Advise on small motorhome models.

[janeyjane]

Hi

Sorry I've not found time to be around recently!

I'm hankering after upgrading my van already. Had far too much trouble with flat batteries, ongoing damp smell and constantly having to pump up the tyres! :-(

I've been driving myself round the bend trying to find the ideal van and am really struggling so I thought I'd seek advice from the experts.

The mandatory non-negotiable requirements:
- must be less that 10 years old
- must be less than 17ft long - driveway constraint
- must be less than 2m wide (i.e. not based on Ducato, Boxer etc) - gate width constraint
- must have space to have a porta potti available with the bed made up
- must have fresh and waste water tanks onboard
- must be under £20k and preferably well below!

The preferred/highly desirable requirements:
- unobstructed access through rear doors so I can carry large/long objects when I go shopping at IKEA....
- shower cubicle
- onboard heating
- sleeping space for 1 OK, 2 better
- have a gangway by the side of the bed when it's made up so you don't have to crawl to the end of the bed to get to the loo
- prefer not to have a pop-up roof

Suggestions on a postcard....... PLEASE!!! before I lose my mind!

Jane

[johns1]

I think that your requirements might be a bit difficult to meet.
This is probably one reason why there have not yet been any replies.
VW van conversions would certainly come within the width restraint and there are models (Autosleeper Topaz) which have shower/toilet facilities and I think are about 17 feet long or thereabouts .Access through the back is possible but may be a bit restricted. However these models are a bit sought after I think and prices may be a bit too high for the age you are looking for.
Apart from this possibility it is probably worth searching as widely as you can as other things of interest will turn up- some Renault and Toyota van conversions possibly.
Alternatively have you considered moving the gatepost ;D

[wheelmon]

Hi Jane

I have a standard Duo (not HyLo), and for a solo camper it appears to meet most of your requirements - except for the shower.

Mandatory needs:
Age, length, width, water tanks, price range all stand up.
The Porta Potti stays where it is in the locker behind the driver's seat. Make up half the double bed (near-side) using the 3 wooden bars. The seat-cushion over the Potti is lifted onto the rear offside seat and both offside back-rest cushions sit on the top. This makes a large area on top for clothes etc.
The Potti is now accessible via the "gangway" (mind the wooden bars - actually I don't remember having to step over any - I sleep with my head at the sink end).

So far I could have been talking about a C15 Hytop!! (except perhaps the age)

Just the question of the shower...... . . .

I have had a fancy big motorhome with a shower compartment separate from the wc (swank swank) but I am happy to swop that for the cosy, compact, easy-to-drive, easy-to-park, easy-to-clean, economic, etc etc Romahome.
A very small plastic bowl of warm water placed in a very large plastic bowl to catch the splashes and placed on the step (not the back-door step!) - who needs a shower??

ps: I forgot to mention that I had fitted a Propex heater in the Duo. I also didn't say about some little 'stops' I fitted under the nearside seat cushions to stop them sliding away in the 'half-bed' set-up.
I just read through this again and it sounds a bit like I'm trying to flog the Duo. That is not the case - just suggesting it's suitability.

mmm.."flog".. is that one of those 'Northern' words??

Keith

[janeyjane]

Apr 16, 2009 16:00:50 GMT johns1 said:

I think that your requirements might be a bit difficult to meet.
This is probably one reason why there have not yet been any replies.
VW van conversions would certainly come within the width restraint and there are models (Autosleeper Topaz) which have shower/toilet facilities and I think are about 17 feet long or thereabouts .Access through the back is possible but may be a bit restricted. However these models are a bit sought after I think and prices may be a bit too high for the age you are looking for.

Yep, I've now spent a couple of months trying to work out things like the age at which the base vehicle sizes increased and my brain is completely frazzled!! When I do find vehicles of the right size for 'full size van' conversions, as you say, they tend to be in demand and prices are relatively high and so the vehicles frequently look rather 'tired' to be affordable :-(

Apr 16, 2009 16:00:50 GMT johns1 said:

Apart from this possibility it is probably worth searching as widely as you can as other things of interest will turn up- some Renault and Toyota van conversions possibly.

Yep, that is what I'm seriously considering at the moment. I've even found a couple of designs with showers!!
www.poplarmotors.co.uk/index.php and
caravans.vivastreet.co.uk/motorhomes-sale+swansea-sa6/toyota-hiace-camper-high-top-japanese-import/14087743

Apr 16, 2009 16:00:50 GMT johns1 said:

Alternatively have you considered moving the gatepost ;D

Already done that!! Any wider would require demolishing my garden shed! ;-P

Jane

[janeyjane]

Apr 16, 2009 18:28:30 GMT wheelmon said:

Hi Jane

I have a standard Duo (not HyLo), and for a solo camper it appears to meet most of your requirements - except for the shower.

Mandatory needs:
Age, length, width, water tanks, price range all stand up.
The Porta Potti stays where it is in the locker behind the driver's seat. Make up half the double bed (near-side) using the 3 wooden bars. The seat-cushion over the Potti is lifted onto the rear offside seat and both offside back-rest cushions sit on the top. This makes a large area on top for clothes etc.
The Potti is now accessible via the "gangway" (mind the wooden bars - actually I don't remember having to step over any - I sleep with my head at the sink end).

So far I could have been talking about a C15 Hytop!! (except perhaps the age)

That's where it went wrong with my hytop - the dealer fitted my hot water system behind the driver's seat, where the porta potti is supposed to go, so mine has to be stored/used in the gangway.

Apr 16, 2009 18:28:30 GMT wheelmon said:

Just the question of the shower...... . . .

I managed to get a shower in my Hytop :-)
I got the dealer to line the footwell between fridge and sink with perspex and fit a drain plus a shower head tap and shower curtain rail, to curtain off from the edge of the sink unit to the back door. Very small, but better than nothing!

Apr 16, 2009 18:28:30 GMT wheelmon said:

mmm.."flog".. is that one of those 'Northern' words??

Keith

Luckily I'm a Northerner :-)

Jane

[glenw]

Hi Jane,

I was just catching up with this thread, thanks to johns1 for 'bumping' it into the 25 most recent posts!!

I was going to suggest a jap import and possibly increasing the age range of the vehicle, then I noticed you'd found poplar motors in Chesterfield!! Our van was bought from them late last year and is a 92 plate. The Japs realy look after their vehicles and the interior is very modern given the age, it is really quite clean and low mileage too.

The Dyna on their web page was in stock when we bought, it doesn't have a shower and looked pretty tired TBH. Can't say I noticed any of the others on their website, although we did pop our heads into a couple of the hiace conversions with showers and they did look great. I seem to recall they were mainly pop tops though. If you email them, they will endevour to source a vehicle that suits your requirements, thats what the initial own of our van did, then he changed his mind!!

good luck with the 'hunting'!!!!

Glen


Edit:- just had a look through the 'sold' campers and quite a few of the ones with showers are hard tops rather than pop tops.

[janeyjane]

Apr 17, 2009 10:28:59 GMT glenw said:

I was going to suggest a jap import and possibly increasing the age range of the vehicle, then I noticed you'd found poplar motors in Chesterfield!! Our van was bought from them late last year and is a 92 plate. The Japs realy look after their vehicles and the interior is very modern given the age, it is really quite clean and low mileage too.

Yup, intending to go there tomorrow!

Have you had any reliability problems with a vehicle that age? That's the main reason I want something relatively new cos if it's not going to start first time, virtually every time, or if it's going to need things replaced every couple of months, I know me, I'll lose interest in it very rapidly!

I've been chatting with the Director of Wellhouse Leisure too, and he's been trying to assure me that age isn't so much of an issue with Japanese vehicles, but I still can't get my head around the fact that the prices for 10 year old Japanese MPV conversions are comparable with that of ful size van conversions, yet you get less...... less space, less convenience, less equipment.....

My plan P, (there really have been that many that went before), is to look at the Japanese vehicles in Poplar and Wellhouse tomorrow then if they aren't what I want, decide whether to trade in my car and go for a brand new Romahome R10, which I'd have as my only vehicle, (Plan Q) or get a custom conversion on a small van, something like a Volkswagon Transporter, (Plan R). Or then again, Plan S might be right around the corner......

Jane

[peterholden]

Read the forum on the Bongo fury website, there are some issues with Japanese campers

[glenw]

Apr 17, 2009 15:43:35 GMT janeyjane said:

Yup, intending to go there tomorrow!

Have you had any reliability problems with a vehicle that age? That's the main reason I want something relatively new cos if it's not going to start first time, virtually every time, or if it's going to need things replaced every couple of months, I know me, I'll lose interest in it very rapidly!

We only bought our van in nov and have only been away in it for 1 weekend but we haven't had any problems so far. It starts first time every time and we trust it more than we did the daihatsu we had before!! We were a bit unsure about buying an older vehicle cos I'm not mechanically minded at all, but we decided that toyotas are built to last and are pretty bomb proof. Our other though was that toyota garages are pretty much everywhere in the UK which is more than we could say with the Daihatsu, so if we did happen to break down in the back of beyond, we would hopefully not be too far from someone who knew what parts we needed etc!!

I know what you mean about getting a smaller and older van for relatively high cost, but we also wanted a smallish vehicle so we could park it on our drive and not have too many problems with pitch size, parking in car parks etc. when we are away.

Glen

[glenw]

Apr 17, 2009 17:54:32 GMT peterholden said:

Read the forum on the Bongo fury website, there are some issues with Japanese campers

What issues are they peter? The forum looks big to be searching through!! Is there any generic issues with jap imports or do you mean the general problems with individual vehicles??

I would be interested, being a new owner of a jap van!


Glen

[yamaha]

Apr 17, 2009 17:54:32 GMT peterholden said:

Read the forum on the Bongo fury website, there are some issues with Japanese campers

That's quite a sweeping statement, Peter - surely the same argument applies to older Romahomes, and many other marques of vehicle?

What you need to bear in mind when reading Forums is that you're only reading about people who have problems with their vehicles - the vast majority don't have any problems - but equally never post to say that fact!!

My own Bongo is 14 years old - no real probs - and by far the best vehicle I've ever owned over the last 50 years.

Mike

[peterholden]

There seem to be engine problems with the diesel and sometimes problems with the 4 wheel drive as far as I can tell, also not undersealed from new and therefore rust is a problem with some. They are getting older and spares might be a problem.

[peterholden]

There are also some very good ones, a friend of mine has one but he did say that he looked at a lot before he bought his. The some of the diesels seem to have cylinder head problems. I looked on their forum last night and the cylinder head problem was near the top of the list again. My friend says that he sometimes has problems getting parts.

[glenw]

so its just individual vehicle problems rather than just japanese imports in general then! I was thinking that a problem with tax/mot/insurance/etc had arisen with the ownership of a jap import. phew!!!

Our import is a toyota, getting parts doesn't seem to be an issue as there seem to be quite a few specialist websites and the main dealer network can still get parts easily. The dealer who sold us ours did agree that getting parts for such as Kia's or isuzu could be more difficult though as they may sometimes need to be sourced in japan.

When we needed parts for our daihatsu, the suspension needed 3 different parts before they could get the right one, an aeriel took 2 weeks to arrive, breakers yards didn't hold stock and if you look at the Daihatsu owners forum, you'd think they were the worst vehicle in the world!! I think you always have a risk of failure, whatever vehicle you drive. My main car is a jag and the forum for them is full of 'faults' and 'niggles', none of which I've experienced, touch wood!!! I had a skoda before that, it ran like a dream and we all know a joke or 2 about skoda's don't we!! ;D

good luck Jane with the hunt, how about this one, its only slighlty bigger than you stated, 6.270m x 2.065m and has shower, loo, full size bed, on board tanks, in fact just about everything and more!

www.dj4x4.com/pages/vehicle.php?id=J300

[janeyjane]

Apr 17, 2009 15:43:35 GMT janeyjane said:

I've been chatting with the Director of Wellhouse Leisure too, and he's been trying to assure me that age isn't so much of an issue with Japanese vehicles, but I still can't get my head around the fact that the prices for 10 year old Japanese MPV conversions are comparable with that of ful size van conversions, yet you get less...... less space, less convenience, less equipment.....

My plan P, (there really have been that many that went before), is to look at the Japanese vehicles in Poplar and Wellhouse tomorrow then if they aren't what I want, decide whether to trade in my car and go for a brand new Romahome R10, which I'd have as my only vehicle, (Plan Q) or get a custom conversion on a small van, something like a Volkswagon Transporter, (Plan R). Or then again, Plan S might be right around the corner......

Jane

Well, just arrived home after a 200 mile tour that crossed the Pennines more times than I care to mention, but delighted to announce that I think I've found a good compromise! The summary of the day:

Poplar Motors - was vastly unimpressed. They only had elevating roof versions and the canvas was mouldy on the two I looked at. The shower cubicles were amusing. The basic cubicle is van-height, then there is a high level 'extension' that lifts into the roof space when the rood is elevated. Being a 'large lady', I might have just managed to squeeze into the space but stood no chance of having a proper shower. This was a Japanese conversion so clearly intended for the more diminutive proportions of the average Japanese frame!

Glossop Caravans - they were en-route and had a Autosleeper Trident based on a VW! It was an R-reg and as is usual for conversions that age, it looked tired and smelt slightly damp :-(

Wellhouse Leisure - what a breath of fresh air, literally and figuratively. The staff were helpful and friendly without being pushy. They encouraged me to try setting up the bed and try lying on in, were more than happy to help me taking measurements and take me out on a test drive in the last half hour they were open. Though they didn't have something that met all my exhaustive requirements, they could offer me options and potential compromises. All their vehicles were spotless despite being typically 10 years old - they have the same Japanese import models as Poplar but do their own in-house brand new conversions. I found a Toyota Granvia conversion that fits my needs, though it would need a hot water systm and tailgate shower fitting. Just need my Romahome to sell now!!

Jane