Dear all

My husband and I are retiring at the end of the year and are planning on acquiring a van and towing vehicle.  So we are trying to do our homework, do research, visit dealers, look at websites with used vans, plan to take an RACV towing course - all the things we think might help.  We want to explore Australia, starting out slowly and becoming more adventurous as we gain in experience.

We would very much appreciate advice from those of you who have done this for some time.

New or used?
What is a reasonable price range?
What make towing vehicle?
What safety features are must haves?
How can we find out if the caravan life is for us?
How do we join the GN networks?  I have been reading the forums and it seem smany of you know each other and get together often - does this happen by accident or with planning?
We live just north of Melbourne - so what might be a good easy one week journey to start off with? Or is that too short - suggestions welcome.



Any advice from any of you would be ever so appreciated.  So many potential mistakes to avoid.

The posts about jobs on the road like fruit picking, etc... sound like they could be fun. How do you get started?  What are the pitfalls to watch out for?

As you can see, we are much in need of information.  Looking forward to your answers.

Margaret and Graham

welcome to the forum. I am sure lots on here will give great advice. One thing too remember is that everyone is different so you will need to work out what is best for you. We enjoy going to the caravan camping shows where you can look at all sort of thing and talk to people as well. You could also hire a van to see what you think.

Thank you Pam

My husband did say that the most common answer will be "it depends"

But I thought all of you with different experiences, we have a lot to learn.  I am a bit nervous about this, and my husband is prepared to do it because he knows I want to.  As all of you would be aware of, it is a big investment and I worry about making an expensive mistake.

Many of the sellers of vans claim that their van has been hardly used.  I' thought that with this forum, we would at least be hearing from people who have succeeded in this venture so would not likely be exposed to discouragement.

We will be attending shows when next they are within reach - next one for Melbourne is March 2011.

Margaret and Graham

We are not yet to van stage. Have progressed from tents when the boys were little to a camper trailer for the 2 of us. We will eventually progress to a van.

Hi Margaret,

Welcome to the forum. You should get plenty of information here.

Your husband is fairly spot on too. It depends.... on a lot of things.

Starting with money. Top of the range Toyota L/C over $100,000, brand new caravan say $70,000. Lot of money to spend if you find you dont like caravanning.

New or used? If used, check the ceilings and corners for water stains. Move curtains aside and check around windows. Any evidence of water damage or even the slightest hint of a water stain, walk away. You dont want that van. Then how big a van do you want? How heavy? What do you plan to tow it with? Off road, or sticking to main highways, with an occasional foray on gravel? Freecamping?

My thoughts. Living near Melbourne, there are numerous top spots within half a days drive. Get the car set up with a towbar and electrics. Get yourself electric brakes, Tekonsha Prodigy brand is the Rolls Royce of electric brakes. Get an auto electrician to put it in, and make sure you mention that it could be coming out by the end of the year and put into another car. Hire a caravan, hitch up and take it to Robinvale, or Mildura, or the Grampians, Echuca, Lakes Entrance, Bairnsdale. Anywhere. Plonk it on site for a week or two and see if you like the lifestyle. Whilst there, make a list of what you would like in a van. Pop top or full van. Length. Single beds or double beds. If you are keen, do a touring holiday for a week or two. Get a feel for towing. And dont leave it all to Graham. Have a go yourself.

I have a 17 foot pop top and tow with a Commodore. This combination suits me at present as I only get four weeks annual leave and the odd weekend to use the van. And the Commodore is a good car for getting to work and home. Besides I'm not in a position to change over cars just yet. This is my fourth van and the first new one. All the others have been second hand, and well looked after. I've actually sold all of them for more money than what I paid for them.

With members of the forum. Most of us dont know each other. Yet we're friends. We all have a common interest, and we like chatting with others on forums.

Hope this helps.

Cheers
Ross






-- Edited by rosco on Tuesday 19th of October 2010 11:30:03 AM

Wot Ross sed!! Essentially, get in a bit of experience before committing to the "ultimate" outfit. Do note that he has actually got his money back on the resale of vans purchased 'used', which will not happen with new stuff. So much will depend on how you (both) adapt to the different life-style and what your personal preferences are; and how they change to fit the new circumstances. Take your time about it and please don't let anyone pressure you into something that you do not feel comfortable with, especially those who stand to make a profit from you. Good luck with whatever you choose :)

Thank you to Rosco, Rolly, Gert and Ron and Shirley for your answers.

We had noted the Bendigo show but we will be teaching in Singapore at the time. We are still owned 24/7 by our university at this stage.

Our ultimate plan is to do a mixture of main roads and caravan parks with times along rivers and lakes.  I guess the balance will alter as we become more comfortable with our equipment and ocnfident with our skills.

I appreciate the advice, especially the bit about the electric brakes and having some which will change between vehicles.  Graham has been searching sites for used tow vehicles and is leaning towards a landcruiser or a landrover.  Any comments?  What are the things we should watch out for?

We can handle an outdoor shower, a toilet would be nice if we are not on a developed site.  We are going to try a week on a caravan Park prior to Xmas near Wilson's Prom and we will be talking to people and taking notes.

Thank you for your kind words of encouragement and I wil keep you posted on how we go.

Margaret and Graham

Hi again Margaret University aye, gee I hope I get my commas and apostrophes in the right places...... Just a word on the electric brakes, they are compulsory for any van weighing over 750 kilos. I'm not able to comment on either the vehicles you mention. As mentioned previously, I'm not ready, nor am I in a position to change over vehicles. When I do it will most likely be a 4WD and I like the look of the Prados and also the Pajeros. When you're travelling around, take a note of the type of cars towing vans. Dont know if I'm imagining it but most of the tow cars I see are Prados. Incidentally, the Prado has a good sized fuel tank. 180 litres, compared to 85/90 litres for the others. You wouldnt run out of juice with that sized tank, although you'd probably be standing at the bowser for half an hour waiting for it to fill up. Here is a good site to check towing capacities and so forth of vehicles: http://www.drive.com.au/ Enter the car you want in the home page. When the page with the cars comes up click on one of them, scroll down a llittle and you will see "Specifications", click on that. Gives you everything, length, wheelbase, fuel tank capacity, towing capacity. Heaps of stuff there. Lets know how you go. Cheers Ross

Its pretty much horses for courses I think.  What suits one doesnt' necessarily suit the next person.

Personally, we looked at the Prado, Pajero, Pathfinder etc., and then we happened to be passing the Ford dealership.

They had a Ford Ranger in the yard (new) and we did a bit of investigating and figured it would suit what we wanted and would tow our van with ease.

We had a canopy and nudge bar added, together with the UHF and braking system, all up the total cost came in way under what a second hand vehicle (listed above) would have been.

We find it good in the fact that we can put all our "outdoors" things in the back of the ute and when we need to carry extra diesel it is not in the cabin with us and hence no fuel smell.

Like I said though, it suits us but not necessarily suits the next person.

Have fun doing your homework, we did.  Don't regret one minute of it.

Hi Margaret & Graham, First off, like everyone else - welcome to the forum. Pete too, will be retiring the end of the year (handed in his notice last Friday) and it sounds as if we are in the same position, however, we purchased a pre-loved van (2000 model) just under 2 years ago and love it - had a few bits and pieces done to it to make it our own, plus we also purchased a pre-loved Nissan Patrol (2003) model and have had quite a few trips in it to date, with us hopefully selling up around the end of the year and heading off. Pete & June

Thank you Ma.

Graham is looking at the FOrd Ranger on the web as I write.  The crew cab sounds worthwhile if we might have our daughter and grandson with us.  The canopy sounds like a good idea as I assume it gives you some more security as it should be lockable.

Is yours a crew cab? We have two border collies that we would like to take with us as we travel.  No way would we farm them out as they have been with us for years.

I can see that we have a lot to experience and learn.

Margaret and Graham

Hi Daydreamer Now your into the homework stage,not only the Uni students.. decide what you want to do & where you want to go, that will govern what to look for. One thing I would add look for your van first, then find a tug that will safely/ legally tow it & then buy both... If your looking to purchase both. Ask hundreds of questions - some times you can get 2 different answers, good luck & happy hunting....

Hello Pete and June

By 'selling up' do you mean selling your home?  That feels scary to me at the moment - no security blanket to come home to!!!!!!!!!!!

We obviously have a lot of homework to do.  We really appreciate all the comments and advice from the members of the forum.  It means that we do not have to go down some avenues and spend too much time on dead ends.  What all of you are saying makes sense.

I don't think we can afford a new towing vehicle, so it will have to be a used one.  One question that Graham and I are disagreeing on - I say buy van first and he says buy towing vehicle first since if you get maximum towing capacity, any van will fit.

What do you think?

Margaret

Hey Ma How does the Ranger go? Any problems with it? And is it 4WD or 2Wd? And how heavy is the van you tow? Questions, questions.... You've got me thinking now Ross

Daydreamer wrote:

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One question that Graham and I are disagreeing on - I say buy van first and he says buy towing vehicle first since if you get maximum towing capacity, any van will fit.

What do you think?

Margaret

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Hi Margaret and Graham and welcome from me too....

My suggestion is to select your van first then select a suitable tow vehicle.  Don't go too big with the van as the smaller they are the better they are to tow (generally speaking).  Don't deny yourself a few comforts either however. (eg en-suite perhaps).  "Tow-Ed" (http://www.tow-ed.com.au/) mentioned above, also publish a very informative towing guide and DVD as well as conducting courses, click on the underlined link for details.

The "conventional wisdom" from the "experts" is that there should be a margin of 25% over the ATM (total fully loaded weight) of the van in the maximum towing capacity of the "tug". (ie the van weight should be no more than 80% of max towing weight.)  I'm not sure just how valid this is.

regards,

Jim

 

-- Edited by jimricho on Tuesday 19th of October 2010 05:16:59 PM

biggles wrote:

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Ask hundreds of questions - some times you can get 2 different answers, .............

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Rubbish, Biggles
Anything less than 5 varying responses per question is to be considered well below par

 

I can give at least two conflicting opinions without outside help!

Lots of really good info in all of the previous posts - all I would add from my own experience is when you buy your towing vehicle - go for a diesel 4x4. The difference between towing with the Commodore and towing with the diesel Rodeo auto has to be experienced to appreciate the difference. Also the diesel is much more economical, and has lots more grunt when you need it.  If you are going to spend a reasonable amount of money on a vehicle to tow and travel I would also suggest you go for the 4x4 option, as it opens up a whole lot more experiences even if that is just a trip to lets say Fraser Island.

-- Edited by petengail on Tuesday 19th of October 2010 05:28:42 PM

The Ranger is a three litre turbo diesel, manual transmission. 4 x 4

Our van is a Jayco Discovery pop top with shower and toilet and weight is around 1400.


The Ranger tows like a dream. just finished near on 20,000ks and not one ounce of trouble of any kind.

The Gnome Ranger has one as well so if you need another opinion PM him as well.

We bought ours new and for the price, even with some added extras like canopy, nudge bar, weather shields (not a necessity granted) electric brakes HR towbar etc., it came in way under second hand Prados, Pajeros, Pathfinders etc.

Like I said in my previous post, sorry for the double up.

Thank you all for some great info - lots to think about and investigate. We are committed to a deisel as that is what our current car is as well. Graham is already leaning to a 4X4 - not sure yet what brand or what model. He just knows he wants an automatic. So with the end of the year coming we will spend a lot of shoe leather followiong on the internet exploration we are doing at the moment. Any comments on the issues of buying a second hand van from a private individual versus buying through a dealer? I think the car has to come from a dealer simply because of any warranty issues. Thank you all - more later Margaret

Personal opinion. We got our vehicle a 06 Auto Td Rodeo through Carpoint.com, 7 months ago. Private purchase. No warranty (time expired). However it had been stored in the garage for 2 years, only had 60.000 klms Paid $21.500. The only problem we had was that the battery died (understandable). Very happy with our Rodeo, warranties are fine, if they are honoured... (whole world of discussion out there lol). The horses will always go around those courses - jumping hurdles too lol

Not a lot to add to all the good advice already given. Would definitely say you must get a 4wd if you are going to be doing more travelling than just away for an occasional holiday. Even if you never tow off the blacktop, once you get away from cities or beach resorts then you will miss out on too many sights if you don't have a 4wd to go exploring in.

Don't agree with Graham about getting tow vehicle first - why spend the money on getting more towing capacity than you end up needing, with all the fuel consumption and maintenance costs that implies.

Just by the way, our home town is Melbourne and our 5 day 'shake down trip' when we got the van a couple of years ago was to Swan Hill - long enough trip to give us practice in towing without being too far, and lots to do while there.

Rolly wrote:

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biggles wrote:

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Ask hundreds of questions - some times you can get 2 different answers, .............

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Rubbish, Biggles
Anything less than 5 varying responses per question is to be considered well below par

 

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your right with 5 answers, but there is usually 3 absolute stupid answers that you can discount straight away....  LOL

 

i wonder how vans like avan and those type are in strong heavy windy weather, would they collapse on you ?

Hi Marg & Graham, When we were looking for our 4WD we were advised to pick either a Land Cruiser or the Patrol - and out of the two, we were led to believe the Patrol was the 'workhorse'tougher' of the two. And to be honest have been very happy with our choice. Pete & June

Hi Marg and Graham,

Love the fact you have border collies!   I bought a Mazda spacecab 4x4 3lit TD with a tray back (I use it on the farm as well).  It has been a great vehicle and is the same as the Ranger, just a different badge. It tows very well as I have a very old 18' Viscount van.

One thing to think of when travelling with the dogs is to have somewhere you can put them when you are just sitting around, or socialising etc.  I have crates on the back of my truck and when I stay for a longer time I take a portable yard.  It is not always convenient to have them in the van all the time.

There are a lot of things to think about before you spend your hard earned money and hiring a van first is a very good idea.

Cheers
Allara

Patrols...LC..........duelcabs 4x4s are great.........if you dont have long legs...then your limited.........I have a Pajero......others have Pathys.....get what suites you and your pocket...thats My best advice.......and dont do as others have .bought a 4x4....then ordered new Van.only to have to change vehicles to tow it Dave