Elddis Eclipse bodywork advice needed

[adamp99]

I have recently bought my campervan and found the the whole front cab panel needs to be replaced due to water ingress. This is only the front section which has a window in it.

 

I went for a quote from a reputable company and I was shocked by what they quoted. A weeks work and a lot of money.

 

I can't understand why this would be a weeks work as it's not that big a panel and I can't see that it would take that long to fabricate a new one and replace the wallboard and the parts in between (woodwork and insulation).

 

Any advice or recommendations would be appreciated. Unfortunately I can't keep the campervan under cover and I'm worried that it will get worse over the winter. Any recommendations on a good place to have it repaired would be great. I'm located in north London but I would travel if necessary to get the costs down

 

Thanks. Adam

[flicka]

Was it a private sale ?

If purchased from a Dealer you should have a "Warranty period" & it would be advisable to get it in to them ASAP.

[Brian Kirby]

If supplied by a dealer, whether or not with a warranty, it should have been free of major defects when bought. Talk to Citizens Advice or Trading Standards about your rights to reject the goods as unfit, or alternative remedies. If bought privately, whether the previous owner will agree to a part refund, or contribution to the cost of repairs, will be up to them, but worth asking.

 

You are right that it needs to be fixed ASAP, or the problem will grow. If not under cover, can you get a cover over it - even a tarpaulin in the short term? Unless a replacement part is available from Elddis, which you should be able to clarify by contacting them with the full model number of your van, a new moulding would have to be made - meaning first fabricating the mould using the existing part as a basis, and then laying new g.r.p. into the mould. That would take time and would be costly.

 

However, I don't understand why it should be the g.r.p. element itself that is leaking, unless it has been damaged by impact. Usually the problem is at joints. Whether merely re-sealing the joints would be an adequate repair is difficult to assess, because water damage is frequently much greater in out of sight areas, between the inner lining and the outer cladding, where wooden framing often rots and needs to be replaced. Your estimate should make clear the extent of work the repairer anticipates, as the basis for his price. If no such detail is given, it seems you have more of a guesstimate than an estimate. Time to talk again to the repairer, or possibly to consider going elsewhere if his answers don't convince you.

 

Fixing severe leakage may involve the removal and re-fitting of the moulding, and possibly replacing some rotten woodwork that cannot presently be seen. Is it possible that the repair estimate you have contains a lot of guesswork on what may be involved? If so, is the repairer stating how much per hour he will charge for his time? If he is prepared to charge actual costs on a time basis, plus materials, providing you trust him to be fair and to show you what he finds as work progresses, I would suggest that may be a better way forward.

 

Pricing such work is about risk. You (unfortunately) own the van, so you own the risk. The estimate you have presumably includes work the repairer fears may be necessary, but cannot fully quantify until he opens up the structure and can see what is going on. His price will be constructed to a) ensure he carries minimum price risk - why should he do otherwise - and b) prepare you for the potential cost outcome. If you are prepared to accept all the risk in the work, you remove the risk element from the repairer, and that should mean he will adjust his price, by agreement with you, as work progresses. That way you may end up paying less, if the actual work required is less than he estimated, but you will be unlikely to pay more as, if you accept the repairer's estimate and he finds that the extent of the work is greater than he had allowed for, he would come back to you for extra money. An alternative approach might be to ask the repairer how much he would charge to convert his estimate to a fixed price with no variation whatever he finds. My suspicion is that he will refuse to price on that basis, as it is a good way to go bankrupt!

[adamp99]

Thank you for your comments. This was a private purchase so there is no avenue for me there.

 

I am attaching some photos. I think the body may be aluminium and the marks at the bottom are the corrosion. I'm not sure why a new panel would be needed instead of a repair which is why I'm looking for second opinions and recommendations of repairers

 

Adam

[Guest pelmetman]

You didn't say what the quote is?.......... So its hard to say whether its a fair quote or not :-S ........

 

But its clear from the picture, that the front bottom timber batten has caused the aluminium panel to rot......and it will be a major job, hopefully it hasn't spread too far :-| ........

 

 

[Basil]

Don't know where you are based so it may not be suitable but in my opinion it would be worth getting a quote from AW Marine, who trade for motorhome repairs as Motorhome Bumpers see

 

http://motorhomebumpers.com/

 

they replaced a complete alloy panel with one made from GRP on a friends motorhome at a very reasonable price, the finished job was stronger and better than the original. Check out the pictures on their website to see what they can do.

 

Bas