First trip out in Autotrail (1 Viewer)

dogman

Free Member
Oct 24, 2013
549
440
chepstow
Funster No
28,719
MH
Coach Built
Exp
I'm a newbie
Well we are off on our first trip in the new MH (new to us anyway) today, a steady drive down to Pembrey Country Park Caravan Club</SPAN>, hope the wind doesn’t get up to much, 8.5 metres of slab sided motor home can be a little errrm, unpredictable in a heavy wind I would think:Eeek:.
The weather forecast is NOT favourable with rain on the cards; I have taken certain precautions in case we get “rained in”, ample supplies of beer being the main one together with a bottle of something stronger:winky:, wellies are stowed along with good rain coats and waterproof trousers just in case the wife has to go and get me more beer in an emergency situation (SHE doesn’t drink by the way).
Looks quite a nice place next door to a wide open park not far from the beach, not that I will be going in the water you understand. Will let you know how we get on next week, perhaps a short review of the camp site.
 

Brisey

Deceased RIP
Sep 4, 2007
8,087
17,512
Sutton on Sea
Funster No
223
MH
Coachbuilt
Exp
Since 2003
HI dogman, have a good trip, hope all goes well for you.:thumb:
Safe journey.

Brisey.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

Scout

LIFE MEMBER
Apr 4, 2009
3,955
119,843
South Yorkshire
Funster No
6,145
MH
chic c line
Exp
12 years motorhoming, a lifetime of living
have fun, remember if you put the rear steadies down, put the winder over the drive peddels so you dont forget to wind them back up:thumb:
 
OP
OP
dogman

dogman

Free Member
Oct 24, 2013
549
440
chepstow
Funster No
28,719
MH
Coach Built
Exp
I'm a newbie
have fun, remember if you put the rear steadies down, put the winder over the drive peddels so you dont forget to wind them back up:thumb:
What a brilliant tip, many thanks.:thumb:
Cal
 

Mousy

LIFE MEMBER
Sep 13, 2013
3,480
20,275
Sa15 2DG
Funster No
28,061
MH
Hymer S840 Merc auto
Exp
Since 2013
Our neck of the woods.......

There is a fish and chip shop on the left, just after you turn off the main road, there is a good cafe in the park at the bottom of the dry ski slope. Pembrey beach is massive, might be a tad windy, and I'm sorry to say it's chucking it down at the mo, but good news....it's been raining all night so there might be none left when you arrive!

Bury port harbour is 10 mins away, with the start of a coastal path to Llanelli. Excellent for biking or walking.
Llanelli is sadly abit grotty but Carmarthen is nice to shop in.

If you need anything give us a shout, we are 20 mins away, have fun.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
OP
OP
dogman

dogman

Free Member
Oct 24, 2013
549
440
chepstow
Funster No
28,719
MH
Coach Built
Exp
I'm a newbie
Our neck of the woods.......

There is a fish and chip shop on the left, just after you turn off the main road, there is a good cafe in the park at the bottom of the dry ski slope. Pembrey beach is massive, might be a tad windy, and I'm sorry to say it's chucking it down at the mo, but good news....it's been raining all night so there might be none left when you arrive!

Bury port harbour is 10 mins away, with the start of a coastal path to Llanelli. Excellent for biking or walking.
Llanelli is sadly abit grotty but Carmarthen is nice to shop in.

If you need anything give us a shout, we are 20 mins away, have fun.
Thanks for the information, great stuff but management has a huge chicken in the oven as we speak to be finished off later in the MH, there should be enough to :~
1. Feed the whole camp site.
or
2. Put us both in hospital with chicken poisoning.:Eeek:
 
Feb 9, 2008
4,086
5,902
SW Scotland
Funster No
1,453
MH
LP Coachbuilt
Exp
Since 2008 after caravanning for 20 years
Have a great weekend!

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

lorger

LIFE MEMBER
Jul 11, 2008
9,632
90,375
Dumfries
Funster No
3,262
MH
Knaus Sun 650MEG
Exp
2007
have fun, remember if you put the rear steadies down, put the winder over the drive peddels so you dont forget to wind them back up:thumb:

I do similar with mine by securing it to the steering wheel

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

My Dog Likes Fishing

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 16, 2012
379
407
Lancashire
Funster No
23,992
MH
Hymer B678
Exp
Hang on while I look at my watch
I put mine on a chain around my neck just to be sure I don't forget. Make sure the missus has the beer chilled and ready.
 
OP
OP
dogman

dogman

Free Member
Oct 24, 2013
549
440
chepstow
Funster No
28,719
MH
Coach Built
Exp
I'm a newbie
Well while I knew there would be lessons to be learned I didn't appreciate how many. The one I didn't bargain for however was that the TV we bought (12v and 240v) while we ran it from the cigarette lighter (with ignition on) would run down the vehicle battery because there was no charge even on EHU, I assumed there would be a charge. While looking for the liesure battery I discovered a mains socket behind the passenger front seat so it could have been run direct from the EHU. Couldn't run it from the TV cabinet because it's to big and there is nowhere to stand it close to the plug in that area so near to the front it had to be. Here we are in sunny Wales with a flat battery but snug and warm, great picture on the TV, cold beer in the fridge, oie, peas and spud consumed followed by rice pudding, great stuff. Still a mystery where the liesure battery is though, checked all the likely places (I think), just leaves a trapdoor under the cab floor to be investigated but doesn't look big enough to get a battery in. Oh well, let mayday sort it out in the morning then off home again to look at my (fairly long) list of things to put right or investigate further. Will post again tomorrow night and tell you some of the shortcomings I came accross most of which are mine.
By the way, the gas central heating in the MH is superb but just a little noisy, can't get it to work on gas AND electricity though, further investigation/research is need.
Stand by for tomorrows thrilling installment.::bigsmile:
Regards to all.
Cal
 

Mousy

LIFE MEMBER
Sep 13, 2013
3,480
20,275
Sa15 2DG
Funster No
28,061
MH
Hymer S840 Merc auto
Exp
Since 2013
Interesting....but did you catch the john Lewis christmas advert?!:ROFLMAO:

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

Allanm

Free Member
Jun 30, 2013
5,431
9,191
Cotes d'armor, France
Funster No
26,730
MH
Burstner Harmony TI 736 G
Exp
Since 1987
...........we ran it from the cigarette lighter (with ignition on) would run down the vehicle battery because there was no charge even on EHU, ..........

I guess this was the reason, with the ignition on, the EHU is disconnected, at least it is on mine.

Allan
 
Oct 20, 2013
5,299
12,801
South Norfolk
Funster No
28,653
MH
C Class
Exp
Yes
The leisure battery in our Autotrail Scout is under the floor of the nearside rear locker

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
OP
OP
dogman

dogman

Free Member
Oct 24, 2013
549
440
chepstow
Funster No
28,719
MH
Coach Built
Exp
I'm a newbie
try trapdoor under the carpet in front of passenger seat
The only place I haven't looked, saw it there but didn't have the necessary to open it, tool kit on my list.
Thanks for the suggestion.
Cal
 
OP
OP
dogman

dogman

Free Member
Oct 24, 2013
549
440
chepstow
Funster No
28,719
MH
Coach Built
Exp
I'm a newbie
The leisure battery in our Autotrail Scout is under the floor of the nearside rear locker
But not on the Cheyenne 840SE, that's where the toilet is but thanks anyway.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

Mousy

LIFE MEMBER
Sep 13, 2013
3,480
20,275
Sa15 2DG
Funster No
28,061
MH
Hymer S840 Merc auto
Exp
Since 2013
What did you think of pembrey country park? Also you were lucky with the weather but then the sun does always shine on the righteous!

Glad you enjoyed. :thumb:
 

OllieUK

Free Member
Jun 23, 2013
259
300
Ramsgate
Funster No
26,641
MH
Bessacarr E520
Exp
Since 2009
Visited this site in 2008. We were welcomed with a very friendly reception, the site is very clean and tidy, plenty of service areas, shower blocks were immaculate, the area is beautiful for walks in the woodland or the beach. There was a stable nearby you could go horseriding, and an area for BBQing. We went to the sheep dog trials in an unpronounable place (Dinefwr), had a great day out.

Pembrey Park:- score out of 10 - 11 yes I would recommend and go back again.

::bigsmile: :thumb: :winky:
 
OP
OP
dogman

dogman

Free Member
Oct 24, 2013
549
440
chepstow
Funster No
28,719
MH
Coach Built
Exp
I'm a newbie
What did you think of pembrey country park? Also you were lucky with the weather but then the sun does always shine on the righteous!

Glad you enjoyed. :thumb:
Went for a walk in the park yesterday morning, pleasant weather at the time after a (very) rough night involving large amounts of (noisy) hail, I was told the whole area was white with the stuff but it had gone when I got up.
Had a cuppa in the café and read a little of the history of the park, interesting stuff to me as I spotted a pill box on the way in. In WW2 it was an ordnance factory employing some 3000 people, take a look here for just a bit of its history, Wikipedia doesn't have much at all http://www.dyfedarchaeology.org.uk/HLC/EstuaryArea/area167.htm
Cal

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
OP
OP
dogman

dogman

Free Member
Oct 24, 2013
549
440
chepstow
Funster No
28,719
MH
Coach Built
Exp
I'm a newbie
Visited this site in 2008. We were welcomed with a very friendly reception, the site is very clean and tidy, plenty of service areas, shower blocks were immaculate, the area is beautiful for walks in the woodland or the beach. There was a stable nearby you could go horseriding, and an area for BBQing. We went to the sheep dog trials in an unpronounable place (Dinefwr), had a great day out.

Pembrey Park:- score out of 10 - 11 yes I would recommend and go back again.

::bigsmile: :thumb: :winky:
I agree with all you have said, nothing much has changed. One thing I saw on the notice board was a picture of a burnt out caravan (nothing left) and a badly burnt car next to it (not much left). This brings home the need for the parking rules and the care needed to safeguard EVERYONE when we are out camping as caravans and motorhomes can be very dangerous regarding fire.
Pictures like that one should be displayed on every site, incidents should get maximum publicity as a warning to us all.
Cal
 
OP
OP
dogman

dogman

Free Member
Oct 24, 2013
549
440
chepstow
Funster No
28,719
MH
Coach Built
Exp
I'm a newbie
First of all, thanks to all who responded with advice and tips, what a great tool Motorhome fun is, all learning from one another, all teaching one another, just the way it should be, again many thanks.
Well we got down to Pembrey Park with no major dramas despite a sprinkling of stupidity, an inability to listen to sat nav and a desire to burn diesel unnecessarily, apart from that it was great:thumb:.
We set up as normal, plugged in and I got fed (so did management), then tried out the central heating, switched it on and NOTHING, all the lights twinkled in the right places but still nothing. Sat down to ponder the problem, being short on brain power this can be a lengthy process, then a noise like a muted hovercraft starting up, checked the vents and sure enough there was an icy blast coming out, left it for a few moments and it began to warm, EUREKA I said, we have lift off:whatthe:. A few minutes later we were snug as bugs, lesson learned = give it time.
Tried the combination gas/electric but no go on that one, at least I didn’t THINK it worked, next tried electric only, no go so further investigation needed. Bonus was we also had hot water on tap, discovered “accidently”::bigsmile:.
We had TV, strong drink, comfy seats so what now? I know, let’s try the new telly, out comes the “front” telly, off goes the “back” telly, plugged it into the cigarette light port (socket), on she goes, went through the set up sequence and hey presto, great picture. What now, I know lets go back to the “back” telly in case we run the battery down (not that it will happen I thought). “Back” telly switched on, no signal, re-tuned it, no signal, re-tuned it again and got a really poor signal, adjust aerial, no better. Went to reception to get something (maybe bread rolls) and had a chat with receptionist (hereinafter known as nice lady), have you got your aerial vertical she asks and points to a couple close by as examples. “Of course I have” I lied:Doh:, then immediately returned to the MH and adjusted the aerial, picture perfect, I congratulated myself and made no mention of the advice from the receptionist (nice lady) to management claiming the success for myself.
I then decided to watch TV on the larger screen at the front of MH (haven’t named it yet), so switched that on still on the cigarette socket, watched TV for the evening not thinking of battery running down because I was safe in the certain knowledge it was being charged from the EHU, WRONG, no charge going in there at all after I checked the condition on the control panel, oh what a bit of a nuisance I said (or something like that):cry:. It was only then that I spotted a 3 pin socket behind the passenger seat, nice and handy for the front telly, changed the power source over and Bob’s your.................. I phoned Mayday this morning to resolve the battery issue and got great service from the control centre, they sent me a text saying somebody would be there in about an hour. Sure enough an hour later a MH looking vehicle came onto the site and I remarked to management that I wouldn’t want it as all the widows were very high up the bodywork, it turned out to be a mobile workshop based on a Fiat Ducato, ex mobile library, absolutely superb inside. The guy who owned it gave me a bit of history while he slaved the MH and I had a look round inside while my engine was running. Very impressive indeed, everything in its place and a place for everything, clean and sparkling everywhere but still a place of work you understand.
Talking to the Mayday operator I stressed that the MH is a specialist bit of kit and needed somebody schooled in its “peculiarities”, they did well in sending this man from Swansea, confident and knowledgeable I would recommend him to anyone, this from a workshop manager of many years standing. I said I would make a post this evening and would he mind if I mentioned him, “of course not” he said (why would he?). So if you should require the services of a good mechanic experienced in motor homes while in the Swansea area then call Millbrook Recovery on 01792 561007 or 07912 271198, he also does auto and domestic locks. I hope this is NOT viewed as an advert, I speak as I find and he was very good. Unlike an unfortunate incident with the AA a few months ago, they sent a “technician” to attend my wife’s car at the house, (starter bendix failed to engage), the “technician” said there was serious internal engine damage because after cranking it the plugs were still dry. Not realising the engine was NOT cranking at all, he then came up with a clutch problem, I asked him to take it to my local garage (why would I allow this idiot to take spanners to an expensive machine:Eeek:), they removed the starter, cleaned the bendix shaft and refitted it, cost £25. I thanked the AA and said while I satisfied with the response time and communication I was disappointed with the “technicians” level of expertise but impressed with his inspired guesswork and recommended he should go for retraining, preferably in another line of work, maybe assembling cardboard boxes.
In summary, it was a great weekend, met some very nice people, learnt a great deal, realised there was still much to learn to get the most out of the MH, made a list of things to do/things to purchase, mission accomplished.
 
Last edited:
OP
OP
dogman

dogman

Free Member
Oct 24, 2013
549
440
chepstow
Funster No
28,719
MH
Coach Built
Exp
I'm a newbie
Thought some may be interested in the ex library from Mayday, I liked the engineering in the entrance steps come lift come ramp, very impressive indeed:thumb:.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

Attachments

  • 4 steps.jpg
    4 steps.jpg
    99.3 KB · Views: 24
  • Or 3 steps.jpg
    Or 3 steps.jpg
    99.2 KB · Views: 24
  • Or lift.jpg
    Or lift.jpg
    100.5 KB · Views: 19
  • I would LOVE to have this 1.jpg
    I would LOVE to have this 1.jpg
    98.7 KB · Views: 21
  • I would LOVE to have this 2.jpg
    I would LOVE to have this 2.jpg
    96.5 KB · Views: 22
Last edited:
OP
OP
dogman

dogman

Free Member
Oct 24, 2013
549
440
chepstow
Funster No
28,719
MH
Coach Built
Exp
I'm a newbie
This is the MH lookalike.
 

Attachments

  • See what I mean about MH.jpg
    See what I mean about MH.jpg
    95.6 KB · Views: 21

Paramotormanal

Free Member
Aug 29, 2012
82
56
Kingston upon Hull
Funster No
22,656
MH
C Class
Exp
2009
Hello dogman the leisure battery's on my Chieftain are in the near side front locker should be the same on yours also the switch to turn your electric heating on should be under your front near side seating next to your fire and the electric heater for your water is under the L seating near the pump hope this helps, Alan::bigsmile:::bigsmile:
 
OP
OP
dogman

dogman

Free Member
Oct 24, 2013
549
440
chepstow
Funster No
28,719
MH
Coach Built
Exp
I'm a newbie
Hello dogman the leisure battery's on my Chieftain are in the near side front locker should be the same on yours also the switch to turn your electric heating on should be under your front near side seating next to your fire and the electric heater for your water is under the L seating near the pump hope this helps, Alan::bigsmile:::bigsmile:

Good morning, what a dreary day but never mind.
Thanks for your response but it appears my Cheyenne is laid out quite differently to your Chieftain, there are no batteries in my NSF locker, indeed they are not in any of the lockers. The switch to turn the heating on is at the control panel, at least it turns on the gas heating with options for gas/electric but I will check to see if there is a switch under the seat (I hope so). The water heats up OK when gas heating is selected.
Thanks for taking the time to reply and for your help, I will let you know how I get on.
Regards
Cal

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

Join us or log in to post a reply.

To join in you must be a member of MotorhomeFun

Join MotorhomeFun

Join us, it quick and easy!

Log in

Already a member? Log in here.

Latest journal entries

Funsters who are viewing this thread

Back
Top