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- Sep 12, 2007
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/columnists/mike-rutherford/7772602/Mr-Money-designing-a-new-kind-of-motorhome.html
Mr Money: designing a new kind of motorhome
High running costs of traditional motorhomes and lack of practical alternatives have forced our money-saving expert to come up with his own truly multi-purpose vehicle.
As I intimate elsewhere this week (see Reading Festival motorhome feature) I love the thought of owning a modern motorhome, but I seriously worry about the damage such a vehicle might do to my budget.
The truth is that a traditional motorhome is a frighteningly expensive luxury. It cannot realistically be used as an alternative to the everyday, medium-priced car which, give or take, costs about £5,000 per annum in buying, running and depreciation costs. So it follows that the 'home has to be regarded very much as a second vehicle - costing nearer £10,000 annually to keep.
How do I arrive at that eye watering figure? Simple. Even a mid-sized, bread-and-butter motorhome powered by a modest, mass-produced diesel lump can cost about £50,000 new, and even if there's an optimistic assumption that it will only depreciate by around 10 per cent annually, that's five grand down the drain for starters.
Thanks to their bulk, weight and far from optimum aerodynamics, these converted vans are notoriously thirsty. So think almost half as many miles per gallon as a state-of-the-art family hatchback.
Then there's insurance (admittedly, not as expensive as one might think), road tax (now free on many small- to medium-sized cars), interest charges or loss of interest on capital, Calor gas bottles, campsite charges, and - unless you've got a huge drive or garage - off-road parking/storage fees for the vast majority of days when the vehicle is not in use.
So if a 50k motorhome can easily cost about £10,000 - and possibly a great deal more - per annum to own, run and park, that sum would pay for an awful lot of hotel or B&B rooms, flights, self-drive car journeys and taxi and train rides. Even in the unlikely event that the motorhome owner spent almost a third of a year - say 100 days - living in his vehicle, he'd still be paying an average of about £100 a night for the privilege.
Another way of looking at it is that a motorhome bill of approximately £10,000 pa might cover the entire cost (including mortgage payments) of buying and owning a modest holiday cottage or apartment which would, over the decades, almost certainly appreciate rather than depreciate in value.
With the above numbers in mind, it's my contention that these lavishly kitted-out palaces on wheels costing scores of thousands of pounds are beyond the reach of too many of us. Mr and Mrs Average need - and want - a more versatile, £10,000-£20,000 motorhome cum working van/day-to-day car/occasional bus/mobile office.
The trouble is, nobody makes or sells such a flexible vehicle. And that's why I intend to design and build one myself.
The working title I've got for it is the Carorvan and I'm determined to ensure that it's genuinely multi-purpose, capable of accommodating up to eight people, with two rows of seats facing each other (as in the VW Caravelle and now defunct Citroën Synergie).
I'm imagining a secure, vertical load-carrying department to the rear that would be ideal for hanging clothes one day and stacking everything from guitar cases to collapsible seats and folding furniture and awnings the next.
The Carorvan needs a clever and imaginative interior design, to include reclining/rotating front seats plus temporary, easy-to-store hammocks, Japanese/Korean-style futons, collapsible occasional tables/chairs/desks, small portable and stackable gas rings, solar-powered fridge, shower and other electrical appliances, plus the all-important portable (for emergencies only!) toilet. Wall-mounted fold-out desks and tables could work, too. As might a canvas (or similar material) pop-up roof for additional headroom.
Invertors, on-board DVD players, alternative power systems with three-pin sockets and silent generators (all available from the likes of Halfords and Maplins) are essential.
A microwave oven, roof-mounted solar panels, plus 12v and gas kettles, might come in handy too. A tiny wood-burning stove is also possible, apparently.
I'm not sure how costly it would be, but a highly aerodynamic optional pod for sleeping and/or storage could be based on a simple trailer and be towed behind. Alternatively, a very small and light city car could be easily hauled, via a simple A-frame arrangement, and would provide further valuable carrying space when in transit.
At this early stage I reckon a standard diesel-powered Volkswagen Transporter van would be the ideal donor vehicle on the grounds that it's the most car-like commercial vehicle on the market, a joy to drive and capable of 30-plus mpg.
Or maybe I should just cut the wheels off a two-berth caravan and weld the damn thing on to the back of a pick-up truck or flat-bedded 4x4.
I'm open to persuasion and suggestions. Over to you.
Link to Original Article on the Daily Telegraph Website