david lloyd

I believe it will come up with a warning for low as blue well in advance of needing to refill. David

Thanks Brian - hoping to get hold of a bit of wet/dry paper to clean up the contacts and then check again but, after reading the old post by ‘my shell’ he did indeed buy new, sealed relays so thought that would be a better long term solution. When I pulled one of the two relays the white lettering was somewhat worn (they are 17 years old) so couldn’t get any useful information from it, hence the request for information on replacements - preferably heavy duty, sealed ones. David

It certainly is Ray but that’s what the graph shows. The technician said it can still operate at around 10v but then should still go straight back up to +12v whilst running. Not sure yet if the relay cleaning/replacement will overcome that sort of drop but worth trying before taking it back to the original Eberspacher agent that sold me the new batteries to overcome the problem. David

Had a problem with my Eberspacher space/water heater a few months ago which simply wouldn’t fire up when the heating was turned on. Took it to an Eberspacher repairer near me in North Yorkshire who diagnosed ‘low voltage’ and recommended I replace the two leisure batteries. They did that and, as the old ones were ten years old, it made sense. Been using the MH regularly since but only the hot water (on diesel) as heating not required. However, last Friday toured down to Stow on the Wold (in filthy weather) and on arrival found the Combitronic wouldn’t fire up again. Batteries only a few months old, on charge at home before leaving, driven around 240 miles so expected batteries to be fully charged. Tried both water and heating several times for next 24 hours without success so contacted a service agent near Dudley who has had his diagnostic laptop on it today - result - low voltage after driving 65 miles in sunshine with solar on roof. Just to complicate things, by Monday the weather has improved and the Combitronic water heater started to work but the printout shows that shortly after turning the heater on there is an expected drop in voltage to just over 8v which then should return to +12v once the burner is lit but in my case the trace shows it trying to light about eight times then gives up and turns off within about 10 seconds. They, not we, had the time today to stay and carry out the necessary checks to ascertain the cause of the prolonged power draw that in turn causes the ‘low voltage’ error. My plan was, armed with the print out I can return to the original Eberspacher repair shop near home and get them to now trace the fault that may not have been the old batteries after all. This evening I was perusing an old post by ‘my shell’ in august 2014 who had a similar problem on his Pioneer Renoir and had bought a new battery to no avail. He quotes seeing a voltage of 12.3 at the heater control module with the engine running but a voltage of 14.5 from the alternator at the same time. This led him to check the two relays under the bonnet behind the front grill which are subjected to a great deal of water in their lifetime. He found all the terminals coated in Verdi green and, rather than fiddle about cleaning them up, bought two new heavy duty relays and fitted those. The heater then worked and the voltage at the module went up to 13.2v. This appeared to cure his problem with the heater not firing up due to ‘low voltage’. It’s an excellent nugget of information and upon our return to the site I pulled one of the relays to find they are well coated in verdigris and pretty grotty. I can clean up the relay contacts to see if it works but really wanted to know, should I wish to change the relays, the correct part numbers for suitable heavy duty relays? David

Great tip Keith - I use the standard Fiat ‘emergency’ kit tyre inflator that came with a previous (new) motorhome that also had a spare wheel - its remarkably good when used with the engine running - but have the same problem of loss of pressure when unscrewing the valve attachment so will get one of these tools. David

Think our Pioneer Renoir has a really good bathroom layout. Across the rear of the van with central door from kitchen/lounge area. Toilet on left with fairly large cupboards above/behind. Shower enclosure with wash hand basin and solid plexiglass type folding door to close it off in shower mode. The gas locker is beneath the sink accessed from outside. Lots of lights, plenty of daylight from opening window and vented through a small rooflight over the shower area. Depends if you are looking for a new model or used. The Renoir is no longer built but can still be found. The alternative Autocruise Starburst has the same arrangement. David

Maybe it’s all part of ‘levelling up’ - encouraging people to live and work outside of London - maybe as far north as Yorkshire! David

Not to mention bovine emissions….. David

Mmmm…. After 2030 they may be redundant if the only fossil fuel burning vehicles left on the road will be old ones anyway. And by that time we may be paying road tax on our shiny new electric vehicles so no need for the extra income they may generate. David

My 2006 Peugeot Boxer was graced with the same performance and I have had it properly remapped (on a rolling road with bespoke mapping not just a plug in box or download) which I reported in an earlier thread. my 2.8 HDI is supposed to be the 127 bhp version but the initial run on the RR showed it to be putting out 114bhp! That’s not great to start with but the remap has taken it to just over 143 bhp and the torque from 260nm to 327nm. As a result, the engine is quieter, smoother and has the power needed to get up hills with out sounding chronically asthmatic. It has had a good test this week around Nidderdale. I should add that the garage that did mine were careful to keep the mapping to within acceptable tolerances and also to ensure that the emissions would still meet MOT standards. In all respects they were very professional. At £465 it may be a somewhat more economic solution than a complete engine swap. David

But, I have seen ‘private’ sales (mainly individual Motorhomes not caravans) in the official show area. This would mean booking a show pitch with Warner’s direct. As an aside, the most appropriate show may be the caravan and motorhome show at Malvern later in the year. David

They say necessity is the mother of invention…

Additionally, if the original converter is still operating they may be able to advise - should be a converters plate somewhere on the vehicle. David

Thanks Derek. Onecal suggested the Autocruise Owners Club previously but I’m not a social media user. I had also contacted Martin Watts at MMM (who subsequently responded in the January 2023 issue). He too was unclear as to how many were produced but did conclude that it is a model that is likely to become a classic of the future. Although I had my reservations regarding using the ‘Pioneer’ brand name back in 2005/6, I don’t have any such reservations now. The Renoir is proving to be up there with the best of any previous Motorhomes we have had - of which there are many! - for a variety of reasons , chief amongst them being it suits our needs down to the ground. I don’t think I will ever get to know how many were produced but recognise the fact that you don’t see many out and about or advertised for sale. It was, to some extent, curiosity on my part that I thought may confirm my suspicion (Hope?) that it would one day be a modern classic and therefore well worth looking after. I am grateful to everyone who has taken an interest in the thread and/or contributed. David

Was it (Pioneer) a manufacturer then perhaps before Autocruise took it over? Or was it a model name of another manufacturer? David

You are a mine of information Derek. Around this time Autocruise were building the same models badged as Pioneer or Autocruise but with different model names. In fact we bought a new Pioneer at one of the shows (can’t recall it’s model name) but, like many people, I hadn’t heard of Pioneer and was a little concerned that it may affect any future resale price so asked for it to be badged as Autocruise. In line with their branding the ‘Pioneer’ model we got was produced as an Autocruise Startraveller. David

Thanks Keith - we are at Guisborough in North Yorkshire - I know Armitage trailers at Knottingley do a good job had work done there before. onecal - as Derek says above there isn’t really any valid information on numbers but my own suspicion is that relatively few of these ‘specials’ were built in this guise (silver paint, alloys etc) to make the last of the X244 chassis versions attractive at a time when many were simply waiting to order new Motorhomes on the new X250. All I do know is there are not many! David

It may well be that this arrangement is the best solution Derek. Personally, I’m not inclined to think it HAS to be an Alko towbar and haven’t yet seen anything that is made for the ultra low chassis. David

I would think buying batteries in Norway are pretty much like buying batteries in the UK - you can get cheaper ones but time will tell if they are good ones. David

Not the club but did get a reply from Martin Watts (MMM Classic Motorhome writer) on the discussion about modern classics. I can see there are Alko suitable tow bars on the internet but it’s not clear as to which model would be suitable. For example, many are listed for Alko fitted vehicles from 2007 on. may have to contact Alko to get more advice. David

Just out of curiosity (which may lead to a decision to add this accessory) does anyone know which model towbar would fit the original ultra low Alko chassis? And perhaps details of reliable fitting. David

Hello hobby, my only knowledge of using smart alternators in Motorhomes is that you can ‘fool’ the smart alternator into continuing to charge by using your dipped headlights so that it doesn’t turn off and, consequently, stop charging the leisure battery. Of course, it is entirely possible now that the issue has been recognised, that a solution has been built into new models but I cannot confirm this. David

Just an update on this old thread. My Renoir went in on Wednesday last week for a service, cambelt change and the cooling system flushed and replenished. Today it went in for the remap. The initial run on the rolling road showed both power and torque were well down on the manufacturers claimed performance. Never expected that. 114.2 HP ( instead of 127) @ 3550 rpm 260.1 Nm of torque @ 2309 rpm After establishing these baselines they create their own bespoke mapping to get the best out of the retune whilst staying within required tolerances (e.g. emissions) and the end results were: 143.3 HP @ 3552 rpm 327.6 Nm @ 2470 rpm Quite a significant increase in both respects and, whilst I have yet to tackle any serious inclines, the drive home was in itself a revelation. Far smoother take up, lower revs at my normal speeds and it seems quieter too. So far, so good. Will be giving it a good test in a couple of weeks when we travel into Wharfedale. Thanks to everyone for their input. David

….augmented by a sitnag….(just joking Mrs L.

My TomTom must be about 10 years old now. Never had difficulty hearing it in the various Motorhomes (old and new) we have had and never changed the volume even when transferred to the car. It is my third TomTom and all have had sufficient volume levels. Just had my hearing checked and some high pitched sounds so have received hearing aids - but can’t wear them driving the motorhome as all the background noise is too distracting! As an aside, it is normally acknowledged that female voices carry better than male voices. David