Hi Folks,
Sorry, more "obvious" questions that I'm hoping some experienced 'van owners can help us out with.
As previously mentioned upgrading from a tent to a motorhome and still at the research stage so....
Having read a few books, web posts and magazines some people say "do not consider a van without a min payload (difference between Max Allowable Mass and Mass In Running Order) of 500kg". Very few vans appear to offer this with most appearing to be in the 200-300kg range.
Any advice on what is a reasonable payload figure to consider for 2 adults, with push bikes on a long/full time trip.
Some people say buy the biggest 'home you can afford others say don't buy anything over 6m long. I understand the latter may be influenced by ferry costs. When I saw that I was only thinking Channel / island crossings but I guess there may be some river ferry crossings on mainland Europe, probably more in Scandanavia than Spain/France/Italy/Germany?
Can anyone clarify the length issue and how common river ferry crossings are please?
Also on the size issue which is recommended a longer-narrower van or a shorter-wider one? Again this is probably a personal preference but I'm really thinking about manouverability rather than interior space.
Thanks
F
Sorry, more "obvious" questions that I'm hoping some experienced 'van owners can help us out with.
As previously mentioned upgrading from a tent to a motorhome and still at the research stage so....
Having read a few books, web posts and magazines some people say "do not consider a van without a min payload (difference between Max Allowable Mass and Mass In Running Order) of 500kg". Very few vans appear to offer this with most appearing to be in the 200-300kg range.
Any advice on what is a reasonable payload figure to consider for 2 adults, with push bikes on a long/full time trip.
Some people say buy the biggest 'home you can afford others say don't buy anything over 6m long. I understand the latter may be influenced by ferry costs. When I saw that I was only thinking Channel / island crossings but I guess there may be some river ferry crossings on mainland Europe, probably more in Scandanavia than Spain/France/Italy/Germany?
Can anyone clarify the length issue and how common river ferry crossings are please?
Also on the size issue which is recommended a longer-narrower van or a shorter-wider one? Again this is probably a personal preference but I'm really thinking about manouverability rather than interior space.
Thanks
F
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My recommendation would be to go with the highest payload possible.
When we were first looking at buying a MH the payload was way down on our priorities but luckily we actually bought one with over 500 kilo of excess and we were able to put everything we needed, and more, in the MH without worrying.
Some MHs are very close to being overloaded, dangerous and illegal, even before starting to add all the 'essentials' for going on holiday.
Whichever MH you decide to buy make sure you take it to a weighbridge and find out its real weight and don't just rely on what the Dealer/Salesperson tells you.
It only costs around a fiver, ten pounds maximum, to get peace of mind and to be certain you can actually take items you require.
We've just bought another MH with an excess of 420 kilo and that should be well within our needs.
Remember that buying and transporting bottles/cartons of wine back from holiday will take quite a bit of space and weight, ours certainly do, and we took that into consideration when buying.
The width of a MH doesn't seem to bother most people once you start to drive one.
You just give other traffic a wider berth when you pass them and start to judge whether you can get through a gap with a bit more thought but we've found few problems driving our 7m long and 2.3m wide MH anywhere in the UK and in France.
What you have to worry about when driving is the height of your vehicle and know exactly what you can, and can't, get under.
As for ferries – we've only been on one - Pointe de Grave to Royan - http://youtu.be/xDfUA0zO6b8
They charged a flat rate whatever the length of the Motorhome and probably most other ferries do unless you drive a 'battle bus' or pull a trailer or toad.
Hope this helps.
When we were first looking at buying a MH the payload was way down on our priorities but luckily we actually bought one with over 500 kilo of excess and we were able to put everything we needed, and more, in the MH without worrying.
Some MHs are very close to being overloaded, dangerous and illegal, even before starting to add all the 'essentials' for going on holiday.
Whichever MH you decide to buy make sure you take it to a weighbridge and find out its real weight and don't just rely on what the Dealer/Salesperson tells you.
It only costs around a fiver, ten pounds maximum, to get peace of mind and to be certain you can actually take items you require.
We've just bought another MH with an excess of 420 kilo and that should be well within our needs.
Remember that buying and transporting bottles/cartons of wine back from holiday will take quite a bit of space and weight, ours certainly do, and we took that into consideration when buying.
The width of a MH doesn't seem to bother most people once you start to drive one.
You just give other traffic a wider berth when you pass them and start to judge whether you can get through a gap with a bit more thought but we've found few problems driving our 7m long and 2.3m wide MH anywhere in the UK and in France.
What you have to worry about when driving is the height of your vehicle and know exactly what you can, and can't, get under.
As for ferries – we've only been on one - Pointe de Grave to Royan - http://youtu.be/xDfUA0zO6b8
They charged a flat rate whatever the length of the Motorhome and probably most other ferries do unless you drive a 'battle bus' or pull a trailer or toad.
Hope this helps.
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