OUR FUTURE MOTOR HOME.

[Mtbcol]

You will of course have sills on the cab but any Fiat after 2001 I think has a zinc batch at the factory to help prevent rust, Mercedes are prone to rust regardless.

If going Fiat Citroen or Peugeot get post 07 as they are the best ones to drive, and of course parts are better to get too.

Thank you Pudsey. Very useful info

Mine is a C class, low line (no overcab bed). It was a Sprinter chassis/cab when it left the factory but is what Kev refers to as a cowl, most of cab roof cut off. Different makes may be different but I don’t think the bit of tin on the cab roof has much, if any, effect on strength, it’s in the A and B pillars I believe. Not that is matter lol

If you are wanting a fixed bed in a van up to 6 metres that isn’t a drop down or overcab I think you may struggle. Mine is fixed French bed with L shaped bathroom/shower going behind the bed but it is 7.5mtrs long. I don’t find space a problem with the fixed bed but it depends if you want to hold dances inside and general layout

As you can see in the two pics that extra 1.5mtrs makes a big difference. I think it really will be a case of trawling the ads to try and narrow down a few then having a look in person if possible but you already know that. Good luck anyway
View attachment 74250

View attachment 74251

Thanks Nabsim, again great info and pics. Looks like the layout we want, but as said, might be hard to find in a shorter length vehicle. Could be a compromise thing again, and find bigger wild camp spots . Still we've learnt a lot more than we knew to start with and I'll start looking around with that info. Thank you all for your input so far. This forum and the wild camping for motorhomes have been a great help to us since joining

 

[Pauljenny]

Just be aware that most commercial vans and trucks have an average working lifespan of about 7 years on the salt&gritty, potholed UK roads.

They are engineered to make sure that the parts and body don't last too long. It would be a waste of resources and reduce the sales of replacement parts. They don't over-produce spare parts that might be redundant, in the future.
Ok, they do huge mileages, with drivers who have to give them some clog and don't cherish them like their own vehicles.
Buying a MH older than, say,15 years, could risk hidden problems.
A van with many previous owners,, could be such an indication.
Nobody sells a MH that's running perfectly trouble free.
Check Service and MOT history and look at reviews of the dealers website.
Good luck , hope you have years of pleasure.

 

[Pudsey Bear]

Nobody sells a MH that's running perfectly trouble free.

Not sure that strictly true, people buy the wrong van and move it on, all sorts of reasons.

Check Service and MOT history and look at reviews of the dealers website.

Ebay was where I bought and sold the majority of mine, do stay away from the likes of Motorhome Depot, they charge a minimum of £3k commission on vans they sell.

 

[wildebus]

Length of 6M? Is that a hard limit or any flexibility there? I think the number of coachbuilts 6M or less is fairly small and a fixed bed option in a coachbuilt that length will I reckon give you a very limited selection for sale at any time.

How well are you up to using an Overcab bed? That is what I have in my coachbuilt and I use it as the primary bed. I regard it as a fixed bed as it is always made up, just you need to go up a ladder to get to it.
The other common option for the shorter vans is the bed that comes down over the lounge. Suits some, not others (personally, give me the overcab bed any day).

A van with many previous owners,, could be such an indication.

I would be wary of a Motorhome that has gone through quite a few owners, especially if fairly young. I get some people may buy and find it is the wrong layout and need to resell, but not repeatedly.

Nobody sells a MH that's running perfectly trouble free.

Is there such a thing as a perfectly trouble free Motorhome? But I would not agree with that idea. I bought my MH from a chap who had owned it from brand new, for over 12 years and had racked up lots of miles, but decided it was time for a final refresh for a new one to run until he gave up the hobby. Perfectly sound reason and he was going to buy the same brand again, so a tick on that score as well.

 

[TJBi]

<snip>

If you are wanting a fixed bed in a van up to 6 metres that isn’t a drop down or overcab I think you may struggle. <snip>

If considering a drop-down bed, do consider how you would cope if:
a) the bed would not come down at night in a remote location
b) the bed would not lift back up in the morning (as it may prevent you driving the vehicle when down).
Some drop-down beds do have a fallback system, in which case try it out to see how easy it is to use!

 

[Mtbcol]

Just be aware that most commercial vans and trucks have an average working lifespan of about 7 years on the salt&gritty, potholed UK roads.

They are engineered to make sure that the parts and body don't last too long. It would be a waste of resources and reduce the sales of replacement parts. They don't over-produce spare parts that might be redundant, in the future.
Ok, they do huge mileages, with drivers who have to give them some clog and don't cherish them like their own vehicles.
Buying a MH older than, say,15 years, could risk hidden problems.
A van with many previous owners,, could be such an indication.
Nobody sells a MH that's running perfectly trouble free.
Check Service and MOT history and look at reviews of the dealers website.
Good luck , hope you have years of pl

Not sure that strictly true, people buy the wrong van and move it on, all sorts of reasons.

Ebay was where I bought and sold the majority of mine, do stay away from the likes of Motorhome Depot, they charge a minimum of £3k commission on vans they se

Length of 6M? Is that a hard limit or any flexibility there? I think the number of coachbuilts 6M or less is fairly small and a fixed bed option in a coachbuilt that length will I reckon give you a very limited selection for sale at any time.

How well are you up to using an Overcab bed? That is what I have in my coachbuilt and I use it as the primary bed. I regard it as a fixed bed as it is always made up, just you need to go up a ladder to get to it.
The other common option for the shorter vans is the bed that comes down over the lounge. Suits some, not others (personally, give me the overcab bed any day).



I would be wary of a Motorhome that has gone through quite a few owners, especially if fairly young. I get some people may buy and find it is the wrong layout and need to resell, but not repeatedly.

Is there such a thing as a perfectly trouble free Motorhome? But I would not agree with that idea. I bought my MH from a chap who had owned it from brand new, for over 12 years and had racked up lots of miles, but decided it was time for a final refresh for a new one to run until he gave up the hobby. Perfectly sound reason and he was going to buy the same brand again, so a tick on that score as well.

Hello Wil

If considering a drop-down bed, do consider how you would cope if:
a) the bed would not come down at night in a remote location
b) the bed would not lift back up in the morning (as it may prevent you driving the vehicle when down).
Some drop-down beds do have a fallback system, in which case try it out to see how easy it is to use!

We're not considering a drop down for those very reasons

 

[Mtbcol]

Length of 6M? Is that a hard limit or any flexibility there? I think the number of coachbuilts 6M or less is fairly small and a fixed bed option in a coachbuilt that length will I reckon give you a very limited selection for sale at any time.

How well are you up to using an Overcab bed? That is what I have in my coachbuilt and I use it as the primary bed. I regard it as a fixed bed as it is always made up, just you need to go up a ladder to get to it.
The other common option for the shorter vans is the bed that comes down over the lounge. Suits some, not others (personally, give me the overcab bed any day).



I would be wary of a Motorhome that has gone through quite a few owners, especially if fairly young. I get some people may buy and find it is the wrong layout and need to resell, but not repeatedly.

Is there such a thing as a perfectly trouble free Motorhome? But I would not agree with that idea. I bought my MH from a chap who had owned it from brand new, for over 12 years and had racked up lots of miles, but decided it was time for a final refresh for a new one to run until he gave up the hobby. Perfectly sound reason and he was going to buy the same brand again, so a tick on that score as well.

Hello wildebus.
6 m isn't a hard limit, again we are willing to compromise. I suppose your right in saying an over cab bed is a fixed bed, as it is. At the moment our fixed bed is quite high as we had to allow enough room for our Greyhound to stand underneath it, and we had to stand on a step stool to get in it. As we're older we it would be nice to not have to climb up into bed, but again compromise is the key, and it's great to have people's ideas and experiences with different layouts.

 

[Hellfire]

Might be wrong but van based motorhomes are monocoque structures so not on a traditional chassis frame.

A coach built Motorhome is completely different from a van based one. Van based is when you take something like a VW T5 and then adapt it. Coach built means you build a body on top of a cab and chassis which has been bought in, typically from Fiat or Ford. Most of them are built in sections, sides, back etc. auto Sleeper are different in that they construct the body as a complete entity then drop it on the chassis. The other type of Motorhome is an A class. These differ from coach builds in that they build the whole vehicle, including a new cab, onto an engine and chassis. They tend to be bigger and more expensive.

 

[Hellfire]

Hello wildebus.
6 m isn't a hard limit, again we are willing to compromise. I suppose your right in saying an over cab bed is a fixed bed, as it is. At the moment our fixed bed is quite high as we had to allow enough room for our Greyhound to stand underneath it, and we had to stand on a step stool to get in it. As we're older we it would be nice to not have to climb up into bed, but again compromise is the key, and it's great to have people's ideas and experiences with different layouts.

We have a 2014 6m Chausson coach built. It has an electrically powered double bed that rises up to the ceiling during the day. Yiu then have the benefit of use of the whole van in the daytime and no need to make up the bed at night.

 

[marchie]

We have a 2014 6m Chausson coach built. It has an electrically powered double bed that rises up to the ceiling during the day. Yiu then have the benefit of use of the whole van in the daytime and no need to make up the bed at night.

We have the same arrangement with our Burstner Ixeo 590IT. The only irksome feature is the 'one out all out' call to arms [well, to the toilet, tbh] at 3:30 am and the Ladies 'Excuse me' dance as we take it in turns to shuffle into the kitchen area so that the other can use the facilities

Steve

 

[Pudsey Bear]

We did look at those drop down type beds but figured one day it would all end in tears.

 

[Pauljenny]

During and after Covid, there were people queuing up to buy any motorhomes available. My Sister in law very nearly bought a pile of expensive sh1te
Many took off to do the NC 500 and the like, knowing nothing about motorhomes or motorhoming.
They kept on coming back on the market, many dealers filling their boots.
Some of those are still around, patched up and fudged.
Take care.

 

[marchie]

W

We did look at those drop down type beds but figured one day it would all end in tears.

Why? As long as you're sensible/careful [don't leave thhe key in the bed control lock, and remember to fold he back cushions flat, so that the bed doesn't hit them and tilt], there shouldn't be a problem. It takes about 45 seconds to knock the cushions over and have a quick glance to ensure that the Captain's seats are not leaning too far back to cause an obstruction, and about the same time to put the cushions back into place each morning. hardly onerous, Kev! And the extra daytime space in a 5.99m Van is well worth it!

Steve

 

[Pudsey Bear]

It's a trust issue Steve.

 

[TJBi]

W

Why? As long as you're sensible/careful [don't leave the key in the bed control lock, and remember to fold he back cushions flat, so that the bed doesn't hit them and tilt], there shouldn't be a problem. It takes about 45 seconds to knock the cushions over and have a quick glance to ensure that the Captain's seats are not leaning too far back to cause an obstruction, and about the same time to put the cushions back into place each morning. hardly onerous, Kev! And the extra daytime space in a 5.99m Van is well worth it!

Steve

Are electric motors (and the control system) guaranteed to never fail? Is there a manual fallback and how easy is it to use?

 

[rugbyken]

the A class is more aerodynamic than a c class or a low profile , as for reliability hymer have been making the B544 for over 30 years mine is 11 years old and was from the generation where they legthened them to 6.6 mts and turned the kitchen to fit the large fridge freezer , the earlier ones at 6mts are pretty bombproof and provided you don’t pay over the top for one should get a reasonable one for that budget and recoup your payment ifyou decide it’s not for you , the drop down beds are easy we have platform steps are both 70+ and don’t have any issues with them

 

[nabsim]

It's a trust issue Steve.

I have seen a couple of very good quality self build panel van conversions where they have electric drop down double bed at the rear. I would go for that idea. If it goes wrong it would be an inconvenience but not much else while you get it sorted.

I rarely look at new vans so don’t know what options you have in motorhomes with drop down beds, the ones I have seen either drop over the cab seats or block the habitation door. For 6mtrs and under in a coachbuilt though are there any with a fixed double bed that isn’t either a drop down or over cab?

Edit: Ken posted moments before me, so there is one option at least that doesn’t rely on motors

 

[marchie]

Are electric motors (and the control system) guaranteed to never fail? Is there a manual fallback and how easy is it to use?

Of course there's no 'permanent guarantee against failure'; my point was that a common sense approach to the use of the drop down bed could avoid the problems of broken keys, damaged frames etc that have been reported on various Fora. Our bed is over 8 years old, and, in the 3.25 years of our ownership, we have spent just over400 nights on it.

The bed has a manual handle if the electrics fail. Not easy to use, but possible, and if it were to be needed at the start of a long trip, I think we could rig up a temporary fix using an electric screwdriver and a little experimentation.

Steve

 

[wildebus]

I'm not sure why the drop-down beds over the lounge always seem to have to be electric? The pull-down beds over the A-Class cabs from what I have seen are simple manual ones and probably quicker to setup and to put away as well as being a lot less potential trouble.
Why not the same approach for the lounge beds? Or is that too simple and people expect tech for the sake of tech?

 

[Pudsey Bear]

When I first joined Facts a good few people reported failures on them so as we were not in line a for new van anyway and didn't need one we never got one, maybe they're better now but fuses and motors were the issues I think.

I'd still not need or want one, for just two of us single beds make more sense with a proper rear lounge as in my link in post #5

I just looked at some of our old van pictures, out of all of them this was our favourite The Bessacarr E745

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

This Kontiki was similar but the bed was a real PITA but otherwise it was good and so far the most we paid for a van and the best profit when we sold it.

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

This one was supposed to be where we stopped buying to sell and keep one for a while, it wasn't to be we had it three weeks all of them it was on eBay, I didn't do my due diligence and so much stuff wasn't working including the engine, I jsut wanted it out of my life and too a oss on it so the buyer had money to sort it out, he was a mechanic but it took him 6 months to find the engine problem.

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

This was a bit of work but fun figuring it out.

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

And for the OP as you've done a self build, here's mine

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com