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Hymercar Sierra Nevada


tfp

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Hi,

I'm new to motorhoming and purchased a Hymercar Sierra Nevada last August. I'm having problems with the van and I am trying to find anyone else who has purchased one and whether they have had problems too.

tfp

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The van has a window to the rear on the drivers side which opens outwards so that if you open the main van door to go in or out it will knock into the window and in our case move the whole glass piece out of its housing causing damage. Hymer and our seller Travelworld state it isn't a design fault which I disagree with as a window is of no use if you cant open it for fear of damaging it or having broken glass.

We also have damp patches appearing in the pop up roof and damp patches towards the rear of the van in the roof which clearly shows water ingress. This van is less than 11 months old and as they are a relatively new design i'm wondering if this is a design fault too.

We've asked for a sliding window to replace the window we can't use to be told that we will have to pay for it.

Also we were told we could have a fly screen fitted for £400 but once fitted there was no seal on the side that is pulled over but only brushes. Several months later and lots of trips back to Travelworld they have finlly said that if we want the proper seal we have to fork out an extra £841.... The proper seal was something that should have been completed at factory fit and if fitted afterwards is not the same spec.

So I wondered if any other Hymercar users had the same issues.

 

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Welcome to the Out&AboutLive forums, tfp.

 

You may well find that no member of this forum owns a “Sierra Nevada” as they are probably pretty rare in the UK.

 

Regarding the outwards-opening window that can contact the sliding door, I suspect that you’ll have great difficulty successfully arguing that this is a ‘design fault’.

 

My Rapido 640 motorhome has a small top-hinged window in front of the habitation-area entrance door. With the entrance door fully opened the window cannot be opened. With the window opened the entrance door cannot be fully opened. If the window were open and the entrance door were caught by the wind the door would smash against the window.

 

It was obvious when I was considering buying a Rapido 640 that there was the potential for door/window impact to occur and that it would be better/safer if the window were the sliding type. However, I chose to accept the top-hinged window and its position relative to the entrance door as a ‘design limitation’ not a ‘design fault’. It might be practicable to replace my motorhome’s top-hinged window with a sliding one, but I would not expect Rapido or the dealer that sold me the vehicle to fund that exercise.

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Thanks for that information. The window alone I realised I would probably have to accept, with everything else on top and such poor customer service the whole process has been so disappointing.
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Hi tfp,

 

Interesting to hear your comments. Presumably the van is new as you mention less than 11 months old? There were surely brochures you read through before buying which must have covered some of your queries. Or did you buy second hand?

 

I'm puzzled that you query a standard window fitting to your van, ok it possibly is a deign error but did you inspect all the parts before purchase or did you assume that all things would be perfect, nothing ever is. Items such as a fly screen are often offered as an extra and if so the fitting construction may require a different surround entirely and therefore would require a cost to replace.

 

I'm inclined to think there is more to your message than you have revealed.

 

Will

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The window is just one of those things with Motorhomes. The damp patches sounds like a rooflight has not been fitted correctly should be easy enough to get rectified.

If you don't have any luck with Travelworld with a Hymer warranty you can take it to any dealer in Europe. I would have thought Travel world should fix it with the rip off prices they charge for Hymers.

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Hi Will,

 

I'm not quite sure what you mean by more to my message. This is the first van I have bought and it wasn't a case of thinking everything was perfect I just hadn't factored in that clearly with motorhomes there are windows that are put in that can't be used fully. Therefore it has been informative to hear that that's the case with other makes from people on this forum.

 

Yes it was bought new and the salesman didn't explain that there would be varying fits to the fly screen or varying costs. It would appear Travelworld weren't aware themselves which has caused confusion all round.

 

Steep learning curve.

 

tfp

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I bought a new Hymer in 2002. The flyscreens at all windows came as standard fit.

 

Perhaps Hymer are now putting flyscreens on the options list to lower the initial price point (a practice used by other manufacturers).

 

The addition of flyscreens in the original build probably costs peanuts. I did have to pay extra for the flyscreen on the hab door.

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tfp

 

Good to hear your comments. It was just a thought as there are often questions asked that have a deeper reason. The advise from most is to do lots of research keep asking questions and not to believe any salesman. They would never point out a fault even if it was obvious for it could mean a lost sale.

 

Travelworld similarly are never going to admit to knowing of a fault. Its the buyer who has to ask.

 

My comment on the fly screen was a suggestion to find a reason for the cost as I'm not familiar with fly screens at all. When we need something similar I used a loose arrangement with wooden beads.

 

Will

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The Hymercar “Sierra Nevada” comes in two versions - a common-or-garden fixed-roof 2-berth hightop or a with a rising roof that offers an extra two sleeping positions. Both variants are shown in this Travelworld advert

 

http://www.motorhomes.co.uk/motorhomes-for-sale/hymer/hymercar/sierra-nevada/1451/

 

and I’m guessing from tfp’s statement

 

"We also have damp patches appearing in the pop up roof and damp patches towards the rear of the van in the roof which clearly shows water ingress.”

 

that it’s the rising-roof model that’s involved here.

 

It will be apparent from the advert’s photos that when the sliding entrance door is slid back it will cover the small window set into the body’s side and, if that window is the normal top-hinged variety and is opened, that the door will hit it. I’m not sure how essential the small window is, as the fixed-roof version in the advert does not have it and there’s no sign of it on the Hymercar website

 

https://www.hymercar.com/de/modelle/hymercar/modelle-mit-bad/hymercar-sierra-nevada/highlights.html

 

I can imagine the window being useful to provide exra light for the bedroom area (which it will do closed) but I’d question that it’s needed for ventilation. As I said earlier my Rapido has an openable window that can be hit by the entrance door. I don’t open that window a) because I’m very aware of the door/window impact risk and b) because the Rapido has lots of other roof- and side-mounted openable windows to let air in. However, I do appeciate the presence of the window to let in light.

 

My previous (Hobby) motorhome had a similar lounge-area layout to the Rapido, but without the window in front of the entrance door. Consequentially, the Hobby’s lounge was a bit gloomy on the entrance-door side and I actually contemplated installing a window there. Hobby must have thought having a window by the door (despite the impact risk) was worthwhile as later versions of my Hobby model gained one.

 

I assume the flyscreen is for the sliding entrance-door’s aperture.

 

Remis and Horrex are the main players when it comes to motorhome entrance-door flyscreen products. Flyscreens for panel-van conversion entrances are notoriously difficult to retrofit so that proper anti-insect protection is obtained. From what tfp says, it’s possible that Hymercar uses a Remis flyscreen when the flyscreen is factory fitted and that a Horrex product has been retrofitted, or that the layout of the kitchen furniture in a Sierra Nevada means that standard Remis/Horrex flyscreens need to be modified significantly (or special ones ordered) in order to fit properly.

 

Without seeing tfp’s Hymercar, it’s going to be impracticable for forum members to provide an informed opinion on whether the £400 paid for a flyscreen was outrageously expensive or the task was performed badly. It’s possible that the flyscreen that Travelworld installed is designed to seal using just ‘brushes’ rarther than say, having a channelled full surround within which the flyscreen slides and seals.

 

The roof-related damp needs addressing without delay and Travelworld are the people who should do this as an under-warranty exercise. The opening window is a design limitation (so, basically, don’t open it!) The flyscreen criticism will need to be progressed (or not) via Travelworld, as they fitted the thing - it’s not a Hymercar problem and another Hymer dealler won’t deal with it.

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The Sierra Nevada rising-roof vehicle in the Travelworld advert is (apparently) a 2017 model with 150bhp Euro 6 motor and a lot of extras.

 

While approaching £53k is a goodly amount of cash for a PVC, no UK buyer in their right mind would agree to pay the full asking-price.

 

Although it’s unquestionably true that a new similarly-specified 2017 Sierra Nevada could be purchased outside the UK for less than £53k, I’m extremely doubtful (in fact, I don’t believe) that, by the time the overall cost of the ‘foreign’ transaction had been calculated, the expenditure would be anywhere near as low as £32k. And, of course, buying in ‘Europe’ means that the Sierra Nevada will be LHD, which has value implications when it comes to resale and may be well be unacceptable to a UK buyer.

 

 

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AFAIK the Hymercar Sierra Nevada is part of the same stable as Globecar, probably made made in the same factory (Delefts).

If it has a hinging out window to rear of SLD that is a design/build fault, look at a globecar like mine and you will see it has a sliding window here.

The sliding flyscreen should have a brush on the part you pull across, my flyscreen was retro fitted and didn't make a good seal, my solution was 1/2" (? ) thick stick on foam draught excluder from Screwfix placed on the door opening, cost a couple of quid.

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Hi Derek,

the link is correct and my van is identical to the yellow one. The window at the back gives well needed light as it is dark. Travelworld state they haven't been ale to source a sliding window, but if they do they will let me know the cost...

One of the staff agreed it wasn't usable due to the door - the same member of staff agreed that the fly net wasn't fit for purpose.

 

Travelworld have stated they will take the flyscreen out and give me a refund as a 'good will gesture". I have told them its not a good will gesture as they sold me a van and at the time didn't explain any issue with the fly screen - that if I wanted a secure anti-insect seal it would cost me a packet! And that doesn't explain why 4 trips to them hadn't resolved the issue and why everyone bar one member of staff couldn't understand what I was saying. The screen was firstly damaged on fitting and is such a poor seal that any mosquito that can't fit though that gap is pretty useless. So money back please as it's not fit for purpose. But I realise now that I won't be having the screen I wanted and will have to source something else.

 

I'm concerned about the damp as that is going to take some work. I've booked the van in with an indepedant and reputable mobile technician for an examination tomorrow before I drive it back to Telford on Tuesday. Travelworld state they can't look at it until the end of August but I'm taking it up there to show them and with the techy's advice I will know what I'm talking about.

 

I just didn't appreciate the hassle I would be having. I bought new and hymer as i foolishly thought that would protect me from exactly what I'm experiencing.

Mental note - don't buy new and don't believe the salesmen. And I'm starting to hate my van which isn't good as I haven't paid for it yet...

 

tfp

 

 

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Thanks colin - that's a good tip. We are off to France in it on Saturday and I need to do something as I get bitten to death and we will be too hot with the door closed. Wish to god I hadn't bought at that show.
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Hi Randonneur - this is my van - the yellow one. Well mine isn't yellow but yep. Pop up top. The damp is in the lining above the kids head when the roof is up. But the damp transferred onto the mattress protector so that's healthy. And there is damp at the back donwstairs along where they have eye level cupboards. So it must be soaking everywhere.

 

Doesn't fill me with hope that it won't happen again when they sort it.

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colin - 2016-07-24 5:32 PM

 

If it has a hinging out window to rear of SLD that is a design/build fault, look at a globecar like mine and you will see it has a sliding window here.

 

...mine on the Campscout is top-hinged, Colin.

 

Hadn't thought of it as a problem, but I just had to go out and check. The SLD stops well short of the leading edge of the window - Phew!

 

Edited to add:

 

Looking at the picture of the Sierra Nevada, it looks like it is only a matter of a couple of inches, if I compare to mine.

 

The (factory-standard) flyscreen on mine (which I think is a Remicare one) has a soft "brush" to complete the seal on the leading edge, and is just about effective.

 

Design-faults abound. I saw a 2014-ish Hobby with a habitation door that couldn't be held open by the (factory-fitted) door retainer as the door hit the adjacent (closed) side-window before it engaged with the retainer.

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I've just had another look at mine.

 

One thing that is noticeable is that the mid-height sliding-door track is ostensibly longer than it needs to be.

 

Looking at pictures (both of the Sierra Nevada and standard (X)LWB Ducato vans, it becomes obvious that the sliding door on mine does not open to the full factory-defined width (possibly 4-6 inches less).

 

This isn't immediately apparent as there is the kitchen furniture across the rear of the aperture, and the fly-screen also blanks off some of that space.

 

In essence, to ensure clearance for the rear top-hinged window (which on mine appears to be mounted only slightly further back than that on the OP's 'van) the extent of opening of the SLD has been inhibited.

 

I can see that there is a stop on the bottom track somewhat forward of the full travel. This might be an after-market part, but there are also additional mounting holes further back that indicate that it might simply be the standard part moved slightly forward - without something to compare to, I can't tell.

 

Pictures attached. Door is open to full extent (and the level of inhibition can be judged from it's position against the wheel).

SLD1.jpg.5b5abe87feca78c378b25893e648c2c7.jpg

SLD2.jpg.539e8db17923ebfc92472f98b32cd2f1.jpg

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I had wondered how it cleared on yours, here's the window on mine.

Can't check my van at moment but don't recall a bracket like that, it looks like OP needs one, maybe missed on build.

p.s. from memory I think mine has just the smaller 'stop' that you can see couple of inches back.

1474215146_Slidingwindow.jpg.5bcb0c22284ba9bae5705b959356d5f6.jpg

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