Message Forums

hi there welcome to the forum, have a look at murray caravans at airth [it has a web page]this side of kincarden bridge and kingdom  caravans just over the kincarden bridge and to the left as if going to knockhill.

kingdom sometimes have good bargains as they sell vans privatley for folk rather than being a dealer,

or try the 2 dealers in kirkcaldy have you tried danny duncans near wishaw.

it is better to look inside the actual van than at pictures as even newish vans get damp

myra

We're just about to change to that exact layout next weekend.  We're getting a Compass Magnum 556.  Think the Corona 556 is the same layout too.

We looked at 3 with this layout - the Sterling, Abbey 330 was another & I'm pretty sure Lunar did the same.  The Magnum we're getting weighs in at 1450 kilos MTPLM & with our Passat estate will be an 83% match.  If weight would be an issue you could look at Lunars - they tend to be lighter & may just avoid having to change your car (although I haven't looked at the weight of your Skoda).

Have a look on www.caravanfinder.co.uk  Just put your price range in & select 6 berth and it'll bring up all the options for you.  For checking a towcar match look at www.whattowcar.co.uk

Good luck & enjoy hunting for your van!

Mine is a Lunar Zenith 6 berth and I love it.

Quite light to tow also.

your car is fine for the job. dont rush into the purchase take time plenty of time. check that an awning comes with the unit and that its ok. check the awning rail is sound and not repaired. many leaks come from around the rail as it takes a lot of pulling from wind etc and soon leaks appear. get a pair of steps and check for moss growth in seals to roof. it only grows where there is moisture. get under and check front and rear seals with a brawdel soft wood equals leaking. if it smells nice, has it been "airfesh treated" to cover damp smell ?  musky is better than fabreeze as it shows honesty. all units this time of year should have a "need of fresh air" smell to them. 

google the address many sell because they have storage problems and never take the story that others are interested in it also. go away and chew the cud and return later that day to agree deal, if they are genuine they wont mind.

I have seen folk walk away from a deal because £50 worth of carpet is grubby. yet a new carpet is at many times hiding a prev problem.

with the children an awning is a must have item.  also good bed area, for all the toys teddy etc etc.

there are plenty of bargains out there have a look at my unit in pics. although you will be lucky to find one. but the layout size and weight is just the ticket with children. but good ones are rare. yet at around £2000 and under, all in with awnings (yes two) and kit, for a good one.  shows that you dont have to spend a fortune. older units may not be as pretty as the new ones but they are at times far greater to tow and are better built.  MDF and solid doors. Worktops and cookers/microwave etc all equal weight and something has to be cut back on to allow for them.

beware of dealers as they mark up by around 1K and your come back on a secondhand one is like a car very limited.

search and search a few days on the net can save hundreds. a caravan can loose hundreds each time its sold or traded.

Hi, we done the same this time last year, purchased a 5 berth caravan. Rear double bed and bunk. Great layout as we could leave the rear beds made up when away.

We have now changed our van to a 4 berth with a side dinette that converts to bunks. It has an end bathroom with seperate shower. This is essential as some of the sites we use have no toilet facilities.

It was great to have the children sleep at the other end of the caravan with sliding doors, but now they are getting older the side dinette seems the obvious choice.

Everyones needs are different and can change over time.

The bigger the caravan the heavier car you need. Is storage an issue? Can cost £400+ and insurance, servicing etc...

An octivia can tow upto kg1300 may not need to change it?

Good luck with your seach!!

Hi, I think you've probably hit on the right space layout for a family with young kids straight away, we've tried other shapes and ended up here.

I'm the same as Helen, we've got a Lunar Zenith 6 2009 aswell, really nice light van, but with enought bits and bobs to keep up happy.  Great van.

Quite a lot of the companies sell this shape though

The Bailey Bretagne was the first one to catch our eye, I still like the look of it now, though it isn't as light and airy on the inside as the lunar.  Lunar have put in mini roof windows down the van, which with the missing rear windows really makes a difference with this kind of shape.

Some of the models like the Bretagne have a door opening onto the beds, which from a bike travel perspective sort of makes sense, but form a security perspective with the kids, this left us a little ill at ease.  So when we spotted a couple of this shape, without the door, we started considering getting one.

The Bailey Bretagne is quite a lot heavier aswell which means a heavier car again.

Side dinet give the kids some where to draw and colour in, have breakfast, etc when its wet out.  Also somehere to put wet clothes which doesnt block off the caravan.

Tony B

a good awning for it should be about £ 300 to 500  they can (new) be around £1k he is not going to sell it quick at that price and as he has reduced it by £1k already it shows he has marked it up by around 2k to the original selling price.

see if he will throw an awning in with it worth a try.

its right at the top of your towing weight esp when loaded so be warned . to tow a unit of this type loaded you should have a car that is at or over 1500kg Octavia and most saloons are 1300kg Bedding Equiptment Awnings etc etc all add up.

nice unit though !

What kind of awning would be best for you will depend on what you'll use it for.  If it's just the extra space you want then one of the lightweight 390 type 'porch' (although pretty much the full length of the van) awnings would do the job & save on a lot of weight. 

We only use our full awning when away for 5 nights or more.  For shorter stays we use the Kampa Rally 390 as it's much lighter & quicker to put up.  In winter we use a Scenic Plus awning - big enough to store wet coats & to get mucky boots off before going inside the van.