Hobby-Model confusion?

[pepe63xnotuse]

Can someone just help clarify/ identify the exact model designations for a twin wheel Ford based Hobby please?..

 

About a year/18months ago we looked at a new one of these:

 

http://www.camperuk.co.uk/Used/Campervans_Motorhomes/vehicles/1377_Hobby_Siesta_Exclusive_650.html

 

However,I can't recall the exact model number,all I've got scribbled down is "Siesta 650 exclusive"...and searching that,the only Fords it brings up are front wheel drive ...:-S ..like this....

 

http://www.camperuk.co.uk/New/Campervans_Motorhomes/Instock/vehicles/1388_HobbySiestaExclusive650.html

 

Have/when did they drop the twin wheel Transit? :-S

[Robinhood]

There was only one RWD Siesta Exclusive in the 2010 brochure, which I have in front of me, and it is similar in size and layout to the one you have posted.

 

That is the Siesta Exclusive T650 FLC.

 

There were two Siesta "overcabs" on Ford RWD that year.

 

ALL 2012 Fords are FWD.

 

I'll see if I can find the 2011 brochure, but I think the range was more like the 2011, than the 2012.

 

Edit,

 

No, I was wrong, the 2011 range dropped the RWD Ford, so 2010 is the latest year.

 

See 2011 Catalogue at:

 

http://issuu.com/spring2/docs/hobby_motorhome_catalogue_en

 

HTH

[pepe63xnotuse]

Thanks very much for that Robinh'... ;-)

 

So it looks as though the one we looked at was probably a 2010 model then....

 

Strange but when ever we've shown an interest in a vehicle,we seem to give that model the kiss of death!... *-)

 

A few years back we looked at the Westfalia Westvan..and we never saw another one of them over here again!..(not right hand drive anyhow)..

Then we looked at the Burstner Prismo...same again,they get dropped and became like hen's teeth(..although the garage was a bigger than we needed,making the bed a bit too high for us really).

 

..and now,it appears,we've killed off the twin wheel Ford Hobbys..!? 8-)

 

Do you think if we showed a specific interest in Fiats,that they'd then start mounting everything on Mercs and Renaults..? (lol) (lol)

[Guest JudgeMental]

Good taste! i really liked the west van. The basic van was produced by maybe Burstner...cant remember. but Westphalia had their own version, much nicer finish! We had a VW westy for 7 years and it was industructable. Burstner (or whoever it was) stopped making it so no more frome Westphalia either

 

3 on mobile.de 2008/2009 vintage :-D

[Robinhood]

....Hobby have severely trimmed the Ford-based range over the last two years, and (IMO) made them less attractive as a result. I suspect it might be due to the change from EuroIV to EuroV

 

Whilst I know one shouldn'r buy on looks alone, the Van Exlusive and Siesta Exclusive range with the curved sides are very easy on the eye.

 

Having said that, I'm unconvinced as to any substantial advantage (on balance) of the RWD versions. Any possble traction advantage is, IMO, offset by the better driving characterisitcs and MPG of the FWD 'van, and the rear axle capacity of the FWD version is more than adequate at 2250kg.

 

I was surprised just how much better my current Ford FWD Hobby was at dealing with wet grass inclines at Easter than my previous Ducato based Rapido (which had ASR!).

[Guest JudgeMental]

Fiat rear axles dire in comparison to the Ford @ 2250kg in standard form....That being said I prefer the Fiat generally, at least in panel van form.....

[Derek Uzzell]

Hobby built “Siesta” motorhomes on the twinned rear-wheel Ford Transit Mk 7 chassis for the 2008 model-year. Three of these were overcab designs and two were low-profile, with the latter designated T-650FLC or T-650GFLC.

 

The overcab models continued pretty much unchanged up to and including the 2010 model-year, but the original slab-sided low-profile designs morphed into “Siesta Exclusive” equivalents with curved sides and a posher specification.

 

By the 2010 model-year the only RWD low-profile Siesta model remaining was the Exclusive T-650FLC. As Robin Hood says, RWD Transit-based designs did not appear in the 2011 model-year Hobby catalogue.

 

RWD Siestas were all some 7metres in length and payload at 3500kg MAM was not great. However, there was a 3850kg MAM option (standard on 2010 models) that addressed this. The wheelbase of the RWD chassis was 3954mm, whereas that of the longest available FWD chassis was 3750mm. In 2010 Hobby was also offering the Siesta Exclusive T-650FLC on a FWD 3500kg MAM chassis, but the RWD version (at £58024 OTR in the UK then - about £2k more than the FWD version) was by far the better choice in my view.

 

Hobby appear to be offering 3 low-profile FWD-only Transit-based models in 2012 as shown here:

 

http://www.hobby-caravan.de/en/motorhomes/siesta/floorplans-details/

 

The UK asking-prices are likely to be below £50k, but I THINK the vehicles may be built on the old platform-cab Transit chassis rather than the more modern Transit ‘camping-car’ chassis-cab. I also think there may be evidence of economies compared to the Siesta Exclusive range. However, the interior layouts look interesting and include a U-lounge that may attract UK buyers.

 

 

The Westfalia WestVan was a joint venture with Burstner. The equivalent in the Burstner range was the Prismo T-626G.

 

http://www.practicalmotorhome.com/review/motorhome/2009-westfalia-westvan

 

http://www.becksmotorhomes.com/vehicle/2009-burstner-prismo-t626g

 

http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/Motorhomes/Reviews/Motorhomes/Burstner-Prismo-T-626G/_ch1_rw365_pg1

 

[pepe63xnotuse]

Thanks for all in info' chaps...

 

..just looking again at that Westvan link,has made me recall just how impressed with it I was...especially the sliding bed arrangement..

 

..and the overall "balance" of the things just looks right....

(..with none of the all too common, ground scraping bodywork or cartoonesque rear overhangs... *-) )