Finally after selling our Abbey Freestyle to a couple from Gloucestershire of summer (well i think it was
), we have just bought our replacement van. It's a Swift Challenger 490 of 1990 vintage and we have only spent 10% of what we sold our Abbey for, so there's plenty of money in the kitty to do the improvements.
As with any 22 year young van there are jobs to do but I don't mind that as I'm still laid up with chronic pain syndrome as they call it now apparently. I can do a couple of hours a day without agrivating the back pain, so that will be both our touring range and my DIY scope for this van.
The big job is to replace the fridge which has been broken for some years, so that will be a day out to our local caravan breaker in Wales. then there is the laminate flooring laid over 2, yep 2 carpets. I first of all thought the floor was delaminated and nearly passed on buying the van. But after taking up a couple of boards by the door and kitchen with loo opposite aera, where the most wear takes place, I found no evidence of spongy floor. The only patch of damp in the van is on the splashback above the kitchen sink, which is an easy repair and I'll upgrade it with a pvc tilled effect panel which will be more durable, after rebuilding the sub-structure.
Looking at the weather we're getting this year it looks like we chose the right year to have a sabatical from caravanning and change back to a cheap and cheerfull van that is much lighter for us to handle. I'm so glad most of the jobs on this van are on the inside.
So far I've got a feeling that this van will weigh in at under £850 including the purchase price when I've reworked it, so that falls well inside my usual budget of £1500 for a van in tip top condition. I have always felt that unless you're actually living in your van, there's no point in spending thousands to have 10 weekends a year away. Our Abbey was the most expensive van we ever bought but it did serve it's purpose very well for 3 years as our home and when we sold it, it still didn't show any significant wear and tear, which to me is a testement to the craftsmen at swift group
We've had a 1982 Swift Dannette before and that was as great van so hopefully our latest Swift product will serve it's time with us and have the same reliability.
As with any 22 year young van there are jobs to do but I don't mind that as I'm still laid up with chronic pain syndrome as they call it now apparently. I can do a couple of hours a day without agrivating the back pain, so that will be both our touring range and my DIY scope for this van.
The big job is to replace the fridge which has been broken for some years, so that will be a day out to our local caravan breaker in Wales. then there is the laminate flooring laid over 2, yep 2 carpets. I first of all thought the floor was delaminated and nearly passed on buying the van. But after taking up a couple of boards by the door and kitchen with loo opposite aera, where the most wear takes place, I found no evidence of spongy floor. The only patch of damp in the van is on the splashback above the kitchen sink, which is an easy repair and I'll upgrade it with a pvc tilled effect panel which will be more durable, after rebuilding the sub-structure.
Looking at the weather we're getting this year it looks like we chose the right year to have a sabatical from caravanning and change back to a cheap and cheerfull van that is much lighter for us to handle. I'm so glad most of the jobs on this van are on the inside.
So far I've got a feeling that this van will weigh in at under £850 including the purchase price when I've reworked it, so that falls well inside my usual budget of £1500 for a van in tip top condition. I have always felt that unless you're actually living in your van, there's no point in spending thousands to have 10 weekends a year away. Our Abbey was the most expensive van we ever bought but it did serve it's purpose very well for 3 years as our home and when we sold it, it still didn't show any significant wear and tear, which to me is a testement to the craftsmen at swift group
We've had a 1982 Swift Dannette before and that was as great van so hopefully our latest Swift product will serve it's time with us and have the same reliability.
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