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Subject Topic: Towing older caravans and servicing?
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Personfife-bloke
31/3/2014 at 12:55pm
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I'd love someone to tell me a pre 98 van shouldn't be towed a lot. What a lot of utter tripe.

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Who needs travel agents,we have our static


Personflufftec
02/4/2014 at 7:38pm
 Location: Blackwood
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Hope you enjoy your older van as much as I enjoy my 1992 'van although I will be upgrading towards the end of the year for a bigger model around the 1995 sort of age, cant wait for all the modern technology :)

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Im new to this please be gentle


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PersonJo66
05/7/2018 at 10:14pm
 Location: Worsley Manchester
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I have a van manufactured 1989 which I've just picked up. It's in really good condition but I'm struggling to find somewhere or a mobile engineer who will service it. Most are saying they won't touch anything before 2002. Does anyone know of anywhere? I'm in Manchester area. The man I bought it from just serviced it himself but my insurance are insisting on a certified caravan engineer. Cheers.


PersonOpensauce
06/7/2018 at 11:04am
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All you need is a chassis service. If you can’t find a caravan place to do it then take it to a place that services trailers. As for insurance I wouldn’t bother. There is no legal requirement to insure a caravan as you are covered for third party risks while towing on your car insurance so lack of insurance won’t stop you towing it legally.


PersonSamandRose
06/7/2018 at 2:13pm
 Location: Midlands
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Jo66 - I've never come across that one before. The only question I've ever been asked before booking mine in (though it's a 2002, I admit) is whether it's a single or twin axle. As others have said earlier in the thread, the chassis will be made by either Alko or BWB and haven't changed much since the 80s whilst the fridge, heater and electrical components are the same in most caravans (before and after 2002)!

As Opensauce says, insurance for your caravan is not a legal requirement so you can either switch companies or just not bother with it. Our insurance is only about £50/year as Camping & Caravanning Club members.

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"Don't wait for the perfect moment. Take the moment and make it perfect."


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PersonMick S.
06/7/2018 at 3:04pm
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You mention 'sorting damp' (should any show up) during a service. Whoever does the service and finds any damp of any substance, they wont be sorting it out 'on the spot'. Depending, it could take months to address, and possibly more than the van is worth to fix, as a worst case scenario. But you would have to make that call as necessary.
I'd service it first, as you dont know the condition of the water/gas pipes or electrics.


PersonJohn4703
06/7/2018 at 9:00pm
 Location: Glasgow
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Quote: Originally posted by Opensauce on 06/7/2018
All you need is a chassis service. If you can’t find a caravan place to do it then take it to a place that services trailers. As for insurance I wouldn’t bother. There is no legal requirement to insure a caravan as you are covered for third party risks while towing on your car insurance so lack of insurance won’t stop you towing it legally.


I'd suggest telling your car insurance that you are towing a caravan, I mean telling them in writing and keeping a record of it. It is always best to be sure that you have fully disclosed everything to an insurance company.

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We camped for years. In 2019 we bought an Elddis Avante 454. We like it as it is short (6.9m) and fits in our driveway and has a fixed bed.
We had 127 nights away in the caravan in 2023.


Persontrog100
07/7/2018 at 12:37pm
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well one thing is for sure.. a caravan that covers a lot of towing miles is more likely to fall apart than one that dosnt move.. he he..

also an older caravan is more likely to have structural problems than a new one.. :)

caravans dont have very clever suspension and pot holes do over time and mileage take their toll..

in the end it does come down to the condition of the van.. i have done a lot of mileage in my 1994 avondale and i have just had to repair the frame that holds the fridge in place.. no rot just the entire frame was coming away from the wall and the floor.. a fridge can be heavy when it has grub in it and mine sits right over the axle each pot hole tries to bounce it up in the air..

its fixed now but without the slightest doubt towing and road shocks did the damage..

trog





PersonJo66
07/7/2018 at 2:51pm
 Location: Worsley Manchester
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Hi, many thanks to all who have replied. After a couple of weeks of fruitless searching for a certified caravan engineer, I now have a solution, so again thanks for your advice.
Just a quick question for SamandRose - do I need to be a member of the camping and caravan club to insure my van with them?

Jo



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