How to Choose a Motorhome
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- Опубліковано 15 січ 2018
- How we came to choose our Bolero Motorhome and factors to consider when making a choice.
1. Size of Motorhome - will it fit on your drive or do you have storage, happy with parking or driving a vehicle that size. Will it be your only vehicle - do you have other transport? Compact motorhome, larger motorhome, Microvan, A Class or campervan.
2. Purpose of the Motorhome - do you need a vehicle to carry your skis or quad bikes, do you need a garage or more storage? What hobbies do you have?
3. Lounge Layout - how many will travelling with you, do you want to carry passengers, will you need seatbelts? Travel seats or bigger lounge? What about your pets how will they travel safely? Are you planning to entertain friends, will there be enough seating, do you need a big table or will a small one do? Do you want to be able to put your feet up in the lounge?
4. Sleeping layouts - how many sleeping, that may be different from how many travelling with you. People may come to stay with you. Main layouts are French Bed, Lengthwise or Transverse Island Beds, Single Beds with centre or rear bathrooms, which tend to have a garage underneath, Transverse bed over garage, Rear Lounge and End Kitchen which tends to be make up beds and compact motorhomes. Rear Lounges are great for socialising, but you have to make a bed up. Fixed beds are great for just crashing into bed, but you may have a smaller lounge for entertaining. French beds mean climbing over someone, as do transverse rear beds. Ladders may be a problem. Fixed bed or single bed or making beds up or drop down bed, happy with climbing up a ladder. How long and wide are the beds, especially island beds, which tend to be too short for 6ft. How easy is it to get in and out of bed.
5. Cooking - do you need full cooking facilities, oven microwave, preparation area, need a big kitchen, or happy with two burner hob? Storage facilities, if you do more cooking you do in the van, you need more storage.
6. Fridge, need a big fridge and freezer? May depend how long you are away, or how much cooking you do or how much drink you want to take with you, or how close you will be to the shops. Some fridges have automatic energy selection, or will you remember to set it yourself?
7. Washing Facilities - Will you want use a shower regularly or will you use site facilities? We wanted a changing area. Some may just need a wet room where the floor is shared with shower.
8. Heating and Water - wet central heating, Alde or Truma blown air main makes, any preference. How much water do you want to use and store, check the fresh water and waste tank capacity.
9. Winterised - are you using it during the winter, look for insulation of water and the interior.
10. Base Vehicle - main makes are Fiat, Peugeot, Citroen, Ford, Renault VW and Mercedes - are you happy with driving position - do have a preference for a make or do need automatic or manual? Congestion and Emission zones, if buying second hand will you be allowed in the cities?
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I hope this helps. When I was considering which motorhome to buy I was influenced by my size - I am 6' 3" and 18 stone. I need space to move around as well as a decent sized shower and a bed size that fits my frame. When talking to the dealer I mentioned that I probably needed a 4 berth to accommodate someone of my size; he pointed out that actually I needed a 2 berth because these tended to be more roomy internally. And so it proved. I now have an Elddis Autoquest Prestige 175 2 berth. It has a separate shower and a huge double bed (or two singles, which prove to be a reasonable size for me). It's mostly for me alone but I hope to convince my wife to join me on some trips.
Earnshaws - you produce great videos and I am glad I found your channel. Keep it up.
PS through you I have discovered the delights of the Duvalay. What a boon! No more laborious bed making - pricey but worth it.
Enjoying your videos & just watched this one. Still have my 2005 Bessacarr E795 bought in 2012 & still love it. Was the kind of money that I could consider a static home on a site at the time. They are costly to run, the view never changes & they lose most of their value when it’s time to replace. I felt that even if a motorhome was a total mistake I could get most of my money back. It wasn’t of course & still remains the best thing I’ve ever bought. Regards, Alan.
I agree, best thing we ever did, buy a Motorhome, we'd be lost without it. So many places it's taken us that we'd might never have seen.
Our choice was easy. Fixed bed with everything our caravan had. We found our layout then went out to find it :-)
Finally - straight to the point, no clingy editing and competent opinion. Thank you!
Thank you
REALLY useful - THANK YOU!! ☺
Thanks Bob, very informative. This has really confirmed my opinion on what we should go for when we take up motor homing again.
Compact enough to drive around towns and villages, while spacious enough that we aren't falling over each other all the time, I was thinking 7.0 m. Rear U shaped lounge that we can leave set up as a bed a lot of the time when travelling but can be used as a lounge when entertaining, or for somewhere to eat meals when parked somewhere with a fab view. Four berth but would go for a six if compact enough, we can always use push bikes if the size of a motorhome is a problem.
Solar panel is a must as we intend making extensive use of aires when travelling.
Reasonable kitchen as I don't fancy living on Fray Bentos pies all the time.
Delbert o Grady I wouldn't want to go back to Frey Bentos either. Reminds me of Bedsit days....
Really good tips on what to consider. We were set on buying a auto trail , but it was in poor condition. We then went by chance to a seller near us , as we pulled in we seen the niesmann arto 59s . I said I don't like that it looks like a wardrobe. The owner convinced us to look inside. I was so surprised , it was great and I said if it passed the checks we were very interested. So we bought "Wardrobe" . I would recommend not making a judgment on outside or type
really informative. my wife an i are considering buying a motor-home and this vid has covered nearly all of out questions. we have plenty to think on now. we were hoping to travel the UK and the EU over the next few years. thanks.
Hi Bob and Jenny,
You have a fantastic motorhome.
All the best,
Paul
great video. Thinking what you want out of the van is the million dollar question given the amount of layouts available. We mostly use ours for festivals or short jaunts so a fixed transverse bed was a must after a few pints at a festival :) Hiring before you buy is a great idea
Great videos Bob, loved watching your tours very informative, neat camera work with the road signs. we're still looking for our first motorhome having decided its what we want to do after several years of trailer tent camping through some of Europe. Thanks for sharing your experiences and wisdom appreciated.
Thank you for the feedback!
Great video. We’re considering buying our first Motorhome so these videos are invaluable. We had a caravan previously ( about 10 years ago) and loved the holidays we had in it but hated the hitching / unhitching, parking on site and also found towing nerve wracking. We also had to use a storage site. The thing that I’m concerned about is having no vehicle to get around in when we arrive on site unless we pack up the van. Wondered what other people do in that scenario and how they’ve found it. We are trying to carefully consider the pros and cons of motorhoming! Keep the vids coming for us potential newbies!
The first thing to say is if you are tidy, it can take 5-10 minutes to pack up to go out in the motorhome and even if it takes a little longer, when you are out you have everything with you! Many people who try motorhoming after Caravanning are surprised how quickly you get going, especially if you dispence with the Autoroll and Waste master. Remember you can empty on the way out from a campsite and fill up on the way in. Arrive, fill up, pitch up, plug in.
Really enjoying your videos.
This one was great giving us lots to consider before we get a MH.
Nice to see the warmth in the replies and comments of your viewers.
Don't ever get upset about the odd nasty reply; it's just the way of the world these days!!
Keep up the good work
Thank you for your kind comments.
One of our requirements when we bought our motorhome last year was an automatic transmission. Fiat Ducato (not Peugeot) has an optional automatic called “Comfortmatic”. I have a weak left leg which is great as I have no clutch to worry about. The “robotised” nature of the gearbox means you do feel the gaps between gears but it’s less work and smoother than some drivers with a manual. There is an additional cost on a new van of around £3,000, depending on motorhome manufacturer. Ford and Mercedes offer full automatic versions of their engines also at additional cost. Peugeot have no offerings at all at this time. Bob, this is a great video for anyone starting to consider what to buy. There are so many considerations that it takes a while to get what is right for you. Also, it’s much more difficult to find “the one” in a second hand market.
Poshcats Camping thanks for comment. I realised after I published the video It's Fiat not Peugeot with the Robotised gearbox.
Sounds like they've better since I last drove one then. I drove a Vauxhall with one and never knew when it was going to change gear.
I drive a Bessacarr with auto box, find it ok, just a slight delay changing from 1st to 2nd but rest ok. Bob can you not pull steering wheel closer to you in your motorhome as some do go in and out as well as up and down on the adjustment lever
I've adjusted the steering wheel to be closer to me. It's OK, and if I use the arm rest it's fairly comfortable.
Hi Both,
A very comprehensive breakdown of all the choices and layouts of vans.
Apologies if I missed it but another sleeping choice might be an overhead bed in a highline.
I can also confirm that Fiat Ducato do have an automatic in the form of a robotised version that changes gear smoothly for you.
We now have a 2017 Swift Kontiki 669 Highline with a 180hp euro 6. Like yourselves the choice of this van was easy for us because we had been motorhoming for 5 years previously in a 20 year old Fiat Ducato Roadstar 620.
The factors for us were:
Highline to accommodate grandkids above the cab
Fixed island bed because we got fed up of making the bed up daily in the Roadstar
Medium or large garage to store all the beach chairs and BBQ that we stored above the cab in the Roadstar.
Again thanks for your vlogs and keep them coming
Don & Anne
Don Thomas Thanks for your comment. Yes probably missed that one. Practical Motorhome list at least 33 basic layouts! We're not keen on ladders guess they are great for the young ones though!
Great vid. You covered a lot of issues but in a clear way - good show.
Thanks for your comment
Hi Guys ... Looking forward to watching this evening :-)
I noticed in your very interesting video that you once had the Autocruise Starfire which we will be picking up next week for our 1st adventure as Motorhome adventurers & we are feeling very excited about touring around for the summer.. It's a 2004 model & we are happy that we're buying from a good dealer as far as we know & that we will enjoy it for the 1st year until we decide to buy something more up to date for the rest of our adventures.. Paul & Lynne
It was a really nice motorhome, gave us 8 years of good service.
Hi there, Enjoying your blog I have a Fiat Toskana 750 FLC it has a Comformatic Auto gearbox it’s great , l believe they still are fitting them . Regards Pete.
Yes it's Fiat that do the Comformatic, not Peugeot. Realised after I published. Doh! Thanks for your comment.
Great video- I'm sure people will find it really useful. (We would have too if we hadn't already found our van!! 😂 )
We saw your 'van at the show, super layout for a family
Bob, Don't forget you were going to look more into vehicle weights and payloads, subject to the driving licence restrictions ? Also when you have chosen your motorhome, where do you take it for the habitational and mechanical services ?
Colin Humphries I'm thinking of doing something about the weighbridge, might tie it into that. I need to go to one anyway.
Hi Bod
another great video when I bought my first motorhome in October 2017 my first one a 2003 E445 Bessacarr and someone said to you will pick the one and you thinks right for but you will soon realise its the wrong one; well so far I still like my Bessacarr but I know what he meant because I am planning our next one in about 2 years I think and build up some funds I like to pay cash I am not keen on finance I leave that to my cars because I think motorhomes keep there value.
The layout ticks all the boxes for me end wash room ,overhead cad bed , separate shower, seat belts and travelling seats .
There's only two of us but we like the room we have.
Roy Coombes the good thing about motor Home residuals is you don't lose too much when you sell. I know because it took us 3 motorhomes before we found the right layout!
Well I have just booked for the NEC in Feb 24th a Saturday so I will be like a kid in a sweat shop
Roy Sole , think you might mean sweet shop ..🍭🍭🍫🍫🍪🍪🍩🍩
I'm new to all this motorhome stuff, I was thinking of getting an Adria Compact Supreme, but you brought up a lot of good points more so the euro 5 / 6 I would never even thought of this so thank you for posting
I'm slowly going through your videos, if you've not already done so could you do a video on average running cost i.e maintenance, insurance ,average cost for the year, motorhome clubs, road TAX etc
Ok stay safe love the videos Jim
Thanks for watching. You will find all that in our two year review video ua-cam.com/video/KOlD1_YGzxA/v-deo.html
@@BobEarnshawMoHo Thank you so much 👍
I'll buy one soon
Add blue should last from service to service, dependent on miles. AS24 in Europe sell add blue at a very good price as lots of wagons need it due too emmisions
Hi Bob and Jenny, Peugeot unfortunately do not supply automatics although Fiat do which seems strange as they come from the same factory. I’m not sure about Citroen and you were correct Ford and Mercedes do supply automatics. We have been looking for some time and it seems every time we find a van we like such as the Bailey you tested we’re told it’s not available in Auto.
Yes, although they come from the same factory they have different engines. As far as I know, Bailey only supply Peugeot vehicles.
Hi Bob and Jenny, How do you think about the electrical drop down bed which is becoming popular. Some people prefer the manually operated one to the electrical one - fearing possible motor breaking down and letting the bed hanging nowhere. Thank you.
Seven years ago, we had a Bailey motorhome with one of the first electric drop down beds Bailey made. It was a really bad experience, uncomfortable, unreliable and put us off drop down beds forever. We're not keen on the whole climbing up and down to sleep thing either. If you read the Facebook forums I'm not sure things have improved much as regarding reliability.
Hi bob just wondering what you think of solar panels as you never mentioned them, do you have one fitted? Great video cheers Steve
Steve Golding i mentioned ours quickly on the Electrics video. I think they're almost an essential bit of kit if you want to stay off grid for more than a night or two. Thanks for your comment.
Hubby says can you get sky tv ? If sogow do you go about getting out in your van lease ? Xx
Maureen Nash there a video - ua-cam.com/video/o7FHHVCZksw/v-deo.html
Maureen Nash I seem to spend less time watching Sky these days. Often editing videos!
By no means a new idea, but one thing we try to do is minimise the amount of fresh and waste water we carry. With close to 200L combined capacity, that’s 200KG of extra weight.
Yes, that's a lot of extra weight and fuel.