Do people buy caravans to convert vans to mobile homes anymore?

[sutty2006]

After having my caravan serviced and spending a small fortune on repairs I’ve been told by said service centre to not tow my caravan due to rot. It’s a shame, I know, but I was hoping for another 12 months of happy-go-shite caravanning in my now too small caravan. Me and Mrs sutty have taken the plunge, and in good spirits have bought another caravan. This has left me needing to sell my wobbly box but alas, the market for rotten ABI supreme Equerrys is, well, not very good.

 

Then I remembered years ago, selling a 1970s caravan to an old college lecturer of mine who proceeded to cut the innerds out and turn an old iveco panel van of doom into a rather pleasant (ish) camper van. Is it worth me trying this again? Is there a market for it? Would like to see some converted ex builders vans, the shiter the better really.

[djimbob]

Blimey, that looks brand new to me!!

 

As to your question, yes, plenty of demand for t'innards, get it on the 'bay

[bub2006]

Where's it rotten? Doesn't look bad in all fairness but vans can hide sins.

[FakeConcern]

My BIL let his caravan (can't remember what it was, but wasn't that old and looked nice) go for peanuts because it was rotten. There didn't seem to be much market for it.

[Stanky]

What Djimbob said, based on my sample size of 1, my wife's uncle did exactly this - bought a rotten caravan, stripped the innards to kit out his twin-wheel Iveco van for taking to bike trials. From what i remember it was a roaring success (not in an 'gone on fire' way) and he weighed in the remnants for a bit too.

[sutty2006]

Where's it rotten? Doesn't look bad in all fairness but vans can hide sins.

Front corners have gone. It’s probably repairable, but from a caravan garage that is epically busy it was a case of “tell him it’s fucked, he won’t want us spending time on it then”. Plus the rear corner in the bathroom has also gone, but I’ve repaired the majority of that. It’s had a lot of new parts recently..... more fool to me, shouldn’t have bothered

[DodgeRover]

That'll sell easy enough of Facebook groups £500 or £600 easy.

[stephen01]

^^ agree with above,

[Captain Furious]

Crikey, that looks several orders of magnitude better than the ABI I am about to start hauling around for another season.

 

I what exactly is the concern, that the body will just sort of fall off the chassis?

[sierraman]

I'll get flamed for this but grind the numbers off if you've CRIS registered it then park it in a layby and fuck off. 

[DodgeRover]

I'll get flamed for this but grind the numbers off if you've CRIS registered it then park it in a layby and fuck off.

If you are planning on doing this let me know and I'll let you drop it in my neighbours drive for me to sell!

[sierraman]

Some Travellers did this opposite my fathers, left caravan but with 2 stray dogs in it. 

[vaughant]

Will sell in minutes.

 

I had one three years back albeit in better condition than that but I'd also lived in it for work purposes so it was a bit foosty inside despite many a deep clean.

 

I let it go for £500 to some mush because I needed spot and for the first week on bumtree it seemed there was little interest.

 

By week two and OBVS after it was sold the phone rang off the hook, must have had 7 or 8 calls, one guy was even coming over from Ireland to buy a van (oddly due to the traveling community I thought??) and this was first on his list, offered to pay full asking before viewing etc.

 

Hindsight etc.

 

A mate of mine who's Polish also reckons he could sell fields of caravans back home, unsure why but I believe they command a premium out there also in any condition.

 

Gumtree should see an easy £4-500 sale, especially if you can deliver it for extra cost of course. I'd be amazed if ANY caravan is too rotten to tow, smell bullshit there.

[dome]

I can supply a complete Iveco panel Van with an awning for anyone feeling creative...

[sierraman]

The one near my old mans was actually parting seams at the front up to the windows, I was surprised it hadn't disintegrated on the M5.

[Talbot]

They can be too rotten to tow. Not because the chassis is in any danger... most are galvamanized and look brand new even when 20 years old, but the walls are generally still wood framed, and just screwed into the wood floor. If the floor or the bottom couple of inches of the walls are rotten, then there is a real risk of the body just shaking loose from the floor.

 

I've seen it happen, and I've made it happen on purpose before when scrapping a caravan.

 

The usual giveaway is when you wind down the stabiliser jacks and they just keep winding even once the foot has touched the ground.

 

And yes, plenty of people still make home-build campervans. Mat_The_Cat of this parish has done it fairly recently, and there are numerous facebook groups and forums full of people doing so, mainly because camper vans are so damn expensive, but older panel vans are generally quite cheap.

[Mally]

It will sell, but not easily if you mention you have been told not to tow it.

Depends how bad it is, looks good on the outside, but if it flies in bits on the motorway..............

[oldcars]

Shame, looks a nice clean van. Off to check mine now 

[D Spares & Tyres]

Every caravan of that age will have some rot in it and most buyers of a £500 trailer won't care or notice, they will just want it to do another couple of seasons.

 

Get it sold. It won't hang around long at this time of year

[sutty2006]

Is £800 too hopeful of such a van? I stupidly had the kitchen skylight changed and a service which cost nearly 300, changed the bathroom sky light myself. 800 is the deposit on my new caravan you see, be nice to get close that. Going to use the van this weekend, I doubt it will fall apart it’s not as bad as he made out in reality.

[djimbob]

Is £800 too hopeful of such a van? I stupidly had the kitchen skylight changed and a service which cost nearly 300, changed the bathroom sky light myself. 800 is the deposit on my new caravan you see, be nice to get close that. Going to use the van this weekend, I doubt it will fall apart it’s not as bad as he made out in reality.

 

Only one way to find out, get it listed and try the waters, it's deffo the right time of year

[DodgeRover]

Is £800 too hopeful of such a van? I stupidly had the kitchen skylight changed and a service which cost nearly 300, changed the bathroom sky light myself. 800 is the deposit on my new caravan you see, be nice to get close that. Going to use the van this weekend, I doubt it will fall apart it’s not as bad as he made out in reality.

Put it in the Facebook groups at £995 and see what happens, just say it has got damp and that the buyer will need to sort it, expect a rash of traders wanting to knock you down and flip it on.

[Crispian_J_Hotson]

I've had a couple as site offices before. Also good for diving into for a few weeks when doing major house operations. Gave them away at the end of the job because they were minging and broken where they had been re-sited* several times by a digger.

[sierraman]

Rent it out.

[oldcars]

Did the caravan place do the service and charge you, then say its rotten? Bit off if they did. I would have thought they would check it first.

[barefoot]

The only dealings I've had with a caravan dealer was a couple of years ago when I needed a new fridge for the T2.

I was essentially fucked off by them,

'We're too busy this time of year, we won't be able to supply, never mind fit a fridge for at least three months'.

Spoke to a gas fitting bloke who had one bought and fitted within a fortnight.

 

They are probably not all as shit as Ryedale Caravans in Shepshed.

 

 01509 508951|[email protected]

• Contact Us
• About Us

 

Wankers Amongst Caravanners.

 

[AMC Rebel]

 

The only dealings I've had with a caravan dealer was a couple of years ago when I needed a new fridge for the T2.

I was essentially fucked off by them,

'We're too busy this time of year, we won't be able to supply, never mind fit a fridge for at least three months'.

Spoke to a gas fitting bloke who had one bought and fitted within a fortnight.

 

They are probably not all as shit as Ryedale Caravans in Shepshed.

 

 01509 508951|[email protected]

• Contact Us
• About Us

 

Wankers Amongst Caravanners.

 

 

They are literally five minutes from me so thanks for the warning

[sutty2006]

I told them to do what Work I asked, new sky light, gas pipe and water filter to make it safe to use. Sky light was pissing in so didn’t want it to do anymore damage. Got it on Facebook at £895ono but so far no joy, only people hitting the “is this available?” button only to be completely uninterested. So frustrating lol. Will get it on evilbay after this weekend but again, 7 days of listing, then 7 days of being messed around, then 7 days of listing again....... by which time I’ve got 2 vans on the driveway

[steveo3002]

have you had a look at it rust wise...might be a load of cobblers or something that can be fixed with the sparkly stick and some steel

[sutty2006]

It’s wood that’s rotten, not metal. Shame really