NIghtmare experience (1 Viewer)

twerly

Free Member
Nov 3, 2013
38
71
Warwickshire
Funster No
28,869
MH
Hymer MLT 570
Exp
2013
Hi,
Firstly sorry this is a very long post !! There is a lot to say !

My wife and I caught the motorhome bug 9 years ago, we self imprted a lovely Hymer B578 from Germany, after a great 9 years and our son going to Uni we decided to down-size like many before to a Van Conversion, did not help to get a great price for Humphry the Hymer! We spent month chosing the right van and what compromise we could accept.
This is where the story takes a dark turn, I am not going at this stage mentioned the manufacture of the Van or the Dealer as we are in conversation. Below is the sorry take of our brand new van ownership -
Note - I hae taken pictures of the nost obvious defects
  • During the handover, the air suspension was found to be faulty and had to be replaced which delayed our departure by 3 hours.
  • Shower cupboard lock not fitted correctly, causing the door to open and rip out of the wood, lock fixed, and doors secured by local specialist approved by the dealer. Waiting for a replacement door as not sure of the future integrity of the door. The lock should have been checked as part of the delivery pre checks. It should have been found and fixed under manufacturers quality control and dealer pre delivery checks
  • Truma Combi Diesel Heater - diesel pipe not connected from main diesel tank to heater - this has been sorted by local specialist. This must have been delivered in this state. The pipe had to be screwed and attached to the diesel tank.
  • Potentially lethal fault it appears that not only was the fuel pipe not connected to the main diesel tank, but it was also not securely connected to the Truma Combi Heater. We then went away for the weekend and can only assume as the pipe had been loosely connected to the Truma end, which is a sealed unit, vibration must have disconnected it resulting in Diesel pouring everywhere inside the area around the Truma heater, luckily it did not go up in flames.
  • The Truma now is not operational, and we will not try it as risk of explosion. Truma Combi now not functional, obviously the fuel has damaged it.
  • Sink drain unit, poorly fitted, secured with sealant which leaked. Local specialist has replaced complete unit, this is now fixed. In the opinion of specialist, the installed unit was poor and was held in place by some sealant. This should have been found and fixed under manufacturers quality control and Dealer
  • Lots of water located on top of the freshwater tank, just discovered this one, can only assume the lid not connected properly.
  • New leak located in Bathroom - not resolved this should have been found and fixed under manufacturers quality control and dealer
  • Grey Water Drain sensor faulty - still not resolved
  • I am not able to use the Inet Truma app, the Inet unit is located sealed inside the Truma Heater, you need to press the blue-tooth button to enable this. This should have been carried out at handover. - Not resolved
  • We have also had the near side window re-seated, and screws replaced as this had excessive rattles - now resolved by local specialist
  • We have had to replace the digital TV aerial, as the aerial provided by dealer was very poor, the new aerial picked up 29 channels at home - Necvox ANT 536, this was via eBay and cost £40 including delivery at our expense.

The fault this weekend with the fuel leakage into the cabin has resulted in us not wanting to use the Van again as it is a potential death trap. As a result, we are rejecting the Van under the 2015 Traded Description ACT, it is being collected next week.


For obvious reasons we will point blank refuse for the van to be fixed, we also will never purchase a van from the said manufacturer again. We are happy for the dealer to sell us a new replacement van with the amount we paid for the rejected van coming off the price, it is reasonable to expect the dealer to also reduce their margin on the replacement Van as prices have risen since we paid for the old Van, I fully expect they will fix it and sell it for a profit as it has only covered 600 miles, some of the defect have been fixed. We have had 6 trips since pickup in August, none without incident, so I would also expect the dealer should pay compensation.
 

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Sep 3, 2012
7,451
25,837
Cheshire
Funster No
22,759
MH
C Class Elddis 175
Exp
8+ years
Sorry to hear of of your problems with a new van and a very poor PDI but sadly not uncommon to let the customer carry out the handover quality checks .
Best of luck on your rejection and trust you will keep us all informed of the outcome :eek:
 
OP
OP
T

twerly

Free Member
Nov 3, 2013
38
71
Warwickshire
Funster No
28,869
MH
Hymer MLT 570
Exp
2013
Fingers crossed the Dealer is professional. Do not think the build was even finished before they shipped it out of the door, not properly connecting the heater fuel pipe at either end is almost sabotage, I expect the odd rattle and even a small leak, we accpeted the first rectifications, but in the end enough was enough.

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Jan 10, 2013
5,958
7,354
Near Uttoxeter and Crete
Funster No
24,227
MH
Warwick XL PVC
Exp
Still trucking and learning
What a nightmare experience!! We have just downsized from a huge Frankia A class to a PVC, and although storage is a challenge (especially having two dogs) we are really pleased with how less stressful life is with a smaller van. Hope you get things sorted and that you feel confident enough to continue 'trucking'.
 
OP
OP
T

twerly

Free Member
Nov 3, 2013
38
71
Warwickshire
Funster No
28,869
MH
Hymer MLT 570
Exp
2013
Thanks :) . Yes biggest challenge was losting the huge garage, we have small dog so not such an issue. We could have lived with the new Van, great design just execution was useless. Think we will be spending more for a better product. Still a Van Conversion as loved the smaller dimension (Width) , RHD and auto gearbox.
 

Garratt

Free Member
Nov 9, 2016
192
358
Miskin
Funster No
46,000
MH
Rapido Dreamer D55+
Exp
Since 2017
This reminds me of a couple I met in Salcombe harbour, who rafted their beautiful new 44ft yacht next to me on a mooring. They told me that this was a replacement for the original new boat that they had rejected and had replaced. Apparently the diesel filler pipe from the deck hadn't been connected at the fuel tank, and when it was filled for the first time, the bilges filled up with diesel, contaminating the whole boat. The dealer offered to clean the boat out and give them some money back, but they stuck to their guns and got a replacement.

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Jan 26, 2017
3,453
11,650
Mid Suffolk.
Funster No
47,068
MH
Autosleeper Inca
Exp
Eight Years and 28,000 Miles.
How awful, this should be an exciting time for you too.. hope things turn out well for you.
 
Jul 12, 2013
3,849
5,225
The City of Henlow
Funster No
26,906
MH
Adria Supreme
Exp
Since 1980
Although the dealer should have been more diligent in checking during PDI, vans can always come up with some unseen faults. The manufacturer however has demonstrated negligence of attention to manufacturing standards that borders on dangerous. Perhaps at a later date when all conversation is at an end, I feel sure that there are many of us that would like to be aware of who could produce the vehicle concerned.

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OP
OP
T

twerly

Free Member
Nov 3, 2013
38
71
Warwickshire
Funster No
28,869
MH
Hymer MLT 570
Exp
2013
Hi, under the Trades Description Act of 2015 they must as a minimum refund the full value as we permitted two attempts at fixing the defects, the severity and number of defects also fully meet the stipulation within the act. I agree compensation is different matter, all I would ask is they offer a replacement Van with a slightly reduced margin which I do not think is unreasonable. I am also going to email the manufacturer as I think there is sufficient reason for a safety recall as who knows how many other are potentially driving around with a dangerous defect.
 
OP
OP
T

twerly

Free Member
Nov 3, 2013
38
71
Warwickshire
Funster No
28,869
MH
Hymer MLT 570
Exp
2013
Although the dealer should have been more diligent in checking during PDI, vans can always come up with some unseen faults. The manufacturer however has demonstrated negligence of attention to manufacturing standards that borders on dangerous. Perhaps at a later date when all conversation is at an end, I feel sure that there are many of us that would like to be aware of who could produce the vehicle concerned.
I will, I will say this much - it is French !. I have told the dealer they should be contacting anyone with the same Van urgently.
 
Jul 10, 2017
977
2,602
Ireland
Funster No
49,405
MH
Coach built
Exp
Newbie
I will, I will say this much - it is French !. I have told the dealer they should be contacting anyone with the same Van urgently.
I truly feel your pain and hope upon hope that the resolution is to your satisfaction . It appears that we are being taken for complete mugs in our chosen leisure pastime……AGAIN .

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OP
OP
T

twerly

Free Member
Nov 3, 2013
38
71
Warwickshire
Funster No
28,869
MH
Hymer MLT 570
Exp
2013
How awful, this should be an exciting time for you too.. hope things turn out well for you.
Thanks, we just want to get out there, we had no MH for 6 months while waiting and was so excited. My wife does not want to sit in it again, the diesel in the cabin and smell has put her off. Our Hymer did not have the bells and whistles, but was solid. Our problem is what else has not been connected or tightended, it just was not finished.
 

TheBig1

LIFE MEMBER
Nov 27, 2011
17,509
42,755
Dorset
Funster No
19,048
MH
A class
Exp
many many years! since I was a kid
Just to put your mind at rest, the diesel spill is not an explosive situation. It's not like petrol, as it is actually hard to burn diesel. In the engine, diesel is compressed and sprayed from the injectors as a micro mist to get it to ignite. in fact, you can drop a lit match into a bucket of diesel and it just goes out. Now as for the contamination of diesel in the hab area and soaking into the wood and electrics, it's a big job to sort properly and the smell very hard to get rid of

You are doing the correct thing rejecting the vehicle as it is a very poor example of the manufacturer's build quality and workmanship
 
OP
OP
T

twerly

Free Member
Nov 3, 2013
38
71
Warwickshire
Funster No
28,869
MH
Hymer MLT 570
Exp
2013
Just to put your mind at rest, the diesel spill is not an explosive situation. It's not like petrol, as it is actually hard to burn diesel. In the engine, diesel is compressed and sprayed from the injectors as a micro mist to get it to ignite. in fact, you can drop a lit match into a bucket of diesel and it just goes out. Now as for the contamination of diesel in the hab area and soaking into the wood and electrics, it's a big job to sort properly and the smell very hard to get rid of

You are doing the correct thing rejecting the vehicle as it is a very poor example of the manufacturer's build quality and workmanship
Hi, Thanks, thanks, agree that diesal is not as explosive as petrol, it has certainly damaged the Truma Combi PCB, as it no longer worked with Electic as this is what we tried first on the camp site, reverted to Diesal and then opened up and found the damage. It pobably was not a lot of diesel, but anyone with a spill knows a little goes a long way and is difficult to get rid of :) i think in the rush to meet orders and possible temp staff with Covid-19 they litterally threw it together and rushed it out of the door.

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Jan 27, 2019
160
142
Teesside
Funster No
58,248
MH
VAN CONVERSION
Exp
Since 2016
Stop start supply chain issues will produce lots of vehicles like this. One person picks up another persons unfinished job at the factory.
 

DumfriesDik

Free Member
Nov 22, 2020
883
4,219
SW Scotland
Funster No
78,057
MH
Pilote P740GJ
Exp
Newbie
That is a terrible story and I hope you can have it resolved to your satisfaction. It is very disappointing. Best wishes.
 
Oct 25, 2016
5,586
31,580
Hartford Cheshire
Funster No
73,061
MH
Bailey Autograph 79-
Exp
Lots but slow learner.
I feel for you and know personally what you have experianced.
We collected a brand new van recently that blew it's engine after 15 miles. We of course rejected it. And of course it was French.

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OP
OP
T

twerly

Free Member
Nov 3, 2013
38
71
Warwickshire
Funster No
28,869
MH
Hymer MLT 570
Exp
2013
Thanks for everyones replies, the van is being picked up next Thursday, at least the recent change to Trades Descriptuion Act give better protection, we just hope the dealer may offer a small discount on a different van, we want to get back out there ASAP, just not in the same van :)
 
Oct 5, 2021
42
100
Funster No
84,682
MH
Not yet, but looking
It is the Consumer Rights Act 2015 you have a right to reject, not the Trade Descriptions Act.

If within the first 30 days from taking delivery a significant fault occurs, you have the right to reject it and have a full refund or a replacement.

if after 30 days a significant fault develops, they have only one opportunity to repair the fault. If they are unable to repair the fault or it reappears, you can then reject it. However, if you were using it whilst a fault was evident, they may attempt to charge you for fair-wear-and-tear.

Note: if the vehicle was with them for repair during the first 30 days of ownership, the time they had it, is added to the 30 days.

Read this > https://www.clerksroom.com/downloads/697-Consumer-Rights-for-Motorhome-Owners-and-Rejecting.pdf

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Jun 3, 2021
311
232
Funster No
81,675
MH
Hymer B680
What a nightmare experience!! We have just downsized from a huge Frankia A class to a PVC, and although storage is a challenge (especially having two dogs) we are really pleased with how less stressful life is with a smaller van. Hope you get things sorted and that you feel confident enough to continue 'trucking'.
I have a tag axle and would like to know what you found stressful about yours, and I wonder if there the same as mine. As we are thinking of downsizing,
 
May 26, 2016
1,278
3,971
north wales
Funster No
43,304
MH
low profile
Exp
moderate
I know you wanted to downsize, but my philosophy is - if you are happy with the van you have, for god's sake don't change it.
 
Aug 26, 2008
4,721
24,575
B&NES
Funster No
3,823
MH
Van Conversion
Exp
since 2007
Our 2017 Rapido Van (with the Diesel Truma heater) has been close to faultless, only having to replace one push button lock on an interior locker. The FIAT X290 underpinnings have caused a few minor problems, e.g. the airbag ECU failure which also affected many other Funsters, and has nothing to do with the quality of the conversion.

Please don't assume that all French van conversions are tarred with the same brush. The manufacturer that botched the OP's defective van conversion ought to be named as soon as the rejection and refund has been completed. I feel rather sorry for the OP, due to the disappointment and hassle they suffered. Obviously such a shocking catalogue of defects ought not to be present when the van leaves the factory. The dealer ought to identify and rectify them at the PDI stage before handover. In that respect the dealer is morally as well as legally responsible.

Customers having to assume the burden after handover of identifying defects, and having to put pressure on to get them sorted, or rejecting new vans (which seems quite commonplace, not a rare exception) illustrates an ongoing systemic failure of this leisure industry. Directors of companies producing shoddy conversions must be aware of a high level of warranty claims, and the significant resulting cost to the company. So, what are they going to do about improving quality control in their factories? Very little, it seems, as long as this is a sellers' market. Meanwhile, I expect the level of warranty costs is built into the list price, so those who buy a new MH are effectively paying more, and the manufacturers carry on making a profit.

End of rant.

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Sapper520

Free Member
Jan 22, 2020
2,879
4,504
North Somerset
Funster No
68,245
MH
No longer own one
Exp
September 2020
Thanks for everyones replies, the van is being picked up next Thursday, at least the recent change to Trades Descriptuion Act give better protection, we just hope the dealer may offer a small discount on a different van, we want to get back out there ASAP, just not in the same van :)

I’m afraid I wouldn’t be buying off the same dealer. I can’t see that all the systems had been fully checked before handover to you. Therefore, In wouldn’t have any confidence in them……..but that’s just me. 🤷‍♂️

Hope all goes well for you. (y)
 

Trout bum

Free Member
Sep 7, 2016
567
584
Ayr
Funster No
45,007
MH
Adria Matrix M670SL
Exp
2006
Hi,
Firstly sorry this is a very long post !! There is a lot to say !

My wife and I caught the motorhome bug 9 years ago, we self imprted a lovely Hymer B578 from Germany, after a great 9 years and our son going to Uni we decided to down-size like many before to a Van Conversion, did not help to get a great price for Humphry the Hymer! We spent month chosing the right van and what compromise we could accept.
This is where the story takes a dark turn, I am not going at this stage mentioned the manufacture of the Van or the Dealer as we are in conversation. Below is the sorry take of our brand new van ownership -
Note - I hae taken pictures of the nost obvious defects
  • During the handover, the air suspension was found to be faulty and had to be replaced which delayed our departure by 3 hours.
  • Shower cupboard lock not fitted correctly, causing the door to open and rip out of the wood, lock fixed, and doors secured by local specialist approved by the dealer. Waiting for a replacement door as not sure of the future integrity of the door. The lock should have been checked as part of the delivery pre checks. It should have been found and fixed under manufacturers quality control and dealer pre delivery checks
  • Truma Combi Diesel Heater - diesel pipe not connected from main diesel tank to heater - this has been sorted by local specialist. This must have been delivered in this state. The pipe had to be screwed and attached to the diesel tank.
  • Potentially lethal fault it appears that not only was the fuel pipe not connected to the main diesel tank, but it was also not securely connected to the Truma Combi Heater. We then went away for the weekend and can only assume as the pipe had been loosely connected to the Truma end, which is a sealed unit, vibration must have disconnected it resulting in Diesel pouring everywhere inside the area around the Truma heater, luckily it did not go up in flames.
  • The Truma now is not operational, and we will not try it as risk of explosion. Truma Combi now not functional, obviously the fuel has damaged it.
  • Sink drain unit, poorly fitted, secured with sealant which leaked. Local specialist has replaced complete unit, this is now fixed. In the opinion of specialist, the installed unit was poor and was held in place by some sealant. This should have been found and fixed under manufacturers quality control and Dealer
  • Lots of water located on top of the freshwater tank, just discovered this one, can only assume the lid not connected properly.
  • New leak located in Bathroom - not resolved this should have been found and fixed under manufacturers quality control and dealer
  • Grey Water Drain sensor faulty - still not resolved
  • I am not able to use the Inet Truma app, the Inet unit is located sealed inside the Truma Heater, you need to press the blue-tooth button to enable this. This should have been carried out at handover. - Not resolved
  • We have also had the near side window re-seated, and screws replaced as this had excessive rattles - now resolved by local specialist
  • We have had to replace the digital TV aerial, as the aerial provided by dealer was very poor, the new aerial picked up 29 channels at home - Necvox ANT 536, this was via eBay and cost £40 including delivery at our expense.

The fault this weekend with the fuel leakage into the cabin has resulted in us not wanting to use the Van again as it is a potential death trap. As a result, we are rejecting the Van under the 2015 Traded Description ACT, it is being collected next week.


For obvious reasons we will point blank refuse for the van to be fixed, we also will never purchase a van from the said manufacturer again. We are happy for the dealer to sell us a new replacement van with the amount we paid for the rejected van coming off the price, it is reasonable to expect the dealer to also reduce their margin on the replacement Van as prices have risen since we paid for the old Van, I fully expect they will fix it and sell it for a profit as it has only covered 600 miles, some of the defect have been fixed. We have had 6 trips since pickup in August, none without incident, so I would also expectar
Hi,
Firstly sorry this is a very long post !! There is a lot to say !

My wife and I caught the motorhome bug 9 years ago, we self imprted a lovely Hymer B578 from Germany, after a great 9 years and our son going to Uni we decided to down-size like many before to a Van Conversion, did not help to get a great price for Humphry the Hymer! We spent month chosing the right van and what compromise we could accept.
This is where the story takes a dark turn, I am not going at this stage mentioned the manufacture of the Van or the Dealer as we are in conversation. Below is the sorry take of our brand new van ownership -
Note - I hae taken pictures of the nost obvious defects
  • During the handover, the air suspension was found to be faulty and had to be replaced which delayed our departure by 3 hours.
  • Shower cupboard lock not fitted correctly, causing the door to open and rip out of the wood, lock fixed, and doors secured by local specialist approved by the dealer. Waiting for a replacement door as not sure of the future integrity of the door. The lock should have been checked as part of the delivery pre checks. It should have been found and fixed under manufacturers quality control and dealer pre delivery checks
  • Truma Combi Diesel Heater - diesel pipe not connected from main diesel tank to heater - this has been sorted by local specialist. This must have been delivered in this state. The pipe had to be screwed and attached to the diesel tank.
  • Potentially lethal fault it appears that not only was the fuel pipe not connected to the main diesel tank, but it was also not securely connected to the Truma Combi Heater. We then went away for the weekend and can only assume as the pipe had been loosely connected to the Truma end, which is a sealed unit, vibration must have disconnected it resulting in Diesel pouring everywhere inside the area around the Truma heater, luckily it did not go up in flames.
  • The Truma now is not operational, and we will not try it as risk of explosion. Truma Combi now not functional, obviously the fuel has damaged it.
  • Sink drain unit, poorly fitted, secured with sealant which leaked. Local specialist has replaced complete unit, this is now fixed. In the opinion of specialist, the installed unit was poor and was held in place by some sealant. This should have been found and fixed under manufacturers quality control and Dealer
  • Lots of water located on top of the freshwater tank, just discovered this one, can only assume the lid not connected properly.
  • New leak located in Bathroom - not resolved this should have been found and fixed under manufacturers quality control and dealer
  • Grey Water Drain sensor faulty - still not resolved
  • I am not able to use the Inet Truma app, the Inet unit is located sealed inside the Truma Heater, you need to press the blue-tooth button to enable this. This should have been carried out at handover. - Not resolved
  • We have also had the near side window re-seated, and screws replaced as this had excessive rattles - now resolved by local specialist
  • We have had to replace the digital TV aerial, as the aerial provided by dealer was very poor, the new aerial picked up 29 channels at home - Necvox ANT 536, this was via eBay and cost £40 including delivery at our expense.

The fault this weekend with the fuel leakage into the cabin has resulted in us not wanting to use the Van again as it is a potential death trap. As a result, we are rejecting the Van under the 2015 Traded Description ACT, it is being collected next week.


For obvious reasons we will point blank refuse for the van to be fixed, we also will never purchase a van from the said manufacturer again. We are happy for the dealer to sell us a new replacement van with the amount we paid for the rejected van coming off the price, it is reasonable to expect the dealer to also reduce their margin on the replacement Van as prices have risen since we paid for the old Van, I fully expect they will fix it and sell it for a profit as it has only covered 600 miles, some of the defect have been fixed. We have had 6 trips since pickup in August, none without incident, so I would also expect the dealer should pay compensation.
This story is shocking but unfortunately not uncommon, personally I would name and shame the manufacturer and the supplier , someone will try and buy this van so best they know it's history , just my opinion.
 
Jan 10, 2013
5,958
7,354
Near Uttoxeter and Crete
Funster No
24,227
MH
Warwick XL PVC
Exp
Still trucking and learning
I have a tag axle and would like to know what you found stressful about yours, and I wonder if there the same as mine. As we are thinking of downsizing,
Firstly I couldn't drive it as it felt far too big. Secondly, the size of it meant that you were always nervous when tackling narrowish roads or when some huge lorry was thundering towards you, thirdly parking anywhere even in supermarket carparks, and lastly the cost if we needed any repairs. We have had 2 window screens replaced due to stone chips and although these were covered in the insurance (apart from the excess) having to try to get the windscreen replaced when abroad was just a lot of hassle and worry. My husband is in love with our PVC and I am even finding driving it quite easy. Also the cost of fuel, ferries, chunnel and tolls is less. All in all we feel we have made the right decision - just need to get smaller dogs next time. ::bigsmile: Good luck with your decision.

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Mar 16, 2017
272
452
Telford
Funster No
47,773
MH
Carthago Malibu T460
Exp
Feb 2017
One of the reason i joined this group was so that i could learn from others mishaps and post my findings or help.
I really would like to know the vehicle manufacturer and the dealer.
Why hide it from us, we just might be doing the same thing.
 
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Feb 18, 2018
3,380
11,216
South Ayrshire
Funster No
52,460
MH
Globecar Campscout
Exp
Since 2018
We have a PVC and are very happy with build quality. However, some MHF owners have experience of models coming out of the other factory the manufacturer uses and there seem to have been more quality issues with those.
 
Last edited:
May 14, 2014
611
734
Funster No
31,474
MH
Now a little one
I know of one mainstream French PVC that is built in the UK by a manufacturer who's build quality is at times questionable. Wonder if the Op has one of these?

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