Alan Stanley

I strongly suggest you actually read the warranty. Note what is not covered.

Unfortunately yes. Owned some of them as well. Though if the British motor industry had turned out production models that matched the show models they may have survived. The thought of owning a classic still appeals. Then I remember the injuries I saw following the most innocuous of impacts and think maybe its not such a good idea.

Almost certainly the Alarm Battery. On our Swift we had a similar problem in that it was flattening the caravan battery in 24 hrs. Battery in alarm was knacked.

Re the Pot holes. Some years back the Government of the day set up a 'pot hole fund' as a vote catcher. This has been increased year on year until it's now something over £700 m This is available for councils to 'draw down' on to fund pot hole repairs. In one fell swoop it removes their incentive to make a proper job and re surface the roads. That would come out of their allocation. The pot hole repair does not, it comes out of this central fund, and with such vast sums available there is no real incentive to make a proper job. As for the standard of repair when we asked as a Parish Council why a proper job was not being done with the repairs to our roads and why they were not being sealed with tar we were told, I kid you not, "Can't use hot tar. 'Health and safety' the workers might burn themselves." The Lunatics along with 'Health and Safety' are running the asylum.

Neither would I with that set up. Diesel Generator and weight not an issue. Both of which are at the opposite end of the spectrum for what I want. Weight is important and totally solar would be welcome.

That report only tells us an old car, that was subject to modifications caught fire, nothing else. Researching these LifePO4 batteries is the usual fog of advertising and ifs, buts and maybe's. Some of the graphs are very interesting, and appear to prove the expected increase in performance, but the sort of questions you want answering, before parting with this sort of cash, are. 1. Will it work and be charged by the Caravan Charger, (as fitted to the Unicorn ), without long term damage or loss of performance to both the battery and the charger. 2. Will it work with Solar charging, given a reasonable quality controller, as well as or better that a flooded lead acid. 3. Will it charge either on hookup or by Solar, quicker - slower - at the same rate as the existing lead acid battery. Given the same output from the charging system. We all know that the charging of lead acid batteries is a black art, and putting in say 8amps via solar for 4 hours does not necessarily result on 32amp of power. 4. If not what do we need to buy to get it to work properly. The 'Relion' product for example, be it 50 amp or 70 amp claims to be plug and play, but has anyone actually tried it ? I am surprised the big clubs have not put them to the test as far as I can see. I can feel a research afternoon coming on into use in the boating world.

Sorry you lost me ?

One dealer at the NEC (DBS leoch) was claiming that a 50 amp LifePO4 was the equivalent in real terms to a 100 amp lead acid as the Lithium would work fine down to virtually zero, where as as we all know a 100 amp lead acid is only usable down to about half as the voltage drop starts to impact on the equipment in the vans. So in effect if I purchased a 100 amp Lithium it would be usable for about twice the period as a 100 amp lead acid. Fridge alarms etc going off at 2 am being something we can do without. He maintained the Lithium voltage remains at or above 12 v until it is flat. Of course this means it makes it more difficult to monitor. Any of you electronics experts able to support or otherwise these assertions. If true, then with less weight in the van, I could leave 'Sparky' at home much more and he's a big old lump to heave in and out the rear of the car, to say nothing of the faff with petrol and the ongoing costs of a couple of quid a day when using it to supplement the solar.

The price is falling. Now 100 amp available for £650 ish. Still a lot of money but getting nearer. Will be interesting to see what can be squeezed out of the dealers at the NEC. at the October show one dealer was well below £600. Which is still more expensive by a huge amount compared to USA. Get the feeling we are being ripped off. ?

And the manufacturers still persist with the head in sand attitude. Over 80% of vans with motor movers and batteries by my count. These items should not be part of user payload. Owners are breaking the law right left and centre. We are expected to stay within limits, without the ability to accurately weigh the vans. Ridiculous when the weighing machines that do exist are no where near the percentage accuracy we need to remain legal.

As I read it if you do have it on boost the central heating is not on. So a long shower in a freezing van. Alde doa system that gives continuous hot water but it cost a ruddy fortune.

They are commercial organisations that will respond to demand. Both sites and manufacturers are looking at the future changes in transport and reacting. To it and demand. The original pods at Abbey Wood are quite nice provided yo do not want toilet and showers in house. Certainly we could spend an enjoyable break using one. We did in some ways before they opened. They were given a thorough test one day in January a few years back by us and the family. This was one of the wooden basic types. Other more luxury types are now on offer. Diversification given the pressure on transport is the way to survive.

Yes you can purchase it up to the third birthday. Read it though as it’s not as comprehensive as the first three years. Whether it is worth it is a personal decision.

1. When being quoted for any van ask and insist in writing how much of that is for the PDI (not bundled as PDI and delivery) 2. Never ever sign for the van until you have inspected it and are happy with it. 3. Insist on seeing the PDI sheet signed off and have a copy, before signing. 4. Make it clear from the onset, that this is the least you will expect. Any good dealer will be more than happy to do this. 5. If you then find a problem that should have been discovered at the PDI (Over the years I've seen a few good ones) then yes you can take action to recover the costs of the PDI or use it as evidence that the van is a reject subject. Sad but true, these are just some examples of vans that we were assured have had a 'thorough PDI sir, just sign here and we'll help you hitch up' Er No! not until I've spent as long as it takes to check it. A van with no sealant at all on a roof light installation. A van that was missing sections of pipework from the water system. Gas pipe not connected to regulator. Window catches that were so far out they 'caught ' fresh air. Leaking water systems. Lights not connected to the wiring. Heating system control panel not plugged into wiring. Things have got better recently but trust a PDI never.

Did mine via the owners club. In the other requests at the end. Yes we need higher sensible payload margins.