Just found the same on my 2014 Swift, dealer and manufacturer say not covered under warranty. Several manufacturers are getting away with this and all let them, it's a design defect and they should be accountable!
The best and near invisible method is to have them stapled and ‘welded’ similar to repairing motorcycle fairings. I had this done on the front of my caravan after an accident and I couldn’t see it even though I knew where to look.
You can weld plastics yourself with a soldering iron . The real secret is getting a compatible plastic filler. Welding if far more successful than gluing
Drill and seal yes but I've bonded plastic strips (size of the top but ideally not right to the 'edge') It offers better rigidity and a complete seal. They knew what they were doing when they approved the pathetically poor quality and design.
Recently found the very same crack and small cracks on my 2014 swift got quoted 4K for a new back panel so drilled the end of the cracks and used caravan sealing tape to repair.
Really useful video. I have a 2001 challenger and have not seen anything like this. I suspect they have been given panels with a different material that has suffered shrinkage and hence the cracks. I would be going down the repair route as you are.
The worst thing caravan makers did was to have plastic front and back panels with a strap to join them to the roof. Relying on sealant to hold them together. One piece roof meeting at a vertical surface not an horizontal one would stop a lot of the leak problems....
I had exactly the same fault on my Swift Charisma 565. Swift don't want to accept any responsibility. Mine cost a lot of money to put right as I didn't notice it until it was picked up on the service. Too late. I've moved over to Adria. Check the roof on all Swift's. Shocking build quality!!!
This is TRUE. My van had the very same crack, which caused water ingress, which cause my inside doors to delaminate. The insurance would not pay for it and told me it is a common fault when Eldiss use cheap products to build your van. NEVER AGAIN Eldiss.
Good pointers - many people would never think of checking the roof of the van before buying. Many sellers probably wouldn't either. Good work in pointing this out 👍
Also check the corners where the roof meets the back panel. Swift actually make a repair kit for this and my dealer supplied me one as mine had damp there on the inside during a service. Off side is behind the shower on some models so may go undetected until it's too late.
Some roof panels and other caravan panels will plastic weld. I repair plastic damage for a living. The biggest problem is hardening, becoming brittle due to oxidisation. Plastic will oxidise like metals causing the panel to grow a hard film and ultimately go brittle. Thanks Plastic Pete
You may ask the question.....Why do so many caravans have such problems. The answer is that uk caravan manufacturers source their materials ect from a very limited amount of suppliers. So poorly made rear panels on such as that Swift may also be made and supplied to other manufacturers. If you look in enough different brands of uk caravans and motorhomes you will notice how similar they all are. Even down to cookers , fridges and heating systems. A hand full of suppliers have the monopoly on supply here and there is very little competition. So if a new type of panel construction is introduced onto the market which fails after a short period it's most likely that this will affect just one brand.
Thankyou for this video. Weve just bought a 2013 Sterling and found a crack at the front. I'm going to drill 2mm holes at the ends of the cracks and use a flexible filler???
Hi I have a 1997 swift corniche and can’t seem to find any parts for it, as yes I got mugged off, but now got to keep it, so I need windows and a skylight for it? Any suggestions please x
Agree with you. Stop the cracks spreading, glue in the cracks job done, after all who can see on top of the roof. Just make sure you advise a buyer of what has been done.
great video and great idea to drill a hole at end of crack to reduce chances of it developing further question i have is....... can you stand on the roof ?
mine is leaking in now and its not cracked at all.. 2014 coral.. it could be the seal strip on the top... ive had to rip out thin internal panel because its rotted away its that bad
Currently looking for a caravan, but the more I research, there seems to be quite a lot of fundamental design flaws in them, with 2 brands in particular each having certain issues. Prices have gone up from when I initially gave thought to getting one (15'ish months ago), there's obviously loads around and Im sure loads of good ones, but are they just money pits requiring constant repair due to bad design and engineering flaws? Would like one I can enjoy, not spend more time repairing than using.
Hi Thanks for all your video's lot of really good info I have watch loads of them. I am looking to by a 6 berth caravan around about 2012 era. If you were to buy a caravan of this age what would you go for?
Difficult question, in reality the one that suited us best layoutwise and I'd inspected and was happy with the condition of... Caravans are great but like so many other products they do all suffer with the occasional and sometimes more common problem. Coachman and Adria are probably the best built. Thanks for watching!
To be fair they are getting trashed by the problem of cracks that should never have happened. It is sad that it is their suppliers that have let them down using the wrong material. Perhaps they were chasing a lower price.
Hi very informative ! Does this happen on all swift models of all years ? Or just model/year specific? Reason I ask is I've just bought a brand new swift challenger 2023 and wonder if I have to look out for this a bit further down the line Thanks for information
Thanks. In the process of buying a Sterling (Swift) and hadn't been up to check the roof. Will do now though.🖒
Manufacturers faulty workmanship they should be accountable.
Just found the same on my 2014 Swift, dealer and manufacturer say not covered under warranty. Several manufacturers are getting away with this and all let them, it's a design defect and they should be accountable!
The best and near invisible method is to have them stapled and ‘welded’ similar to repairing motorcycle fairings. I had this done on the front of my caravan after an accident and I couldn’t see it even though I knew where to look.
You can weld plastics yourself with a soldering iron . The real secret is getting a compatible plastic filler.
Welding if far more successful than gluing
Drill and seal yes but I've bonded plastic strips (size of the top but ideally not right to the 'edge')
It offers better rigidity and a complete seal.
They knew what they were doing when they approved the pathetically poor quality and design.
Recently found the very same crack and small cracks on my 2014 swift got quoted 4K for a new back panel so drilled the end of the cracks and used caravan sealing tape to repair.
Was a well known problem in 2014 Swifts. There might have even been a recall at the time
Really useful video. I have a 2001 challenger and have not seen anything like this. I suspect they have been given panels with a different material that has suffered shrinkage and hence the cracks. I would be going down the repair route as you are.
The worst thing caravan makers did was to have plastic front and back panels with a strap to join them to the roof. Relying on sealant to hold them together. One piece roof meeting at a vertical surface not an horizontal one would stop a lot of the leak problems....
Great video, does this effect Swift caravans of a particular year?
Would a 2022 model be afflicted?
With that many cracks even repairing them is not going to cure the problem as it will just crack in different places and let water in.
Ever heard of fibreglass, ? Fibreglass the whole effected area , never have a problem again , glue , your wasting your time and effort
I had exactly the same fault on my Swift Charisma 565. Swift don't want to accept any responsibility. Mine cost a lot of money to put right as I didn't notice it until it was picked up on the service. Too late. I've moved over to Adria. Check the roof on all Swift's. Shocking build quality!!!
Sorry. Imeant to say that its most likely that it wont affect just one brand.
This is TRUE. My van had the very same crack, which caused water ingress, which cause my inside doors to delaminate. The insurance would not pay for it and told me it is a common fault when Eldiss use cheap products to build your van. NEVER AGAIN Eldiss.
Sorry you have all had the same problem
I fixed crack and had back end of roof vinyl wrapped £100
How can I send pictures of my re wrapped cupboard doors and roof
Good pointers - many people would never think of checking the roof of the van before buying. Many sellers probably wouldn't either. Good work in pointing this out 👍
The same phenomenon is occurring in caravan made of ABS material sold in Korea.
Also check the corners where the roof meets the back panel. Swift actually make a repair kit for this and my dealer supplied me one as mine had damp there on the inside during a service. Off side is behind the shower on some models so may go undetected until it's too late.
Keep up the good work. Look forward to more...Ellis’s?
Elddis are just bad.
This is great information,
Can you share what the repair is like and how it was done and the cost please.
have just done follow up video! ua-cam.com/video/qQmSMnwh4kM/v-deo.html
Some roof panels and other caravan panels will plastic weld. I repair plastic damage for a living. The biggest problem is hardening, becoming brittle due to oxidisation. Plastic will oxidise like metals causing the panel to grow a hard film and ultimately go brittle. Thanks Plastic Pete
You may ask the question.....Why do so many caravans have such problems.
The answer is that uk caravan manufacturers source their materials ect from a very limited amount of suppliers. So poorly made rear panels on such as that Swift may also be made and supplied to other manufacturers. If you look in enough different brands of uk caravans and motorhomes you will notice how similar they all are. Even down to cookers , fridges and heating systems. A hand full of suppliers have the monopoly on supply here and there is very little competition. So if a new type of panel construction is introduced onto the market which fails after a short period it's most likely that this will affect just one brand.
Can't believe you were showing a customer around without having cleaned or inspected the roof
Россия смотрит!!!
Isn’t this year swift made using SMART Timberless frame.
Thankyou for this video. Weve just bought a 2013 Sterling and found a crack at the front. I'm going to drill 2mm holes at the ends of the cracks and use a flexible filler???
Product failure, the manufacturer should be helping those people who have paid serious money for there caravans, to resolve this serious problem.
We have had a 2014 Swift from new and it has just developed this problem. Not good! Thanks very much for this video.
Hi I have a 1997 swift corniche and can’t seem to find any parts for it, as yes I got mugged off, but now got to keep it, so I need windows and a skylight for it? Any suggestions please x
Wish I'd seen this before I bought mine however drill and glued now, how do they get away without recalls, shameful
I have the same problem on my 2014 swift sprite major 6td caravan.
Agree with you. Stop the cracks spreading, glue in the cracks job done, after all who can see on top of the roof. Just make sure you advise a buyer of what has been done.
Those panels are just ABS which is heated until soft and vac formed into a mould . It’s not surprising they crack
great video and great idea to drill a hole at end of crack to reduce chances of it developing further
question i have is....... can you stand on the roof ?
mine is leaking in now and its not cracked at all.. 2014 coral.. it could be the seal strip on the top... ive had to rip out thin internal panel because its rotted away its that bad
If you have been using a cover it can cause a greenhouse effect inside and cause the side panels to crack
That is shocking for a modern caravan, good to highlight and good advice.
It would have been helpful if we could see a detailed repair in progress !!
I think they use to be fiberglass now cheap plastic
terrible the manufacturer should use none crack materials
These manufacturers should be ashamed of themselves
Brilliant thank you, going to give our a check tomorrow
so its the water ingress that cases damp in the first place so a yearly water ingress test is best right ?
How can it be helpful telling us what gonna do you not shown
Currently looking for a caravan, but the more I research, there seems to be quite a lot of fundamental design flaws in them, with 2 brands in particular each having certain issues. Prices have gone up from when I initially gave thought to getting one (15'ish months ago), there's obviously loads around and Im sure loads of good ones, but are they just money pits requiring constant repair due to bad design and engineering flaws? Would like one I can enjoy, not spend more time repairing than using.
My advice would be to get a warranty mate, MB&G do caravan warranties for around £200 a year - depending on the age of the caravan
Hi Thanks for all your video's lot of really good info I have watch loads of them. I am looking to by a 6 berth caravan around about 2012 era. If you were to buy a caravan of this age what would you go for?
Difficult question, in reality the one that suited us best layoutwise and I'd inspected and was happy with the condition of... Caravans are great but like so many other products they do all suffer with the occasional and sometimes more common problem. Coachman and Adria are probably the best built. Thanks for watching!
No
Incredible.
Thank you
Swift motorhomes are getting trashed by a Nissan quality assurance man for poor build quality.
To be fair they are getting trashed by the problem of cracks that should never have happened. It is sad that it is their suppliers that have let them down using the wrong material. Perhaps they were chasing a lower price.
what do people recommend for first 2nd hand caravan, for 2 adults 2kids and a dog (Labrador). not too big thanks for the video :)
Hi very informative ! Does this happen on all swift models of all years ? Or just model/year specific?
Reason I ask is I've just bought a brand new swift challenger 2023 and wonder if I have to look out for this a bit further down the line
Thanks for information