Can I find a camper van for under £40K
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- Опубліковано 31 тра 2024
- In this video I travelled to Highbridge Caravans at Newton Abbot, Devon to have a look specifically at camper vans, and to see if I can find something I like within my budget of £40k.
Do I succeed?
www.highbridgecaravans.co.uk/
Whatever you do do not go for a one off van conversion. You'll totally regret it when selling as dealers won't touch them. Understandably because there's an awful lot of absolute rubbish out there. Buy from a dealer where you get full backing of CRA 2015, private sales you have no comeback if things go wrong and even if you've transferred a warranty you have to find a workshop willing to help and most don't want to know warranty work on vans they've not sold. Be more specific on sizes i.e bed lengths/types and absolute length and stop being sidetracked by stuff that doesn't your requirements or budget. Use websites to search before visiting to avoid wasted time and mileage.
I do like the living area in that Auto Sleeper, a side facing sofa opposite the slider is one of my favourite things in our self build campervan. Most campervans have too small a living space or rather uncomfortable with the 2 belted seats set up - so nice to see one that had a good sized sofa and a more spacious interior.
We prefer a van and the smaller the better for us. Every sacrifice of space and storage has been more than compensated by the ease of getting around and parking. We just learned to only take what we need, which it turns out, doesn't take up that much space and we are outside if it is dry and cosy when it rains.
That Autosleeper was really nice layout
I do like the AutoSleeper Kingham layout
Having had 2 motor homes, we downsized to a campervan 3 years ago, yes you have to be radical in what you carry but ,I would not want another motor home , we love a rear lounge because you are away from the cab completely , our Eldiss CV20 is great for us
My advice. Buy one and enjoy it. Life is too short to ponder .
My Advice is at the moment the motorhome and caravan market is not as it was throughout covid,the prices have dipped i would make an offer on that one you like to that dealer he is asking £55,000 offer him £45000 and do a deal? good luck.
Just a suggestion maybe i would hire a few to see what there like to live with for a few days and what is a must have and l would like if possible before you commit its a big decision to make and not one to regret
Having had a panel van with fixed transverse bed (unlass you are vertically challanged ) the bed is too short so a pain to try and sleep. Also the whole thing is just too tight inside. You can not swing a hamster. We changed to a 7m coach built low profile with again a transverse bed with garage below . Perfect for all the van toys. Plus chairs ,table ,ramps etc.
The other thing to bear in mind that you normally only spend 5% of the time driving and 95% of the time stopped . And out of the 5% driving time only a tiny bit of it will be on a tight road therefore we think it is well worth enjoying the extra space our coachbuild gave us. Said gave us as just sold to buy another 7.5m coachbuilt with garage . European of course for those who know. This is just my experiance and not saying panel vans have no place just not at my place .
Hi there, I’m a motorhome owner myself. I understand the concept of a panel van through narrower streets etc. what I don’t understand is how expensive they are compared to motorhomes. I would 100% go for the Autosleeper over a chausson. The build quality is far superior on the Autosleeper and they are built in the uk! Hope this helps.
The reason why factory made Pannel vans are as expensive as bigger Coachbuilt MH is down to time and manpower. On a PV conversion, only 1 Orr 2 people work on it from the constraints of space inside. They have to assemble and build everything inside the van. On a Coachbuilt all the modular internals and tanks are added to the Chassis, then the sides, end, and roof is added. This allows more pre-assemble and more people working on it, time is less from start to finish for a bigger unit on a factor conveyor process.
We had a 7.5m Chausson for 9 years and loved it, my wife wants to be able to share the driving and is not so comfortable with the bigger, wider van so we have bought a 2017 Calders Camper Conversion on a 6m Peugeot Boxer. It is a professional conversion, but possible one off, bespoke as has design features like some of the AutoSleepers we looked at with the toilet/shower across the rear and has a bench pull out bed, looking out the side door, there is the feeling of more space in the rest of the van as it also does not have a fixed table. It looks to have more workspace on both sides compared to these standard design factory built designs. Time will tell how we manage with no garage and less storage space. Because of the side bench seat, it is only 2 seatbelts, which is fine for most times it is just the two of us and 3 small dogs. Have to work ou5 how we are going to secure the dogs when travelling yet, don’t really want to carry multiple crates, they are used to sitting on seats with harnesses attached to seatbelts.
Conversion would be harder for you to PX at later date ,than factory van
It's possible but not always, as dealers prefer factory vans.
Nothing against self or custom builds though.
I think you should buy a good used panel van, go for a bespoke van build exactly how you want it. I think you should spend half your budget buying a really good low mileage van and the other half of your budget on the conversion. I really like the conversions that Stewart is doing in Vanology in the UK. You should look him up. He seems to be doing quality builds. Personally I built my own van 3 years ago and it has worked really well for me. Best of luck.
Thanks. I’ve had a quote from Stuart & Vanology.
Good, used, panel van. Choose 2.
hmmm, dont envy you deciding this one, for me looking at the motorhomes compared to the campervan, the motorhomes have far more room inside, better storage and kitchen area, the campervans look very cramped in comparrison, although that last one you liked was better, one thing to consider if you go for the self build one, it will always be regarded as a panel van converted so value later will be restricted far more than a factory build campervan or motorhome, i think the new or very new campervans are well overpriced too, but you ideally want as new van as possible, not much point buying one with low miles thats nearly 10 years old already, maybe thats where the self build could benefit you by buying a nearly new van, lots to think about yet.
And this is the problem when you’re limited to a budget. I can get a camper or Moho with low mileage, and much lower than a 2017 £12k panel van, but it’s going to be a 10yo camper van or Moho. Either way I can’t win unless I spend another £20k ish, which I can’t afford.
@@theoutdoorlife4870 you would think 40 to 45k would buy you exactly what you want and fairly new, but they are just stupid prices these days, people still ask 10k plus for old Y reg auto sleepers with decent mileage, but will be rotten everywhere underneath, crazy.
I have a camper van that’s a w reg and has 165000 miles on it . Don’t fret too much about the age imho
@@MaxHeadRushif you know your van or had it ages then its fine yes, just wouldnt want to be buying one that age for a lot of dosh thats all.
Always an awkward one. Rather than offer advice I will tell you what my father-in-law did. In 2015, he bought from auction a two year old H2 L2 (5.4m Boxer) with 3K on the clock. It was a fully windowed van that had been used by a charity as an invalid carriage… hence it was floored. He went to a conversion firm called Coast 2 Coast and they converted in with similar units to what they use in VW conversions. All in all he spent £21K, including the van. It has double sliding doors, metallic paint, 190 cm headroom. It is a bit sluggish … 110PS but I use it now as my daily driver. It is great to drive though, anywhere, and being older and of little value (both me and the van), I don’t worry about it. I do look after it though.
The problem doing a conversion may be getting a nice clean van with low miles at a price you want too along with the conversion price. Places like Vanology would certainly do a fantastic job though if you did. I bought a new AT Expedition in 2023 and paid 42k but they are a bit more now but I do think the prices are going to come down somewhat so it may be worth waiting six months seeing as the new vans are now flooding the market?
Saved and saved for my first camper van from Highbridge, she's a bit of an older lady but only 22,000 on the clock, nice and clean inside, sales guy was great ( would be wouldnt he, he wants to sell me the van). bought it on the 11/11/23 got her home and did 2 day trips in her, and by the 10/12/23 ( one month almost to the day) she was off the road and needed to go to the garage. called high bridge to be told they couldn't look at her until April 24!!!! WHAT!!! long battle but eventually we agreed that she go to my garage ( local to me ) to be looked at .... OMG did they even check the van before it left HIGHBRIDG... I think not.... she needed a NEW windscreen as that was spectacularly leaking, a NEW Sky light over the Kitchen again leaking!, the water tank needed sealing as it would not hold water, holes in the floor needed sealing and the best one was there was a broken engine mount!!!! which I questioned as the van made a huge clonking noise when starting up and turning off!!! so so disappointed with HIGHBRIDGE and would never buy another van from them again, which is a shame as Im sure I will be upgrading in the future!! :-( and customer services just don't know what they are doing..... they even phoned me after agreeing for my garage to do all the work, and asked for me to take the van back down to them ..... " erm you have approved the work and its being done!! oh he said, sorry about that " you just couldn't wright it!!
I’m sorry you had such a bad experience.
Were you able to take the van out for a test drive before you committed yourself to the sale? This being my first van I don’t know if that’s even possible, but I guess I would be wary of buying any vehicle if I couldn’t test drive it. Even so, unless you test drove it on a rainy day, you wouldn’t know about the windscreen or sky light. And how would you know about the water tank until you went away on a trip.
I have two friends who are both happy with their purchases from Highbridge, and I guess not every van is going to be a dog.
Whether I buy from Highbridge or not, I will be documenting my experience here on UA-cam and the other socials, so any poor experience wouldn’t look good for that dealer.
I went to see the van twice whilst I was in Devon, and then my step mum took it out for a drive and went over it again with a fine tooth Combe before I put a holding deposit down, sadly all the work that had to be done after I bought the van was things that you couldn't see as you say, and you would expect to have been checked before we drove it away. I will say though, on the second visit we went straight to the van as I had my heart set on it, and one of the sales team had forgotten to close the main skylight and they had had heavy rain over night, there for all the carpets and floor was sodden, they assured me this would be sorted if I still wanted to purchase the van. All the work has now been done by my garage and HIGHBRIDGE DID PAY FOR IT.... @@theoutdoorlife4870
@@TheLittleDogHouse well that’s something at least!
I actually think the right hand entrance is better .....I'd love to know what the trade price of these 70 80 k vans are
get the extra cash and buy the one you want ...a factory make will hold its value more than a bespoke van conversion
Big issue with home or non factory builds is difficulty with values when it's time to change generally recognised factory builds retain there value better where as non factory have generally a much bigger lost unfortunately champaign for beer money seldom works with campervans 😂😂
Have you been to West Country Motorhomes just up the road from Highbridge? They have a great selection of new and used there. We bought our van from them. You can also hire vans so you get to try one for size before you buy one (i think they have 2 or 3 different sizes for hire). Failing that, Vanology Conversions in Brigend are specialists in budget conversions.
No I haven’t been to West Country Motorhomes yet. It’ll be 2-3 weeks now before I can continue my search.
As far as a panel van conversion goes, I have had a quote from Vanology Conversions and they will be who I use if I go down that route as they are only down the road from me in S Wales.
Great video again. I would buy panal van tbh. Have you spoke to Liam the terrible he has a business building campervans and beechwood is a first class joiner.
Thank you 🙏
I’ve had a quote from Vanology Conversions, who are local to me and have a UA-cam channel. Look them up.
@@theoutdoorlife4870 ok great
@@theoutdoorlife4870 I can recommend Stu @ Vanology. He did mine. I went Fiat Ducato because I wanted Auto but Boxer or relay are the same. Glad I went for 6M & not 6.3M too.
Have you tried
S&L MotorhomesCliffe Common
Selby, NorthYorkshire
Dang it when did you visit was it today? I follow your page and I'm the manager of Highbridge Devon lol
I was off driving to Leicester and back to buy another campervan to squeeze in somewhere lol
ps- We have a 2016 fixed bed autotrail van conversion due in at £42995 in a few days
2014 Vline 620 has literally just arrived its awaiting prep and is £43995 , auto gearbox too
I visited on Sunday, on my way home from a trip to Cornwall.
I’ll keep an eye on your website.
most of the time it is retired people who go for a motor home so why dont you look at the first thing they would look at and that is how do i get into bed at night and how does guests use the other bed? we need more practical advice and how does it drive?
Well this is me looking at retiring in the autumn, so this is all new to me too.
I’d love to be able to review and test drive lots of different motorhomes, but dealers aren’t going to hand over the keys to a content creator with under 500 subscribers.
Maybe once I have 20,000 subs then I could do this.
Came down to Exeter to break a shelf in a camper 😂😂😂😂😂
build it yourself, its yours
The Auto Sleeper is nice I'd have that for 54k proper nice inside that was
I really like that one too, but I haven’t found another used one for less than 45k, but that one had 146k miles on it.
@theoutdoorlife4870 there is a company in Bridgend does conversions looks good he's on here Vanoholics or similar they are called
@@theoutdoorlife4870 Just offer 45K and settle for 47500.
You won't get that low milage in a £15,000 second hand van, it will be around 70/80,000 miles, as unlike campervans they get driven daily and
all work vans get thrashed.
Your alway loose alot of money when you come to sell it aswell.
Puchase and conversion will be 30/£35,000 instant resale would be 20/£25,000.
Your better off with a low mileage unthrashed factory built campervan, that will hold its value.
£40K? Get a Bongo and have over thirty thousand to spend on hotels when you fancy. 🙂
Looked at Bongo’s, great following of owners but much smaller than the Pannel vans, no loo and you can’t go from the front seats to the back without getting out and walking round. If you don’t get one and rust proof it immediately, you can have a lot of rust issues to deal with as they are not designed and made for our climate and salt deposited roads in winter. There are some lovely conversions, some professional, some done privately but many have high mileage in km at the point they are converted in the uk. Check for rust and overheating issues. Buyer beware, join the forums and learn from the 3xperience of others.
@@OurWedding2012 yes I have one (1996, 2.5TD) and it’s great. Your description is mostly accurate but that doesn’t prevent them being used successfully. I say "mostly" because I can get from front to back and vice versa but it’s not elegant. 😊
Bespoke all the way and this will meet all your requirements and needs…
20k on a van ! 25k on a conversion ….. you will prob get a 1 yr old van with very low milage
Police Scotland have a new £100k motor home that will soon be put up for auction…
Ok 🤔
Thought you are looking for a vehicle under £40,000 … so why was the first one you looked at priced £77,000 🤷♀️
I’m looking for a vehicle up to £40k … there are so many out there I’m not going to waste my time and energy on looking at ones out of my price range, just makes me feel sad!
I was just curious of the layout 🤔
As it turns out, I don’t really like the continental layouts.
I personally would buy a used panel van! Why ? because a used camper vans are generally driven by middle age and elderlly men who have probably paid £70K for a new one. The van would probably be driven carefully and treated very well. I would buy a 2 belted seat version. Why ? beause it would probably mean the van was used just with a couple alone (no kids) It should have very low milage as well. If you go done the used van route, they generally have had a hard unknown life, you have no idea how they have been driven, and you I doubt you would would achieve the same fit and finish of a professional made one. You would also have to go through the hassle of building a van, which may or may not suit your need once you are actually using it. Plus if you sell it you shouldent lose a great deal of money, and once you use it for a few months you will discover what your likes and dislikes are?