Guest barrie Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 good morning all of you out there in MMM land! i would be interested in any comments you may have on the 2.2 engine.particularly in autocruise/pioneer/marquis starburst/renoir/starlet 11. thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest david Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 hi barrie We have had an Autocruise Startraveller since last April - done about 4000 miles so far and the 2.2 engine has been absolutely great. It pulls well for that size of vehicle, it's smooth and can coast up motorway gradients even with the Yaris on tow! Over this period the best consumption figure has been over 32mpg and the worst over 25mpg. The average consumption has been around 28mpg but there certainly seems some scope for improvement on that once it has loosened up a bit more. One thing we have been disappointed with on the Startraveller was that the specification for waste water capacity states 72 ltr. The fresh tank is 90 ltr and we had known that with these capacities we could manage a five night stay without the need to top up. On our first trip away my wife stepped into the shower on the third morning to find it full of waste water - not nice! It turns out that, because of the ultra low chassis, Autocruise fitted a 50 ltr waste tank without changing the spec or notifying us of the change before handover - indeed they didn't even know about it until I pointed it out and asked for it to be changed and initially thought it was because the tank was not vented. The supplying dealer, South Yorkshire Motorhomes, have done nothing to remedy the situation so, at the Autocruise open weekend last September we were promised by Autocruise themselves that they were going to fit (again at my insistence) a second 50 ltr waste tank next to the other one to increase capacity. To date I have not heard anything else, the modification has not been made - despite my writing to the Chairman no less and more promises being made. Needless to say I am now pretty disillusioned with Autocruise who I had originally thought were just about top of the tree when it came to customer care. The long and short of it is, barrie, yes I think the 2.2 HDI power plant is fantastic in this vehicle. I think the vehicle is itself (for the most part) brilliant BUT do check about the waste tank before you buy if it is at all important to you that you have a good capacity as I think that all the models on the alko chassis are the same. Apart from this let down we have always missed the fixed bed andd we are now awaiting delivery of a Knaus Sun Ti - can't wait! Anyone want to buy a very low mileage Autocruise Startraveller? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Brian Kirby Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 I'd just say try before you buy. If you can, and if you have a choice of base vehicle, also try the 2.3 Fiat version. Various reports suggest that the extra 100cc is not the whole story. We drove one for a week in 2004, on a long wheelbase 6 metre Fiat based Burstner low profile, and I was immensely impressed. It was very new and tight (early season hire), but it was amazingly smooth and quiet. Rather than the usual diesel rasp, once into its stride it woofled quite softly like a V6 or V8 engine, so conversation was easily audible at over 100 kph. It's badged Iveco, made by SOFIM and, when I commented favourably on how well it had gone, I was told it is a "proper little truck engine" rather than a detuned car engine. Good luck with whatever you choose. Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Linda (Barries partner) Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 Hello there, apart from the important things like the engine us little women 4'10"also need to know if they can drive the thing when the men need an urgent nap!! Having had a little drive with my 2"heeled boots on it was comfortable but has any petite driver out there had any difficulty? Apart from parking I mean! Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest phil Posted January 31, 2006 Share Posted January 31, 2006 hi, the 2.2 engine on a pioneer renior seems to work well when both empty and fully loaded, and it is lighter than the 2.8.The boss lady is very impressed.she can park it very well. I've not been allowed to drive it yet.I CAN'T PARK THE CAR I just dump it. phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest barrie Posted February 1, 2006 Share Posted February 1, 2006 thanks to you all.very reassuring. i'm still interested in any further comments though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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