Permanent bed v drop down bed - A-class type

[oldish hippy]

well look at wildax they do fixed bed pvc conversion anne that's what mine is

 

[Nesting Zombie]

Hi ya,
I kinda get what you say, & in my view your right that the OP doesn't necessarily want a Longer vehicle, But as for the the above, A Rear Fixed Bed OFTEN contributes ALOT to the living space in my view, As its generally shared with other usage like the obvious BIG Extra Under bed Storage locker, Yet MORE Overhead storage Lockers, A Full Hanging Wardrobe, A Small Unit, As well as being a general Daytime temporary 'Dump' space if say while having visitors OR a meal rather than sitting in the associated Bits n Bobs in the saloon, & in my case it also houses a Separate Shower Unit That is also my Wet weather Hanging space, Washing machine area, Dirty / Wet Boot storage & Drying room !. Most of witch would otherwise probably be in the Loo !. So having the extra space will naturally find 'STUFF' migrating to the area giving a clearer Saloon. ish lol.
Just saying, it Could be useful & may work for some to maybe GREATLY enhance their living space !

 

[lotusanne]

Thanks very much for all these discussions, it is really helpful for me to get first hand opinions and information. The van will be what I jokingly refer to as our Forever Van - as it will have to last forever, as it is unlikely that we will be in a position to replace it again, so want to try to get it as right as possible. We are limited to about 6m by where we park it, but also want to be able to park up reasonably easily. Current van is coachbuilt and 18 ft. We go away in it most holidays and many weekends throughout the year, but post retirement/ redundancy we will go for much longer trips so it needs to be suitable for that too

I have looked at vans with permanent beds at the back that do come in under 6 metres, but usually at a compromise to the living area. We often go away with friends who have a small van and ours become the social area, plus we really like the 2 settee arrangement, where we can both spread out and relax. I know you could maybe use a permanent bed like this but not sure it would be the same. And finally we need room for grandkids and dog!

Can't help being struck by how many people say they wouldn't be without their permanent bed though, and the extra storage under it would be useful...I keep going round and round with it all, but I realise now that we need to actually get into a drop down bed and see how much agilty is required rather than try to make an academic decision

 

[Nesting Zombie]

Thanks very much for all these discussions, it is really helpful for me to get first hand opinions and information. The van will be what I jokingly refer to as our Forever Van - as it will have to last forever, as it is unlikely that we will be in a position to replace it again, so want to try to get it as right as possible. We are limited to about 6m by where we park it, but also want to be able to park up reasonably easily. Current van is coachbuilt and 18 ft. We go away in it most holidays and many weekends throughout the year, but post retirement/ redundancy we will go for much longer trips so it needs to be suitable for that too

I have looked at vans with permanent beds at the back that do come in under 6 metres, but usually at a compromise to the living area. We often go away with friends who have a small van and ours become the social area, plus we really like the 2 settee arrangement, where we can both spread out and relax. I know you could maybe use a permanent bed like this but not sure it would be the same. And finally we need room for grandkids and dog!

Can't help being struck by how many people say they wouldn't be without their permanent bed though, and the extra storage under it would be useful...I keep going round and round with it all, but I realise now that we need to actually get into a drop down bed and see how much agilty is required rather than try to make an academic decision

You will get there, ONLY you know Where & HOW you use your vehicle, BUT isn't it great having this Forum & ALL these different people giving there perspective & ideas.
GOOD LUCK.

 

[jagmanx]

Yes

Thanks very much for all these discussions, it is really helpful for me to get first hand opinions and information. The van will be what I jokingly refer to as our Forever Van - as it will have to last forever, as it is unlikely that we will be in a position to replace it again, so want to try to get it as right as possible. We are limited to about 6m by where we park it, but also want to be able to park up reasonably easily. Current van is coachbuilt and 18 ft. We go away in it most holidays and many weekends throughout the year, but post retirement/ redundancy we will go for much longer trips so it needs to be suitable for that too

I have looked at vans with permanent beds at the back that do come in under 6 metres, but usually at a compromise to the living area. We often go away with friends who have a small van and ours become the social area, plus we really like the 2 settee arrangement, where we can both spread out and relax. I know you could maybe use a permanent bed like this but not sure it would be the same. And finally we need room for grandkids and dog!

Can't help being struck by how many people say they wouldn't be without their permanent bed though, and the extra storage under it would be useful...I keep going round and round with it all, but I realise now that we need to actually get into a drop down bed and see how much agilty is required rather than try to make an academic decision

Look at lots of layouts
What is your lenth limit 6m or 6.5m or 7m
Given as you say it is to be your forever van .. Check the drop down bed access remembering you will get older and maybe less agile.

To expand slightly on my previous post our lounge/dining area will seat 6
2 swivelling cab seats 1 forward facing double seat with seatbelts 1 side facing doubles seat to access the table.
So Ok for grandkids and friends
This area will convert into a good sized double bed but a bit of a fuss
See the other posts re "bunk beds which use the cab seats" this may allow grandkids to be easily accommodated.

Not suggesting or van is perfect for you but it is a good model to start with
Lunar Premier 622 review - Lunar motorhomes | Practical Motorhome

PS the comment about extra ferry costs for a slightly longer vehicle are in my view irrelevant
Provided you can keep it on your drive the other issues re length are minor.
Parking / camping spots all the same for 6m 6.5m 7m

 

[jagmanx]

Yes but

The OP was asking for relevant comments
My comments are relevant... OK so you do not agree.
The extra ferry costs from 6m to 7m are minor.

I simply asked (in effect) if 6m was an absolute limit

I Knew you would respond !
OK you like a drop down bed others have indicated disadvantages and possible problems !

Who knows how fit we will be in a few years !!!

My post was not assuming unlimited budget !

 

[campervanannie]

well look at wildax they do fixed bed pvc conversion anne that's what mine is

Much prefer the Hymer 474 compact if I knew how to put a link up I would it's fab and can get my trike in lol.

 

[Derekoak]

Hymer 474

But over 6 m

 

[Deleted member 9849]

You're very lucky,a lot of retired ex miners from this area who are still with us at 72 have various disabilities caused by years of hard manual work underground and wouldn't be able to get into an over cab bed,I don't suppose you gave much thought to that fact as you never had much experience of it in your line of employment.

 

[Deleted member 9849]

Much prefer the Hymer 474 compact if I knew how to put a link up I would it's fab and can get my trike in lol.

There you go..........Hymer Compact 474 - Travelworld Motorhomes

Only problem for the OP is that is slightly over their maximum length at 6.2m.Looks a nice van though and it would have decent separation at bed time,you could put the grandkids to bed in the rear and still have use of the front dinette which means you wouldn't all have to go to bed at the same time.

 

[Skar]

Hi Skar, thanks for that, just wondering why that was, i had assumed that the rest of the van would still be usable when the bed was down? - apart from the cab seats, is that not the case?

Yes the rest of the van was usable but the 580 is quite small with an L shaped lounge/dining area adjacent to the drop down bed. Yes it was usable (and I have used it often) but frankly her staying in bed made the place look untidy! Now she has her suite at the back and I happily take her frequent cups of tea in bed to keep her out of the way...

 

[lotusanne]

Yes the rest of the van was usable but the 580 is quite small with an L shaped lounge/dining area adjacent to the drop down bed. Yes it was usable (and I have used it often) but frankly her staying in bed made the place look untidy! Now she has her suite at the back and I happily take her frequent cups of tea in bed to keep her out of the way...

Hahaha !! She is a lucky lady!! But the idea of her making the place look untidy really amused me!!

 

[campervanannie]

There you go..........Hymer Compact 474 - Travelworld Motorhomes

Only problem for the OP is that is slightly over their maximum length at 6.2m.Looks a nice van though and it would have decent separation at bed time,you could put the grandkids to bed in the rear and still have use of the front dinette which means you wouldn't all have to go to bed at the same time.

I was looking at that van for meeeee I could get my mobility scooter between the 2 beds and the one on EBay at £38.995 has a massive garage door at the back perfik.

 

[lotusanne]

I was looking at that van for meeeee I could get my mobility scooter between the 2 beds and the one on EBay at £38.995 has a massive garage door at the back perfik.

How big do you want to go Annie? That does look a lovely van, and it would be ideal to put the scooter there wouldn;t it, out of the way of everything else when travelling, so you could still use all the facilities.

 

[campervanannie]

How big do you want to go Annie? That does look a lovely van, and it would be ideal to put the scooter there wouldn;t it, out of the way of everything else when travelling, so you could still use all the facilities.

Don't wat to go massively big but it's trying to combine my scooter with the comforts of a MH and under 22ft not an easy ask but that one looks perfect depends how much of our retirement saving we want to spend so will keep looking.

 

[lotusanne]

Don't wat to go massively big but it's trying to combine my scooter with the comforts of a MH and under 22ft not an easy ask but that one looks perfect depends how much of our retirement saving we want to spend so will keep looking.

Would scooter fit in garage under a fixed bed? Some of the are pretty big, are you ok getting up to higher bed?

 

[campervanannie]

Would scooter fit in garage under a fixed bed? Some of the are pretty big, are you ok getting up to higher bed?

Yes I have been looking at some on eBay with the large garage at the moment I am trying to find a van conversion that had 2 single beds in the back that fold up against the wall but cannot remember what make or model, it was a professional conversion but is now lost in either auto trader or eBay.

 

[colinm]

It's just clicked that you will be up to five up, I don't know of any 6m van with 5 belted seats, although it is an option to fit a double passenger seat. but this may well compromise the rest of layout on a 6m van.
For sleeping it may well be that an overcab with rear lounge and an across the front seats bed would be an option.
We have been down the route of making sure our van is fit for carrying the kids, but when it comes down to it, it's a much rarer occurrence than we thought it would be, and even then their mother comes as well so we now have a tent for them. Whilst it's a nice thought to take the kids you realy need to make sure you will not be compromising too much.

 

[colinm]

Yes I have been looking at some on eBay with the large garage at the moment I am trying to find a van conversion that had 2 single beds in the back that fold up against the wall but cannot remember what make or model, it was a professional conversion but is now lost in either auto trader or eBay.

Our globecar 636sb should take a mobility scooter, there is one version with extra high top and the bed lifts as a whole.
p.s. I see there are two globecars that should take a 'pensioners hotrod' and keep bed intact the 'campscout revolution' and 'globestar 600L revolution', on both of these you would raise bed, drive scooter in, then lower bed to a convenient height, if you have scooter with folding backrest and handle bars this would be quite low.

 

[ScamperVan]

I am trying to find a van conversion that had 2 single beds in the back that fold up against the wall but cannot remember what make or model, it was a professional conversion but is now lost in either auto trader or eBay.

Wildax, perhaps?

Edit: ooops,sorry - just reread and saw it has already been mentioned.