Quality Built Motorhomes??

[2cv]

The Guys I talked to had I think the model was J ****something or other when they first come out.
The * was a number,

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Not surprised it’s Sold

 

[Canalsman]

I looked at one of these a few years ago, and whilst it was beautifully put together, the interior was just way too 'busy' for my taste ...

 

[tailgate]

I looked at one of these a few years ago, and whilst it was beautifully put together, the interior was just way too 'busy' for my taste ...

Now owning an IH conversion although nicely laid out. And decent fittings. There are issues with the level of insulation installed in the vans. In some areas hardly any has been put in. In the doors mainly ,people have been shocked to discover just how little there is.

 

[trevskoda]

If you want something done right then do it your self,im happy with my bus.

 

[Nabsim]

People want everything in their van, plenty room, loads of gadgets and all leaving enough payload for a family holiday in a max of 3.5t.

while manufacturers rightly have to make enough profit to continue and develop new ideas something has to give.

this is probably why self builds are so popular, you have to sit down and think hard about what you want and can fit in rather than picking goodies in a sweet shop.

 

[Fisherman]

If you want something done right then do it your self,im happy with my bus.

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Great stuff Trev, just one problem. Most folk would not have the skills required to build their own van, or the time.

 

[Fisherman]

Not wishing to be cryptic but swift (vultures)can sell with all their faults to folk who look on the bright side that accept faults as part and parcel.

I am more than happy to be one of those simple individuals who look on the bright side, accepting a fault or two as normal.

 

[Fisherman]

People want everything in their van, plenty room, loads of gadgets and all leaving enough payload for a family holiday in a max of 3.5t.

while manufacturers rightly have to make enough profit to continue and develop new ideas something has to give.

this is probably why self builds are so popular, you have to sit down and think hard about what you want and can fit in rather than picking goodies in a sweet shop.

That’s one of the reasons we buy 6m vans. 3.5t is possible on a 6m van. But some 7.5 m vans struggle with payload on a 3.5 t chassis. Big vans with small payloads are everywhere.

 

[trevskoda]

Great stuff Trev, just one problem. Most folk would not have the skills required to build their own van, or the time.

What happened to woodwork,metal work and general science/electrical at school,maths english history geography are for mummies boys,hence im DAFT.

 

[trevskoda]

All true,i still have all my g/fathers tysac saws the ones with the elephant on the handle & tennon saw with brass back.

 

[Fisherman]

Just looked at the spec on our 6.95 metre Exsis and the payload before extras is not 680/670 kg as I have previously posted but is 730kg
But the factory fitted extras, such as oven, larger fridge, sky lite etc, do eat into this.
I think ours ended up at around 500kg

Sorry *****, I was not stating this is the case for all larger vans, I have seen some with 500kg or greater payloads on a 3.5 T chassis. But look at our sister vans in the Pegaso range. 7.5 m vans with large garages and 325kg payloads. Its ridicules. If you carried a passenger and to children you would have hardly anything left, and if you added some dealer fitted equipment, even that may not be possible.

 

[Fisherman]

What happened to woodwork,metal work and general science/electrical at school,maths english history geography are for mummies boys,hence im DAFT.

Jack of all trades master of none Trev.

 

[Snapster]

In 2013 we bought a new Autosleeper Broadway FB. We used it a lot, covering around 22000 miles in 3 years, and almost every trip out in the first year or so found me fixing, adjusting or putting back together things that fell apart or broke. AS had the van back for 2 weeks to fix a long list of things that I couldn’t
Nothing went wrong that stopped us using the van but the most annoying was the kitchen waste pipe falling apart twice, in two different places dumping grey water all over the carpet, at night, in the middle of winter.

Fast forward to Oct 2018 and we bought a new Burstner Harmony Line TI 736.
We bought in on 12th October and started a 2000 mile trip round France and the UK on 13th.
Nothing went wrong, fell off, broke or needed adjusting.
As of today, we have covered 15300 miles travelling all through the year, and apart from adjusting the shower door ( with adjustable hinges) and cleaning the gas jet in the fridge, nothing has gone wrong.
I cant fault anything in the van, its incredibly well put together, very comfortable and keeps us warm in the depths of winter.
I can certainly recommend a Burstner.

 

[Sharpie]

At least one British manufacturer seems not to have a clue about how motorhomes are really used. Just filling up the water tank is done through a valve that's really just the same as a caravan one set up for an external portable carrier, as caravanners use. Want to top up with a water can, no way. Use the hose on most sites and Aires to pop into a proper filler, no way, they assume that you will somehow plug something into their special connector. Oh and the tank is underslung, not even insulated, well that's not going to go well when it gets frosty. Unbelievable.

 

[Snapster]

You could be describing our old Autosleeper. We never really had an issue with the water filler, we spent most of our travels in France stopping on aires where there was a water supply. If just took a lot longer to fill than just with a hose.
We got round the risk of frozen tanks by insulating both fresh and grey tanks and fitting internal water heaters.
But, as you say, poorly designed and obviously aimed at seasonal use on campsites, just as you would use a caravan.
I remember when I had a problem with the van and Autosleepers service manager came to look at the van. It was a year old and we had covered about 9000 miles. He commented on the “high” mileage and said “ it’s nice to see someone using the van for how it was designed to be used”
They really didn’t have a clue!

 

[Nabsim]

At least one British manufacturer seems not to have a clue about how motorhomes are really used. Just filling up the water tank is done through a valve that's really just the same as a caravan one set up for an external portable carrier, as caravanners use. Want to top up with a water can, no way. Use the hose on most sites and Aires to pop into a proper filler, no way, they assume that you will somehow plug something into their special connector. Oh and the tank is underslung, not even insulated, well that's not going to go well when it gets frosty. Unbelievable.

Or has this to do with available payload? Facility to fit an external drum with pump could be good for some wanting to stay legal. I know it seemed a strange option to me when I saw Baz filling his.

 

[Snapster]

Our van came with a flat hose and Whale connector to fill from a tap and an external pump that could be fitted in an aqua roll or similar ( we never used one. )
The system had two advantages over a normal fill system. The water shut off automatically when the tank was full, and you could leave the hose connected permanently if you were on a serviced pitch. ( or, heaven forbid, you could use an aqua roll.)
Definitely designed to be used like a caravan!
I think the newer Autosleepers can be fitted with a standard fill point as well as or in place of the Whale type.

 

[Obanboy666]

Or has this to do with available payload? Facility to fit an external drum with pump could be good for some wanting to stay legal. I know it seemed a strange option to me when I saw Baz filling his.

I recently bought a whale pump to use with an aqua roll I had from my tugging days. Handy when I’m parked up on a site and cannot be ar-ed to move motorhome to top up water.
Always leave home with full water tank and to date haven’t had to use it, more junk cluttering up the garage lol.

 

[Sharpie]

When I'm parked on a site for a few days I take a 25l ordinary water carrier down to the facilities, sometimes along with the cassette, bungeed onto a lightweight foldable aluminium trolley with decent wheels, not the tiny sort on say a caravanner's special tank. The water carrier is also a sensible rectangular shape, much easier to pack.

The trolley also gets used for e.g shopping, with two fold-up plastic crates, and packs away flat. I may look eccentric wandering around towns, villages and markets with it whilst sightseeing, but that's how I like to do my shopping, not in a hypermarket. And I couldn't carry back say some crates of beer and half a dozen bottles of wine and other things in carrier bags, that would be exhausting.

Back at the van the water gets transferred to the tank through the standard filler using my backup submersible pump which just has some vinyl hose and a cigar plug on a lead long enough to plug into one of my sockets. Since I carry the spare pump anyway (they are unreliable, this is the third one so far) it cost nothing more than a bit of tube, and some extension wire and plug which I already had. Takes a couple of minutes to transfer. The apparatus coils up and packs away neatly.

 

[Snapster]

Our latest van has a normal filler point. We rarely use campsites, living in France, but when we visit family in the U.K. sometimes we have to.
But, I would never carry water and waste about like a caravanner. When our water runs out, our waste tank is also full so we drive to the service point ( if there is one) and sort everything out there.