Newbie help with damaged grp (1 Viewer)

Gdsmford

Free Member
Nov 18, 2020
4
3
Funster No
78,012
MH
Kentucky camp
Exp
2020
Hi guys. Bit of a long story so I’ll try keep it brief

Young family, purchased our first motorhome Feb 2020. It’s a 2005 Kentucky camp estro 4 on a Ford. We shopped around a purchased from a big dealer in Hull. Happy to pay the extra for some reassurance. We saved hard and I sold my motorbike to pay for it

on collection I thought it looked a little dull. I thought it needs a good detail and wax and it would come up, and that a big dealer just wouldn’t do that on something they’d consider cheap

2 hour drive home. With that and the light of the next day I had some problems. The brakes were awful. I’m an ex military driver and did close protection driving for higher ranks plus off road driving. Plus I have every license going, and previously drove artics after I left the army, so I know what I’m doing. Other issues were the aircon didn’t work. The reverse light didn’t work (not bulb, it’s a gearbox sensor) two doors inside dropped. The tv arial wires are exposed. Turns out this also leaks when it rains. The barrel for the lock on the garage door falls out with the key. The leisure battery which should be new doesn’t hold voltage. The sensors for the fresh and waste water are not working. We cleaned out the fresh tank with sone puriclean and loads of brown water came out so it hadn’t been done in a while. The tv arial is so stiff to wind up and down the handle can’t cope with it and falls off. The ladder on the back outside is loose and can be pulled away from the vehicle. The outside awning light doesn’t work. Some of the blinds won’t go down. Coolant level was vbery

First time we used it a seal let us down on top of the water tank and it leaked fresh water everywhere.

Second time the coolant hose split and we lost it all but limped to safety.

It was supposed to be fully serviced and motd by a garage next door to them. It failed it’s mot I found online and then passed the same day with all the faults fixed? I have no receipt for the service or hab check despite asking many times. Worth noting in the paperwork and engineer wrote reverse lights not working, highlighted it and then obviously just left it.

initially they were ok response wise. We’d settled on them sending me a £50 cheque for the aircon regas, a starter for the awning light and a new barrel for the lock on the garage. I thought I’d accept the other faults as just part and parcel of buying an old vehicle.

So lockdown happened. We’d used it twice. I thought now is a good time to look at the paint. By the way the metal cab is immaculate, it’s just the fibreglass of the body we’re talking about.

I noticed up close there’s lots of little black/grey lines. Me and my wife just thought it’s years of little scratches, branches running down it and so on.

after a good wash I started on a small area with some t cut. Oh no! It made the marks worse. So I tried another small area with jif. This improved it I’d say about 30/40%. I did the area to the right of the door, top to bottom and then have it a coat of wax. It looked ok! The marks still visible. I looked at how long that took me and the size of the vehicle and thought maybe this is a job for a professional.

I contacted 5 places, 3 didn’t even reply. One replied and said they can’t help with no other info. Then finally a nice guy emailed back with loads of detail and info.

He explained that it’s actually the fibres showing through. It’s rare and years of sun has done it. He can’t clean it and nothing can be done other than a respray!


At first the dealer were ok ish at replying. Replies now were non existent. I did eventually get a reply from them. They at first blamed it on the pandemic? Then said bring it up and we will look. It’s a 4/5 hour round trip so I just wanted to speak to a manager first. But I’ve not heard from them now in a couple of months.

I’ve now started emailed body shops. We paid just under £20k and thought the prices have now gone up, so it’s probably worth more now in good condition. So it’s prob worth keeping and just seeing how much it will cost to do the work. No one will reply! A place in Newark did, and said they couldn’t quote me on the job? I’ve tried big companies and smaller ones. I guess they could be off work but I get the impression no one wants to get involved.

I though about wrapping or partial wrapping. These grey marks are in the sort of middle portion of the sides and the whole of the back. But it looks like your hiding something and it needs pulling off every 3 years I think.

Anyone else had this? We don’t know what to do! It’s a good motorhome, it’s dry and other than some niggles it’s a good bit of kit. It can’t surely be scrap?

I’ve attached a very close up pic of one of the worse parts. And a pic of the whole thing

cheers, andy
 

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funflair

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 11, 2013
19,196
29,881
Guisborough
Funster No
29,351
MH
MORELO palace
Exp
since 2012
Hi Andy

Well that's a list and a half for sure, if the van is dry that is a bonus for sure (y)

So the fibreglass? it could well be as this other guy says as it all looks too straight and random to be scratches but at the same time it doesn't look like I would expect to see if it was fibres coming through the gel coat, I am not sure if you can use the message system until you are a full member but some more photographs would be good and include a couple of the area that you have cleaned, the above suggestion for a boat repairer is a good one, where in the country are you?

Martin

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Terry

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 27, 2007
11,904
8,969
Lincolnshire
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1,075
MH
A class
Exp
Can't remember ;)
Hi. Andy and welcome 👍 I take it you have had the van quite a long time ? Hence not taking it straight back to dealer's. There will be lots advising you to reject it and get your money back but from what you say you don't want to 😉 Just keep doing the bits you can one job at a time. Firstly make sure the van is watertight ( that bike rack sounds dodgy- needs sealing and fixing securely) last thing you need is damp inside so check all rooflights etc and make sure they are sealed. Sounds like you need a respray but even this can be done by yourself to a good standard if you have equipment and somewhere dry for a couple of hundred quid. I have done a couple of vans on my drive on hot still summers day's 😁 for myself and they turned out decent. Not up to a 2/3k plus job but well good👍 ( just wait for "the needs heated room etc" lot to give advise ) Even used rattle cans on a car when I was young😉one panel at a time 😁
Best advise I can give at the moment is ( if not already done) pay the £15 to join full membership and then you can ask as many questions as you want and get a wealth of knowledge / advise you will need 😉 Good luck and keep plodding away one bit at a time👍
Edit Martin / Funflair is a expert on fibreglass things 😁 he posted while I was typing
 

Lenny HB

LIFE MEMBER
Oct 18, 2007
52,684
147,585
On the coast in West Sussex
Funster No
658
MH
Hymer B678 DL
Exp
Since 2008 & many years tugging
Looks like the Gel coat has worn away due to being compounded with the wrong products. T Cut should never be used on gel coat or any other product with ammonia.
The Gel coat on Motorhomes is very thin not like boats. The perfect fix would be to have it re-gel coated but that would cost thousands.
As said a boat repairer is your best option a good one can work magic on GRP.
 
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G

Gdsmford

Free Member
Nov 18, 2020
4
3
Funster No
78,012
MH
Kentucky camp
Exp
2020
Hi guys thanks so much for the quick replies

we’re based near Worcester, uk
We purchased it in February this year
the lockdown hit a month or so after, our 3 month warranty expired in that period
paid cash rather than credit card, so no chance of rejecting it that way (however that would work)

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G

Gdsmford

Free Member
Nov 18, 2020
4
3
Funster No
78,012
MH
Kentucky camp
Exp
2020
By the way aswell, I know roughly how much a respray would cost. And we’re probably prepared to pay it but we can’t even get a quote. I’m not sure if that’s because they don’t think we would pay it or they don’t want to do the job. We own it now and we love it, it’s done and the cost of the respray won’t be totally lost in the value I don’t think.
I’m just so frustrated the company won’t reply to us. They are just totally ignoring us
 

funflair

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 11, 2013
19,196
29,881
Guisborough
Funster No
29,351
MH
MORELO palace
Exp
since 2012
Hi guys thanks so much for the quick replies

we’re based near Worcester, uk
We purchased it in February this year
the lockdown hit a month or so after, our 3 month warranty expired in that period
paid cash rather than credit card, so no chance of rejecting it that way (however that would work)
It sounds like you accept that you are most likely keeping it and happy that you got it for a good price, so why not take it along to Cannock resprays as they do a lot of work for the trade, http://www.motorhomerepairs.co.uk you don't have to get the work done there as Terry says but it would be good to get there take on the problem and you might pick up some pointers, on the plus side if you do get it sorted professionally the van will look like new ;)
 

Terry

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 27, 2007
11,904
8,969
Lincolnshire
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1,075
MH
A class
Exp
Can't remember ;)
Hi again Andy, just noticed that the Ariel is leaking so you need to get that sealed pronto 😁 I use Puraflex 40 from Toolstation to seal and stick anything on the van 👍👍 It may be better to ask individual questions on things 😉 as you stated it's quite a long post and things get missed hence smaller posts and lot's of answers for you to "sift" through 👍

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Lenny HB

LIFE MEMBER
Oct 18, 2007
52,684
147,585
On the coast in West Sussex
Funster No
658
MH
Hymer B678 DL
Exp
Since 2008 & many years tugging
I think they probably don't want the job car repairs won't have a big enough workshop. As said before contact some boat repair people, contact a few as prices can vary enomously another option is specialist Motorhome repairers I can't remember the name but there is one in Luton that gets good reviews.
 

Terry

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 27, 2007
11,904
8,969
Lincolnshire
Funster No
1,075
MH
A class
Exp
Can't remember ;)
Another afterthought 😁 around where I used to live were 3/4 horsebox convertors and they always made tired old ish vans look like new with some really nice paint jobs .....worth trying maybe?
 
Dec 20, 2018
683
815
Funster No
57,651
MH
C Class
Exp
Since 2004
I'd second the suggestion of getting Cannock Resprays to have a look. They are very helpful and would give you honest advice, and they aren't a million miles from you.

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Feb 18, 2017
4,033
7,754
Greenwich, London, UK
Funster No
47,382
MH
Hymer MLT 570
Exp
1986
I'd also look at wrapping.
It may not be the best long term solution, but that may depend on how long you are going to keep the van.

The van will certainly look a lot better if fully wrapped.
 
Sep 29, 2019
2,999
6,924
Funster No
64,846
MH
Hymer Exsis
Exp
20 years
Tourershine may be able to help.


I haven’t used them personally, however, they have an impeccable reputation on a caravan forum I used to be on when I had a caravan. I can tell you the forum regulars were a very hard bunch to please, in fact, if they recommended someone, it was amazing! 😂
 
OP
OP
G

Gdsmford

Free Member
Nov 18, 2020
4
3
Funster No
78,012
MH
Kentucky camp
Exp
2020
Hi guys. Thankyou all so much for the replies.

I have emailed the place in Cannock to ask if I can take it to them for them to have a look. Not heard back yet but they might be closed I guess for a week or so.

Do I have any legs to stand on with the dealer in Hull it's from? As it was sold to me like this. I wish I knew what to look for! You trust dealers dont you when your new to something

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Dec 20, 2018
683
815
Funster No
57,651
MH
C Class
Exp
Since 2004
Suggest you ring Cannock. They are only a small outfit and e-mails probably aren't a priority!
They will probably ask for photos.
 
Oct 29, 2008
5,024
5,804
West Yorkshire
Funster No
4,712
MH
PVC
Exp
since 2008
To do it right it needs a new gelcoat. Cant say if its possible to get done, but speak to boat repairers.
Or speak to a car specialist who works with GRP cars about o decent respray.
 
Last edited:
May 5, 2020
9
7
Funster No
70,376
MH
A class
Exp
Since 2000
Take to county court ,its easy to do on line or by post .you can get all your money back from dealers .you can hold it at your local county court ,dealer has to come to your local court .
Dont worry about warranty as that is not a issue ,they have not got a leg to stand on .your best bet .before you get a hearing date they offer you medication so you can resolve before it reaches court .
County court is nothing like you see on tv ,very informal .you just sit round a table say your peice ,they say theirs and judge then decides .if you win they have 14 days to return your money ,if they dont you send sherrifs in costs extra £65 and they will get your money or take motorhomes of them to sell at auction to get your money.

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Terry

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 27, 2007
11,904
8,969
Lincolnshire
Funster No
1,075
MH
A class
Exp
Can't remember ;)
Take to county court ,its easy to do on line or by post .you can get all your money back from dealers .you can hold it at your local county court ,dealer has to come to your local court .
Dont worry about warranty as that is not a issue ,they have not got a leg to stand on .your best bet .before you get a hearing date they offer you medication so you can resolve before it reaches court .
County court is nothing like you see on tv ,very informal .you just sit round a table say your peice ,they say theirs and judge then decides .if you win they have 14 days to return your money ,if they dont you send sherrifs in costs extra £65 and they will get your money or take motorhomes of them to sell at auction to get your money.
Now there's a name from the past😀😀 Are you the same Roclaire that got Hassel / gave Swift a cumupance? 👍😉
 
Sep 29, 2009
956
640
East Anglia
Funster No
8,667
MH
Roller Team
Exp
Since 2009
first point is to decide if you like the van and want to keep it. Replacing gel coat is a nightmare, I know someone with a similar age van, they had a simple wrap put on flat sides in a more up to date colour and graphics (they did hymer grey). Dispite the rolls being 5ft wide it looked good from 10ft away. The ultimate would be to bolt on the mk7 transit front end (if the cab is in standard Ford white paint). This is a standard conversion on old recovery trucks to loose 10 years off the looks.
 
Nov 7, 2018
133
211
Bristol UK
Funster No
57,117
MH
Transit PVC
Exp
I'm a newbie
Hi guys. Bit of a long story so I’ll try keep it brief

Young family, purchased our first motorhome Feb 2020. It’s a 2005 Kentucky camp estro 4 on a Ford. We shopped around a purchased from a big dealer in Hull. Happy to pay the extra for some reassurance. We saved hard and I sold my motorbike to pay for it

on collection I thought it looked a little dull. I thought it needs a good detail and wax and it would come up, and that a big dealer just wouldn’t do that on something they’d consider cheap

2 hour drive home. With that and the light of the next day I had some problems. The brakes were awful. I’m an ex military driver and did close protection driving for higher ranks plus off road driving. Plus I have every license going, and previously drove artics after I left the army, so I know what I’m doing. Other issues were the aircon didn’t work. The reverse light didn’t work (not bulb, it’s a gearbox sensor) two doors inside dropped. The tv arial wires are exposed. Turns out this also leaks when it rains. The barrel for the lock on the garage door falls out with the key. The leisure battery which should be new doesn’t hold voltage. The sensors for the fresh and waste water are not working. We cleaned out the fresh tank with sone puriclean and loads of brown water came out so it hadn’t been done in a while. The tv arial is so stiff to wind up and down the handle can’t cope with it and falls off. The ladder on the back outside is loose and can be pulled away from the vehicle. The outside awning light doesn’t work. Some of the blinds won’t go down. Coolant level was vbery

First time we used it a seal let us down on top of the water tank and it leaked fresh water everywhere.

Second time the coolant hose split and we lost it all but limped to safety.

It was supposed to be fully serviced and motd by a garage next door to them. It failed it’s mot I found online and then passed the same day with all the faults fixed? I have no receipt for the service or hab check despite asking many times. Worth noting in the paperwork and engineer wrote reverse lights not working, highlighted it and then obviously just left it.

initially they were ok response wise. We’d settled on them sending me a £50 cheque for the aircon regas, a starter for the awning light and a new barrel for the lock on the garage. I thought I’d accept the other faults as just part and parcel of buying an old vehicle.

So lockdown happened. We’d used it twice. I thought now is a good time to look at the paint. By the way the metal cab is immaculate, it’s just the fibreglass of the body we’re talking about.

I noticed up close there’s lots of little black/grey lines. Me and my wife just thought it’s years of little scratches, branches running down it and so on.

after a good wash I started on a small area with some t cut. Oh no! It made the marks worse. So I tried another small area with jif. This improved it I’d say about 30/40%. I did the area to the right of the door, top to bottom and then have it a coat of wax. It looked ok! The marks still visible. I looked at how long that took me and the size of the vehicle and thought maybe this is a job for a professional.

I contacted 5 places, 3 didn’t even reply. One replied and said they can’t help with no other info. Then finally a nice guy emailed back with loads of detail and info.

He explained that it’s actually the fibres showing through. It’s rare and years of sun has done it. He can’t clean it and nothing can be done other than a respray!


At first the dealer were ok ish at replying. Replies now were non existent. I did eventually get a reply from them. They at first blamed it on the pandemic? Then said bring it up and we will look. It’s a 4/5 hour round trip so I just wanted to speak to a manager first. But I’ve not heard from them now in a couple of months.

I’ve now started emailed body shops. We paid just under £20k and thought the prices have now gone up, so it’s probably worth more now in good condition. So it’s prob worth keeping and just seeing how much it will cost to do the work. No one will reply! A place in Newark did, and said they couldn’t quote me on the job? I’ve tried big companies and smaller ones. I guess they could be off work but I get the impression no one wants to get involved.

I though about wrapping or partial wrapping. These grey marks are in the sort of middle portion of the sides and the whole of the back. But it looks like your hiding something and it needs pulling off every 3 years I think.

Anyone else had this? We don’t know what to do! It’s a good motorhome, it’s dry and other than some niggles it’s a good bit of kit. It can’t surely be scrap?

I’ve attached a very close up pic of one of the worse parts. And a pic of the whole thing

cheers, andy
Hi Andy

Well that's a list and a half for sure, if the van is dry that is a bonus for sure (y)

So the fibreglass? it could well be as this other guy says as it all looks too straight and random to be scratches but at the same time it doesn't look like I would expect to see if it was fibres coming through the gel coat, I am not sure if you can use the message system until you are a full member but some more photographs would be good and include a couple of the area that you have cleaned, the above suggestion for a boat repairer is a good one, where in the country are you?

Martin
Hi Andy, the best money that you can spend on that van, for sure, is your membership money to this club, I joined because it sounded good, when I came across it 2018, & I have to say, what a great bunch they are, and with knowledge and empathy in bucket loads. I ask a question, then have to lay down for a rest after digesting all the help. Oh! & Don’t forget the whit! I love it. Sign up & enjoy😂

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Jun 7, 2019
61
39
Hull
Funster No
61,468
MH
C class
Exp
Since November 2018
Hi Andy, I’ve just come across your thread so my reply may be a bit outdated.
can I assume you didn’t take a trip to view it before buying?
there seems to be quite a few problems that should have flagged up warning signs.
remember also that the van is 15 years old and although I appreciate it is a lot of money, it is still at the low end of Motorhome prices.
when I first started looking to buy I soon realised that 20k doesn’t buy as much as you would think.
As for the dealer in Hull, I have had 2 ( new ) vans from him and currently store my van in his facility.
He is a very genuine and accommodating guy and goes the extra mile to satisfy his customers. I would have no problem recommending him to my friends.
Due to lockdown most of the staff are working from home so that may be why you are struggling to get through to them.
I really hope you manage to get everything sorted out as it must be devastating to put all your money on a dream that doesn’t quite pan out as you’d hoped,
good luck.
 
Dec 13, 2017
29
44
East Yorkshire
Funster No
51,642
MH
Bailey 79 4T
Exp
Since 2017
A repairer down Dunswell lane,thay have a small CL camp site see if they can help sorry for late reply just seen your post
 
Dec 13, 2017
29
44
East Yorkshire
Funster No
51,642
MH
Bailey 79 4T
Exp
Since 2017
I think the camp site is called Tudor Springs the repair shop is in a large warehouse in the storage yard

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