Questions on purchasing a Hymer (1 Viewer)

[mike.lamb]

Per this thread - i'm looking into some options for a family motorhome. I have some basic questions..

I created an eye watering spreadsheet for a newer "dream" vehicle. Currently looking at a B-Class ModernComfort I 600. Including all the options I laid out it's currently landing north of £100k

I "reverse engineered" some of the in-stock but brand-new models at https://www.motorhomes.co.uk and the sticker price seems to be pretty much exactly the same as my calculations when building the same spec from the Hymer price list.

Assuming these dealers order in a common spec for those looking for the convenience of being able to drive away right away vs building to their spec. I.e. at least from sticker price i'm not seeing financial savings.

How much room for negotiation is there for a new motorhome like this? Any idea of what an average lead time for a Hymer motorhome build is (Realising COVID19 will make this more challenging), but just trying to roughly map things out.

I've not sold myself on buying new, just weighing the options and only considering it because i'm not seeing the steep depreciation on these that i'd expected.

If there are any Hymer experts out there, I also have some specific questions on a few of the options and what they actually are.

Thanks!

 

[Jim]

There is no set amount in a negotiation that final price depends on too much. If you haggle hard and they refuse to make any more concessions then you’re probably at the price. The consensus seems to be dealers having had to close for a few months will be desperate to sell, I’m not so sure. There are so many new buyers at the moment. One dealer I was talking to sold more vans in a week of lockdown while closed than they’ve ever sold in a week before, that's deposits paid on vans unseen! Right now I think you’ll need to haggle hard to get the best price.

As for your specific Hymer questions, ask away, there are lots of owners here

Meanwhile, welcome to the fun

 

[funflair]

Hi Mike

If this is your first motorhome the general advice is to buy secondhand on the basis that you will not get the layout right first time and you will end up losing money when you changed again the perceived wisdom says that your third van is right, well I don't necessarily sign up to that theory as our first one lasted us 8 years and the second one is basically the same, But I would advise you to do your homework very thoroughly (sounds like you are possibly).

I am sure there is always room for some negotiation wether it is cash discount or fitted freebies might depend on the van and how badly the dealer wants to shift it.

As for depreciation you are more likely to see this when selling over buying used

Martin

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[Campervan_man]

I used to work for www.motorhomes.co.uk
AKA Travelworld.
Stock changes regularly.
Think T.W. can only sell vans under their Umbrella Hymer Group:-
Hymers, Burstners, Dethleffs, Carado etc
Very busy place on the shop floor carrying out PDI's, Hab Checks, Fitting Accessories etc
I would imagine that they would welcome you there if you have £100K+ to spend.
Some of the new Niesmann Bischoff's that they sell are £180,000 +

 

[Glandwr]

I bought second hand and top spec. Ended up paying more for a 6 year old van than I would have done for a brand new UK one and haven't regretted it for a minute. Still got it 10 years on and I find others are envious once they step inside. It no longer turns heads on the outside but I consider that a bonus, it's unlikely to be nicked.

 

[John Barrett]

We bought a seven year old Hymer B640 LHD Mercedes Sprinter with 20,000 on the clock from Viscount Motorhomes for £29,500. I spent about an extra £1k on 'improvements'.
We sold it privately nearly four years later with 36,000 on the clock for £28,000...
Quality speaks volumes!
John

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[peterc10]

Many suggest that it takes 3 motorhome purchases to get the right one for you. That would be very expensive if you were buying new each time. So my recommendation is to buy second hand for your first motorhome. And be flexible in what you want, including all the extra goodies. Many of those can be fitted later, if you decide you need them. Alternatively try hiring some different models to test them out in real life.

If you are buying new in a normal year, you have two options to save money. The first one is to buy in Europe, if you are buying a European motorhome. A lot of people recommend buying in Belgium, but it does mean you will probably have to settle for LHD, but that is OK if you are going to spend most of your time touring Europe.

The second option is to buy in the autumn, when the next year's stock models are arriving at the dealer while they still have this year's stock on the sales lot. You can then get some tasty deals, as long as you are willing to compromise a bit on the specifications.

Our first motorhome bought in 2013 was 5 years old and bought for £30k. That showed us what we did and did not want in a motorhome, so two and half years and 15,000 miles later we bought our present Hymer new from stock at the end of October. It had the right layout for us and had over £20k worth of factory and dealer fit extras, most of which we wanted. We ended up getting a very good deal with about 19% discount off of list price, and a p/x price for our previous motorhome of £28k.

But all of that was done in what we now know were "normal years" and we all know that 2020 is not a normal year. Who knows what is likely to happen once things get back to the new normal. Personally I think that a lot of people may decide that it is much safer to travel and holiday in your own safe Motorhome bubble rather than using the petri dishes called planes, cruise ships and hotels. In that case sales and prices could hit the roof.