Hymer B584 (1 Viewer)

[Tazdog]

Hi.
I am thinking of buying a left hand drive 1998 Hymer B584 2.5litre (I am advised its just been serviced and had its cam belt changed, I will of course want to see the papers for this) are they any good and is there anything I should be looking for in particular when carrying out an inspection. Any advice and help would be much appreciated. Many thanks for anyone’s assistance in advance

 

[Manouche]

Hi Taz,
Took you a while to get your first post on.

We've got one of these (2000) and think they're a great compromise, ie lots of internal and storage space for a reasonably small van.
Although you might want to modify the table to make it a drop down.

Same rules apply when looking at any van, test everything, don't accept anyones word that "it all works"


Are you buying from a dealer or private ?

 

[DESCO]

Hi Tazdog.

Most Hymers are well built and good for many years, but as always the worst fault on any van is water penetration, this can be a killer. Check first for any signs of damp, round all joins, corners, roof lights, windows and doors, if possible use damp meter, if not use your eyes and nose. If any sprays to cover smells have been used be suspicious they may be trying to hide damp.

Check all cupboards and storage areas for any musty smells, check floors for any sponginess, all can mean trouble.

Do usual mechanical checks for rust etc see if there is a service record

Check everything works don't take anybodies word see it work.

Don't be rushed if in doubt walk away, there is always another van.

If possible take someone who knows motorhomes with you or at least someone who knows caravans.

Hope this helps and you find what you want

Best of luck


Dave :thumb::thumb:

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[Tazdog]

Hi Manouche
Thanks for your reply. Yes it has taken some time to make a post. My wife and I have owned caravans and changed to motor homes about seven years ago since which we have owned 5 vans? We have a small Motorhome and my wife would like a bigger one. She would also like to stop having to make the bed every night whilst I take the dogs for a walk. The wife has a couple questions and maybe you may be able to give your views on her concerns.
As I have said the Hymer we are looking at (only on line at the moment) but do you know if there is an opening window on the passenger side and if not how do you deal with toll booths etc? Are there any particular difficulties driving a LF vehicle? Of particular interest to my wife is the drop down bed. Are there any difficulties of getting in and out of the bed if two people sleep on it and how comfortable is it? Do you have an oven and or microwave? If so did you have it fitted and if so was that a hard job? Any further info would be much appreciated.
The van is with a small dealer.
Many thanks for your help.

 

[JeanLuc]

LHD is no real problem and is a benefit when abroad. Only issue is visibility when joining a large roundabout or trailing left-hand turn at a T-junction. Take care in positioning yourself on the road under these circumstances and all will be well. Also, get some decent blind-spot mirrors.
UK offside (passenger) has a sliding glass window. Not the quickest thing to open, but provided your passenger plans ahead, can get it open to deal with toll-booths. Having said that, there are a lot more toll-booths on the continent and the driver's electric window is a great help in this respect.

We don't use the drop-down bed as ours has a rear fixed bed over a garage. However, the front drop-down comes down pretty low (lower than a UK over-cab in a Luton) so should be no problem.

We don't bother with an oven, either conventional or microwave, but use the three-ring hob. We bought a Remoska for the odd time we might need "oven-like" cooking, but have used it only once in three years.

Hymers are pretty bullet-proof so long as they have been looked after - highly recommended (by someone who has not had any other motorhome).

Philip

 

[Manouche]

Of particular interest to my wife is the drop down bed. Are there any difficulties of getting in and out of the bed if two people sleep on it and how comfortable is it? Do you have an oven and or microwave? If so did you have it fitted and if so was that a hard job? Any further info would be much appreciated.


The drop-down bed is famously comfortable, as said, the bed comes down lower than an overcab bed so there is ample headroom ,we have an opening sky-light above so plenty of ventilation. As for suitability for two people, I suppose that depends on the people.

We have an oven and grill but I think this was an optional extra when the van was ordered. I've seen them with microwaves fitted in a top locker but I've never felt the need for one myself. Can't see it being a big problem though.
Hope this helps a bit

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[lebesset]

we are happy 584 classic owners , and don't anticipate ever needing anything better ; I admit we have a 2.8idTD engined one , and would regard anything with less power as a bit sluggish , but we DO live in them there hills !
only mechanical weakness with these fiat engined vehicles is the 5 speed gearbox , with the external 5th gear ; these are renowned for chewing up the 5th gear , only a few hundred pounds if this happens , but if any bits get into the main box you are in for a big bill ! ; so when you drive this vehicle be very attentive to the slightest difficulty in changing gear , or any noise
with regard to the drop down bed we find it very comfortable , we weigh a combined 150Kg to give you an idea ; not so much less combined in years come to that

with regard to oven/grill , we would not consider it for 2 reasons ;firstly , not necessary unless you wish to cook in the sunday lunch type style [ we don't ] , secondly the weight at the back would make the vehicle marginal on rear axle loading , bear in mind that most of the outside locker space is at the rear

but all in all the best compromise that we could find , small enough to travel around , but big enough for comfort because no space is wasted on a fixed bed

all depends what you want to do , this is a great vehicle for travelling , wild camping etc
if what you want is to go somewhere , and stay on a camp site with electric etc for your holiday , my advice would be to buy a caravan [ I still keep my old double axle tabbert ! ]

as you can see we have a few extras on the roof

and latest addition ...LED spotlights from LIDL

 

[johnnerontheroad]

Check for damp and that the drop down bed is OK, I have the Fiat 2.5TD and it is a little under powerd on hills but at 50-60mph it will go all day.

Good Luck

Dave

 

[Mandaxxx]

I agree with most of above,it's nice to have the cooker both oven & grill work well although I do have a Remoska but obviously I need electric for that. The bed is a delight to use,very comfortable and really nice as one can go to bed early or stay in bed late and it doesn't affect the 'lounge'/table area, The van is a joy to live with, very well made the quality is very good. We have no problems with ours.
The water tank holds an impressive 140 ltrs and we find half a tank is enough for two/three days-depending how much you wash!!!!!

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