LHD Motorhomes

[violet1]

Hi, I am currently searching for a new vehicle and a couple that I am interested in are left hand drive, can anyone tell me if they have encountered problems with insurance, either getting it or high premiums, with LHD vehicles?

Thanks in advance.

Violet

[StuartO]

There were insurance loadings, but it hasn't been a problem for years and years.

 

Our second MH was LHD and I soon got used to it - and soon preferred it so when we bought a new one, I asked for LHD out of preference.

[Brian Kirby]

violet1 - 2015-03-31 7:18 PM

 

Hi, I am currently searching for a new vehicle and a couple that I am interested in are left hand drive, can anyone tell me if they have encountered problems with insurance, either getting it or high premiums, with LHD vehicles?

Thanks in advance.

Violet

Absolutely no problems.

 

However, unless you are already adept at driving LHD vehicles, I would urge a little caution. Some people find adjusting from RHD to LHD much more difficult that others. Buying a LHD motorhome would be an expensive way to find that you fall into that group!

[Charles]

It's great being able to indicate and change gear at the same time, British vehicles are just converted LHD vehicles anyway, that's why everything is cockeyed... Mine is RHD, but buying again I would go for LHD if it were the same price.

[PeteH]

Hi

 

As a Previous poster stated. I would advocate trying it out first. Whilst it is not (to me anyway) the big deal. It can be for some. Do you know anyone with a LHD? who would let you have a drive?. Failing that, A dealer with one. who if you showed enough interest may give you a Test drive?. I`ve had 3 so far all American and All 8+M or over! and 2.5M wide too, I had my first one down Devon country lanes, at weekends, on a regular basis, when I lived in Somerset in the 80`s and 90`s, towing a car on a Trailer!.

 

The worst thing is getting used to having restricted vision at Junctions in the UK. Positioning is critical, having a passenger is useful. BTW. what some people forget is their passenger. My wife used to refer to it as the "Suicide seat"!!. and One lady we knew. used to sit on the Loo in heavy traffic, rather than in the "Wrong" seat!.

 

Up side is that if you are planning to go "continental", you are already of their "right" side!.

 

Pete

[lennyhb]

We have LHD, no difference on insurance, don't find driving a LHD van a problem but did have a problem with getting used to the A Class windscreen & positioning on the road ,but that would have been the same for RHD. Junction visibility no different to driving a RHD van on the other side of the channel, and as we spend more time in the van over there much more sensible to have LHD.

[Guest peter]

The only problem is at roundabouts in the UK. You need to position yourself so you can see vehicles approaching from the right. I just give the steering a kick to the right before stopping. It's not a problem if the other half is with me. Or get a fresnel lens, like continental truckers use in the UK.

[Guest Had Enough]

peter - 2015-04-01 9:31 PM

 

The only problem is at roundabouts in the UK. You need to position yourself so you can see vehicles approaching from the right. I just give the steering a kick to the right before stopping. It's not a problem if the other half is with me. Or get a fresnel lens, like continental truckers use in the UK.

 

Not just roundabouts but when joining any road that comes in on your right from an acute angle, but of course you get the same problem, but on the other side, if driving a RHD 'van in Europe. As you say, it's not a problem if you have a passenger but if you're solo you need to remember to position yourself square to the road you're joining if you want good vision.

 

For me the answer is simple. If you do the bulk of your driving in the UK, buy RHD, but if most of your motorhoming is in Europe, buy LHD. Any competent driver can adjust to LHD very easily.

 

 

[Guest peter]

I find LHD is good in the UK for going down narrow country roads, as you can get well in to the nearside to avoid approaching vehicles, because you can see well down the LH side of the van.

[Rayjsj]

Where I live, nr to the Irish ferry terminal, we got a lot of LHD truckers coming through, they are a Bloody dangerous threat to the locals (and maybye to others too ?) They fly straight into roundabouts obviously unable to see folk already ON the roundabout, and force their way through. Perhaps because they are Large, and usually overloaded, we see lots getting pulled over and 'weight checked'. They get away with their driving style leaving lots of very angry locals in their wake.

I would hate to have to drive like that in my Motorhome, being unable to properly see when entering roundabouts or certain road junctions. I HAVE driven abroad in RHD vehicles, but must admit I didn't enjoy the experience, although the French 'priority from the right' rule made a lot of sense (after a few 'Close shaves' ) perhaps i'm getting old ? ' The left side is the right side,the right side is the wrong side' thats for the posistion on the road, not sitting and steering ! *-) *-) Ray

[StuartO]

Rayjsj - 2015-04-02 10:33 AM

 

Where I live, nr to the Irish ferry terminal, we got a lot of LHD truckers coming through, they are a Bloody dangerous threat to the locals (and maybye to others too ?) They fly straight into roundabouts obviously unable to see folk already ON the roundabout, and force their way through. Perhaps because they are Large, and usually overloaded, we see lots getting pulled over and 'weight checked'. They get away with their driving style leaving lots of very angry locals in their wake.

I would hate to have to drive like that in my Motorhome, being unable to properly see when entering roundabouts or certain road junctions. I HAVE driven abroad in RHD vehicles, but must admit I didn't enjoy the experience, although the French 'priority from the right' rule made a lot of sense (after a few 'Close shaves' ) perhaps i'm getting old ? ' The left side is the right side,the right side is the wrong side' thats for the posistion on the road, not sitting and steering ! *-) *-) Ray

 

I think perhaps you are getting old, or at least you are making rather sweeping associations. How some European lorry drivers enter roundabouts doesn't have any significance for how British owners of LHD motorhomes drive theirs and nor will all the lorry drivers necessarily be as cavalier as you might think.

 

My MH has a blind spot (no window) immediately behind the passenger seat so I have to either rely on my passenger or position the vehicle at the threshold of a roundabout or juction to give a view of the road to the right but rarely is this a serious problem. You can achieve a lot by reading the road well ahead so that you can know whether there is any traffic coming from the right, even if you have temporarily lost a direct view of it. I angle the interior mirror (otherwise useless because there is no rear window) to provide some view into the R side blindspot too, which helps.

[rupert123]

Rayjsj - 2015-04-02 10:33 AM

 

Where I live, nr to the Irish ferry terminal, we got a lot of LHD truckers coming through, they are a Bloody dangerous threat to the locals (and maybye to others too ?) They fly straight into roundabouts obviously unable to see folk already ON the roundabout, and force their way through. Perhaps because they are Large, and usually overloaded, we see lots getting pulled over and 'weight checked'. They get away with their driving style leaving lots of very angry locals in their wake.

I would hate to have to drive like that in my Motorhome, being unable to properly see when entering roundabouts or certain road junctions. I HAVE driven abroad in RHD vehicles, but must admit I didn't enjoy the experience, although the French 'priority from the right' rule made a lot of sense (after a few 'Close shaves' ) perhaps i'm getting old ? ' The left side is the right side,the right side is the wrong side' thats for the posistion on the road, not sitting and steering ! *-) *-) Ray

Yep agree with Stuart, you are getting old. RHD for me never a problem in euro land. In any case anyone UK based and LHD, even if they spend most of their time in Europe, still has to drive a lot in the UK, what's the difference? The French priority on the right never made any sense and although it is pretty well defunct now still occurs in the odd town.

[rupert123]

peter - 2015-04-01 11:29 PM

 

I find LHD is good in the UK for going down narrow country roads, as you can get well in to the nearside to avoid approaching vehicles, because you can see well down the LH side of the van.

I find RHD great in the alps or on any mountain pass as I can see exactly where the edge of the road is.

[Tracker]

Depreciation on a lhd vehicle is much higher in the UK because demand is lower and many dealers are afraid of being stuck with them so unless you buy at a really stupendously keen price be prepared to take an even bigger hit when you do come to sell or trade in.

 

Driving a lhd vehicle in the UK is much the same as driving a rhd drive over (or under) the channel, except in the UK you are at least more familiar with the way junctions and roadsigns work.

[gasgas]

The last game I played with motorhomes was to convert a LHD one to RHD. I also added a bigger engine and power steering.

What a waste of time.

 

Mind you, when I traded it in, the dealer asked 'is it RHD?' 'Yes.'

He couldn't have been a very savvy dealer or he would have known that that German manufacturer never made that model in RHD!

[PeteH]

Hi

 

I got a Fresnel!! the nice man from VOSA gave me one in Tibshelf Services. Some years back. I was on a Tacho break, and got chatting to them, when I said I have a Yank left hooker. one of them went in the back of the truck and came back with the Fresnel!! Apparently at the time they where giving them to Foreign Truck Drivers?. "in the interests of road safety".

 

So I got a Freebie.

 

Pete

[Guest peter]

Tracker - 2015-04-02 3:53 PM

 

Depreciation on a lhd vehicle is much higher in the UK because demand is lower and many dealers are afraid of being stuck with them so unless you buy at a really stupendously keen price be prepared to take an even bigger hit when you do come to sell or trade up.

That is simply not true. Give us evidence of two like vans with LHD and RHD with a much lower price for the LHD one. Or even for new vans.

How would you know anyway? As you only buy RHD British vans. :D

[lennyhb]

Tracker - 2015-04-02 3:53 PM

 

Depreciation on a lhd vehicle is much higher in the UK because demand is lower and many dealers are afraid of being stuck with them so unless you buy at a really stupendously keen price be prepared to take an even bigger hit when you do come to sell or trade in.

 

Never seen any evidence of that, also with a RHD you can only sell it in the UK much better to have a LHD you can sell it or trade it in any country in Europe.

[rupert123]

peter - 2015-04-02 10:33 PM

 

Tracker - 2015-04-02 3:53 PM

 

Depreciation on a lhd vehicle is much higher in the UK because demand is lower and many dealers are afraid of being stuck with them so unless you buy at a really stupendously keen price be prepared to take an even bigger hit when you do come to sell or trade up.

That is simply not true. Give us evidence of two like vans with LHD and RHD with a much lower price for the LHD one. Or even for new vans.

How would you know anyway? As you only buy RHD British vans. :D

Afraid it is. The old Glasses guide commercial edition published motorhome prices and if you were a contributor, which I was, they also publish buying trends etc. LHD always were subject to a big discount in the UK and are certainly harder to sell unless at a cheaper price. This is not my opinion just a fact, all on here, as far as I know, are amateurs in the vehicle selling game who's experience is limited to their own personal and biased view, usually wrong. If you buy and sell LHD in euro land fine but most do not, if you buy LHD in the UK you should get a good discount to start with so your loss on selling is mitigated, but make sure the discount is there.

[Brian Kirby]

Had Enough - 2015-04-01 9:45 PM................For me the answer is simple. If you do the bulk of your driving in the UK, buy RHD, but if most of your motorhoming is in Europe, buy LHD. Any competent driver can adjust to LHD very easily.

Not necessarily, Frank. I know one extremely competent driver who drives a motorhome that is even larger than yours :-) all over Europe. He tried LHD, and to my surprise freely admitted that he found he couldn't cope, so his leviathan is RHD. It isn't the van's size either, he's been motorhoming for decades in a wide variety of vans. The change just caused him confusion that he decided was potentially dangerous. That was the reason for my comment.

[StuartO]

Tracker - 2015-04-02 3:53 PM

 

Depreciation on a lhd vehicle is much higher in the UK because demand is lower and many dealers are afraid of being stuck with them so unless you buy at a really stupendously keen price be prepared to take an even bigger hit when you do come to sell or trade in.....

 

Got any evidence for that Tracker? I sold my last LHD Hymer (a B694) without anyone suggesting it should be cheaper. I owned it for 5 or 6 years, bought and sold it privately (in 2000) and the depreciation was only £5,000.

[Tracker]

 

The chances of finding two identical vans on sale except for one being RHD and one being LHD is pretty remote as well you all know and I have no intention of looking.

 

Conversely if you can show me two identical vans except one being RHD and one being LHD on sale at similar prices to justify your counter claims I would be happy to re-consider and concede the point.

 

I do agree that the demand for left hookers is better now that it was years ago as more people are going abroad with their vans and living abroad but I also know from people who have bought LHD vans in the UK in the past that they have proven more difficult to sell on.

 

The best bet may be a private sale where you will only attract buyers that are looking for a LHD and the chances of finding someone who really wants it are higher than with a p/x.

 

Harder to sell is generally a euphemism for getting less money and that is not a problem if you are a canny buyer who knows and accepts the risks and don't pay too much for it in the first place.

 

Forewarned is forearmed.

 

 

[Brian Kirby]

rupert123 - 2015-04-03 10:58 AM

 

peter - 2015-04-02 10:33 PM

 

Tracker - 2015-04-02 3:53 PM

 

Depreciation on a lhd vehicle is much higher in the UK because demand is lower and many dealers are afraid of being stuck with them so unless you buy at a really stupendously keen price be prepared to take an even bigger hit when you do come to sell or trade up.

That is simply not true. Give us evidence of two like vans with LHD and RHD with a much lower price for the LHD one. Or even for new vans.

How would you know anyway? As you only buy RHD British vans. :D

Afraid it is. The old Glasses guide commercial edition published motorhome prices and if you were a contributor, which I was, they also publish buying trends etc. LHD always were subject to a big discount in the UK and are certainly harder to sell unless at a cheaper price. This is not my opinion just a fact, all on here, as far as I know, are amateurs in the vehicle selling game who's experience is limited to their own personal and biased view, usually wrong. If you buy and sell LHD in euro land fine but most do not, if you buy LHD in the UK you should get a good discount to start with so your loss on selling is mitigated, but make sure the discount is there.

This is here we go again time! :-) IMO, based on my own experience, both Tracker and Rupert are wrong in their above claims. Their statements might be true if the initial cost (i.e. when new) of a LHD van were the same as its RHD equivalent, but it is not. When compared to its initial purchase cost, the percentage depreciation on a LHD van is IMO approximately the same as for its RHD counterpart.

 

Rupert's experiences of buying LHD on the continent, and selling into the UK, were as a business venture, on which he expected to make profit, and relate to a period some years back when cars (not motorhomes) were substantially cheaper on the continent than in UK. Those differentials are now so small that there is no profit in doing so. Hence Rupert gave it up.

 

But, those differentials are still substantially there on motorhomes. So, you pay less initially to buy the 'van and, having paid less, you will sell for less. The advantage is not that you make a profit on the difference, just that you keep that difference (several thousand pounds of difference) in your bank account (or alternatively you spend the same sum, but get a higher specified van than your budget would buy in UK).

 

There are three provisos. First, you have to buy a continental made van, because LHD UK made vans are virtually unavailable on the continent. Second, the second-hand value of any van is only a matter of what the buyer is prepared to pay. This varies by brand and by model, so all claims as to whether the depreciation on LHD is equal to, higher than, or lower than, on RHD, are highly speculative. Third, the UK market for LHD is much smaller than for RHD, so one is generalising based on results from a very small sample.

 

But having said all that, in my experience, blanket claims that you will lose more on a LHD van that you would on its RHD equivalent are fallacious. What I think can fairly be said is that the lifetime cost of ownership of the LHD van will be lower, because you will keep more of your capital over the time you own it. That capital has investment value, which, in turn, should at least compensate for possible differences in depreciation.

 

You do have to buy a make that is well known, well reputed, and well represented in the UK, and you also have to buy a model that will be popular in UK. You should also make the price comparison between vans that are identical except for the position of the steering wheel.

 

To date, my experiences tell me that taking account of all the above, the true rates of depreciation as between LHD and RHD, are actually very little different. This isn't to say you can't come a cropper if you choose badly, just that such losses are far from inevitable. Sorry chaps.

[Guest Had Enough]

Brian Kirby - 2015-04-03 1:15 PM

 

Had Enough - 2015-04-01 9:45 PM................For me the answer is simple. If you do the bulk of your driving in the UK, buy RHD, but if most of your motorhoming is in Europe, buy LHD. Any competent driver can adjust to LHD very easily.

Not necessarily, Frank. I know one extremely competent driver who drives a motorhome that is even larger than yours :-) all over Europe. He tried LHD, and to my surprise freely admitted that he found he couldn't cope, so his leviathan is RHD. It isn't the van's size either, he's been motorhoming for decades in a wide variety of vans. The change just caused him confusion that he decided was potentially dangerous. That was the reason for my comment.

 

We'll have to agree to disagree. No matter how long he's been motorhoming and no matter what he's been driving, if he can't manage the simple task of driving a vehicle where the gear lever is on the opposite side then he has, in my opinion, a co-ordination problem.

 

This may not affect his driving under normal stress-free circumstances but, if having to drive a LHD vehicle causes confusion, he could well be the type who, one day, in an emergency, could end up pressing the accelerator instead of the brake.

 

Any competent driver, with reasonable co-ordination, average reflexes and good health should have no problem switching to a LHD vehicle.

 

 

 

[rupert123]

Brian Kirby - 2015-04-03 4:22 PM

 

rupert123 - 2015-04-03 10:58 AM

 

peter - 2015-04-02 10:33 PM

 

Tracker - 2015-04-02 3:53 PM

 

Depreciation on a lhd vehicle is much higher in the UK because demand is lower and many dealers are afraid of being stuck with them so unless you buy at a really stupendously keen price be prepared to take an even bigger hit when you do come to sell or trade up.

That is simply not true. Give us evidence of two like vans with LHD and RHD with a much lower price for the LHD one. Or even for new vans.

How would you know anyway? As you only buy RHD British vans. :D

Afraid it is. The old Glasses guide commercial edition published motorhome prices and if you were a contributor, which I was, they also publish buying trends etc. LHD always were subject to a big discount in the UK and are certainly harder to sell unless at a cheaper price. This is not my opinion just a fact, all on here, as far as I know, are amateurs in the vehicle selling game who's experience is limited to their own personal and biased view, usually wrong. If you buy and sell LHD in euro land fine but most do not, if you buy LHD in the UK you should get a good discount to start with so your loss on selling is mitigated, but make sure the discount is there.

This is here we go again time! :-) IMO, based on my own experience, both Tracker and Rupert are wrong in their above claims. Their statements might be true if the initial cost (i.e. when new) of a LHD van were the same as its RHD equivalent, but it is not. When compared to its initial purchase cost, the percentage depreciation on a LHD van is IMO approximately the same as for its RHD counterpart.

 

Rupert's experiences of buying LHD on the continent, and selling into the UK, were as a business venture, on which he expected to make profit, and relate to a period some years back when cars (not motorhomes) were substantially cheaper on the continent than in UK. Those differentials are now so small that there is no profit in doing so. Hence Rupert gave it up.

 

But, those differentials are still substantially there on motorhomes. So, you pay less initially to buy the 'van and, having paid less, you will sell for less. The advantage is not that you make a profit on the difference, just that you keep that difference (several thousand pounds of difference) in your bank account (or alternatively you spend the same sum, but get a higher specified van than your budget would buy in UK).

 

There are three provisos. First, you have to buy a continental made van, because LHD UK made vans are virtually unavailable on the continent. Second, the second-hand value of any van is only a matter of what the buyer is prepared to pay. This varies by brand and by model, so all claims as to whether the depreciation on LHD is equal to, higher than, or lower than, on RHD, are highly speculative. Third, the UK market for LHD is much smaller than for RHD, so one is generalising based on results from a very small sample.

 

But having said all that, in my experience, blanket claims that you will lose more on a LHD van that you would on its RHD equivalent are fallacious. What I think can fairly be said is that the lifetime cost of ownership of the LHD van will be lower, because you will keep more of your capital over the time you own it. That capital has investment value, which, in turn, should at least compensate for possible differences in depreciation.

 

You do have to buy a make that is well known, well reputed, and well represented in the UK, and you also have to buy a model that will be popular in UK. You should also make the price comparison between vans that are identical except for the position of the steering wheel.

 

To date, my experiences tell me that taking account of all the above, the true rates of depreciation as between LHD and RHD, are actually very little different. This isn't to say you can't come a cropper if you choose badly, just that such losses are far from inevitable. Sorry chaps.

Sorry but your experience is very limited Brian. I did in fact say that you could mitigate your loss if you buy at the right, cheaper, price a LHD should offer. I have to say I assumed the original poster was talking about the UK market and in this market a LHD will always be cheaper than a RHD. I am not interested in personal opinions here just the plain fact of the matter. Why do the owners of LHD vehicles get so 'het up' about this, most bought at a cheaper price anyway. It is not a personal slur just a simple fact in the UK MARKET LHD will always be cheaper. Incidentally it is not my claim Brian it was the claim of what was the only reference of UK motorhome prices at the time and the one used by all dealers, although this has changed recently.