Do we need a new style of caravan? I think yes

[rabvan]

Ive watched with interest all the talk about the new pegasus and stealth and all the negative feed-back on how its been done before and what a stupid black front and you need to get your screw-driver out every 2 years and pop the sides together and wee side compartments and how it will never work...blaa, blaa, blaa at least we are starting to see some different design creep into the caravan world,ABOUT BLOODY TIME IF YOU ASK ME!!!

Far to long have i seen caravan salesmen try and punt the same old stuff every year at caravan shows,lets get some proper English/Scottish/welsh/Irish Design into NEW CARAVANS and come up with something that will free us from the old ways x

 

[marlot]

I agree.

Having been through the misery of damp in a 2-year old caravan, I welcome a new construction technique. I'd love to buy a caravan which I was confident I could keep for ten years or more.

I also think that some of the more unusual caravans, like the tab and stealth have some good ideas which may attract new people to our hobby -we may see some of the ideas come more into the mainstream if customers like them enough.

 

[emmerson2]

Timothy said "I'd love to buy a caravan I could keep for ten years". I did, its a 30-year-old Royale. Quality always tells.

 

[Mikey1]

To be brutally frank they dont want you to keep your van for 10 years,if you do they will go out of business,you need people to continually buy new vans to keep the secondhand market going.

Look at the car industry nobody buy new cars and a short supply of secondhand ones,if the Government hadnt stepped in with the scrapage scheme it would had been in serious trouble,but note its new they need to sell not secondhand.

 

[forestgump]

i must admit i like the stealth inside out side is ugly and weight is a problem also price .

read a lot about bailey not to good damp ect ect ive stuck with swift seem to be ok

 

[Mikey1]

I have been to some lovely places in the caravan with lovely views,most times i am pitched with my nose facing the view so i can look out of my front windows and admire it.

If i bought a Stealth it has no front window and as the seating area is in the middle i would be looking at someones elses van,awning or car!

 

[marlot]

⇨ Look at the car industry nobody buy new cars and a short supply of secondhand ones,if the Government hadnt stepped in with the scrapage scheme it would had been in serious trouble,but note its new they need to sell not secondhand.

I'm reliably informed that the primary reason for the drop in the number of second hand cars available was started by the drop in the pound. This meant that cars were being exported - initially in large numbers to southern Ireland, then as the lack of used cars drove the price up, to further afield. It happened quite quickly - dealers were finding that they were paying around 10% more for used cars than the equivalent ones on their forecourts.

Its only the recession which is keeping prices down. With the pound having fallen so far, imported goods are about to become a lot more expensive. You can see it already with imported Japanese goods.

 

[DianneT]

Well we have always kept a brand new or second hand van over 5 years and some times more over the past 40 years and never had damp in any van. Recently had a new Coachman for just over 3 years and now have had a secondhand 2005 Elddis (1 year old when we got it) Storm no problems. Loved and had no problems with the Amara but really enjoy the Storm for its size as we go over to Europe 2 or 3 months a year and use it a lot in this country in the Summer and Winter. Had the Storm serviced in October all it wanted was 2 new bulbs one in the awning light and one in the sidelight.

 

[Mikey1]

Sales of new cars dropped by 23% in 1 year,they may have exported lots of second hand cars but you still have to have the need for new cars to be bought to make second hand cars available.

Prices have started to creep up on both cars and caravan because of the weak pound against the euro,most of the equipment in caravans is made in Europe.

 

[anotherDavid]

I agree.

Having been through the misery of damp in a 2-year old caravan, I welcome a new construction technique. I'd love to buy a caravan which I was confident I could keep for ten years or more.

I also think that some of the more unusual caravans, like the tab and stealth have some good ideas which may attract new people to our hobby -we may see some of the ideas come more into the mainstream if customers like them enough.

Timothy

We had a perfectly functional Abbey special edition that I would have still owned now but for extensive damp after 2 years (fixed by Swift FOC) new floor again fixed FOC and eventually another load of damp when I traded it in that put us in the position of a rip off deal when we arrived to collect the new van.

We changed to Hymer that was no problem at all and traded it in last year after 6 years extensive use for a Fendt. The hymer was much heavier and less airodynamic (more like a shed to tow)and the design came nowhere near British vans but it didnt fall apart or leak. If you want quality its going to be German

Dave