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 Topic: Need advice on buying a 2nd hand tourer
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28/4/2019 at 6:33pm
Location: Worcestershire
Outfit: Buccaneer Cruiser
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For the daughter we went looking at caravans advertised on Facebook. The condition of most of those advertised was ridiculous as they were riddled with damp and in one case the "suspension" had collapsed on one side.
On one caravan that we were assured was damp free when I went to press the damp meter against the wall in the bathroom, it sank right into the wall and left an imprint of the head of the meter on the wall as it was that damp. Wasted journey however as we are still looking we avoid any caravan advertised on FB.
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03/5/2019 at 11:01am
Location: south cheshire
Outfit: VW Caddy Maxi
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Lots of very good advice in this article, and plenty more in the Features/Tips section on here. I hope all goes well and you find the right caravan for yourselves.
https://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/articles/view.asp?id=10
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03/5/2019 at 1:07pm
Location: West Yorkshire
Outfit: Bessacarr Cameo 625 2011
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Quote: Originally posted by birdysbird on 27/4/2019
We are still looking as we definitely still want to buy one.
Lots of good advice here, perhaps a little overwhelming for a novice. If doing all the suggested checks yourself seems daunting, engage a mobile engineer as previously suggested:
https://www.mobilecaravanengineers.co.uk/find-an-engineer/
You might be considering joining the Caravan and Motorhome Club - if so, they offer a Club discount on the engineers fee. The Gold inspection is £130 but this is very small in relation to the cost of many repairs.
I would get such an inspection whether a private or dealer purchase. Dealers won't volunteer information, so finding issues before purchase is a lot less hassle than fighting afterwards...
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06/5/2019 at 11:18am
Location: flint north wales
Outfit: swift challenger 480se 2002
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all I can add to this is ,most if not all used vans will have issues . but keep searching and rely on gut feeling , you will know the one for you when you find it . and the more you look at the better your knowledge will become ..
have a budget and stick to it then add at least £1500 to that to sort out problems , its far better to buy private if possible as you can weigh the sellers up better ,try to buy from a husband and wife it shows they work together to look after it .
private -vs-dealer a dealer will have bought in a used van and try to sell it on at a large profit margin .. so is it better to buy one that's 3 grand over priced or buy private and spend a grand fixing it .
its a minefield but there are some hidden diamonds in it
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06/5/2019 at 6:27pm
Location: East Herts
Outfit: 1992 Elddis Wisp 450CT + X Trail
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There is for and against with buying private and from a dealer. Private is probably cheaper (but not necessarily) but certainly more risky. Not least because some "private sellers" are nothing of the sort. With a private seller you have very little come-back if anything goes wrong. Buying from a dealer you have the protection of the sale-of-goods-act, even if you buy "without warranty" as we did last time.
At least £1,500 to sort out problems, Black Fox? We didn't pay that for our caravan, including fixing any problems. If it needed that much spending on it I would walk away.
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Best Regards,
Colin
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09/5/2019 at 11:46am
Location: flint north wales
Outfit: swift challenger 480se 2002
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Quote: Originally posted by Colin21 on 06/5/2019
There is for and against with buying private and from a dealer. Private is probably cheaper (but not necessarily) but certainly more risky. Not least because some "private sellers" are nothing of the sort. With a private seller you have very little come-back if anything goes wrong. Buying from a dealer you have the protection of the sale-of-goods-act, even if you buy "without warranty" as we did last time.
At least £1,500 to sort out problems, Black Fox? We didn't pay that for our caravan, including fixing any problems. If it needed that much spending on it I would walk away.
a reasonable sum depending on what's included in the sale . remember that especially from dealers very little will be included , price up gas bottles ,awning, water and waste barrels etc etc etc it soon mounts up even more if you need /want a motor mover
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29/5/2019 at 7:41pm
Location: East Herts
Outfit: 1992 Elddis Wisp 450CT + X Trail
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A shame indeed.
However, this is not a good time to be looking. If you can I would wait until late autumn or winter when there are more for sale and prices come down. If you can view after a good downpour of rain, so much the better, as that will show up any leaks.
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Best Regards,
Colin
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30/5/2019 at 7:37pm
Location: West country
Outfit: Mondeo
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Unfortunately now is the busiest time of year for selling caravans. So lots of folk rushing to get one before the holiday. This means higher prices but also, much more worrying, it's a good time to offload the junk with folk so pressurised to buy they take a chance.
Later in the year they will be cheaper and should be more good ones about.
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we are off to look at one tonight from facebook marketplace. Will be sure to give it a good going over, then if we like it im going to get a pre purchae inspection with it being out first caravan. It's £90 but then they deduct it from price of service.
