Where and when to buy

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Discussion

JapanRed

Original Poster:

1,559 posts

110 months

Monday 29th October 2018
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Hi all, decided to take up caravanning after the birth of our first child this year.

Sold this last weekend frown


Pick up this, next weekend wink


Next job on the list is to get my towing (B+E) licence and here is the first question. Once I’ve passed the test can I immediately (ie the same day) tow a caravan? Or do I need to send my licence off to DVLA and wait for it’s return?

Next on the list is to buy a caravan. We are ideally looking at a larger 4 birth (probably twin axle). No set budget but ideally around the £12-15k mark. Other than caravan finder are there any other good user friendly websites that are worth looking on? Autotrader is useless - we want a specific layout and you can’t search easily on autotrader.

Next question - is there a good time of year to buy? Ideally we want the caravan to use next year so would want it in March at the latest. Do people upgrade/buy new caravans at a certain time of year which will lead to a flood of used caravans on the market?

Thanks all.

chasingracecars

1,696 posts

96 months

Monday 29th October 2018
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Caravanfinder.co.uk let’s you search by layout.

Dealers will do better deals in the spring when they need room for new stock.

Private sales will do better now as a lot are not used this time of year.

Yes you can tow straight from passing your B+E

If starting off from scratch with that money I would go nearly new private and get all the accessories in with it.

youngricharduk

235 posts

84 months

Monday 29th October 2018
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As already confirmed you can tow on the day you pass the test.

Another option you may want to consider is you can now get a new caravan on PCP finance which made more sense to us than buying nearly new.

JapanRed

Original Poster:

1,559 posts

110 months

Monday 29th October 2018
quotequote all
Perfect thanks guys.

Reason for going used and cheaper is because in all honesty we aren’t 100% sure what will and won’t work for us. Don’t wanna spend £30k on a new caravan to immediately find out it’s not right. Would rather have a season in a £12k caravan and if we need to swap it we can without losing too much money. Also, I’ve never towed before - would much rather take the plunge with a cheaper caravan wink

I genuinely have no idea of all the things I’m going to need. Is there a decent website that lists all the essentials?

GreatGranny

9,097 posts

225 months

Monday 29th October 2018
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JapanRed said:
Perfect thanks guys.

Reason for going used and cheaper is because in all honesty we aren’t 100% sure what will and won’t work for us. Don’t wanna spend £30k on a new caravan to immediately find out it’s not right. Would rather have a season in a £12k caravan and if we need to swap it we can without losing too much money. Also, I’ve never towed before - would much rather take the plunge with a cheaper caravan wink

I genuinely have no idea of all the things I’m going to need. Is there a decent website that lists all the essentials?
We went for a cheaper one before buying new but that was in 2002 ish.

Bought a very nice van for £5k then after 3-4 years using that bought a new Bailey for £14k in 2006.
Still got it and apart from 2 lots of damp (told they are known for it) it has been a superb van.

Towing is easier than you think. Just take your time, leave plenty of room and always use your (towing) mirrors.

Good luck.

bristolracer

5,528 posts

148 months

Monday 29th October 2018
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As the previous poster said

Buy something a little cheaper,if you look around there some cracking vans for £5K, it will give you a chance to have a go and see what works for you.
If you can find an owner who is giving up then you may get all the accessories chucked in, power leads, gas bottles, water tanks etc maybe even an awning (aka divorce in a bag) . If you are getting a big van get one with a mover.

Check for damp, or if you are uncertain about damp and the general condition there are people who for a fee will do a habitation check which looks for damp and checks all the appliances and they will issue a certificate for you.

Towing is not to hard going forwards, going backwards can be fun but you will soon master it.

Best time to buy is winter, not many buyers in the winter!

JapanRed

Original Poster:

1,559 posts

110 months

Tuesday 30th October 2018
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Thanks all. Any decent websites worth looking on other than caravanfinder?

bristolracer

5,528 posts

148 months

Tuesday 30th October 2018
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Autotrader do caravans
Ebay
Gumtree
Facebook groups

PH5121

1,963 posts

212 months

Wednesday 31st October 2018
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As your profile says you're in Gods own country I assume that you may be in Yorkshire.

We looked at used caravans at a few dealers in the area (north and west Yorkshire) and ended up buying one from Beechwood Leisure at Carlton Miniot near Thirsk.

We bought from them as their caravans were well prepared, came with everything we needed to just hook up and get away in it and it had a 12 month warranty. All useful stuff when buying our first caravan and not knowing what we would need.

They were more money than a private purchase but it was worth it to me for the peace of mind and back up.

Edited by PH5121 on Wednesday 31st October 12:18

JapanRed

Original Poster:

1,559 posts

110 months

Wednesday 31st October 2018
quotequote all
PH5121 said:
As your profile says you're in Gods own country I assume that you may be in Yorkshire.

We looked at used caravans at a few dealers in the area (north and west Yorkshire) and ended up buying from one from Beechwood Leisure at Carlton Miniot near Thirsk.

We bought from them as their caravans were well prepared, came with everything we needed to just hook up and get away in it and it had a 12 month warranty. All useful stuff when buying our first caravan and not knowing what we would need.

They were more money than a private purchase but it was worth it to me for the peace of mind and back up.
Yes we are in Yorkshire. Thanks for the heads up I’ll have a look at Carlton Miniot now. They are only an hour from us.

curlie467

7,650 posts

200 months

Thursday 1st November 2018
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I'd recommend going German so Fendt, Geist, Knaus etc.
In my opinion they are far more superior in quality.