bailey floor or swift back wall

[sunnydays]

hi

we are looking at a bailey unicorn seville or cadiz with alutec or a swift with SMART of similar age and price

the bailey seems to be plagued with damp in floor and the swift with cracked back panel

can anyone throw anything to assist us deciding

thanks

 

[Damian]

The most basic answer is to keep looking until you find the van that suits you and that you feel happy with.

Unfortunately there is no magic answer, there are good and bad in every make of van, even between identical models.

 

[Raywood]

I would give both a miss, unless you are competent to do the work yourself and can get a good discount off the market price. Both are expensive to repair, and there is no point just buying a potential problem when there are plenty of decent ones around. Of the two, the floor should be the easier to repair, though although that might depend on the full extent of the problem.

 

[Beachball]

So far i have own Bailey and Swift never had any problems but we always buy one owner caravan that come with a full service history . and stamps to prove also Cris registered ...
Look at other vans different makes something might take your fancy .

 

[Kevin M]

We went to see a high end van yesterday, brand new demonstrator and the shower cubicle already looked poor (very flimsy product used for the wall covering and was very loose).i do despair over the quality of some (not all) of the current models.

Kev

 

[Beachball]

That the only thing i do love our end washroom in the Abbey it very roomy our next van would be this because we like the twin bunks .

 

[Dustydog]

Due to Covid it is a sellers market. Used caravans are few and far between. Please don’t make the mistake of buying someone else’s trouble. I would not touch either with a barge pole. If you are willing to wait until the Covid passes I suspect the used market will be flooded with some great bargains. This year’s caravanners will go back to the jet set holidays. Hopefully next Whitsun May be the turning point , who knows🤔

 

[Raywood]

I do agree, I think there will be quite a lot of caravans back on the market soon, so there is no point in taking a faulty one unless it is a project, and you get the appropriate discount.

 

[Beachball]

if we upgrade it will not be for some time until this Covid passes and we are back to normal .

 

[Kevin M]

I’m in the same mind as beachball but only issue I can see is PX prices will drop through the proverbial floor due to the amount of vans flooding the market.

Kevin

 

[sunnydays]

Thanks everyone, the layout we want is the side dinette , took us ages to get to this, we went fixed bed then two berth now be are finally happy about the side dinette. Its for two adults and I know its making up the bed, however it means we have more living floor space.
now to get the brand ,

cheers

 

[otherclive]

Thanks everyone, the layout we want is the side dinette , took us ages to get to this, we went fixed bed then two berth now be are finally happy about the side dinette. Its for two adults and I know its making up the bed, however it means we have more living floor space.
now to get the brand ,

cheers

We took the similar decision after having a previous larger fixed bed caravan. The layout in ours gives us space and daytime flexibility. At night there are two jobs. I take dogs out for their last wee, my wife makes up the front bed.

 

[RogerL]

Thanks everyone, the layout we want is the side dinette , took us ages to get to this, we went fixed bed then two berth now be are finally happy about the side dinette. Its for two adults and I know its making up the bed, however it means we have more living floor space.
now to get the brand ,

cheers

Side dinette is a great layout for couples, plenty of width in the centre aisle

 

[Raywood]

If you are buying second hand then possibly getting a good well looked after example is more important than the make although you do have to live with the interior so you have to be happy with that.

 

[Buckman]

We tried the side dinette and had the caravan for about 3 months and traded it in for the side bed as gave us more room. After that it was traded in for island bed and have had island bed for the past 10 or more years.

 

[Beachball]

Before we started back we hired a caravan with a side dinette it was ok but you had to make a bed .
So we brought a 2 berth end washroom the bunks are long enough
Both singles 190cm x 72cm

 

[xtrailman]

Go for a swift Elegance or HT conqueror 2017 .
No wood in the construction.

My Bailey Unicorn had wood rot.

 

[Beachball]

T

Go for a swift Elegance or HT conqueror 2017 .
No wood in the construction.

My Bailey Unicorn had wood rot.

They look great those two caravans as well