1st outing - lessons learned for other newbies

[CluelessNewbies]

Hi All, just back from our first caravan outing in Devon. (Oak down holiday park - Top Marks and hopefully a great benchmark!) Realised the benefits of a caravan when going home and the kids said, 'we have never seen stone henge dad' - so we stopped for night! The joys of caravaning!!

Well, we made it back in one piece!

I thought i would post a few lessons learned for all of the other first timers preparing their first trips!

1) Fill up the fuel tank before you hitch and take off on the motorway! Filling up at the service stations with the caravan attached is much harder! - MPG-OMG! averaging about 20-25 mpg at best!
2) Think of your route! Your satnav isn't particularly friendly when it come choosing wide roads in those quaint parts of the country! (I had co-pilot caravan app running along side my nav for more friendly roads)
Take snacks in the car - and games for the kids! you dont realise how long a journey is driving at the speed limit!! (and stuck in holiday traffic jams!)
3) Make sure your nose weight is OK before leaving! remember, your boots already weighing the car down!
4) Awning pegs! The plastic ones that come with awning and the mallet are completely useless when trying to drive through concreted hard standing pitches! Buy some metal ones that look like 8 inch nails and use a proper hammer!! (a bit of water on the soil to soften it also helps!)
4) Take a watering can. Filling the toilet is much easier! (i didn't understand this until the first time i did it!)
5) make sure you have a spanner for the gas bottle. I didnt know i didnt have one, until i realised i needed one!
6) Work out how many showers you can manage on a full water hog! Running out half way through isnt fun! - or remember to fill it up before you take a shower!
7) dont be afraid to ask your neighbour for help! It appears that most caravners are a friendly bunch and all had mobile tool sheds with them and advice on where you are going wrong
8) 9) and 10) - most importantly - DONT FORGET THE WINE!

Had a great time and very much looking forward to the next adventure!!!

 

[KeefySher]

Well done for getting away and dealing with challenges, all part of the fun.

Wine would be top of my list.

Watering can - the IKEA PS202 is available in Pink for 85p. We find 3 fills of the watering can fills the flush tank on the Thetford C260. Being pink it stays in the front locker with a small bottle of pin fluid in it in case of spills. www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/decoration/plants-pots-stands/ikea-ps-2002-watering-can-lilac-art-80336517/

Rock pegs for hardstanding awning pegging down. We have the part rifled shank ones from Olpro, currently at a good price at Argos £13.99 for 20 in a smart carry case:
http://www.argos.co.uk/product/4281409?cmpid=GS001&_$ja=tsid:59156%7Ccid:189949525%7Cagid:18091974325%7Ctid:aud-180466976485la-139592460565%7Ccrid:77627773765%7Cnw:g%7Crnd:16685414116865830591%7Cdvc:c%7Cadp:1o2&gclid=Cj0KEQjwg47KBRDk7LSu4LTD8eEBEiQAO4O6r0SFQgE3unytDzFyDytv6eHYoTn8aRIrKjUa0C3nu-0aAu9q8P8HAQ

A good lump hammer is useful to put them in.

It gets more enjoyable the more you do it.

 

[Anseo]

Good advice.

Wishing you have many more successful outings

 

[Bwlch]

Interesting points.Second trip in ours this week so all ideas welcome. At least living in North Wales I don't have to go far to find nice places to stay and can always pop home if I need anything.

 

[Lynnybobs]

6) Work out how many showers you can manage on a full water hog! Running out half way through isnt fun! - or remember to fill it up before you take a shower!

Yep we did this - first outing in our caravan as complete newbies - I said to the hubby 'is there enough water to try out the shower ?' and he confidently replied 'oh yes there loads in the aquaroll' ...........hmmmm think the moral of that tale is always check for yourself before you get in .....

 

[sgtangel]

1) Fill up the fuel tank before you hitch and take off on the motorway! Filling up at the service stations with the caravan attached is much harder! - MPG-OMG! averaging about 20-25 mpg at best!!

Depending on what car you drive, consider having the engine re-mapped.
I have a Ford Mondeo 2.2 TDCi, and you would think for a lump that size it would cope with towing easily.....

nope !! terrible mpg, and struggling to tow the van when laden

I paid to get the engine remapped by a mobile tuner, (£265.00) but boy was it worth it.

Car now tows like a train, and the mpg is improved across all driving styles

Worth the investment twice over.....

 

[Mel]

6) Work out how many showers you can manage on a full water hog! Running out half way through isnt fun! - or remember to fill it up before you take a shower!

Yep we did this - first outing in our caravan as complete newbies - I said to the hubby 'is there enough water to try out the shower ?' and he confidently replied 'oh yes there loads in the aquaroll' ...........hmmmm think the moral of that tale is always check for yourself before you get in .....

Try the submariners shower technique. Rinse. Turn shower off. Apply shampoo and body wash and lather. Turn shower on to rinse. Saves lots of water.

Mel

 

[Lynnybobs]

I use that shower technique now Mel - the things you learn about the caravanning life !

 

[KeefySher]

[

Try the submariners shower technique. Rinse. Turn shower off. Apply shampoo and body wash and lather. Turn shower on to rinse. Saves lots of water.

Mel

One of my oldest mates is an ex submariner, never known him to shower. He wasn't called stinky stern gland steve for no reason!!!

A squaddie wash will often suffice.

 

[ProfJohnL]

1) Fill up the fuel tank before you hitch and take off on the motorway! Filling up at the service stations with the caravan attached is much harder! - MPG-OMG! averaging about 20-25 mpg at best!!

Depending on what car you drive, consider having the engine re-mapped.
I have a Ford Mondeo 2.2 TDCi, and you would think for a lump that size it would cope with towing easily.....

nope !! terrible mpg, and struggling to tow the van when laden

I paid to get the engine remapped by a mobile tuner, (£265.00) but boy was it worth it.

Car now tows like a train, and the mpg is improved across all driving styles

Worth the investment twice over.....

Such remaps can be a can of worms. First of all as it is affecting the performance of the vehicle you are obliged to inform your insurers who may charge you more or even refuse to insure the vehicle.

Secondly the additional power throughput of the engine may not be withing the capacity of cooling system, or the clutch and gear box. It will almost certainly affect your vehicle warranty.

And it may cause your vehicle to fail the emissions test of the MOT.

 

[PHOENIXFLIER]

We have been using a £6.00 "Solar Shower", brilliant in this weather! Enough water for two if you a move on!.

 

[Mogwyth]

Such remaps can be a can of worms. First of all as it is affecting the performance of the vehicle you are obliged to inform your insurers who may charge you more or even refuse to insure the vehicle.

Secondly the additional power throughput of the engine may not be withing the capacity of cooling system, or the clutch and gear box. It will almost certainly affect your vehicle warranty.

And it may cause your vehicle to fail the emissions test of the MOT.

When I did some work on my Discovery the insurance company weren't bothered which surprised me but then talking to my nephew who works in motor insurance underwriting, he said if you uprate a powerful car properly (mine has had mechanical changes, as well as a custom remap and,uprated brakes etc) and are an older driver with a good driving record, then they tend not to be bothered.

Its also worth noting brakes and things may not be up to the additional power, so of these of the shelf remaps add 30% more hp

 

[DrZhivago]

Depending on what car you drive, consider having the engine re-mapped. .... Car now tows like a train, and the mpg is improved across all driving styles

Such remaps can be a can of worms. .... the additional power throughput of the engine may not be withing the capacity of cooling system...

Time to keep an eye on the temperature gauge then. It depends if you use the extra power to flog it more or just to make things more comfortable with only occasional full use of the extra power when you really need it.

... or the clutch and gear box.

Depends again. My tow car has a range of engine options, the top of which is a monster V8 with twice the power and 20% more torque than mine; but they all use the same transmission and brakes.

It will almost certainly affect your vehicle warranty.

You are being too sensitive :lol:

And it may cause your vehicle to fail the emissions test of the MOT.

Seems unlikely as he is getting more mpg.

 

[Andy-H]

I've had 2 of my previous vehicles remapped, no increase in insurance premiums and absolutely no issues with drivetrain or wearing of the clutch; the first one is still going strong with 215k on the clock. Come MOT time, the latest towcar will be getting the same treatment in coming months.
If you have it remapped then drive it like you stole it then obviously you'll have problems.

 

[CluelessNewbies]

I have to say, the XF I'm using has bags of power and torque, Im kicking out about 270HP and 400lbs of torque from a 3 litre V6 diesel and you can clearly feel the strain when thats pulling. I have no idea how hard it would be to drive some of the more moderately powered cars. I know lot of people with remapped ECU's and if i had something smaller, would certainly have one done.

If you look at a lot of cars, you see huge power differences in the same model range, and they usually always have the same gearboxes and cooling systems! i think a great deal of myth is still around ye olden days. Modern are more than capable of better performance but they are usually set for the conditions of country you live in. You only nee to see some of the Japanese imports to see what can be achieved!

 

[Dustydog]

There's a lot of truth in the Prof's comments which do need to be considered carefully. As an example the BMW X5 as supplied requires the cooling system to be upgraded if used for towing! Weird when you bought a 4x4 for towing.

 

[00buzz]

There's a lot of truth in the Prof's comments which do need to be considered carefully. As an example the BMW X5 as supplied requires the cooling system to be upgraded if used for towing! Weird when you bought a 4x4 for towing.

The cooling system is only upgraded when the factory fit tow option is ticked. this is because the towing capacity is upped to 3500kg....mine has regular cooling and happily pulls 1800kg without issue (even in the M5 chaos last week at 30 degree plus!!!!)

 

[sgtangel]

I've had 2 of my previous vehicles remapped, no increase in insurance premiums and absolutely no issues with drivetrain or wearing of the clutch; the first one is still going strong with 215k on the clock. Come MOT time, the latest towcar will be getting the same treatment in coming months.
If you have it remapped then drive it like you stole it then obviously you'll have problems.

I have to report very similar results. No issues RE insurance, the car has been remapped for 2 years with no issues at all, and it runs smoother, leaner and tows better. The company who carried out the work set it up to my preference - they informed me the car could cope with far higher than I wanted (bear in mind the purpose was towability not boy racer daftness) but the increases they provided were easily within the limits of the vehicle components.

Everything that has been said is true though - all the points are relevant, and should be known before the work is done, and carefully considered - here`s hoping my car gets to 215k :woohoo:

 

[KeefySher]

There's a lot of truth in the Prof's comments which do need to be considered carefully. As an example the BMW X5 as supplied requires the cooling system to be upgraded if used for towing! Weird when you bought a 4x4 for towing.

The cooling system is only upgraded when the factory fit tow option is ticked. this is because the towing capacity is upped to 3500kg....mine has regular cooling and happily pulls 1800kg without issue (even in the M5 chaos last week at 30 degree plus!!!!)

My previous tug, a Merc S Klasse had the cooling system upgraded with an OEM tow bar retrofitted. That was a greater capacity pump and fan. My thinking being: a £75k car with an autobox replacement at £12k if it overheated due to not fitting a pump and fan for £220. Some versions of the car were built with the higher capacity cooling pump and fan, some weren't. Once established mine wasn't, it really was a no brainer That I got the lot gratis due to delay in supply from MB was an added bonus. Going forward on purchasing new cars, for the cost that you can probably negotiate, I'd have factory fitted tow bars even if not towing as cycle racks are easier on the tow bar than the roof as I get older.

 

[ProfJohnL]

...If you look at a lot of cars, you see huge power differences in the same model range, and they usually always have the same gearboxes and cooling systems!

That is an unsafe assumption to make. Yes these is one particular German manufacture who uses the same engine block in a wide range of vehicles and in different power outputs, but there can and are several important differences in the drive train. such clutch ratings and gear ratio's. Exhaust bores, with more gas flow through the engine there may well be different sized catalysts and DPFs needed to properly cope.

Simply taking a base model and applying a remap to increase power, without also taking the necessary steps to improve the other parts is a recipe for premature failures.

 

[forester08]

1) Fill up the fuel tank before you hitch and take off on the motorway! Filling up at the service stations with the caravan attached is much harder! - MPG-OMG! averaging about 20-25 mpg at best!!

Depending on what car you drive, consider having the engine re-mapped.
I have a Ford Mondeo 2.2 TDCi, and you would think for a lump that size it would cope with towing easily.....

nope !! terrible mpg, and struggling to tow the van when laden

I paid to get the engine remapped by a mobile tuner, (£265.00) but boy was it worth it.

Car now tows like a train, and the mpg is improved across all driving styles

Worth the investment twice over.....

You surprise me with the problem you had with your 2.2 ford engine as we have a 2.2 Galaxy auto and it pulls like a train. The only problem I find with it is trying to remember we have a caravan behind us as the car doesn’t seem to notice. I must say fuel consumption is not great at 26/gallon when towing but having that much power on hills etc. is well worth it.

 

[DrZhivago]

[

...If you look at a lot of cars, you see huge power differences in the same model range, and they usually always have the same gearboxes and cooling systems!

That is an unsafe assumption to make.

It does not need to be an assumption. I have the complete parts list for my car (all 684 pages, as a PDF)* and it details every model variation. If anyone is into remapping I suggest they register with an enthusiast forum for their car for info : that's what the internet is good at.

*I have the workshop manual too, 7200 pages of it!