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We bought our first caravan last year, to test if we liked caravanning..we do!

so we plan to buy a new one (probably a Lunar 544) within the next 12 months.

Apart from the delivery fee (approx £500) what else can we expect the dealer to come up with to try and add on to the price?
Is there anything you think should be added at the time of purchase?
What sort of times (on average) do you have to wait between ordering and delivery? etc etc
Are dealer specials (different soft furnishings etc) a better investment than a standard caravan? do they hold their prices more?

All advice appreciated

If you have any queries regarding how long you would have to wait for delivery you can't always take the salesman's word as sometimes promises can be broken once you have parted with a deposit. You could always contact Lunar caravans customer service direct as I'm sure they would answer any queries you have regarding purchasing a new caravan from them and how long you would have to wait as sometimes they have caravans in stock depending on what your requirements are. I have provided a link but although there isn't a telephone number, there is an e-mail contact address and also a postal address. Hope this helps.

http://www.lunarcaravans.com/contact-us.php

thank you, these are exactly the things I wanted to know
we don't plan on part ex'ing our current van.

We did see a dealer special (cosmos) at the manchester show gone and loved that spec and finish inside compared to the standard quasar, but we also thought about the collection/servicing/issues and distance from the dealer (not in our area).

Dealer specials are marvellous, we've just collected our second.  The first was a 2010 Swift Island Jura based on a Swift Charisma 230, the new one is a 2012 Sterling Cruach Benmore based on the Eccles Sport 514.  They represent great value for money IMHO.  Come trade in time we were as happy with the figure we were offered as we have been with any of our previous vans.

Sadly we don't have any Lunar based dealer specials in Scotland though I think Campbells are bringing their Cosmos models to the Glasgow show so they will be interesting to see.

One word of caution with the Quasar 544, we ordered a 2010 model in September 2009.  We cancelled the order due to an ever changing delivery date and the very heavy ex works noseweight ... something in the order of 95Kg, far too heavy for us as our car had a limit of 75Kg.  Pity as its a great van especially considering the weight.

No problem....to be honest establishing an honest value for the PX is the key thing and of course even if you like the Lunar 544 why not visit Bailey, Elddis etc. to get a take on the PX value..........then ask someone from Lunar (not one of the dealer salesmen) which dealers have specials. For us we looked at Robinsons, Highbridge and Campbells. To be honest we discovered that the extras e.g. large Heki, shock absorbers, perspex panels in kitchen, LED downlighters, ext gas point and electric point etc. were STD on the dealer specials and the only thing that then differed were the fabrics. We just preferred the highbridge ones (and it was the closest dealer for us).

Just as an example of what can happen on the PX the first dealer we spoke to offered us 5K for our 10 yr old van.....when we spoke to Highbridge initially he started to say ours was only worth 3-3.5K at which point I said we'd already been offered £5K......he said I'll have to see what I can do, left our mobile number, walked off and waited (actually we chatted to Robinsons who were far more cagey). 15 mins later he was on the phone, offered us 5K (make sure you describe your PX van accurately!!) and said what could he do in terms of accessories.......so we told him, he said yes.........and we said that was great we'll think about it. Approached him at just after 4pm and said we were interested BUT could he throw in a couple of more things....no problem sir! deal done!  took our PX down last week (no issues) and will be picking up our new van in two weeks time.

Our new van will come with the EHU cable supplied.  The basic model does not have things like alarm system, Al-ko wheel lock, jack, outside 240 volt socket, BBQ point etc.  But we have ordered the dealer's special model, which comes with all these things pre-fitted.  And no add-on delivery charge.

The answer is to really research your options before committing yourself.

Bertie.