Selecting a Motorhome

[kavgreenleas]

We are looking at buying a used motorhome which we thought we had thought carefully about. Requirements were that it should be of a reasonably small size (about 6mtrs) due to parking. It should be able to carry 4 people with seat belts for all. We would like to have been able to sleep 4 but with the length restrictions etc, we thought this was impractical. We intended to sling our two sons outside in a tent and use the space over the cab as extra storage. We had pretty well narrowed it down to a Nuevo ES when we came across a 4 year old Pollensa with a 2.8 engine on a Peugeot chassis. Condition was great and price after negotiation with the dealer was fair. We paid a hefty deposit and went home with the manuals only to find that our (and the dealers) assumptions on payload were way out. I had thought about payload but obviously not enough. This vehicle, which we thought had an MPTLM of 3500 and a payload about the same as the Ford based Pollensa, turned out to have an MPTLM of 3200 and a payload of only 420KGs. Take off the weight of the wife, and two hefty teenagers, 50 KGs for water, an awning and it becomes obvious that this van would not be any use for continental holidays. Am I being too sticky about the payload issue? It does not seem to be talked about much when van selection threads start up and it seems to me to be critical. By the way, the dealer was dead straight about the whole thing and returned our deposit and we are looking for a more suitable van with his help.

[johnsandywhite]

:-D Hi kavgreenleas. I personally think few people take any notice of the weight that is left in a Motorhome to carry personal items. There are those that are sticklers for following the rules and regulations. I think perhaps 95% of Motorhome owner's drive around with overweight Motorhomes without even knowing or thinking about it. Why advertise, sell or buy a 4 berth if it can't carry personal items for 4 people? Just a thought. (lol) (lol) (lol)

[kavgreenleas]

Hi John, I think you are right although I would not want to state that as a fact without a bit more evidence. This is one of the reasons for this post. Am I making a mountain out of a mole hill? The Pollensa would be an ideal vehicle for us but for the payload issue.

[chas]

Hi Kavgreenleas- Hope you find what you are looking for, but dont forget if and when your 2 sons decide they no longer want to come with you, remember you could always have a tow bar fitted and tow a camping trailer with all your family gear without worrying too much about payload issues, also congratulations on having found a dealer who wants to help you in your search, and not just want your money. Chas

[kavgreenleas]

I see your point Chas and one of our main considerations is exactly that our boys will not be coming with us for much longer. Therefore we are looking for something which is just big enough but nice and handy with ample storage when we are on our own. Trailers also add weight and use payload (tow bar) even when you don't have them hooked up and one of the attractions to us of motor homing is the ability to be mobile without worrying about a trailer or caravan.

[Mel E]

Kav, Though it's not a total solution, you should be able to upgrade the MAM/MTPLM/GVW of the Pollensa. It is normally possible to upgrade to the sum of the two axle weight limits - see the vehicle plate to find out what these are. It should give you an extra 150 Kgs or so. However, bear in mind that you will not legally be able to load right up to this limit because you would have to balance the vehicle very precisely to avoid overloading one of the axles, which is just as illegal. Even if you managed to do that, you would still go overweight as you, for example, used up fuel. But the extra should give you enough latitude to play with. For more info send me a private message via the forum message service (top right of the forum page). It's worth pointing out that 420Kgs capacity is actually not bad for even a 3500 Kg MAM vehcile - many have less than this! And you need to check what the payload includes: some actually include the driver and full fuel, some also water, so the payload figure can be misleading.

[kavgreenleas]

Mel, thanks for the post. You must be mind reader! I have now decided to go ahead with a plate change after lots of calls and Emails to svtech (svtech.co.uk) who were very helpful. It's a bit more complicated than adding the axle weights but essentially you are right to point out that the combined axle weights are usually more than the MTPLN. Svtech actually check the design limits of the base vehicle and tyres and will issue a plate and certificate to allow you to upgrade. In my case, the original plate allowed an MTPLN of 3200 and axle weights of 1690(front) and 1750(rear). The base vehicle is actually capable of an MPTLN of 3500 and axle weights of 1750 and 1900. The original tyres had a load rating of 104/102 and an "R"speed rating. THese would only have allowed a max axle load of 1800KGs. I have elected to change all 5 tyres to a load rating of 106/102R. I could have stuck with the old tyres but would have had the problem with loading that you mention. I now have a vehicle with a 720kg payload/4seat belts and only slightly less flexibility on the axle weight tolerance. I suspect that lots of motorhomers are not even thinking about this issue when they buy and I'm also not sure that salesmen are pointing the problems out.