wot van

[Deleted]

A question for all you knowledgeable people out there.
We have only ever owned classic or vintage vans, the newest a 1974 And we have only used them on short breaks up to 4 days.
Now as some of you know things have changed for me, and we are looking for a more modern van for use for about three months initially and then for longer holidays as I am thinking of only working 6 to 9 months of the year from here on.
We are thinking 16 to 18 foot.
We will be towing with a turbo diesel Ford Ranger.
Cant afford a new van.
So the questions are pop top or full van?, and what are the better makes, I have been told to steer clear of Jayco's.
There is a 17ft spaceline we like the look of are they good?.
We find we prefer a full bed at the back with front kitchen.
What else should I be looking for, electric brakes? tandem axle?
Thoughts appreciated.
BTW We will be settling back in Brisbane in the Beenleigh area and will be looking for another old van (or two) when we are settled.

[greedy53]

geday i have just upgraded to a17 ft viscount,it gas a layout that just won my wife over,it has a island rear bed,side kitchen and the best bit is a eat area at the front side leaving the kitchen free to do what ever and the table is big seat 4 easy
bur hope you find a hreat van

[ForumMod]

G'day inncrafers,

From what I can see on the car websites, the Ford Ranger will tow just about anything as it's rated for 3350kg towing capacity. With a max torque of 470Nm, you'll probably never know a 16-18ft van is on the back.

When you say you "prefer a full bed at the back", do you mean an island bed, or would you accept a full size transverse bed?

My 1992 Windsor van is 17ft 4ins long, with an island bed at the rear, a centre dining table, and a front kitchen. The island bed is 4ft wide x 6ft long. If there's any downside to my van, it's that the bed is too narrow and short (would be better at 4'6" width, and 6'6" length). The passage area at the foot of the bed is also a bit squeezy, and would be great if it was an extra 6" in space. I've done my sums, and an extra 6" in bed length, plus an extra 6" in passage space, means the "ideal" van length for us would be 18ft 6". We don't have any problems with the space in the dining area or the adjacent kitchen area, so those dimensions can stay as they are.

Once you get up to 18ft cabin length or longer, I personally feel the van should be on tandem wheels, mainly to ensure the undercarriage is not overloaded if it was only a single axle. When you start to study the science of tyre loadings, axle loadings, spring loadings, etc., you begin to realise a tandem wheel setup makes a lot of sense once your ATM is up around 1500kgs or more.

I've read a reputable caravan repairer's website information, and they recommend a caravan be completely resealed every 8 years. I doubt whether very many caravans are done on that frequency, which suggests to me that most owners probably just start applying "repair sealant" whenever they detect a leak somewhere in the van. That leads me to think that the majority of vans greater than, say, 10 years old are likely to have evidence of sealant repairs at one or more places around the body. The point I'm getting to is that it's possible that any vans greater than 10 years old might be "much of a muchness" in terms of their condition, so whether you buy modern or whether you buy an oldie mightn't make any difference.

Whether you go poptop or full-size van is really a personal choice. Sometimes the space the van is parked in will dictate one or the other (eg low roof carport).

Electric brakes are considered to be an accepted normal part of caravans these days, particularly on modern vans. I don't think they make any other type of braking systems for vans now, do they?

Good luck in your hunt. I can't comment on whether you should steer clear of any one particular brand or not. You'll probably always find a few lemons in any brand. You've learnt a fair bit from working on the van you had, to know what to look for when assessing any other van. If you find one of those rare vans that look like they were shrink-wrapped off the production line, and you've discovered it unused in a shed out in the boondocks, then you'd grab it no matter what brand it was.

Hope this helps with your deliberations.

cheers,
Al.

[drylander]

Don't know why steer clear of jayco as all van forums seem to think they are the best and are 1 of the very few that honour their warranty. I find the older (70's) vans are less likely to leak and cause problems like the newer types infact its only since the newer types (90's) that we now have caravan service times and centres to take them to. Find a van in your price range and then if it suits you both buy it regardless of brand ....simple really.... I mean why buy what you don't like
Pete

[linpet]

your ranger will tow a 16ft van, we have a ranger(chiped and 3in exaust) and tow a 14ft kennedy & a16 foot olympic, the chip & exaust make a big diferance
as for bying a modern van we have had modern vans & never go back to one, the old one,s are made a lot better , just bye a 16ft olympic fix it up a bit and use that, they are cheeper, lighter, beter built,& look a lot better
we lived in vans for 6 years working the east coast , I wish I found out about classic vans before, it would have saved us a lot of money (modern vans are not cheep)
This is just my opinion, a lot of people love modern vans
good luck & happy vaning

[Deleted]

Thanks all, for your thoughts, its good to get some confirmation on what in was thinking.
Al, your bit on bed sizes was one I hadn't thught about as I always put queen beds in my vans, that's sure one i'll have to look for.
Linpet, i'd love a 16' olympic but don't have time to work on one to get it ready as I am flat chat at work on the projects and flat chat at home preparing the house for sale. It goes on the market this weekend and I still have a floor to finish in the study and two small bedrooms to finish, then a good tidy in the yard. And its all got to be finished by today week, thats when the realestate agent thinks we will get the first lookers.

[bobt]

hey inncrafers

A couple of things to keep an eye out for

wardrobe depth, some are not deep enough to hang a regular coat hanger in.

As Al mentioned about sealing joins, my 8 year old Windsor had to be resealed, they used a type of tape in manufacture, it broke down. When your looking at ones to purchase look at what sealant is used for the joins then check around the windows, that was the first hint I had that I had a problem.

Watch the tow ball weight.. Remember the hassels Al had..

Good hunting.

bobt

[Deleted]

Thanks again guys. Just missed an Olympic, but, oh well, I am having trouble getting the other half to agree to go that way.
BTW linpet, what chip did you install, there are quite afew out there and its one of the things I have been contemplating.
Tell you what tho, now i'm looking, there are a lot of short beds out there, not good for a 6 footer.
Given we are heading for Qld, what is a reasonable price, and who is good in Adelaide for resealing a van?
I don't have time to do it myself, with selling the house. Now that is coming up a treat, wish we had done this concerted effort two years ago LOL.
Already missing my toys, two went to mums in qld and the rest are sold, only have one left here which will be sent to a mate in brissy just before we go.
On another subject, flooded areas around Jacobs well, eagleby, alberton, beenleigh, anyone got a good handle on what didn't flood so i know what to discount when looking?

[ForumMod]

I'd be getting in touch with Dario Caravans & Repairs, and suss them out for the resealing job. Also Larry Weepers at Roadmaster Caravans may be another option. Both should be able to point you towards another reputable repairer closer to you if distance is an issue.

cheers,
Al.

[Deleted]

The Queensland Reconstruction Authority publishes flood maps that might help .... I'd be checking against the 2011 floods they were bigger .... and then adding a margin on top of that

[Deleted]

Good site, thanks very much cruisindoug. That site didn't come up on the searches I did, the new maps seem identical to the 2011 maps. Looks like we discount Jacobs Well area and the place I was looking at at Alterton is well under.
My brother didn't quite get flooded in this time He is downstream of Somerset dam but uptsrteam of ESK, the Brisbane River runs through his place.
Stanthorpe, my home town, hardly got anything in comparison.

Hope everything is OK with you.