Buying our first motorhome

[argyler]

Hi

We bought our Autocruise Valentine from a friend at a very good price.

No problem with front wheel drive. Very good build quality. Would prefer longer side seats to act as two singles (swivelling the cab seats does not produce a comfortable option). Don't like the back door layout - a bike rack would prevent access and if the awning is up you have to walk round the side to get under it. Shower not essential if you intend to stay on sites.

Went to the Glasgow Show and could not find anything we liked better although the Fifers were brilliant if you are looking for a van conversion - which is easier to park etc. Go to a few camp sites and talk to people who own motorhomes. Most are willing to point out the good and the bad points.

Good luck - once you have made your choice you will experience freedom!

[Minstrel]

We love our u shaped lounge in our Euramobil. We looked around quite a lot but we were going to try hiring before we bought...... then we sat in our Helga and it felt like home. We took three weeks to decide while looking at other Euramobils and all sorts of others, we also have a double floor so she is fully winterised with lots of storage.

 

The other main thing is payload, something we had no idea about when we bought, but as we prefer not to carry lots of water it's no problem. We also sleep in our overcab bed, much better than making up beds every night in our opinion.

Whatever you but have fun, that's what it's all about.

[Ranger]

The Valentine was Richard Holdsworths favourite 'van, He built them on VWs, J9 with dogs has one. It has it's drawbacks with short side seats but at the same time that makes it small enough to go and park most places where other 'vans are just that bit too big. It was one of the few 'vans that passed German scrutineers for import into Germany back in Holdsworth days. I'm full of useless information, been around too long I guess.

[Travelling Tyke]

Hello Lorna. We followed most of the advice passed on to you here and did settle on our "Ideal" van, a Bessacarr E605. We asked quite a lot of van owners on sites when we there with the old Romahome and they were all welcoming and informative. However, one item that didn't arise was the payload that could be carried and I had expected that this would not be an issue.

This is important of course and does limit what can be carried. I loaded the van up with what we thought we needed, filled up the fuel and water tanks and checked it out on the weighbridge. There was 100kgs left before I was at the max limit, 3400Kgs. I weigh 76kgs so that left 24kgs for my wife!

The van we bought had a tow bar fitted that weighed in at 55KGS and removing that gave me more than enough after I had removed it. (I have since re-plated to give me an extra 300Kgs after fitting air rides and uprating the tyres) Good luck with your search, feel free to check over everything - one of our posibilities was rejected because the sink/cooker was too high - it mattered.

[mco]

We are on our 4th motor home. First 2 were Pilotes the 2nd 2 Auto-sleepers - Legend and now Rienza. Both Auto-sleepers have u shaped rear lounge.

As everyone has said, it depends on your likes and dislikes. We like the added dimension of being able to look out of the back of the van as well as the sides.

The long seats are useful for lounging and are easy to make into 2 singles or a large double.

With regard to rear wheel drive, both the Auto-sleepers have this. We live up a farm track halfway up a hill. There have been times when, without this advantage, we would not have been able to get home. Plus, we do most of our travelling up in the Highlands, in Winter, steep hills etc. and they have never let us down.

[Tomo3090]

No matter how long you look and what lists you make you will never find the "perfect motorhome". It doesn't exist! Many have spent time and money looking so just remember you will have to compromise on something somewhere. Work out your priorities, how you will use the van, is it for long term touring eventually? Is it just for week-ends in the UK? Where will I store it when we are not using it? Will we use it in winter?

 

Then as others have said visit dealers, shows and talk to owners until your head hurts!

 

Then the fun starts! You visit the dealer. The nice smiling man will ask you what you want, show you something you didn't, at £5,000 over your budget! You will part with your cash and drive away. Oh! having first visited the outlet shop for chocks, ramps, barbque, awning carpet, full set of crockery, pans, cutlery, kettle for gas, kettle for electric, toaster and microwave.

 

You get home log on here and read up, then realise not only have you bought the wrong van, it won't reverse up hill, and is too big/not big enough and you should have had aircon, an inverter, an extra battery and a solar panel fitted before you left the dealers.

 

But after all that you will go away for the first time and you will have a great time, meet interesting, strange, friendly, and mad people all with the van you should have bought!

 

But after all this you'll love it and wonder why you didn't do it years ago!

 

Welcome to the asylum, we've taken over you know. :-D

[Playtime]

Tomo3090,

 

Do you have any advice/tips/wise words for a couple that have just bought their first motorhome and are about to set off for the w/end. We've decided to stay reasonably local as we felt the main effort needed to be setting up on arrival etc, but are there any other bits we ought to be mindful of so that we don't look complete numpties when we get there.

 

 

[Brian Kirby]

LORNA - 2008-04-23 10:07 PM Thanks for all your replies. Can I now pick your brains abour U-shaped rear seating? The 'Which Motorhome' recently ran a 4 motorhome comaprison with the Autocruise coming out top. We like the look of this lay-out a lot. Also, any tips for what to prioritise seeing if we manage to visit the Northampton Show this weekend. Look forward to your views, Lorna

Among the welter of good advice already given, I would emphasise two things.

Payload.  This is not just the difference between the weight of the empty van and its MAM.  It is (or should be calculated as) the difference between the weight of the van with a full tank of fuel, full fresh water tank, full gas bottles, jack and emergency tools, and driver at a nominal 75Kg; and the plated MAM.  You then need around 4/500Kg spare (i.e. the payload) for two people if you are thinking beyond a couple of weeks use at a time.

Second point is where/how you think you will use it.  If you intend mainly UK use, your choice of "U" shaped rear lounge will probably suit.  It is a popular layout in UK, as we seem to spend relatively more time inside our vans.  However, remember the bedding has to go somewhere, and it can be bulky, and eat up a lot of what may otherwise look like generous storage provision.  If you expect to tour abroad a lot, especially southern Europe, you may end up spending all your time sitting outside wondering what that U shaped lounge was for!  The exception would be if you would expect to use "aires" etc for stopovers.  As many of these are little more than glorified car parks, they do not offer that much opportunity for sitting outside, so a comfortable "indoor" lounge may be preferable.

[malc d]

Playtime - 2008-04-25 6:44 PM

 

Tomo3090,

 

Do you have any advice/tips/wise words for a couple that have just bought their first motorhome and are about to set off for the w/end. We've decided to stay reasonably local as we felt the main effort needed to be setting up on arrival etc, but are there any other bits we ought to be mindful of so that we don't look complete numpties when we get there.

 

 

 

The nice thing about motorhomes is that there is not a lot of 'setting up' to do.

If you're on a site (with electric ) you just put the handbrake on,plug in the electrics, and put the kettle on.

 

As it's your first time I would also suggest that you remember to fill your fresh water tank at home or before you pitch.

 

Have a good time !

 

;-) ;-)

[LORNA]

Thanks again for the comments/advice - made me smile and gave me thoughtful agenda when I visited the Peterborough Show yesterday. As a result have done some of the things recommended: sorted out a few days hire over the Whitsun week over in East Anglia and looked at lots of lay-outs. We're now pretty sure that the U-shaped lay-out is for us. Next query for anyone who can help/has exerience of the 3 models we are considering: the Autosleeper Legend, the Autocruise Starfire and the Compass Avantgarde all have U-shaped lay-outs we have lounged upon and like. What are the relative merits of the builds of the 3 manufacturers. As always, thanks for your responses - they are very helpful indeed. LORNA

 

[Tomo3090]

Lorna, I've sent you a PM!

 

Good luck on your first night. We went to a big all singing and dancing site near Shrewsbury and we provided much entertainment and merriment for those watching us try to set up for the first time. We arrived at our pitch and everything we were told by the dealer when we picked up the van was forgotten!

 

We reversed up the chocks, then down the chocks! Moved the chocks and went back up them, and back down again! Trying to get that bl**dy bubble in the centre of the level. Eventually it got "near enough" and that was that, or so we thought.

 

Then we attached the hook up cable to the post and to the van....nothing! I unplugged it, looked knowingly into the end of both connections, connected them back up and ...nothing! I pressed the connection in further, and can I say now the post was already leaning, it just is now leaning a bit more! Then I noticed a little arrow indicating that the plug in the post had to be turned, and then there was light!

 

Now came the tuning in of the wind up satellite dish. Done very easily by the man who fitted it. 20-25 minutes later after the thing had gone round like a radar dish on a warship and not picked up so much as a test card, I resorted to plugging in to the television socket on the electric post. And so we settled down to have a brew and watch "Corrie".

 

OH NO WE DIDN'T!! We had the kettle, we had the gas, what we didn't have was the water! So the ariel cable and hook up were disconnected, we drove off the chocks and went to the water point. (Managing to go the wrong way round the one way system on the site on the way!)

 

Eventually we got back on to the pitch, had 2 more attempts at getting on the chocks, connected up the electric and the cable for the telly, brewed up only to be in time watch the credits on "Corrie"!

 

Not so much as a curtain had twitched during the whole time, no one had popped their head out to help, and it was like the "Marie Celeste" on the site. I THOUGHT I heard laughter but I convinced myself it was just the wind blowing through the guy ropes of the awnings attached to several caravans.

 

Next morning in the washrooms and chap followed me in and looked at me and as he bent down to wash his face asked " First time out is it?"

 

FRIENDLY CLUB MY AR**!

[colin]

:D :D :D

[Playtime]

Malc d & Tomo 3090,

 

Thanks for your input, I'll ensure the water tank is filled prior to arrival and will pester the 'demonstrating chappie' so that I know how the hook up and TV works and will hopefully avoid any slick comments in the washroom. No doubt there will be moments of fuming exasperation >:-( and hopefully lots of laughs (lol), as for embarrasment :$, well everyone was a first timer at some point, just that some people seem to forget that. I'll let you all know how the first outing goes on our return.

[Ranger]

Hi Lorna, those three are a good selection, a pal of mine has just taken delivery of the Compass Avanguard and likes it very much. He did have a heavy bumper fitted on the back to protect all that big plastic section holding all the rear lights and a tow ball C/W bike rack. The long water ingress waranty is a good long one too. I have a Legend, no major complaints there except the kitchen is a bit short on dropping space, and the bathroom could have been a bit roomier, but good aerodinamics, and no joints to leak, and no wooden frames to rot, and good old rear wheel drive. We have some one in the Holdsworth owners Club with the Autocruise and I have not heared him complain about anything on it. So best of luck with which ever one you pick. See you in a field somewhere sometime, David...............

[Minstrel]

Re: water in the tank, if you go abroad, sometimes there is a tap but no hose to fill the motorhome. We bought a watering can for the M/H and fill (sorry he fills) the tank, a couple of cans or more a day as required. We don't often use our own shower though, why use our gas when we've paid for hot water in the shower block.

[Tomo3090]

Or you could buy your own hose and connections! Get about 10 mtrs of the blue food grade polythene hose. The usual hoselock connectors are ideal. You can develop another hobby checking out garden centres and DIY shops. But remember no matter how many you have there will always be a tap out there that you won't be able to connect to!

 

If you use small CL or CS sites you will need to shower in your van. The secret is to wet your hair and body quickly, then turn off the tap, use showergel to wash your hair and body, then turn on the tap to rinse yourself off in one go. You will only have about 10-12 litres of hot water so when in your vans shower, remember, there isn't enough time to get through the chorus never mind a full song! :-D

[Playtime]

Tomo 3090,

 

Were you in the Navy? Ships routine - on with the water, off with the water, on with the soap and lather, on with the water off with the soap, job done.:-D

 

 

[Tomo3090]

No, just caught by the sudden drenching in cold water in Cornwall last year! The first week was a steep learning curve, but we have had the best time since. We are going away in our new van in September until Christmas, coming home, selling the house in Spring then off full timing to where ever the road takes us.

 

When you get bitten by this motorhome bug it certainly gets a grip! :-D

[Mel B]

For the times when we can't get to the water tap or if it's one of those ones that no matter what you cannot connect to it as it spurts water out like Niagara falls and blows the ruddy hose off, we use a black plastic funnel, the type you can get for £1 from pound shops or car part outlets and a collapsable bucket. You need to poke out the wire mesh in the black funnel as it restricts the flow of water (and eventually will go rusty), then we fill up the bucket and pour it in via the funnel, you might need to cut down the end of the funnel a bit to make it more managable though, but we find this works fine for us and it easier to store than a watering can and the bucket can be used for other (clean) things as well.

 

Shower gel can be great but be careful which ones you buy, the ones with the added 'cream' to moisturise etc can be an absolute swine to rinse off so they defeat the object of the exercise!

 

As an afterthought, for those on here with hair :D I can highly recommend the turbi-towel type things. They cost £1 now from pound shops etc. They are a hair towel that you twist round and put the end through a loop. They really do dry your hair very well and keep it out of the way whilst you dry the rest of you, by which time a quick rub with the turbi towel and you will be surprised at just how dry your hair is. As they are fairly small they don't take up much room and dry very quickly.

 

As another afterthought! To dry yourself off but withing having to use a big towel and have it hanging around in the motorhome, you can use a good pair of towelling socks! Just stick them on your hands and dry yourself with them, then finish off with a quick 'polish' with a small hand towel, makes it quicker and much easier especially if you're in a confined space to reach all those awkward little places. :$ (lol)

[LORNA]

Thanks for a further round of tips, advice and common sense. If the helpfulness on this forum is anything to go by, motorhoming is a way of life that seems to attract some supportive and kind people! Will post the result of our search the first motorhome when we get it!