Guest Linda Posted December 9, 2005 Share Posted December 9, 2005 Hello there, Please does anyone have any experience of Leyland Daf 400 Convoy camper vans? We are looking to possibly fit a power inverter or a solar panel, or even use a generator but don't really know where to start, so any information. We do a lot of motorhoming away from camp-sites and now need to be fully self-sufficient. Ours is a self-conversion,which was done to a very high standard but not by us. I would also be delighted to hear from anyone who has or had a Leyland DAF 400 motorhome, just to get some tips or swap experiences. Thanks very much for your time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Paul Wells Posted December 9, 2005 Share Posted December 9, 2005 Hi linda Welcome to the world of LDV/Freight Rover/sherpa etc We too have a self converted LDV Convoy. We are very pleased it, We choose it because of the robust Engine, Gearbox, Axle from the Ford Transit, but has a bigger squarer body than the old style Transit, The twin rear wheels is a great boon on wet grass. Unfortunately we do not get to use our camper as often as we would like, so It frequently stands for 2 or 3 weeks without use, A more complex vehicle would not cope. Ours does not have a turbo so acceleration is not brilliant but so what - it is a leisure vehicle so if a 50 mile journey takes 5 minutes longer does it matter? We carry a motorbike on a rear rack ( currently a honda CG125 but I have CB250RS which I hope to have rebuilt before the weather turns warm again ) I have used a generator from time to time, never if it would destroy the tranquility of the place. I considered solar panels but our battery consumption is too high, we have compressor fridge, and webasco heater. If we are not near a hook up, or are not driving the vehicle for several nights we carry several spare fully charged batteries - not ideal but it works. A site your might find useful is the self build motorcaravan club www.sbmcc.co.uk there are a number of LDV members. Feel free to contact me or email some pics etc ptsw@bigfoot.com Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Neal Posted December 9, 2005 Share Posted December 9, 2005 Linda Your question about inverters, solar panels and generators is unrelated to your choice of camper. If you want to know anything specific about the Leyland DAF Convoy vehicle I suggest you find your nearest Royal Mail Vehicle Workshop (garage) and ask someone there. After all, Royal Mail are probably the world's largest fleet operator of these vehicles. Back to your power question, you need to specify what your actual power requirements are, and for how long within a 24 hour period. Most reasonable demands can be met with a sufficiently sized battery bank feeding an inverter of the correct rating. You can then provide a level of charge to the batteries from a suitably sized solar panel, wired through a regulator. If you fit (or have fitted) a Batterymaster device, it will ensure the engine battery(s) receive any excess charge which, in reality means that you are unlikely ever to suffer a flat battery. Our RV has 2 x 110Ahr house batteries, a 110W solar panel, a Batterymaster, and a 1000W inverter. It also has a built-in 4.5kW generator running on LPG. We are ready for anything!! Regards Neal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bill Posted December 9, 2005 Share Posted December 9, 2005 I to am interested in getting an LDV convoy based rig. My big concern is spares on the Continent. As far as the Ford bits are concerned, Transit parts will presumably fit, but what about the others? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Paul Wells Posted December 10, 2005 Share Posted December 10, 2005 Hi Bill I run a transit for my business, as well as the LDV camper for pleasure. virtually all the bits under the bonnet look the same, ie Fuel/air/oil filters. Most of the electrics are Bosch - So most parts should be on the shelf at a ford agent throughout europe - however in these days of computerised parts systems getting a partsman to identify the part you require can be a problem. Ofcourse Body parts and lights etc would be dedicated to LDV. I regard the LDV as a "Blacksmiths vehicle" ie simple to repair and maintain with less potential for total failure than its more complex, refined and less robust competition. I once owned a Sevel van after 80,000 miles it was falling to bits and spent too long in the workshop and required many expensive parts, in contrast my Transit has done nearly 200,000 miles and has had almost zero unscheduled repair work and has never let me down. The LDV is on about 40,000 and the only fault has been a leaking fuel filter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bill Posted December 11, 2005 Share Posted December 11, 2005 Paul Many thanks for the info. Do you know if there is any easy way to know which bits are Ford and which are not (perhaps a Haynes Manual or similar)? Linda I've been looking at some LDV brochures, and it may be of interest that a heavy-duty alternator is an option. Even if you are buying second-hand it shoud be reasonably easy to have it retro-fitted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Paul Wells Posted December 12, 2005 Share Posted December 12, 2005 Hi Bill, sorry I cant think of any easy way to cross ref parts, LDV and Ford have their own parts system. Haynes do not do a manual, I bought a CD of the full set of LDV worksheets through ebay very useful to see how bits fit together, and how to service and set up the van, but no help on sourcing parts. The best source of info would be from a good old fashioned van mechanic or auto electrician who has been brought up to repair rather than replace. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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