and hopefully a bit more dent-proof.  We also liked the alu-framed windows, whereas a lot of vans have cheaper frameless ones.

We also looked closely at upholstery quality, the seat/bed supports, the underneath(!) and the finish inside all the furniture and generally looked out for any signs of flimsiness.  After that, it was just a question of overall personal preference on colours/styles etc,

All the vans belonging to a group have the same build-quality, so there's nothing to tell between the Bessacarr (now discontinued), the Swift, the Abbey, the Sterling, the Ace and the Sprite.  They all have their 'markets' and different specifications, but they all come off the same Swift Group production lines.  I'm sure all Explorer Group vans are much of a muchness too.

If you do some searching, the Caravan Club has carried out some surveys, indicating customer experiences regarding reliability and satisfaction across the brands.  I think the last one was a couple of years back.  The results are available to download from their website.

Quote: Originally posted by Janx on 09/11/2007

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What about Bessacar if you can afford one they are really well made, our friends have one and though I think the intrior looks a little old fasioned it is real quality.

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Unfortunately Swift don't make Bessacar now see HERE but I know what you mean, they look so solid, you may find a really good used one.

Was it Van Royce that were "hand built"?

Paul

Hi,

I looked at a Vanmaster at last years NEC. The woman on the stall had her nose so high in the air that she needed oxygen and was very dismissive about "other vans". 

 Their display van was actually falling apart inside....she blamed parents letting their kids run riot. (Strange this did not happen in all the other vans we looked at)

The quality of build, design and construction could not (IMHO) begin to justify the £28000 price tag, after all the fittings were in the main identical to those used by main line caravan manufacturers, just assembled in a different order.

She took exception to me when I pointed out that all caravans are "hand built" anyway, so how could she justify thier price tag.

Mr (Nasty) U-M

After having 4 vans from new out of the Swift stable, and all of them having to go back to the factory for major repairs we swopped to Bailey (Indiana) and this year had a new experience of coming to the first service and not knowing where the dealer service department was, usually by 12 months I know all the service staff by their names.

I think I still prefer the fit and finish of the Sterling range but its just not worth the hassle.

Steve