Bessacarr - any good or typically English? (1 Viewer)

[M-J]

Hunting for our first motorhome and a Bessacarr E562 2012 has caught my eye, love the look of it and the layout, equipment level seems good with Alde heating and a massive fridge.

The big question, are they just a swift with a different badge or am I missing something and if they are, are swift of that era any good?

 

[peterc10]

Typical English layout certainly.

@Robert Clark had a Bessacar for his first motorhome, and I think he was not impressed by it.

 

[Robert Clark]

Typical English layout certainly.

@Robert Clark had a Bessacar for his first motorhome, and I think he was not impressed by it.

That's an understatement Peter
Nice layout, but build quanlity was not very good and resulted in us getting rid

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[M-J]

That's an understatement Peter
Nice layout, but build quanlity was not very good and resulted in us getting rid

That bad?

 

[Robert Clark]

That bad?

Yes - that bad

 

[M-J]

Yes - that bad

Oh dear, what model and year did you have?

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[Robert Clark]

Oh dear, what model and year did you have?

It was a brand new 2013 model 496

 

[jdk62]

Our first motorhome was a Bessacar E665. It was on a 58 plate and had 12,000miles on it when we bought it in 2014 - we had it for 2.5 years and it was brilliant...

We had no problems what so ever. We sold it with 22,000 miles on the clock.

Amazingly enough, a year later we were parked in our current motorhome at Pembrey CMC site when bugger me our old motorhome parked next to us!!! The owners were gobsmacked when we explained the background. They'd bought it from the dealer we traded it into and loved it. They had no problems either..

 

[WillH]

We have a Bessacarr E560, 2008 , purchased new. Only build problem was the hab door remote locking, fixed that myself when the dealer failed. Other than that fine. We still have it eleven years and 70k miles later. Not changing any time soon.

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[Jim]

I had an 2004/5 E495. At the price point i don't think you could beat it. It was an excellent budget van. The overhang was a bit long but the build quality was great.

 

[M-J]

Why the different name rather than just swift bolero which to me looks identical?

Are swift considered the premium English MH or just overpriced?

 

[WillH]

A Swift owner had a look inside my Bessacarr when we were parked up, he remarked on the better finish in our van. I would certainly endorse a van the same age as ours, perhaps not so a new one.

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[Tykatem]

We also had a 2008 Bessacarr E560. Went all over Europe in it. We found the build quality to be very good, it was reliable and very comfortable.

Pete

 

[ambulancekidd]

Bessacarr are part of the Swift group. They're usually a step up from the Swift bread & butter models.

 

[mpdcymru]

Bought our 468 new last May. Our second British van and am very happy with it, Couple of niggles on pick up (locker door would not stay shut - I adjusted it and its fine now, fridge door not secure in transit ans two of the door shelf inserts have broken - awaiting dealer fix and grille gas burner does not always light first time - a match or gas lighter does the trick). Other than that all just fine!

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[Clarky]

Bessacarr used to be a premium caravan brand but were then incorporated into the Swift group. They were the top of the Swift range and we had a very good twin axle caravan.
When we changed to a motorhome we bought a Swift Bolero, partly based on our caravan experience. We had no end of problems, it had to go back to the factory for a long list of jobs that Marquis couldn't/wouldn't sort out properly.
At the end of its warranty we changed to another brand.
It seems that Bessacarr are now just a Swift with slightly different fabrics and decor details.

Richard.

 

[Hettie's Crew]

We bought a new Swift Bessacarr E450 in 2011 and kept it three years. We liked it but didn’t know any better until we looked at changing.
Insulation was poor, drafts a plenty and some annoying design features like bathroom door that wouldn’t open fully because of the bed, difficult access to under bed storage which was the main storage area, mega rattles due to poor/slightly flimsy assembly, heating ducts that ran under the van outside, the heating ducts that went to rear went through the bed storage area preventing you storing anything there that needed to be cool, the corner cut off on the fixed bed preventing you getting comfortable unless your legs were bent.
Having said that, we liked it, toured a lot of France, and lost very little when we part exchanged it.
The Sargent electrical control box went pop at two and a half years old.
The main reason we changed was because the layout didn’t suit us any more having become more experienced at touring.
I’d say Swift and Bessacarr models look different but the quality doesn’t change.

 

[138go]

We had a Bolero. Got fed up of screwing it back together every time we took it out. As above loads of drafts and poorly fitted parts. We had never had a MH when we bought ours so we’re swayed with all the extras that were included. Always remember the microwave and the little wheels that held the rotating dish. Ours were square after a couple of uses. When I complained they said is was my fault for using it when the MH was not flat. The other problem we had was storage. Lift up beds and settles are all well and good but putting chairs and everything else in was a nightmare. The front opposing seats turn into a bed but very uncomfortable. Door frames glued to paper covered looks like wood ply was another problem. The paper was being pulled away by the weight of the door frame. Trying to fix it so you couldn’t see the repair was a joke. There was absolutely nothing to screw to. Finished up putting toggle screws in the wall and removing the paper where the glue went.

We now have a Laika .. what a difference .. Away at the moment and loverly and warm.

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[Euphony]

We have had our Bessacarr E560 for just over 2 years now and love it, we find the build quality great and have never had any issues with it.
It’s perfect for the two of us.

 

[CazPaul]

Do it sounds like the older models were better built

 

[TheBig1]

the thing to remember about swift, bessacar and autotrail is that they turn out huge numbers of vans yearly. Most have minor issues, but plenty have major issues. poor build quality and no quality inspections leaves it a lottery if you will get a good van or a damp one that falls to bits. The worst problem is that the manufacturers know this and have done nothing year after year to address the issues

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[peterc10]

the thing to remember about swift, bessacar and autotrail is that they turn out huge numbers of vans yearly. Most have minor issues, but plenty have major issues. poor build quality and no quality inspections leaves it a lottery if you will get a good van or a damp one that falls to bits. The worst problem is that the manufacturers know this and have done nothing year after year to address the issues

May be huge numbers when compared with other UK manufacturers but small when compared with the likes of Hymer and some other European manufacturers

 

[Clarky]

We bought a new Swift Bessacarr E450 in 2011 and kept it three years. We liked it but didn’t know any better until we looked at changing.
Insulation was poor, drafts a plenty and some annoying design features like bathroom door that wouldn’t open fully because of the bed, difficult access to under bed storage which was the main storage area, mega rattles due to poor/slightly flimsy assembly, heating ducts that ran under the van outside, the heating ducts that went to rear went through the bed storage area preventing you storing anything there that needed to be cool, the corner cut off on the fixed bed preventing you getting comfortable unless your legs were bent.
Having said that, we liked it, toured a lot of France, and lost very little when we part exchanged it.
The Sargent electrical control box went pop at two and a half years old.
The main reason we changed was because the layout didn’t suit us any more having become more experienced at touring.
I’d say Swift and Bessacarr models look different but the quality doesn’t change.

I had forgotten about the rattles in our Bolero.
Before every drive I used to go round the van with a box of rubber and wooden wedges to stop the rattles.
In an effort to stop the thing falling apart inside the dealers had shoved screws in all sorts of places. Unfortunately they didn't have the brains to check the length of the screws so some of the sharp pointed tips stuck out of places that they shouldn't stick out of.............including straight through the roof in one case.

Richard.

 

[Blue Knight]

the thing to remember about swift, bessacar and autotrail is that they turn out huge numbers of vans yearly.

I didn't realise until the other day that Swift were slowing down their staff hours too. This article is from Dec-18.

I wonder what the build quality will be like on new vans once a bit of poor morale has seeped into the system.

https://www.humberbusiness.com/news/swift-caravan-workers-forced-to-take/story-10917-detail/story

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[gus-lopez]

Do it sounds like the older models were better built

They were originally the Rolls-Royce in caravans

 

[Enword]

We had a 2005 Bessacarr E745 it was a cracking MH, loved it

 

[Crazylegs]

My brother had a Bessacar 495, which was used extensively all over Europe, basically it was good and reliable. The biggest issue for me was lack of insulation, one freezing January weekend we went to a motorbike event. In the morning as we got up our bare feet nearly stuck to the floor, and despite having the heating on on that day it never really warmed up.
It was replaced with a winterised German Motorhome.

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[M-J]

So many conflicting posts, I should have expected that.

Personally I love the look of it and the layout is perfect, again I have read many conflicting reviews on the Alde heating but I like the sound of that too.

We previously looked at a Bailey 740, loved it inside but I hated the caravan look of it on the outside and the size of it.

Maybe we should just go and look, check previous and current hab checks and get one with warranty?

 

[The Wino]

I don't think there is any make that is always good or bad why not look at layouts then whats available why are you just looking at British makes.....or maybe you aren't

 

[M-J]

I don't think there is any make that is always good or bad why not look at layouts then whats available why are you just looking at British makes.....or maybe you aren't

I'm looking at all sorts but always end up back at British, I think this is because the layout wanted and budget based on the age we would like (2012/13 minimum if possible)