michele Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 Does anyone on the site own this . If so what variation ,is it a DD or long seats . Would you care to tell me what you think of it , what size engine do you have . Is it a Fiat ? not sure if they only come as a Fiat . What do you think of Fiat how does it perform . whats its pro's and cons . Or what you think of Autotrail as a company . How does it feel dragging that big lump and would you change anything .Would you buy it again. Be ever so grateful Cheers ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJP Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 Hi Michelle You don't say what model year you are enquiring about. We had a 2006 model. You will find all the pre 2007 or pre X250 were 2.8 JTD and the post 2007 or X250 variants came with the 3.0ltr either with manual box or comfort box. They were/are all Fiat based with an ALKO chassis. You also did not state if it was a garage model or not. We had the Chieftain for over a year and loved it. The version we had was non garage, so the rear bed was lower down,which reduces the size of the garage, but was still ample. The kitchen area is huge. We only sold it to get a fixed island bed model and went for the Cheyenne 840D on the X250. The Chieftain was the model with the long seats at the front which is great for entertaining. We now have an Arapaho (all models are Auto Trail) and that has the forward facing seats in the front Dinette area. It is just what suits your requirements. The Chieftain had a fixed bed, 840D fixed bed, Arapaho has a U shaped lounge and 4 seat dinette. The Chieftain in all variants and years was/is available with Hi Line or Lo Line which is double bed over the cab. Front inner facing seats or dinette seats. As I said the garage is either a low line garage with a low bed or hi line garage (huge) with a higher bed. All great well built British vans, good manufacturer back up and a great owners club. The newer X250 is a far better drive (more car like) than the older 2.8JTD. Our 2.8 was remapped (chipped) and it transformed the van, more power and more torque, no change to MPG though. With the power of the 2.8 or 3.0 and size of van there is certainly enough power to drive the van and power to spare, we towed a car with ours without any problems. If you have any specific questions, post them here! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolandrat Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 Dennis, when you chipped the 2.8 engine did you experience any clutch slip under power when you was towing your car? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michele Posted February 6, 2012 Author Share Posted February 6, 2012 Hi thanks for the answer's Trust me to mess it up. We are looking at the DD garage transverse bed 6 berth option . I am aware of the options they do but thanks for explaining it perhaps if I had not of made such a mess of it all you wouldnt of had to. WE are looking at this but before we spend our cash just want to see if others would recommend buy again . Wanted to see if people liked or faulted this model or any thing about the Chieftan regardless of which layout inside . Thanks for your answer's sure I will have loads of questions Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Leake Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 We have a much smaller AutoTrail Apachie as I can only drive up too 3.500 Kg but I must say we have been very impressed with the build quality and the company. Unless it has been improved I would give the entertainment system a miss. It is expensive and not very well specified. We have got the hang of it now by playing with the arial gain control but on some sites we have struggled. The Avtex we have in the bedroom area comprehensively out performs it in all respects at less than half the price. The built quality is in a different league to Swift group products and is every bit as good as our previous Rapido. In your case I would suggest checking the load capacity. To put it politely AutoTrails tend to be very solidly built (heavy) and in some cases this results in reduced load capacity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 michele - 2012-02-06 9:29 PM Hi thanks for the answer's Trust me to mess it up. We are looking at the DD garage transverse bed 6 berth option . I am aware of the options they do but thanks for explaining it perhaps if I had not of made such a mess of it all you wouldnt of had to. WE are looking at this but before we spend our cash just want to see if others would recommend buy again . Wanted to see if people liked or faulted this model or any thing about the Chieftan regardless of which layout inside . Thanks for your answer's sure I will have loads of questions Are you sure a Chieftain would have enough travel-seats with safety-belts for your requirements? I've looked at current (2012) Chieftain information on Auto-Trail's website and, although there's an extra-cost option of a front double-dinette layout, the website's drawing of that layout appears to indicate that safety-belts are only fitted to the two forward-facing seats of the DD. I don't know if any pre-2012 Auto-Trail models had a 6-berth/6-belted-seats design, but it is possible to download earlier Auto-Trail brochures going back several years if you wanted to check. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithl Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 Derek, A further option to the Double Dinette is "3 Point Rear Facing Belts, with high back rest and head rests. (Fitted to a Double Dinette - Option C)" It is an on-cost option but would give the 6 belted seats required. Keith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tugga Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 We have friends with a Chieftain and they don't like the bed as they feel too enclosed and its difficult to get in and out of (low transverse). It also only has two seatbelts - driver and passenger. If you have a requirement to take passengers, then you will not be able to. If we hadn't bought our Hymer we was looking at a Autotrail Mohican. Autotrail have a very good reputation and their customer service and aftersales is second to none. Good Luck with your decision. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caroline Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 Hi We have a Dakota and are very pleased with it. The owners club is good, yes we would recommended them, we did very much like the feel of the larger vans, but for just the two of us, unless the teenager decides to come with us!!! we felt them a bit to big. I think I remember reading you are fond of the snow, I am not sure of their winterisation, would like to hear what people have done for this.. :-> (?) Good luck in what ever you choose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithl Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 tugga - 2012-02-07 9:55 AM It also only has two seatbelts - driver and passenger. If you have a requirement to take passengers, then you will not be able to. Cheryl, A Double Dinette with four 3 point belted seats is an option on the Chieftain as well as several other AT models. See the posts from derek and myself above or have a look at the AT website Link. Keith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolandrat Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 Colin, I agree with your comment about the build quality compared with some other manufacturers, but where Autotrail score highly is the customer back up when something goes wrong and the fact that you can place an order direct to the factory for spare parts which are delivered to your door without having to use a dealer. Every year there is a factory rally organised by the Auto-trail club and if you have any small problems they will be attended to by a team of fitters that attend the rally field over the weekend. The rally is bookable and limited to so many motorhomes because of the capacity of the race course hospitality suite. One other motorhome to consider if it's a three axle that you are looking for is the Niesmann+Bischoff which is in a class of its own, probably the best constructed of the lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJP Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 rolandrat - 2012-02-06 9:28 PM Dennis, when you chipped the 2.8 engine did you experience any clutch slip under power when you was towing your car? HI The remap did not cause any problems whatsover. It was a switchable on/off unit although I never switched it off.The new chip was supplied by VanAiken, sadly no longer trading in the UK. However The 3.0ltr X250 after a remap the clutch did start to slip a long time after the remap. It would only slip under load, when towing and I could never get it to slip from cold or from start. It ended up with having the clutch replaced at 2 years old, under 12000 miles. I did suffer with the reverse gear judder and had no option in slipping the clutch when reversing very slowly or up onto the levelling blocks. The clutch had NOT worn out. The friction surface of the clutch plate and flywheel had become highly polished or "glazed". Mine was a 2008 model and after the build Fiat changed the friction material to a softer one as part as "ongoing development" (yeah right!) I opted to have a recon clutch fitted with the softer material. From then on it was ok, but we did sell the van 7 months later. I did know of other vans with the same slipping clutch problem when warm and under load. They have since been part ex for new models! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJP Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 tugga - 2012-02-07 9:55 AM We have friends with a Chieftain and they don't like the bed as they feel too enclosed and its difficult to get in and out of (low transverse). It also only has two seatbelts - driver and passenger. If you have a requirement to take passengers, then you will not be able to. If we hadn't bought our Hymer we was looking at a Autotrail Mohican. Autotrail have a very good reputation and their customer service and aftersales is second to none. Good Luck with your decision. The enclose bed will be with the large garage model I assume. Our "small" garage version had loads of room over the rear bed. It will only have 2 seat belts as it will not have the dinette option. I think you might struggle to find a van with the 4 belted dinette option, I see loads of vans and have never seen one yet. Of course if you are going for a new model then Auto Trail are very helpful in trying to build the van to your spec. There are lots of mods/changes they can do, just ask. The load capacity from memory is around 800kg depending on the options fitted. I would think with the 4 rear belted option the it would be nearer the 600/650kg. The towing limit is 1000kg but can be increased by reducing the load in the van. As long as the MGVW is not exceeded. 2012 PAYLOAD CALCULATIONS TO MASSES & DIMENSIONS DIRECTIVE 91/22 EEC CHIEFTAIN PLATINUM PACK - COST OPTION - TO INCLUDE: 12v Thermostatic Heater fitted to Fresh/Waste Water tanks (one per tank sold individually) OPTIONAL 80 Watt Solar Panel (standard fitment on Frontier models) STANDARD TOTAL WEIGHT OF SEATBELT OPTIONS Double Half Dinette with 2 Forward Facing Seatbelts 50 kg 2 Seat Belts Fitted To Rear Facing Double Dinette OPTIONAL 50kg MODEL: VEHICLE LENGTH: 8.73 m 1. MAXIMUM AUTHORISED WEIGHT: 5000 kg 5.Mass in Running Order(MRO): 4000 kg MAXIMUM AVAILABLE PAYLOAD: 1000 kg MANDATORY PAYLOAD REQUIREMENTS FOR STANDARD VEHICLE: No. OF DESIGNATED TRAVELLING SEATS (NOT INCLUDING DRIVER): 5 MASS OF CONVENTIONAL LOAD: 75 kg PERSONAL EFFECTS: 107 kg PAYLOAD REMAINING FOR OPTIONS: 818 kg WEIGHT OF OPTIONS SPECIFIED: 105 KG CHANGE IN CONVENTIONAL LOAD CALCULATIONS FOR ADDITIONAL SEATBELTS. No. OF EXTRA TRAVELLING SEATS (NOT INCLUDING DRIVER): 4 ADDITIONAL MASS OF CONVENTIONAL LOAD: 300 kg ADDITIONAL MASS OF PERSONAL LOAD: 40 kg AVAILABLE PAYLOAD REMAINING: 373 KG See here http://www.auto-trail.co.uk/index.php/frontier-chieftain.html click on weight calculator and add options as required. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michele Posted February 7, 2012 Author Share Posted February 7, 2012 Hi Derek, If quite honest I am lost with it all. Can we just not ask them to put seat belts in the backward facing seats ???. The other thing is I thought that as people were travelling backwards they didnt have to be fitted . I know we would ask for them anyway but I was under the impression that where not fitted it was ok ,going backwards.Mikey would be the child I choose for that seat as he walks with no physical disability can I put a lap belt he is 12 ?.although much prefer a proper 3 pointer for him. Don't even know if I can legally drive it anymore . The whole lot is so confusing you read one thing and I guess its up to who is interpreting it and if left to me I read one thing and hubby another . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michele Posted February 7, 2012 Author Share Posted February 7, 2012 Caroline - 2012-02-07 10:17 AM Hi We have a Dakota and are very pleased with it. The owners club is good, yes we would recommended them, we did very much like the feel of the larger vans, but for just the two of us, unless the teenager decides to come with us!!! we felt them a bit to big. I think I remember reading you are fond of the snow, I am not sure of their winterisation, would like to hear what people have done for this.. :-> (?) Good luck in what ever you choose. Thats nice to hear Caroline and its giving me more confidence. I had a quick message I was going to look at Brownhills again, they still e mail me BUT after something someone I trust very much said, I have changed my mind and will not be giving them another chance to get it right . I think three times is enough for anyone. Thanks for the imput .Can anyone comment re the coldness snow in these Autotrails We do like the snow very much and the children as you can imagine are facinated by it melting / trying to eat it rolling in it etc . Christmas is along holiday with children that have special needs they just don't get it so we prefer to go off and show them the world.. Can anyone comment on how well they do up the Alpsand the like ?. And can anyone recommend a dealer bearing in mind we live in Essex . Thanks alot again guys . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michele Posted February 7, 2012 Author Share Posted February 7, 2012 rolandrat - 2012-02-07 10:42 AM Colin, I agree with your comment about the build quality compared with some other manufacturers, but where Autotrail score highly is the customer back up when something goes wrong and the fact that you can place an order direct to the factory for spare parts which are delivered to your door without having to use a dealer. Every year there is a factory rally organised by the Auto-trail club and if you have any small problems they will be attended to by a team of fitters that attend the rally field over the weekend. The rally is bookable and limited to so many motorhomes because of the capacity of the race course hospitality suite. One other motorhome to consider if it's a three axle that you are looking for is the Niesmann+Bischoff which is in a class of its own, probably the best constructed of the lot. I like it . ;-) very much that they are getting it right by their customers . I did at one time have call to slate the Autotrail and in the above post I forgot that years ago we went with friends to Val D' Isere in the French Alps . I forgot actually it wasnt the vehicles fault it was Brownhills refusal to mend it that clouded my judgement . SOoo I guess you could say that I wrongly thought not alot of the Autotrail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caroline Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 Thanks for the imput .Can anyone comment re the coldness snow in these Autotrails We do like the snow very much and the children as you can imagine are facinated by it melting / trying to eat it rolling in it etc . Christmas is along holiday with children that have special needs they just don't get it so we prefer to go off and show them the world.. Can anyone comment on how well they do up the Alpsand the like ?. And can anyone recommend a dealer bearing in mind we live in Essex . Thanks alot again guys . Michelle there is a thread running at the moment that might help you answer your questions, a User by the name of Peedee has posted abit about Autotrails. As to a good dealer............cross your fingers what is good for one is not always good for the other. Shame you can not buy direct.. B-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJP Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 Can we just not ask them to put seat belts in the backward facing seats ???. YES you can, but I think it would have to be done at the build stage, not sure it can be retro fit. Well it could but at a massive price. The other thing is I thought that as people were travelling backwards they didnt have to be fitted . I think the current legislation says (I am sure someone will know better) ALL froward facing seats must be fitted with a seat belt. So any seat facing inwards or rearwards can carry passengers without seat belts. NOT advisable, but not illegal. If you plan to use the van all the year round I would go for a van with a fire (elec/gas). Some vans have blown warm air heating, which is very good, but is very power hungry when not on EHU. We used to cary 4 x 110 amp batteries to run our warm air and a generator as back up. You can also get through a 13kg bottle of gas in 4 days. It is a big van to keep warm. with the fire at least you can leave it on low for 24/7 which will keep the heat going without draining the batteries or using loads of gas. We have used our van without any problems down to -8. You can specify at the build to have heaters put in the tank, we haven't got them. With a bit of pipe lagging from the tank pipe to the pump where the pipe is outside. This was the only other mod we made re winterisation.. At the end of each day we also put a small amount of salt down the plug holes which prevented the waste pipes from freezing, The van has one of the best insulated bodies (wall, floor and roof) on the market. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Leake Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 It's a little way to go for you from Essex but I can't recommend Johns Cross highly enough in East Sussex near Robertsbridge. We did not buy our from them as they were not AutoTrail dealers last year. Happily they are now and they now service ours. Nothing is too much trouble for them and they certainly know what they are doing. If you are going to the Excel show why not seek them out on the AutoTrail stand and have a chat with them. Given you circumstances the AutoTrail staff on the stand would no doubt be happy to talk to you about any special requirements you may have. As regards cold weather they are very well insulated and I seem to remember heated and insulated water tanks being an option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithl Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 DJP - 2012-02-07 2:31 PM Can we just not ask them to put seat belts in the backward facing seats ???. YES you can, but I think it would have to be done at the build stage, not sure it can be retro fit. Well it could but at a massive price. Guys, AutoTrail already offer the option of 4 fully belted travel seats in the rear as an addition to a Double Dinette layout. It adds 25kg to the vehicle weight over and above the 25kg for the DD option so will involve a substantial seat belt anchorage. If you follow the links above that both Derek U and myself have posted this will become apparent! Sorry to be blunt but I thought we had both made this clear above. Keith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michele Posted February 7, 2012 Author Share Posted February 7, 2012 OMG so sorry . I sisn't see what you or Derek said . And I still can't find it on your link . Oh my dear I am stupid. help ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolandrat Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 The heating in extreme freezing coditions like we are experiencing at the moment does consume much more gas than normal as Dennis has mentioned. We were rallying last weekend in freezing conditions along with friends who owned Autotrail Chieftains and they were using seperate free standing gas heaters as the Truma that was fitted wasn't heating the whole van. One owner had spoken to Truma who said that a double burner heater could have been specified and fitted from new. To modify the existing one could be done but would be quite expensive. My van is an Apache 634 and I had the heater on full with the blower going and was warm enough without having to resort to extra heating. The problem came at the end of the rally when we had to drive uphill to exit the site which was thick with snow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithl Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 michele - 2012-02-07 3:43 PM OMG so sorry . I sisn't see what you or Derek said . And I still can't find it on your link . Oh my dear I am stupid. help ! Hi Michele, Please accept my apologies for being rather blunt with my last post but I was rushing to post before leaving work, I'm home now so will help you find the details you require. First to look at a floorplan of a Double Dinette... Follow this Link and then click on 'Technical Layouts' haflf-way down the page. The fourth layout shows the DD with only Front facing seatbelts. Now to add the Rear facing additional belts... Click on 'Technical Features' to the left of the last button, then scroll down to the heading 'Safety Features' (it's a long way down!). The seventh option is '3 Point Rear Facing Belts, with high back rest and head rests. (Fitted to a Double Dinette - Option C)'. (I think there is an error here as this should be on Option B not C so may be worth asking AT to confirm). Finally if you click on 'Weight Calculator' and select 'Chieftain' in the Yellow model selector box on the right you can play with options and weights. Scroll down to 'Seatbelt options' then tick 'Double Full Dinette' now you will be able to tick '2 Seat Belts Fitted To Rear Facing Double Dinette'. And that's all there is to it! May I suggest that you talk to AT and explain your very special circumstances and then they may be able to arrange a factory visit for you and all your family to see the production line and 'test drive' a Chieftain, both inside and on the road. I hope this helps, Keith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 Keithl - 2012-02-07 5:22 PM ...May I suggest that you talk to AT and explain your very special circumstances and then they may be able to arrange a factory visit for you and all your family to see the production line and 'test drive' a Chieftain, both inside and on the road... Michele I agree wholeheartedly with Keith about discussing this with Auto-Trail. On paper, a Chieftain with the front double-dinette (DD) layout, plus the option of having 3-point seat-belts on the DD's rearwards-facing seats, looks like being as good as you are likely to get for your requirements with an 'off-the-shelf' motorhome. I don't think there's the option of having lap-belts on the DD's rearwards-facing seats - it's either 'proper' travel- seats (with high backs, head-rests and 3-point belts) or low back seats, no head-rests and no seat-belts. The sleeping arrangements of a Chieftain 'Hi-Line' with the DD layout would consist of a permanent double-bed over the cab, a permanent double-bed over the rear garage, and a central bed (or beds) constructed from the DD and the settee facing it. You'd need to check what effect (if any) the DD rearwards-facing seat-belts option would have on making up the central bed(s). The Truma 3.4kW S-3002 'fire' fitted to the Chieftain is, in principle, under-powered for such a large vehicle, but a higher output heater is not on the Auto-Trail options list. At least the S-3002 fire is simple, quiet, reliable and easy on the leisure battery. Truma does market a more powerful 5.5kW convector fire - the S-5002 - but it's a bulky brute and not approved for motorhome usage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithl Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 Derek Uzzell - 2012-02-07 6:49 PM The Truma 3.4kW S-3002 'fire' fitted to the Chieftain is, in principle, under-powered for such a large vehicle, but a higher output heater is not on the Auto-Trail options list. At least the S-3002 fire is simple, quiet, reliable and easy on the leisure battery. Truma does market a more powerful 5.5kW convector fire - the S-5002 - but it's a bulky brute and not approved for motorhome usage. Derek, The Truma heater used in the Chieftain is actually 5kW and not 3.4kW. I quote from the "ELECTRICAL AND GAS FEATURES" ... "Truma 3kw Gas and /or 2kw - 230 Volt Heating with 12 Volt Blown Air... Included As Standard" This is similar power to the Truma in our 6.5m Cheyenne and we have never yet had to resort to using more than 2kW Electric to stay warm. Keith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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