Buying a Camper Van

BOWFER

coffeehound said:

I wonder if the motorhome conversion companies improve things like the weatherproofing of the commercial base vehicle.  I heard in the past that vans and trucks didn't have the same quality of paint or underseal as cars since they were not expected to last as long; don't know whether that is still the case?

I'd say the exact opposite, commercial vehicles are surely expected to have a longer lifespan.
Many hauliers keep trucks on for years.

coffeehound

BOWFER said:
I'd say the exact opposite, commercial vehicles are surely expected to have a longer lifespan.

Many hauliers keep trucks on for years.

Perhaps just the light commercials then -- transits, panel vans etc.

marlot

BOWFER said:

coffeehound said:

I wonder if the motorhome conversion companies improve things like the weatherproofing of the commercial base vehicle.  I heard in the past that vans and trucks didn't have the same quality of paint or underseal as cars since they were not expected to last as long; don't know whether that is still the case?

I'd say the exact opposite, commercial vehicles are surely expected to have a longer lifespan.
Many hauliers keep trucks on for years.

Trucks, yes.  But many 10-year old vans look pretty rotten.

BOWFER

marlot said:

BOWFER said:

coffeehound said:

I wonder if the motorhome conversion companies improve things like the weatherproofing of the commercial base vehicle.  I heard in the past that vans and trucks didn't have the same quality of paint or underseal as cars since they were not expected to last as long; don't know whether that is still the case?

I'd say the exact opposite, commercial vehicles are surely expected to have a longer lifespan.
Many hauliers keep trucks on for years.

Trucks, yes.  But many 10-year old vans look pretty rotten.

I think that's just lack of maintenance, not touching up stone chips and scrapes.
Unprotected metal will rust whether it's a car or a van.
You want to see the rust on a colleague's 2011 Seat Ibiza here, she just doesn't care.

Herzlos

coffeehound said:

I wonder if the motorhome conversion companies improve things like the weatherproofing of the commercial base vehicle.  I heard in the past that vans and trucks didn't have the same quality of paint or underseal as cars since they were not expected to last as long; don't know whether that is still the case?

I wonder if the standards for safety and comfort stuff (including presumably type approval) need to be higher for an integrated motorhome because it has occupants, whereas a caravan is just a trailer with some furniture in it. Things like rotating drivers seats are going to be pretty expensive.

Ibrahim5

It's strange trying to work out the depreciation of some of these motorhomes. People are paying £10K-£20K for a 20 year old motorhome. Their MOT histories look very questionable. Corrosion etc. Certainly wouldn't buy a car like that. There is only one way to go after that a)scrapyard b)expensive repairs. Big losses if it can't be repaired economically. 20 year old caravans are going for £2-3K. Look OK. I can imagine gambling a couple of thousand on an old caravan but £10-£20K on a 20 year old vehicle? I don't think so.

BOWFER

Ibrahim5 said:

It's strange trying to work out the depreciation of some of these motorhomes. People are paying £10K-£20K for a 20 year old motorhome. Their MOT histories look very questionable. Corrosion etc. Certainly wouldn't buy a car like that. There is only one way to go after that a)scrapyard b)expensive repairs. Big losses if it can't be repaired economically. 20 year old caravans are going for £2-3K. Look OK. I can imagine gambling a couple of thousand on an old caravan but £10-£20K on a 20 year old vehicle? I don't think so.

Yup, it's baffling, as the interiors of them are at best disgusting in terms of decor and, at worst, look like you'd catch fleas off them.
I certainly wouldn't like to shine a black light on them.....!!
By their very nature you're going to be travelling around too, I wouldn't drive some of them to the end of my street without worrying it was going to break down.

Herzlos

At least with an old caravan worst case is you can abandon it somewhere safe and can drive home to deal with it later.
Mechanically it's just a set of wheels with drum brakes, a hitch and a cable so anyone with a spanner and welding gear should be able to bodge it enough to get it home, or at worse case either the car or the caravan will fit on the back of any recovery vehicle/trailer, maybe even both.

I think people just have rose tinted glasses towards campervans, especially those buying scrap vans to convert.

lordmountararat

If they do leave it takes them ages to pack up and put a poxy sign on their pitch.
It takes me a few minutes to secure my van, reel in the electric and drive off. It is only 5.3m long and 2.0m wide, so easily fits in a supermarket parking space. When I arrive at a site I can be  set up and enjoying a cup of tea in about a tenth of the time it takes a caravanner to erect his awning.

Ibrahim5

lordmountararat said:

If they do leave it takes them ages to pack up and put a poxy sign on their pitch.
It takes me a few minutes to secure my van, reel in the electric and drive off. It is only 5.3m long and 2.0m wide, so easily fits in a supermarket parking space. When I arrive at a site I can be  set up and enjoying a cup of tea in about a tenth of the time it takes a caravanner to erect his awning.

A motorhomer would have to disconnect their awning and when they arrive back on site would have to reconnect their awning without crashing into it. What a palaver. We normally don't use an awning because the caravan is so spacious. I did mention FAMILIES. A family motorhome won't fit in a normal parking space.