Service History

Hammer

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I am about to embark on purchasing my first motorhome is it wise that the motorhome should have a service history ? Any advice on this would be most appreciated
 
There are two potential service histories: the base vehicle (engine, gearbox, chassis, brakes etc) and habitation checks/service (water ingress, gas safety, delamination, drainage etc).

The first one should have been carried out (annually?) by a garage qualified to deal with the vehicle (FIAT, Mercedes, Ford, etc) BUT may have been done by a more local, cheaper garage, especially given the changes in regs from a few years ago. Some folk do their own work, often quite competently but should be able to show you receipts for oil, antifreeze etc. Mine is 20y old now and is done by a privately owned garage dealing with commercial vehicles. They stamp the service book and I have receipts for the work done.

I have just had the second hab check in the 16y which I have owned the van. A few days after the first one by a mobile tester (cost £160) I found the water pump was leaking. I have just paid £250 for a local MH dealership to do a check and it is going back next week for them to sort the fridge because they put it back wrongly, to adjust a locker door which worked perfectly when it went in and to sort a locker door which they reported as "locked" but didn't admit that they couldn't open it (I forgot to tell them that it was broken). I've also had to correct the paperwork which stated that the water supply to the toilet was faulty because the technician assumed that it was fed from a separate tank, when it is supplied from the main system. Perhaps I'll get another hab check at some point in the next 16y!
OK, it is good to know that I don't have any damp and that my gas is safe BUT is it worth the money?

So if you fancied buying my van (not that it's for sale) would you be reassured by my stories?

IF you buy a van with a warranty still in place, then you MAY be required to have checks done at a main dealership and it MAY have to be the one where you bought it. This could require some long journeys and possibly even overnight in a hotel: CHECK before you buy!

Good luck - Gordon

Of course, if there isn't any service history then you are taking a gamble with perhaps a lot of money on your ability to spot problems: the history doesn't remove the uncertainty but "should" give you reassurance.
 
We bought our first M/Home [nearly 5 years old] in Apr 21 via a Dealer and the service history was patchy. The Dealer paid for an Independent Engineer's Report on the Habitation side, and we've spent a fairly hefty sum having vehicle service items replaced/updated, mainly for peace of mind. Aircon regassed, brake fluid replaced, vehicle battery replaced, tyres changed. We have also upgraded the leisure battery to Lithium and had a refillable gas system fitted, plus a B2B Charger and a Lithium profile Battery Relay/Charger fitted after an Airbag ECU failure. I have the missing paperwork now, and I know the work has been done, The cost of the work has run into 4 figures, and it hasn't all been convenient timing, BUT, the positive is that we have been able to choose the Tyre Brand, Battery type, Gas system specification etc, rather than have whatever cheapo offering the Dealer provides, and we are just about at the point where the M/Home is set up as c;lose as is possible to it being what we want

Steve
 
My simple advice is to take along with you someone who has motorhome knowledge - do not believe a word you’re told by a salesman, I’d sooner trust a politician to tell you the truth.

Are you thinking dealer or a private sale? How old is the MH you want to consider? Do you have a licence to drive it if it’s over 3.5tonnes?

Lots of variables, and so it’s unwise to jump in head first.
 
marchie said:
We bought our first M/Home [nearly 5 years old] in Apr 21 via a Dealer and the service history was patchy. The Dealer paid for an Independent Engineer's Report on the Habitation side, and we've spent a fairly hefty sum having vehicle service items replaced/updated, mainly for peace of mind. Aircon regassed, brake fluid replaced, vehicle battery replaced, tyres changed. We have also upgraded the leisure battery to Lithium and had a refillable gas system fitted, plus a B2B Charger and a Lithium profile Battery Relay/Charger fitted after an Airbag ECU failure. I have the missing paperwork now, and I know the work has been done, The cost of the work has run into 4 figures, and it hasn't all been convenient timing, BUT, the positive is that we have been able to choose the Tyre Brand, Battery type, Gas system specification etc, rather than have whatever cheapo offering the Dealer provides, and we are just about at the point where the M/Home is set up as c;lose as is possible to it being what we want

Steve
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Hi Steve , looking at a 2011 swift which will be mechanical and habitation serviced together with a new cam belt and a 12 month warranty? Am I taking too much of a risk ?
 
SimonM said:
My simple advice is to take along with you someone who has motorhome knowledge - do not believe a word you’re told by a salesman, I’d sooner trust a politician to tell you the truth.

Are you thinking dealer or a private sale? How old is the MH you want to consider? Do you have a licence to drive it if it’s over 3.5tonnes?

Lots of variables, and so it’s unwise to jump in head first.
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It’s a dealer who will service mechanical and habitation put a new cam belt in it and 12 month warranty it’s a 2011 model and weighs in at 3.5 ton . Regret do not have a mechanical buddy to take along ?
 
Hammer said:
It’s a dealer who will service mechanical and habitation put a new cam belt in it and 12 month warranty it’s a 2011 model and weighs in at 3.5 ton . Regret do not have a mechanical buddy to take along ?
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Ask an Independent Motorhome/Caravan Engineer to undertake a 'Pre Purchase Inspection' Report? It's what we did, and was remarkably thorough, and the Dealer paid the £100 fee on the basis that it was work that he would have undertaken anyway, and it was a small price to pay for me to commit to the purchase at a time when COVID Regs prevented us from travelling to see the M/Home ourselves

Steve
 
Hammer said:
Hi Steve , looking at a 2011 swift which will be mechanical and habitation serviced together with a new cam belt and a 12 month warranty? Am I taking too much of a risk ?
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Hi Hammer,
That's a question I can't answer! My dad was an old school mechanic, whose Army engineering training. led him to assess my mechanical competence as 'never make a mechanic as long as you have a hole up your rear end', hence my getting an independent caravan/motorhome engineer's report. The Dealer changed the cambelt & water pump as part of the deal, and I have had everything else changed/uprated as soon as I feel that there is a problem. I am very much risk averse and accept that I have paid out more for work that other M/Homers would have not have bothered with. What I have learned is that, as long as the basic vehicle is sound, not rotting or leaking like a sieve, any running repair items can be fixed as they crop up. As a rule of thumb, the major M/Home Finance Companies will lend on motorhomes up to 17 years old, suggesting that they see the vehicle life as 25 years or more

I think Swift may have had some issues with marine plywod floors around the 2011period with inadequate sealant, so I would get that checked carefully

Steve
 
I guess the answer can depend on the age of the vehicle and where you are buying from.
I bought in 2015 a 2008 VW T5 (amazing reliability apparently) and it came with a full VW dealer history and receipts for over £10,000 of work in the last two years (so quite a few thousand more than I paid for the vehicle itself). In the 18 months I had it, it still cost me a few thousand in mechanical repairs which wiped out my profit selling on as a camper conversion.
The T4 before that and the VW LT after that came with no significant histories and cost me nothing but expected service costs.
The Toyota RAV4 I bought in-between the T4 and T5 came with an immaculate Main Dealer History, and in the 6 months and 1500 miles I owned that, it cost me around £1,500 in unscheduled and unexpected bills.

As you might guess, I have little faith in Service Histories and what they would/should lead you to expect. I think other clues can tell you more ...

When I bought my current motorhome (2008 registered) in 2020 (so 12 years old at the time), I took more account of the owner than the vehicle. If buying privately, I think you can get a good idea what a vehicle would be like by the owner and how they look after their property in general.
It was also a 1 owner from new vehicle (multiple owners, expecially when changing rapidly, can be a worrying indication).
It was high mileage (6 figures) so clearly must have been reliable! (so many MHs seem to be under 1,000 miles/year average and that sitting around really is not good for the mechanicals).
It came with all the manuals and paperwork for everything (a sign of a fastidious owner)
And of course, when viewing, it was in good order and everything seemed to work.
Obviously I have had work to do, including some unscheduled (but turns out commonplace) repairs, but none that have spoiled the experience, even if I would have preferred to not have them!
 
It's only really useful as a guide as you really have no idea how truthful it is, garages have been known to change filters and then stamp the book, main dealers are no exception to this, take someone who's experienced with you to check out the van and the hab, see everything working including the water heater should be hot in 20 minutes so do that first if interested after the first few minutes, if something is gas and electric ask to see it running on both after allowing them to cool down between.

IMHO all sellers either lie or evade the truth so believe nothing but ask everything, never pay the asking price and be prepared to walk away, you can always go back, if a dealer, try to get extras thrown in, and any none original add-ons tend not to make them worth more.


And make sure they know you are looking at another van after theirs.
 
I've bought eleven vans so speak from some experience, there is always something they either lie about or "forget" to mention, it's better to negotiate with that in your mind even if it's not 100% correct anyway.
 
I have been working the trade from a young lad, most tell porkies or say little to hide things, never trust whats on paper, take one or two folk that know the base van and about campers.
I bought my last used car from a dealer at trade price, it came with 5 service sheets cover oil filters plugs etc, total porky pies, 2 weeks after getting it home the coil pack failed, so I thought id do a full service, yep plugs were rusted to hell and worn, oil filter rusted, 1 tyre bust a week later on due to poor tracking which was miles out, then a week later the back wheel bearing gave up the ghost, when I got the wheels of after a struggle I found one hub never had a grease cap fitted from new, and b pads worn almost to the metal, all this should have been picked up during a PDI & services, lucky I spotted most of the faults and got a trade bargain leaving him with no smile/smurk on his gob.
 
trevskoda said:
Just you and I tell the truth, that's why we are both poor.
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Just you and I tell the truth, but I'm not sure about you. But I could be lying, of course ... :D. Bit of a self indictment from Kev re 'bought and sold 11 vans, and nobody tells the truth ... and tell them you've another van to see' ...

Steve
 
If it comes with a big sheaf of receipts, invoices, service history, habitation check history etc, then it might be a fair assumption that it has been looked after and cared for. However I'd still follow the advice given here and get a caravan/motorhome engineer to look it over. What's 100 quid compared to the outlay you will be making and compared to piece of mind?

I'd also check the habitation area very, very carefully for damp. Ask the dealer if there has been damp. Check the sheaf of paperwork for any mention of damp. Get a multi meter and check it yourself or take someone with you who can check.

Nothing is ever 100% fool proof but you can at least try.
 
marchie said:
Just you and I tell the truth, but I'm not sure about you. But I could be lying, of course ... :D. Bit of a self indictment from Kev re 'bought and sold 11 vans, and nobody tells the truth ... and tell them you've another van to see' ...

Steve
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I am not innocent of course, I always bought vans with faults to get the price down, it's the only way we could have a van at all, I fixed them as best as I could, but these were 20 years old more or less and some had faults, I sold them without warranty, I answered any questions honestly and but some were perfect (ish) and others were not.
 
GMJ said:
If it comes with a big sheaf of receipts, invoices, service history, habitation check history etc, then it might be a fair assumption that it has been looked after and cared for. However I'd still follow the advice given here and get a caravan/motorhome engineer to look it over. What's 100 quid compared to the outlay you will be making and compared to piece of mind?

I'd also check the habitation area very, very carefully for damp. Ask the dealer if there has been damp. Check the sheaf of paperwork for any mention of damp. Get a multi meter and check it yourself or take someone with you who can check.

Nothing is ever 100% fool proof but you can at least try.
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And take a bit of old carpet and look under it too, I've seen mushrooms growing out of gaps in the ply flooring more than once, brackets that are rusted through holding tanks up, it's all repairable but best to know as you might just want to walk away.


And NEVER buy without seeing and driving, no drive no buy, I very nearly bought a van down in Dover, a Bessie E745, pictures were perfect, inside and out spotless, but Liz said let us have a couple of days away so we drove down, what a POS, it was covered in green slime down one side and the back, the inside was filthy, bathroom was probably not repairable, the kitchen was wrecked, he'd used the pictures from when he'd bought it five years earlier, yup, it was on Gumtree.
 
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