Hi Just wondering whether anyone out there has down-sized their caravan and how you got on. Was it the worst or best thing you've done or are there any pitfalls/recommendations of things to think about in the process? We have a heavy caravan but want to venture abroad next year and would like something lighter to tow.
Smaller/lighter caravan thoughts?
- Thread starter jallin
- Start date
Hi Jallin,
We downsized this year from a 4 berth van weighing around 1500 Kgs and 7.25m long to a 2 berth van weighing 1200Kgs. 6m long.
The main reason for change is we want to change our car and by downsizing widens the scope of cars to replace our present car.
Another reason is our last van had fixed single beds which in our opinion is a waste of space.
We have no regrets,our present van is easier and more economical to tow and to manouvre.
The only drawback so far is storage space and this is overcome by taking less things with us.
We downsized this year from a 4 berth van weighing around 1500 Kgs and 7.25m long to a 2 berth van weighing 1200Kgs. 6m long.
The main reason for change is we want to change our car and by downsizing widens the scope of cars to replace our present car.
Another reason is our last van had fixed single beds which in our opinion is a waste of space.
We have no regrets,our present van is easier and more economical to tow and to manouvre.
The only drawback so far is storage space and this is overcome by taking less things with us.
Hi jallin
If the caravan is under two metres in height it is less expensive to use the French autoroutes - some of the eriba and trigano ranges are under two metres - we tow an abbey iona vogue caravan which is nice and narrow at 6'5" and really lightweight at 950 kg laden - it tows fantastically well behind our vw 1.6 tdi - the current lunar ariva and Venus 320 have a similar spec to our abbey iona vogue - these of course are two berth caravans - I am assuming the lighter the caravan means better fuel economy
If the caravan is under two metres in height it is less expensive to use the French autoroutes - some of the eriba and trigano ranges are under two metres - we tow an abbey iona vogue caravan which is nice and narrow at 6'5" and really lightweight at 950 kg laden - it tows fantastically well behind our vw 1.6 tdi - the current lunar ariva and Venus 320 have a similar spec to our abbey iona vogue - these of course are two berth caravans - I am assuming the lighter the caravan means better fuel economy
Another vote for the Lunar Venus 320/2 @ 905kg. Fairly easy to move with two people, very stable at 60mph with a sensible nose weight. Just add a Kampa porch awning, for a bit of extra space. Brilliant bit of kit!.
Hi thanks all! We have been thinking about this for a while as we have a Swift Challenger laden weight of 1595kg and now we have decided to head abroad we want something lighter - also the children are no longer coming - just one who wants her own space in a pup tent/awning! So now seems the correct time.
We moved to a Lunar and got a longer but slightly narrower caravan. Not sure what we will do next though.
The magazine though has confirmed that Knaus are about to launch a new model using new techniques which will be lighter than ever so watch for that. There must be a limit though to what you can do before the caravan becomes so light it cannot stand any side wind and it becomes a problem.
The magazine though has confirmed that Knaus are about to launch a new model using new techniques which will be lighter than ever so watch for that. There must be a limit though to what you can do before the caravan becomes so light it cannot stand any side wind and it becomes a problem.
After three years without a van we bought a Trigano Silver 420DD. Very good build quality easy to tow. But things like heater, hot water eat into payload although at 240 kg it's still good. But whilst it was comfy and well insulated it was just too small. So we bought a Sprite Musketer TD which is a five berth and only weighs in at 1300 MTPLM. At 6.5m it can be stored at home. Downside less payload and storage than we are used to. But a roof box solves that when we take our granddaughter or go away for an extended stay.
One other snippet, the front double needs making up which takes about five minutes. When there are just two of us we use the front double and a rear single which is comfortable enough for me at 6ft 4 in.
Are you going for a smaller tow car? If you aren't then why go for a smaller/lighter caravan and lose out on the space you are used to?
I absolutely understand it's all down to personal choice but we have no plans to downsize the caravan as the sproglets reduce in numbers. As swmbo has only ever towed a twin axle she doesn't fancy the idea of towing a single axle.
I absolutely understand it's all down to personal choice but we have no plans to downsize the caravan as the sproglets reduce in numbers. As swmbo has only ever towed a twin axle she doesn't fancy the idea of towing a single axle.
The OP has stated they wish to tour abroad - downsizing will definitely save them on ferry costs and the reduced weight will certainly achieve better fuel consumption - downsizing does not necessarily mean a reduction in comfort levels - most modern small caravans have a specification equal to larger caravans - and I cannot understand why swmbo doesn't fancy towing a single axle caravan ?Martin24 said:
thosoneill said:
I can fully understand that equipment levels will be similar whatever the size. I think reading back I actually said losing out on the space the OP is used to. It may be purely perceived but she feels a twin axle is slightly more stable. I have plenty of experience of towing both single and twin axle caravans and I certainly noticed the difference when I changed to twin. I really don't think towing a caravan of 1100kg or 1800kg will make any discernible difference in fuel costs when towing a caravan, they're all about as aerodynamic as a brick. A lightweight folding camper might make more difference, especially on toll roads where height is an issue. Quite frankly if someone wants to do a lot of travel abroad I can't see that they would be overly concerned at the price of a ferry ticket. I hope that's fully answered all my points for you and the OP
Hi thanks all - it is helpful to get everyone's thoughts. We have a Ford Ranger pickup and the match is 79% with our current caravan. We felt that a lighter van may be much easier for going abroad and towing the longer distances. I am not too worried about cheaper ferry tickets etc. more the wear and tear on our Ranger which also has to be used for my husbands work. Also losing some length may help with access etc. Helpful to know what people think to help reach a considered decision. Cheers
We've pulled a Swift Challenger 540 for nearly 8 years but the kids had grown and didn't want to come with us anymore (understandably) so we sold and bought a smaller/lighter 2 year old Eriba Troll 530. Absolutely fantastic. Great to tow, really comfortable to live in and turns heads wherever we go with people asking if they can see inside. A big plus is that when we do eventually sell (and we have no plans to do so) we will probably get back what we paid for it.
Martin24 said:
In the overall scheme of things I agree with you.
However, my car/caravan happen to fit into the very cheapest bracket on the Portsmouth-Spain route which we use. Just out of interest I tried pricing the same crossing with a 'van slightly higher (than 2.6m) and longer (6m shipping length) and was astonished by how much the price increased
Guys if you tow with a big massive pickup you would be better towing a big massive caravan - maybe a hobby / fendt / lord munsterland or similar / I really doubt that your husbands Ford Ranger will deteriorate towing a caravan - have you thought about joining a hobby communejallin said:
I agree the Ranger should not have a problem with a large caravan although the ones suggested might not be for everyone. If you get under 7m you will get a cheaper ferry crossing though, our Eldiss was 6.95 and saved us a fair bit.
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