trishandtez Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 What would people choose, a 2010 swift motorhome or a 2004 hymer,nearly the same length swift, out of warranty next April, no warranty on hymer except one you can buy yourself? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayjsj Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 it's all about condition, Hymers DO have problems, like any van, so just the name is not a Panacea for a good van. Presumably they are about the same price ? (the 'Name' thing again). Check them both thoroughly (get somone to help you if you are not sure what you are looking for). A lot of progress has been made between 2004 and 2010.and the 2010 will give a better driving experience. But a poorly kept 2010 van can be worse than a well kept 2004 one. You Choose ?? Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 The newer van will be more tempting and as Ray says it will be a much better drive the new Fiat is a great drive. I may have a biased opinion being a Hymer owner but there is no way I would consider a Swift or any other British built coachbuilt van, too many problems with build quality damp/water ingress. Hymer's use their Pual build system there aren't any timbers in the walls or roof to rot even if there was a leak the inner wallboard is marine ply. The 2004 Hymer is likely to outlast the 2010 Swift. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted October 29, 2012 Share Posted October 29, 2012 If you can afford a 2010 van, get anything that is not built in britain. Preferably french or german. That's just my opinion. As they are better winter proofed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trishandtez Posted October 30, 2012 Author Share Posted October 30, 2012 We already have the swift, I want to go to the hymer even though it's older, Tez wants to keep the swift, better the devil you know he says. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crinklystarfish Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 What is it about the Hymer, or wrong with the Swift, that is prompting the possible swap? It might help in answering your question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trishandtez Posted October 30, 2012 Author Share Posted October 30, 2012 The hymer seems to have more space inside even though it has fixed bed, good size garage, we have overhead cab, 2facing sofa`a which I like, winterized. Seems to be a good quality product, hear so much good about them on these forums and lots of people slag off swift. Better quality fixings.seems narrower than ours and it is 3.5 tom, ours is a 4ton. Tez is 70 in 2 years so has to have medical to keep licence, cheaper tolls abroad, we intend to tour abroad lot next year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 As the Hymer is 3500kg check the payload taking into account option packs & extras that have been fitted. Hymer leisure batteries hide under the cab seats not obvious if an extra one (20kg) has been fitted, option packs which combine Remis blinds, ISRI or Augti seats & large fridge freezer can add 70+kg. Hymer rate their payload with 90% Fuel & Gas but only 20 Lt of water, if like us you like to travel with a full tank of water make sure you have the payload. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 No contest, the Swift. Old hymers can be lots of trouble, although some damp problems reported with Swift when put alongside the amount they sell I would not worry about them. Swift have really good backup in the UK, why risk a Hymer which has very little, they sell hardly any here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 rupert123 - 2012-10-30 9:53 AM Old hymers can be lots of trouble, What do you base that comment on Henry? Plenty of old Hymers in the Hymer Club that just go on & on with very little trouble. Hymer now has a dealer network across the UK and it's never any problem getting spares from Germany. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 Is a vehicle 2004 old?.......... 8-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retread24800 Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 rupert123 - 2012-10-30 10:53 AMNo contest, the Swift. Old hymers can be lots of trouble, although some damp problems reported with Swift when put alongside the amount they sell I would not worry about them. Swift have really good backup in the UK, why risk a Hymer which has very little, they sell hardly any here. Its been a while since I have read such a misinformed post Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 lennyhb - 2012-10-30 10:25 AM rupert123 - 2012-10-30 9:53 AM Old hymers can be lots of trouble, What do you base that comment on Henry? Plenty of old Hymers in the Hymer Club that just go on & on with very little trouble. Hymer now has a dealer network across the UK and it's never any problem getting spares from Germany. Personal experience I am afraid, the only thing i can really go on. No experience of newer models and have no reason to doubt their quality. The Hymer dealer network is still being estabished and is as yet unproven, we will see but hopefully better than it has been in the past. Their is a motorhome dealer near Spinney motorhomes, from where I have purchased two Swifts, who seem to have a lot of old Hymers, every time i drove by their they seem to be on the roof of a Hymer with a sealant gun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 trishandtez - 2012-10-29 4:53 PM What would people choose, a 2010 swift motorhome or a 2004 hymer,nearly the same length swift, out of warranty next April, no warranty on hymer except one you can buy yourself? So the original question should have been: "would you exchange a 2010 Swift that you already own, for a 2004 Hymer that has a bit more space". :-) Since your Swift has presumably caused you no problems for two years, and the Hymer would be an eight year old unknown quantity, my answer is no. What I would do is consider what it is about the swift that you don't actually like, and then carefully research alternative vehicles from reputable manufacturers, which I would ideally buy from the nearest reputable dealer (for the brand) to where I live. Personally, I would not buy anything much older than your present van, I would not buy anything unless it comes with at least two years of transferrable water ingress warranty, and I would make sure that all the necessary damp checks have been carried out, by the specified people, within the allowed "window" for the inspections. The same would go for servicing of the base vehicle, with full records of serivces carried out at the correct time, by the right people. You need to check this via the owner's handbook, as not all engine variants have the same servicing regimens, especially where low mileages are concerned. I would not buy anything that did not have the original (or genuine manufacturer's replacement), manuals for the conversion, the conversion equipment (fridge, heater, etc etc), and the base vehicle. V5C "log book" goes without saying. It will in any case cost you money to change, so I would not step back at this point, but forward. As you intend touring outside the UK, have you considered getting a LHD van? If buying in UK, this usually means a cost saving over RHD vans and, providing you can adapt to LHD, makes driving on the right that bit easier. It also opens up the the possibility of buying from France, Belgium, or Germany, where the vans tend to be that much cheaper again. This would give you access to a far larger pool of vans from which to choose, and should ensure you get a biger bang for your buck. Have a play on this link, to see what I mean. http://tinyurl.com/6ap65zo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 rupert123 - 2012-10-30 11:14 AM lennyhb - 2012-10-30 10:25 AM rupert123 - 2012-10-30 9:53 AM Old hymers can be lots of trouble, What do you base that comment on Henry? Plenty of old Hymers in the Hymer Club that just go on & on with very little trouble. Hymer now has a dealer network across the UK and it's never any problem getting spares from Germany. Personal experience I am afraid, the only thing i can really go on. No experience of newer models and have no reason to doubt their quality. The Hymer dealer network is still being estabished and is as yet unproven, we will see but hopefully better than it has been in the past. Their is a motorhome dealer near Spinney motorhomes, from where I have purchased two Swifts, who seem to have a lot of old Hymers, every time i drove by their they seem to be on the roof of a Hymer with a sealant gun. How does that count as personal experience, I believe I am right in saying you have never owned a Hymer, and from the amount of people I have met in the Hymer club water ingress is not a problem with older Hymers. They were probably standing on the solid roof of the Hymer to seal the Swift parked next to it. :D In contrast I know several people who have brought new Swift caravans and every one of them has had to go back to the factory in the first year to sort the water ingress problems. I myself have had a leaky Lunar not a Swift but good old British quality! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 lennyhb - 2012-10-30 3:35 PM rupert123 - 2012-10-30 11:14 AM lennyhb - 2012-10-30 10:25 AM rupert123 - 2012-10-30 9:53 AM Old hymers can be lots of trouble, What do you base that comment on Henry? Plenty of old Hymers in the Hymer Club that just go on & on with very little trouble. Hymer now has a dealer network across the UK and it's never any problem getting spares from Germany. Personal experience I am afraid, the only thing i can really go on. No experience of newer models and have no reason to doubt their quality. The Hymer dealer network is still being estabished and is as yet unproven, we will see but hopefully better than it has been in the past. Their is a motorhome dealer near Spinney motorhomes, from where I have purchased two Swifts, who seem to have a lot of old Hymers, every time i drove by their they seem to be on the roof of a Hymer with a sealant gun. How does that count as personal experience, I believe I am right in saying you have never owned a Hymer, and from the amount of people I have met in the Hymer club water ingress is not a problem with older Hymers. They were probably standing on the solid roof of the Hymer to seal the Swift parked next to it. :D In contrast I know several people who have brought new Swift caravans and every one of them has had to go back to the factory in the first year to sort the water ingress problems. I myself have had a leaky Lunar not a Swift but good old British quality! You are not correct Lenny. I owned a Hymer in 2005/2006, have mentioned this on here before. It was not a new one in fact a 2002 model. I can only quote from personal experience not some secondhand rumors. My last four vans have been current one Autosleeper, two before that both Swift, one before them Hymer. I know which was the worst one with none existant backup. As I said no reason to think current Hymer are all as bad but from my own experience in answer to the question asked I would stick with the Swift. Am going to change the autosleeper, not because their is anything wrong with it but not right for us. Not sure what for yet but we have looked at a Chausan an Adria and a Swift which we think would all suit us. I have no preference for UK or euro built van but I know from my own exoperience that current UK vans are just as well built as any from Europe. Probably not a few years ago but times change. Sure you get more complaints about uk vans in the UK but as nearly all vans bought in the UK are UK built this is fairly natural. Swift alone has something like 26% of UK market. Not trying to start a war here just do not have my blinkers on like some. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 lennyhb - 2012-10-30 9:17 AM ...Hymer rate their payload with 90% Fuel & Gas but only 20 Lt of water, if like us you like to travel with a full tank of water make sure you have the payload. While the weight-related formula Hymer now employs limits the fresh-water datum to approximately 20 litres while the vehicle is being driven, this is a relatively recent stratagem. In 2004, Hymer were using a formula with a water-tank 100% capacity datum. Either way, as the idea was to replace a motorhome on a 4-tonne chassis with a roughly similar sized vehicle on a 3.5-tonne chassis, your warnings about adequate payload need to be heeded. (I'm with Brian on this. While it might be wise to consider changing to a 3.5-tonne model before Tez reaches 70 (Presumably the 4-tonne Swift can't realistically be 'downplated' to 3.5tonne?), swapping a known-quantity 2010 vehicle for an unknown-quantity 2004 one is just asking for trouble.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 rupert123 - 2012-10-30 3:51 PM lennyhb - 2012-10-30 3:35 PM rupert123 - 2012-10-30 11:14 AM lennyhb - 2012-10-30 10:25 AM rupert123 - 2012-10-30 9:53 AM Old hymers can be lots of trouble, What do you base that comment on Henry? Plenty of old Hymers in the Hymer Club that just go on & on with very little trouble. Hymer now has a dealer network across the UK and it's never any problem getting spares from Germany. Personal experience I am afraid, the only thing i can really go on. No experience of newer models and have no reason to doubt their quality. The Hymer dealer network is still being estabished and is as yet unproven, we will see but hopefully better than it has been in the past. Their is a motorhome dealer near Spinney motorhomes, from where I have purchased two Swifts, who seem to have a lot of old Hymers, every time i drove by their they seem to be on the roof of a Hymer with a sealant gun. How does that count as personal experience, I believe I am right in saying you have never owned a Hymer, and from the amount of people I have met in the Hymer club water ingress is not a problem with older Hymers. They were probably standing on the solid roof of the Hymer to seal the Swift parked next to it. :D In contrast I know several people who have brought new Swift caravans and every one of them has had to go back to the factory in the first year to sort the water ingress problems. I myself have had a leaky Lunar not a Swift but good old British quality! You are not correct Lenny. I owned a Hymer in 2005/2006, have mentioned this on here before. It was not a new one in fact a 2002 model. I can only quote from personal experience not some secondhand rumors. My last four vans have been current one Autosleeper, two before that both Swift, one before them Hymer. I know which was the worst one with none existant backup. As I said no reason to think current Hymer are all as bad but from my own experience in answer to the question asked I would stick with the Swift. Am going to change the autosleeper, not because their is anything wrong with it but not right for us. Not sure what for yet but we have looked at a Chausan an Adria and a Swift which we think would all suit us. I have no preference for UK or euro built van but I know from my own exoperience that current UK vans are just as well built as any from Europe. Probably not a few years ago but times change. Sure you get more complaints about uk vans in the UK but as nearly all vans bought in the UK are UK built this is fairly natural. Swift alone has something like 26% of UK market. Not trying to start a war here just do not have my blinkers on like some. Déjà vu, You have had a bad experience with a German Motorhome I have had a bad experience with a British Caravan. My last caravan was a German Hobby only minor issues with it all sorted out UK importer even though I brought it in Germany, Current Hymer has had the odd problem all sorted out by the Belgium dealer I brought from. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flicka Posted October 30, 2012 Share Posted October 30, 2012 Your current Swift will have a Euro4 engine, not so with a 2004 Hymer, so with all the current & future introductions of Emmission Zones across Europe, that's another consideration to take into account. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trishandtez Posted October 31, 2012 Author Share Posted October 31, 2012 Thanks for all the info guys, the main worry is the weight issue, we are 4 ton and have 595 payload so cannot be downrated to 3.5ton as that would leave us no payload and the point about the engines and emissions is a very valid one concerning the emissions so we will stay a bit newer even though it will take a bit more from our hard earned savings we are now SKI'ing. Plus the overhead cab using more fuel was a concern and the tolls i suppose, the engine is a fiat 130 multijet and very reliable and a dream to drive with no Judder as it is a 2010. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnP Posted October 31, 2012 Share Posted October 31, 2012 Just a point. Marine ply will rot over a period of time if it comes into contact with water. It is only the actual glueline which is waterproof to prevent the ply from delaminating. The surface of the timber still has to be protected from moisture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain Strachan Posted October 31, 2012 Share Posted October 31, 2012 Trish, If Tez is happy driving the Swift, stick with it, you have got it set out the way you want it by know, you know, where everything goes, stores! So stop worrying about what will happen in 2 years time. Go and enjoy those years driving around Europe and beyond. 2 years down the line you can always downsize. Enjoy Iain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted October 31, 2012 Share Posted October 31, 2012 Agree with Lain in principal and would not be swapping for 2004 van. But why not look around for a low roof 3500kg model to see what deal can be had......Meanwhile enjoy what you have :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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