John N Posted April 26, 2007 Share Posted April 26, 2007 Having sold our boat we are about to invest in a second hand campervan of about 6m. length, but there is such a bewildering choice that I would like some guidance in narrowing the field. I rather fancy the rear lounge layout and the Autocruise Starspirit appears to fit the bill but can anyone suggest other similar makes please? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twooks Posted April 26, 2007 Share Posted April 26, 2007 loads of options - suggest you make a beeline to Peterborough and spend as much time as you can crawling all over the vans there and pestering everyone you meet with lots of questions B-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michele Posted April 26, 2007 Share Posted April 26, 2007 John , Welcome to the mad house good luck with your search I hope you find something. The only thing I can offer is have you had a look at the swift group bessacar do one with a rear lounge...but twooks is right to many to mention for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
howie Posted April 26, 2007 Share Posted April 26, 2007 Hi John. We to are looking at rear lounge vans. Finding one around 6m with adequate length for two single beds is proving difficult but the Starspirit does seem the pick of the bunch so far. Another one you might consider is the Autosleeper Legend, although these have been out of production for around six years. The Starspirit has the 2.2 engine and i,m not to sure if this is up to the task. Two other things to be considered with this layout is making sure there is enough room re. rear travel of the drivers seat as the toilet / wardrobe is usually located behind and the true length of beds as given measurements are not always accurate. As Twooks said the best places to see whats on offer will be the upcoming shows, and don,t forget the tape measure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted April 26, 2007 Share Posted April 26, 2007 Rapido 710F with 2.8 motor. Brilliant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
howie Posted April 26, 2007 Share Posted April 26, 2007 peter - 2007-04-26 11:22 PM Rapido 710F with 2.8 motor. Brilliant.Did,nt Mel have the 710 as well. If so you both seem to have a high opinion of them and another John should consider. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikethebike Posted April 29, 2007 Share Posted April 29, 2007 Hi John we have a starspirit with a 2.8 engine. we love the layout and find it very comfortable for lounging and sleeping with a choice of singles or a huge double. we have on several occasions had 8 people sat around the table in the lounge. the toilet and shower is maybe on the compact size if you are a large person but we find it quite adequate for us. I understand the 2.2 engine is more than capable of pulling the starspirit along some friends have one and say that it is quite lively and also economical Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted April 29, 2007 Share Posted April 29, 2007 Howie, we had the 709F, the little baby version, it was a stonking little van, we had it for 3 and a half years so it must've been good! One reason we changed it was because we wanted a bit more room now that we have a mini elephant of a dog called Romy who runs round like a nutter most of the time so we have to have space to get out of her way! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
howie Posted April 29, 2007 Share Posted April 29, 2007 Beg your parden Mel and I remember now. I believe your,s was well under 18ft with the new 709 now closer to 20. Just looking at your photo, and possibly a muzzle would be appropriate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Jones Posted April 30, 2007 Share Posted April 30, 2007 To judge from the picture, what you really need is one of those clever little vans Barry Stimpson used to make, with a "wet room" you can access thru the back door. That way, dear little Romy can be brought in there and hosed down before getting anywhere else!! By the way, did he enjoy having his "ball cropped," and why only one? T x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
howie Posted April 30, 2007 Share Posted April 30, 2007 Steady on Tony. We all enjoy a bit of humour but lets keep it within the bounds of reasonable decency please. Going back to numbers following a particular make. Most manufacturers give a designated number which tells you the length of the vehicle, especially with caravans. For example a Avondale Dart 515 tells you that the length of the van is 5.15m. Add to this the letters E.B., E.K. or F.B. etc, and at a glance you have a good idea of the size and layout. If all manufacturers followed this example i,m sure that all of us including John N. would find selecting the van best suited to our needs a far easier process. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 howie - 2007-04-29 11:45 PM Beg your parden Mel and I remember now. I believe your,s was well under 18ft with the new 709 now closer to 20. Just looking at your photo, and possibly a muzzle would be appropriate. Howie, the 709F was 18ft 3inches (5.53m), the new 707F is just over 20ft (5.99m) I believe. Romy doesn't need a muzzle - when she runs over to anyone she's not happy with she just grumbles and shakes her ball at them! It's hilarious!!! Tony Jones - 2007-04-30 8:49 AM To judge from the picture, what you really need is one of those clever little vans Barry Stimpson used to make, with a "wet room" you can access thru the back door. That way, dear little Romy can be brought in there and hosed down before getting anywhere else!! By the way, did he enjoy having his "ball cropped," and why only one? T x Tony, Romy is a girl! The description is that it is a picture of Romy with her favourite ball and it has been cropped form a larger picture to fit the forum requirements for publication ... as for the shower idea, on the Rapido we did have an external shower, on the Rimor we haven't so we'll have to fit an attachment to the washroom sink tap and drop it out of the window immediately behind it so it'll do the trick still, failing that we can just throw a bucket of water over her and 'baptise' her at the same time!!!!! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
howie Posted May 1, 2007 Share Posted May 1, 2007 Mel B - 2007-05-01 9:48 PM howie - 2007-04-29 11:45 PM Howie, the 709F was 18ft 3inches (5.53m), the new 707F is just over 20ft (5.99m) I believe. Romy doesn't need a muzzle - Wasn,t talking about Romy Mel. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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