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Topic: which van...recommendations?!

febe3

28/6/2013 at 10:03am
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I am no doubt opening a huge can of worms here...we are looking at buying a caravan, had tents and folding camper and now thinking we may try a van. Have been put off before by cost of storage etc but do like the camping life )IF I have heating etc!) and the flexibility..and we have a dog so it is useful.
Am a little worried re the damp issues...any vans better than others? Looked at Adrias (the more recent ones) as seem to get a lot for your money although I believe that some people do look down on them (some of our caravanning friends for instance! But then their new van has been a real pig in a poke..damp probs etc...) Would like a bedroom which can be closed off from va..so end bedroom (for 15 yr old daughter/friend) and side bathroom. We have a landrover freelander at present, usually have cars which can tow engine and weight wise (no tow bar at present tho!) am thinking daughter may not go with us for much longer, and very much doubt her sisters will but just in case prob need a van to sleep 5
Any reccomendations?!

AL53HX

28/6/2013 at 11:01am
Location: BLACK((gods)) COUNTRY
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I have a 2007 Adria,no prob's at all,flew through this year's service,as for people looking down on you,ignore them,it's a type of envy,cos they have a leaky van that they paid an arm and a leg for

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CatieB

28/6/2013 at 11:52am
Location: cambs
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Another adria fan. Love them. We started with an elddis two years ago and I always knew the next van would be an adria.

As for people looking down on them...I'd say they are.not the type of people I'd care about, why should others have a view about what you do??? Our van is on a seasonal pitch now and when we arrived on our last trip a random couple from a british caravan made a beeline for us and said we love your van, really stands out we had to gogle it to see what it was like inside its the best van on the site!! Not sure thats true but it shows clearly not everyone looks down on them.

Sorry cant help you with a 5 berth...but there are other adria fans on here that have them so I'm sure they will be along soon

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Now in a motorhome

Gone via tent to tourer to seasonal to camper van

febe3

28/6/2013 at 12:10pm
Location: midlands
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Well, you are just saying what I think anyway...think it's one or two of the die hard caravanners we know who tend to look on any newish make with suspicion..and looking at Adria newer models they have come on a lot comfort, spec and looks wise inside. We could manage with a four berth but wouldn't want to go less than that I don't think.

Jack+Jon

28/6/2013 at 12:14pm
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If your friends don't like Adrias because theirs has been troublesome then that just sums it up really. On this forum you will read disaster stories about just about every make of caravan sold in the UK with the owners vowing never to buy that make again. Obviously you can get a bad one from any make you like & you read about them on forums but most will be ok, so just pick the layout you like & go for that regardless of the name on the outside.

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Regards, Jack+Jon.

febe3

28/6/2013 at 2:08pm
Location: midlands
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No, sorry you misunderstood, theirs isn't an adria...it's another make..a bailey or something. Have to say they bought it from new and don't think it's ever been right..in fact it put me off getting a van at all for a while, they've had to spend that much on it.

sunshinetours

28/6/2013 at 2:40pm
Location: sunny south east!
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Also being new to caravans from folding campers, we had an unbiased look at what was around for us. We knew we wanted a 6 berth for space and option of taking an extra body or two, and extra storage that brings when only 4 of you using it.

We knew after looking round at a few that the fixed bunks were a good options for us but worried about outgrowing it as kids got into teens, as many seemed to have at best 2 foot wide bunks and some only 5ft 5 long for instance.

We were also like you worried about damp and build quality problems which are quite prevalent in the UK caravan industry it seems (although plenty also never have any significant problems don't forget)

We looked at a number of makes and models firstly online and then at a few dealers and I think the thing that stood out for me was the pretty poor finish and quality of fixings on many of these vans, before we even established what the potentials problems lurked behind cupboards and wallboards.

We then saw our first Adria in the flesh and it was a bit like of a breath of fresh air to be honest. Wide, light, not overly fussy on the interior and things didn't feel like they were going to break as soon as you looked ta them. There was then the bonus of full size single beds for the kids at 2.5ft wide and over 6 foot long. This was the entry model, the Altea aswell

After that it was a pretty easy decision to be honest and we now have a 2011 model year 542DT which has the triple rear bunks and rear bathroom.

The one that may suit you is the 542DK which has a centre bathroom and twin rear bunks and diner that can be closed off.

Not being swayed by preconceptions and others opinions (not facts remember) can be a help in looking at first caravans to be honest

Jack+Jon

28/6/2013 at 2:42pm
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Well what I said then, you can get a bad example of any caravan but the well known makes would not stay in business unless most of their production was trouble free & tbf many complaints on here are actually about fairly minor faults made far worse by poor customer service & long delays before repairs are done.

Adria do make UK spec caravans sold through a UK dealer network so buy with confidence same as any other UK supplied 'van but beware of thinking caravan trade is same as motor trade with warranty work carried out without question by local franchise regardless of where you purchased 'van. Your local dealer might not be the cheapest but he knows you are local so you can pester him if his work is not satisfactory unlike if you buy 200miles away to save a few £100s.

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Regards, Jack+Jon.

febe3

28/6/2013 at 3:46pm
Location: midlands
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Thank you so much, and perhaps had better go through a dealer rather than privately. Thanks a lot sunshinetours, very useful info and will have a look at that model, sounds like what we need. I googled Adria dealers but none very near us (Nottm area) so will have to go and have a mooch further away...

febe3

28/6/2013 at 3:48pm
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Forgot to say....how old is too old, or is it like cars and I suppose depends on the owner

mikegalagher

28/6/2013 at 3:49pm
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We're thinking of swinging by Venture/Adria on our way to the ferry next month. Pondering the future

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Mike

My advice is worth no more than the price paid for it

Prague May/Jun 2017
Lake Annecy Aug 2017

Jack+Jon

28/6/2013 at 4:17pm
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If you are looking at caravans even 7-8yrs old dealers still want top price for them & used warranties have plenty of get out clauses. What wrecks a caravan is damp left untreated for yrs so it is good if caravan comes with full service history of annual services including damp checks from caravan workshop but the older a caravan gets the less likely it is to get serviced so its a lottery really.

You will certainly save money by buying privately so don't rule that out completely but check the Cris registration before parting with £1000s especially if current owner has not updated registration because its always possible caravan was stolen several owners ago. Its not unknown for dealers to fail to do Cris check also.

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Regards, Jack+Jon.

sunshinetours

28/6/2013 at 4:33pm
Location: sunny south east!
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Quote: Originally posted by febe3 on 28/6/2013
Thank you so much, and perhaps had better go through a dealer rather than privately. Thanks a lot sunshinetours, very useful info and will have a look at that model, sounds like what we need. I googled Adria dealers but none very near us (Nottm area) so will have to go and have a mooch further away...

http://www.adria-mobil.com/en/2013/dealers/

you have a few in Nottingham area

http://www.kingsmillcaravans.co.uk/
http://www.lowdhams.com/

We bought privately. Just get things checked out, plenty of advice on here. Paid well over £1k less than we would have done from a dealer and ours is under original manufacturer warranty still so no benefit in buying from a dealer if buying newish from that point of view

shelleybobs

28/6/2013 at 6:15pm
Location: South Yorkshire
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Hi, another vote for Adria! We picked ours up a month ago from venture caravans. Kingsmill and lowdhams are more local to us too but the offers on the dealer special "sportline" models were too good to miss. We have the DT same as Sunshinetours but sounds like the DK is just what you are looking for. We had someone we know turn their nose up at us for buying a "cheap foreign van" but then he went away and researched them, he came back gushing about them. Good luck in your quest for the perfect van, I'm sure if you had a look around one, the sportline DK would come up trumps ;0)

Francais

28/6/2013 at 7:48pm
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We are Tent campers, and have decided when the time comes, we will make the leap to Caravan, even though we have considered the gradual path via TT and then FC, before ending up with a Caravan as many folk seem to do.

So we are going to make the trip down to Northampton to look at the Adria's, only the two of us so a small 4 berth fixed bed will do the trick, liking the Sport Line PX (Altea Tay) at the moment.

Also on our radar is the Trigano/Rubis 420 Pop-Top another fixed bed but more pricey and no oven as yet, although could be stored in our double garage, and will cost us nowt on the French autoroute.

Also the Trigano will present a better towing experience, so despite the cost, it's got a lot going for it.

We are limited to pretty much 1200kg MTLP with the firms VW 1.6 TDi Golf that I drive.

Both vans fall well within spec for the car.

Hymer530

28/6/2013 at 8:33pm
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There can be only one, a hymer

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Mike

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