which van

[Nick21]

My wife and I are newcomers to caravanning and we are trying to decide between two vans.

The first is the Abbey vogue 495 fb and the Bailey Senator Virginia fb. The both have the comfort we require and the build quality seems fair on both models. However, the Bailey although a little more costly does have some nice features so we are both unsure which one to choose. My car is a SAAB 93 TiD 1.9 auto it will tow either but the Bailey is close to the max towing weight for the SAAB. Please could I ask for your knowledgeable comments.

Thanks Nick"G"

 

[rob_jax]

If you are a novice to towing, then I hope every one on this and other forums would recommend that you keep to below the 85% guidelines.

85% is the ratio between the (effectively unladen) car kerb-weight and the caravan maximum weight (called the MTPLM in the caravan documentation).

There is nothing magical about the 85% ratio - having a combination that works out at 84 compared to 86 does not guarantee stability / instability - rather it's just accumulated experience.

Low ratios mean stability and an easy tow, high ratios mean possible instability.

Caravans can be interesting things to tow - they are effectively big white boxes on wheels - and unlike the flatbed trailers used to work out the car maximum tow capability, caravans have a significant amount of weight high up and really can respond to side-winds.

I've got a feeling that both of your choices are in the 95% region or higher, and whilst the car has sufficient power to pull these along, that ratio has me slightly worried.

 

[RichardS1]

I would endorse the sound advice given by Rob, even though you have a very capable towcar you need to match the van nearer the 85% ratio. The Abbey 495 has an MTPLM of 1460kg, the Bailey Virginia 1500kg which requires a vehicle kerbweight of 1717kg or 1764kg to meet the 85% ratio. Suggest you take a look at the Bailey Pageant range.

 

[trucker]

Nick, I would endorse the comments above.

I have an abbey vogue 495 picked it up in October 2006. Its a great van and just the layout we wanted, build quality seems good so far (only 3 trips)

I would have gon for the Bailey however 2 bailey dealers were offering me nearly 1k less part exchange on my old van 2004 Abbey

to which I said a polite no thanks to. I dont know if bailey work on less profit margin but i was not impressed

Kevin H

 

[Lol1]

Nick, I would endorse the comments above.

I have an abbey vogue 495 picked it up in October 2006. Its a great van and just the layout we wanted, build quality seems good so far (only 3 trips)

I would have gon for the Bailey however 2 bailey dealers were offering me nearly 1k less part exchange on my old van 2004 Abbey

to which I said a polite no thanks to. I dont know if bailey work on less profit margin but i was not impressed

Kevin H

Bailey don't operate on less profit, Kevin but the dealers do.

It is possible to get something knocked off a Bailey but most dealers stick to the list price as they have little room to maneuver. I like to think that Bailey has done the haggling for you and in all cases you are getting a fair deal on the new van. As for your trade in, when you hand it over nice and clean, ready for the next owner then watch the salesman put a sticker on it for two and a half grand more than you got, vampires spring to mind. I know they need to make a profit, but there's no need to take the mick!

 

[Guest]

I am not trying to defend dealers as indeed there are some 'rogues' out there. But they do tend to be smaller Companies than those in the car trade, often family type businesses and the trade in van could sit for a while on the forecourt 'eating' costs. So a mark up higher than the equivalent motor trade is possibly not unexpected.

Of course one always has the choice of selling privately and doing a deal with no trade in.

 

[trucker]

Scotch lad you cant defend 1k difference in trade in between a non Bailey dealer against 2 bailey dealers

I know i could have sold private but that was not the point, the point was the trade in difference, hence my question re margins, or is it just a rip off???

Kevin H