Auto-Sleepers Symbol or something smaller? (1 Viewer)

[fuzzyfreak]

I wanted to avoid going onto forums to help make my purchase because it can often lead to more confusion, but seeing how I am already confused, I thought what the hell.

Yesterday I drove two hours up to Leicester to see a Auto-Sleepers Symbol which was advertised as "ABSOLUTELY IMMACULATE" I dragged my parents up there on a "day out" - when we saw the thing, it was far from immaculate - he hadn't even bothered to clean it inside or out and he had his stuff all over the place, it also stunk of fags and poo!

Anyway, I took it out for a spin and it felt a little awkward, but I put that down to the fact I drive a tiny Toyota Yaris, not a big van!

so, my original requirements were a 2 berth, smaller motor-home with toilet. I have a five year old girl who I want to take with me occasionally and I also want my parents to use it seeing as I will be storing it at their house.

I came away wondering if I want something smaller (if there is anything) what about VW - do they do the T5 with a toilet? I like the neat compact design.

thanks in advance

Fuzzy.

 

[mejulie]

Hi Fuzzy, You don't say how much you want to spend, but I've just googled autosleeper symbol and found loads of what you're looking for. I'm sure you'll find something quite quickly. Mel.

 

[novawight]

have a vw topaz, and more than happy with it , but it,s only 2 berth

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[fuzzyfreak]

Oh yes, good point. My budget is £24k. I am after something from 2006 onwards to be in any decent shape.

The Topaz, hmmm, worth considering but cannot find any around my date/budget.

 

[hallii]

I nearly had a nervous breakdown doing the searching and legwork to find a suitable M/H.

Like you I drove miles to see an "immaculate" M/H only to find it dirty and tatty.

Some dealers were not much better, some dealers, to be fair, were very good, not pushy and with properly prepared M/H s.

I bought private in the end, saved a lot of money that way, but there is no guarantee this way.
Luckily for me it has worked out perfectly.

The T5 is very expensive and might be outside your budget, the T4 is a nice van (I have sold mine to buy this one) but get a Westfalia if you can.

http://www.campervans4u.com/

Is a good company specialising in VWs. and they are honest and trustworthy.

No connection, just had very good service from them.

Hallii

 

[Terry]

Hi FF go onto the auto trrader web site click on m/h /caravans in the search box click on diesel - 4 yrs old - £10.000 to 25, 000 this brings up lots to choose from within your parameters -- never pay asking price :thumb:
terry

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[mejulie]

Whereabouts are you, someone might know a good place to look.

 

[fuzzyfreak]

Unfortunately these forums don't allow me to see what I am replying to so forgive me if I get the names wrong.

Link Removed - thanks for your response, I have always liked the T5 California but it lacks the toilet. what other T5 models could I look at?

Terry - thanks, already done that and ebay is always a good one too

Mejulie - I live in Saffron Walden, which is just South of Cambridge, it appears to be the worst place in the UK for Motor Homes so I have to travel.

I am beginning to wonder if I should just drop the toilet criteria and use the porta-loo option instead which will open up a whole new avenue such as the Bilbo or the California, though not sure if I would get these with £24k.

 

[geoff1947]

A/S Symbol

Hi I had an A/S Symbol a few years ago but wiffie and I then upgraded to a panel van as we wanted to spend a year travelling and needed more space. Good van tho! With £24k (that is a big budget) have you looked at panel vans as there plenty around!
Come to Stratford on Avon show this weekend and see whats about!

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[Dalek]

Have you tried Simpsons at Great Yarmouth tel 0845 20 10 670 or Link Removed. We bought our Roller Team from them new last July and had no problems.

Dale

 

[fuzzyfreak]

Geoff1947 - when you say Panel Van, can you please give me some examples - thanks

Dalek - what model were you specifically pointing me at?

 

[Gandalf the Grey]

Hi, Fuzzy,

This is my first post on this forum -- I haven't felt very qualified to comment on anything until now, as we are very new to this motor homing/camper vanning business, but, after a fabulous 5 weeks in a Fiat Ducato-based (about 2004 vintage, so not the more recent X2/50 seval 'Judder' chassis) panel van conversion in New Zealand, we 'took the plunge', and, after much deliberation, bought (in March this year):- guess what? You're right -- an Auto-sleepers Peugeot Symbol! It is a very clean & tidy 2002 model, 36,000 on the clock, bought from our friendly local dealer (Webbs Motorcaravans of Warminster) with a full service history (2 previous owners) and a year's warranty.Our budget was a bit lower than yours (£20,000 -- although we got it for less) so we have the old 1.9 TD engine -- which is O.K., very willing -- but not as smooth as the later 'common rail' diesel.2004-2006 models of these are around in MMM adverts etc. at the price that you have in mind.
We had not driven anything any bigger than our small Honda Jazz before -- so it felt huge, but we've adjusted to it -- taken it on many country lanes in the Quantocks, Forest of Dean and South Glos. ( slimbridge area) on our expeditions so far. We are heading off to North Norfolk & Suffolk ( Constable country) next week -- for the two of us it is just the perfect size -- my wife ( 5'4" and 9st.) is the main driver and loves it -- there is power steering!
A final thought -- my friend has a 'mini-coachbuilt' a Nu Venture Rio, have you seen them? they are really dinky and drive like a car! Or, possibly, the Romahome versions or Auto-sleepers own Mezan. Any of those might suit your requirements.

Hope you have as much fun as we do with your chosen 'van,
best wishes,
G.

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[Gandalf the Grey]

Hello again, Fuzzy,

It looks as though my first 'post' on here was a conversation stopper! -- I hope not -- perhaps you have found your perfect ( for you) camper van/motor home by now! I would be interested to know what it is, if you have 'taken the plunge'!
If not, and you are still interested in a Symbol, take a look at:www.webbsmotorcaravans.co.uk (my local dealer). they have a 2006 Symbol, only 4600 miles on the clock(!) in simply pristine condition. Price? a whopping £26000 (well, less£5.00.!), but, as you don't have any part-ex, you ought to be able to haggle them downwards -- I did.
I have no connection with Webbs, by the way -- have just found them to be fair and 'upfront ' in our dealings with them so far.
I know we are some distance from you here in Wiltshire -- but this one looks to be a peach!

Best Wishes in your search,

Gandalf.

 

[mejulie]

http://www.southernmotorhomes.co.uk/ Also a little way away but we bought ours from here and they are very nice people to do business with. Good variety of stock too. Mel.

 

[froghopper]

choice

just to confuse you, i am trying to sell a 1999 autocruise starfire, its on ebay, 25k miles, tow bar that takes a motorbike rack, drive away awning, it realy is fantastic, relationship break up forces sale.. and i only want 13. 5 k for it, and still no one wants it,, you want realy realy good.. i got it,,,07827916227, winchester. :thumb:

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[Gandalf the Grey]

Yeah, but that's a horse-Box-sized Motor home! Not a nice little panel van or mini-coach- built that Fuzzy is after!

G.

 

[fuzzyfreak]

Not sure I can still post unless I subscribe, so will keep this short. I have moved on from the Symbol, I am no longer interested - thank you all ever so much for your responses though I suspect (in my sceptical way) some of you are dealers masquerading as normal punters (bet that opens up a can of worms).

Anyway, I have decided to look at smaller panel van conversions so if you have any first hand experience for one that has the following, let me know -

Essential -
Twin bed
Oven

Would like -
Cabin Air-con
Plenty of windows
Electric front windows
Awning
Bike Rack

thanks (now lets hope it allows my post)

 

[trevosky]

hi ya there is no subscription so carry on and post away and welcome and good luck in your search,perhaps change name of thread for more advice all the best Trev:thumb:

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[georgio]

Hello,


For 24k you could get a 2 year old tribute 550 24 k would buy a decent motorhome.

god luck.


georgio.

 

[Gandalf the Grey]

Fuzzy --

Please carry on posting and we'll keep trying to assist you -- if it doesn't confuse you too much!
Just to get one thing out of the way -- I am certainly NOT a dealer posing as a punter on this forum -- just a very recent convert to camper vanning/motor homing, who has just been through the same(or similar) set of (often tedious) comparisons that you are currently trying to juggle with! We 'crawled over' more 'vans than I shall ever own -- even if I live to be a hundred!
One thing I will say, from 20 years of experience of consumer issues when Volunteering/working for Citizen's Advice Bureaux in my area, is: unless you really know what you are up to (or can take a really experienced expert with you), NEVER buy privately -- You will have absolutely no legal protection if something goes wrong -- you can at least use ( or threaten with) the County Court if your consumer rights are infringed -- you have NO protection in a private sale. Of course a second - hand model will cost more at the dealers, but should have some kind of warranty -- and they should be able to sort out glitches and niggles and offer habitation and mechanical servicing.

How you are going to find a 'van smaller than a Symbol ( or a Duetto or Topaz) with all of your requirements I am not sure -- the Trigano Tribute mentioned by a previous poster on this thread would tick (almost) all of your boxes, but it is longer & wider than my Symbol. Once again -- (just as an example you understand) Webbs Motorcaravans has one on its website for £24,000, -- but I'm sure that you could find similar elsewhere, closer to home,but see what you think of the website example -- we drove a very similar ' van in NZ -- it handled beautifully -- we had no problems in small towns or on narrow secondary roads.
Otherwise I think you may need to look at 'Tin tops' --we saw some nice ones at the outdoor Leisure Show at Shepton Mallet in April -- but they came without a washroom/Loo -- some may have had a 'porta-potti' -- I don't remember -- because for us a Thetford type toilet is a vital necessity! You are right to think of the VW California (or a Danbury perhaps?) but they may be too new to come into your price range.
Sorry to have 'gone on' a bit, but I hope that this is helpful to you --

Cheers,

Gandalf.

 

[Terry]

Hi again FF, you can post as much as you like and ask as much as you like on here ( no subs )
The best advise I can give is have a trawl on auto-trader and ebay plus the classifieds on here to see what looks right for you size wise :thumb: Layout is the single most important thing :thumb:
Try hiring one for a few days :thumb: that will help you decide on what you want
it may well cost a few quid but could well prove an invaluable insight to your eventual choice.
Personally I would use the dealers to look at there vans then buy the same van privately for a few grand less :thumb: but then again I like to think I know what I am doing You can always find a friend or pay for a inspection BEFORE you buy - there will always be another van- never pay asking price private or dealer :thumb:
once you find what you are looking for tell us before you buy and we can give you check-lists to tick off :thumb:
oh: here is one below, but do not start looking to tick the boxes until you have made your van choice.
terry
edit check means make sure they work heeeheee

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[fuzzyfreak]

Gandalf, Terry - thanks ever so much!

Gandalf, I thought my problem was with the size of the van but it turned out it was the drive. Yesterday I took a Ford based Motor Home out and it was so much easier to drive so I am still looking at "High Tops".

I have to disagree with Gandalf and agree with Terry about buying privately. If I can get the same MH for £3k less privately, is it not worth doing so and keeping the £3k saved as insurance in case anything goes wrong? Yes, of course I would get a check done, both security and mechanical. I mainly always buy my cars privately because mechanically I know what I am doing. That said, if a dealer can give me a good price and a warranty, I would go with them.

Terry, thanks for the inspection checklist!

One thing I had better say right now is that I will not mention any further what I am looking at and where, just in case somebody else is reading this with the same ideas and beats me to a good deal! I hope you understand.

So, yesterday I set off to a dealer - a 2 hour drive in that heat. The Manager seemed friendly enough, even if he did like the sound of his own voice. I looked at three motorhomes and told him I want to take one out for a drive "You drive it, you buy it" he said - not sure what he meant by that. We sat in the cabin and I asked him why the shower had not been cleaned "We don't have time I'm afraid". I then asked him about some upholstery damage "Are you still interested in buying this vehicle?" he asked. If I had answered truthfully i.e. "I just want to test drive it first, thank you" He would not have allowed me to take it out! He actually asked me "What would it take for you to buy this vehicle now?":Angry:

Anyway, I took it out for a spin, came back, told him I'd think about it and he walked off, no longer interested in "being my best friend".

So I took myself up the road to another dealer. I found the same model a year older in better condition. I was just about to get in my car and leave when the owner approached me "Are you OK there, sir?" he asked. And we wnt on to have a very pleasant conversation - he gave me no sales pitch, he didn't thrust his card in my hand, he allowed me to look and leave and you know what, if I am going back, I am going to him!

 

[fuzzyfreak]

One I am interested in learning more about (contrary to what I said above) is the Westfalia Nugget which appears to be soley distributed by a Ford Dealership in Reading. Anyone know anything about this?

 

[sedge]

Just typed it into my Yahoo browser and voila -

http://www.westfalia-ford.co.uk/dealer/index.html

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[fuzzyfreak]

Correct, Sedge, that is them, I am after experience of them.

PS. tip Google produces far better results than Yahoo.

 

[Terry]

Gandalf, Terry - thanks ever so much!



Terry, thanks for the inspection checklist!

One thing I had better say right now is that I will not mention any further what I am looking at and where, just in case somebody else is reading this with the same ideas and beats me to a good deal! I hope you understand.

no problem :thumb: at least you are getting the idea if you are unsure then get back to us :thumb: no need to say where anything is just ask
terry

 

[fuzzyfreak]

hi ya there is no subscription so carry on and post away and welcome and good luck in your search,perhaps change name of thread for more advice all the best Trev:thumb:

Trevosky, how do I change the name of the thread?

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[fuzzyfreak]

A question: How much would it cost to have air-con fitted in the cabin?

 

[vwalan]

with the money you have if you want something smaller .have you thought about a new volkswagen type 2 .they are about the size of a car .now come with a very good 1400cc engine much more power and better braking than the old ones. there is plenty of info on the webb .i,m sure the inside can be adapted to your needs . shouldnt worry about air con do you really think you need it.
cheers alan.

 

[Terry]

Hi FF just start another thread :thumb: you may get the same answers We have established you know your way around a van mechanically :thumb: so now you will soon get a feel for the inside -- unfortunately lots of dealers will only clean vans up once you are committed to buy and a lot of private sellers will have you travel miles for there immaculate van for it to turn out to be a damp dog to put it politely - I once travelled 4 hrs each way asking if it showed any signs of damp etc before I set off only to be assured it was dry as a bone and in very good nick for it's age. To cut a long story short it was parked by a canal and it was as if the arse end had been in it ! How the owner did not end up in the canal that day ? I only had my son to thank for me not being arrested
Any way the inside should look and smell new on your budget but do make sure the fridge heating and hot water all work properly ( may take half hour to test hot water ) as all these items will set you back around £500 each minimum to replace. Adamp meter around £15 may also prove a good investment ( yes I know one at £100 will be better )
terry

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