tartan Posted October 13, 2015 Share Posted October 13, 2015 I would like to buy a motorhome to travel around the UK and europe.My price limit looks likely to be £37000.What I have seen so far is a lot of people with damp problems either already there or appear after a while.Will I be able to get a decent motorhome where I can just enjoy myself in or am I going to worry that water ingress will happen with financial implications?Is it purely bad luck or what do I look out for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RogerC Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 £37k is a good budget. Damp issues are 'pot luck' not bad luck. Some get it some don't. For your budget make sure the vehicle you buy, if new enough to be under manufacturers warranty, is still subject to the warranty. Make sure the warranty is still active in that the terms have been adhered to to ensure it's active for both base vehicle and habitation side e.g (in my case) Fort and Roller Team (Trigano). Both have different service schedules/requirements. Keep those active and damp etc problems, if any, are covered. If the warranty terms are not met I would seriously think twice and probably keep looking. Depending on what you're looking for £37k 'might' get you, if not new then almost a new MH. Haggle at the right time of year and you might get lucky with a new one depending of course on the model/number of occupants you're looking for. Having said all the foregoing.....if I was buying secondhand then I would 'insist' on a current damp check report, a current/recent habitation check report and a service record for the base vehicle...it might be sensible to consider doing the same. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starvin marvin Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Dead right, you must as far as possible transfer the risk to the "party" best able to manage it. ie to carry the financial risk.That is not you! All you can do is mitigate that risk by be very selective, you may then think that after checking all the "bases" there is little risk. Not so, something will probably jump up and bite you, financially speaking. Be very objective, and don't accept a fix, on major items, whatever is done will probably be the minimum, just to shift it. Remember m/h are like buses, there's always another one, any doubts, walk away. Let them keep the van while you keep your money. Simples Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 No need to spend 37k to get a reliable watertight van ;-) ............... You can get a very nice van for less than half of that........ If I was in your shoes I'd be looking at older Autosleepers with the GRP coachbuilt body, preferably on a Ford as that'll ensure a cheap to service/repair chassis B-) .......... Another plus with an older AS vehicles, is if you decide motorhoming is not for you, your more likely to get most of your money back, its even possible to turn a profit :D....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hallii Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Damp is a serious problem with some makes, even one and two year old M/H s suffer. The fix can involve the complete removal of floors/walls/rears etc. My advice is to try to eliminate those manufacturers who are suspect. I am loath to name them here as opinions vary and some posters will get a bit excited at times. Do a search on here for "damp" that should pull up a few names. I did a lot of research before buying my current van a Hymer which is made in Germany. Apart from a small sealing issue easily fixed it is and has been damp free. For £37K you should get a good leak free motorhome with a good warranty, on the other hand, as previously mentioned, you can spend a lot less and get a solid well built ( German?) M/H. H Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Your concerns are very valid but first maybe you might consider the layout that works best for your needs and that moght entail hiring a van for a day and night or two and trying it out. Having decided on layout then start looking at dealers and converters with good names and poor names for not only damp but customer care too. You could buy a cheap damp test meter via Amazon and do your own tests in any van you get serious about. I have one and have done exactly that on any van I am considering buying. If you are spending a lot of time abroad there is a strong argument in buying a continental branded van - assuming they have a layout you like as support will be better abroad than it would be for a UK converted van. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brock Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Short answer, which will not go down well with some posters, is buy a Hymer with all the 6 year damp certificates in place. I've had three vans from the Hymer stable in the last 15 years and none have suffered from water damage. There are other manufacturers that can build damp free vans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Collings Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I agree with Pelmetman but I am biased and only had two vans in 18 yrs both A/S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timabob Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Another thing to look for are manufacturers which do not use wood in the construction of the bodywork. If water gets in, rotten wood which is supposed to be structural makes the system worse. Again Hymer is one manufacturer who do not use wood in construction, but there are many others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billggski Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 According to some posts you could buy a new Moho for that much if you are prepared to import from Germany. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aandncaravan Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 We repair many different manufacturers motorhomes with various issues. Contrary to what you may think for a Motorhome Electronics specialist, we also service perfectly good vehicles and do lots of habitation checks on vans that have come in specifically for that, with no actual failure. We also do habitation checks for a local big Dealer, mainly British built vehicles. Because we specialise in Continental built vehicle electrics we probably see a higher percentage of none UK vans than most, making up about 50% overall? Often while they are here for a Battery charger repair they will ask for a service, MOT or Habitation check. So we see a broad range of both good and bad vans. In our opinion the ones that rarely have any damp issues are the German built, even when 15 years old. One of the reasons why they hold their value so well. We look after 3 local Burstners, all 2004 - 2007 and no damp issues on any of them. However, we also look after a Burstner 747 that is lived in and it shows. This particular 747 does have damp, we think because they Jet wash it. Few Motorhomes have joints designed to resist a high power water jet for long. We would suggest that you look to Hymer, Burstner, Dethleffs, etc but remember that these can also be the choice of hire companies and long term habitation. If you are buying an older vehicle look very carefully for signs of heavy use. The way a Motorhome is used by the previous owners is far more important than manufacturer. Don't forget that the electronics on the German makes can be very sophisticated. Some with a portable LCD display on the dash that warns you a Skylight is open, step extended, (one with Voice warning as well as flashing graphic) when you fire up the engine. But the cost of replacement is close on £600 from a Dealer, so check every electrical function carefully. The electronics are reliable if you look after the batteries. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peter James Posted October 17, 2015 Share Posted October 17, 2015 Brock - 2015-10-14 10:54 AM buy a Hymer with all the 6 year damp certificates in place. Better still, a British made Swift with a 10 (TEN) year damp warranty :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brock Posted October 17, 2015 Share Posted October 17, 2015 Peter, you are right about the new Swifts having a 10 year warranty for water ingress. I wish them well with that because they deserve credit for finally getting to grips with their record on damp. However, the Body Shell Warranty is for six years and transferable whilst the Extended Body Shell 10 year warranty is not transferable and only applies to the original purchaser. There are also numerous exclusions including fair wear and tear. All I need is for Swift to build a good quality motorhome, like the Kontiki, which is short enough to fit on my drive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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