Hi, currently use a LandCruiser 200 towing a caravan. Great comfy smooth quiet vehicle to tow with. However getting over towing caravans and would prefer simplicity of a MotorVan such as Adria Twin 600, or Avida or Horizon or Trakka or Avan , all simaler . Question is are they a smooth and quiet, or is there a lot of Road Noise and drumming ? cheers .
I drive an A class Motor Home. Built on an engine chassis base. Earlier in the year I purchased a set of tyres from Tyroola online. The tread pattern is a much more aggressive pattern that the Dunlops I had on before which were basically straight grooves round the circumference. These new tyres are more like a 50/50 4x4 road ,off road mix. I would say that the road noise inside maybe 5% louder than before so from that point of view the tyres haven't made a great deal of difference. No drumming at all.
I've recently ridden in a Ducato MH. and it had standard Road tyres and was on a par with most vehicles of that size.
I'm sure someone will answer about the actual vehicles you mention.
Craig1 said
08:43 PM Oct 23, 2018
110kw versus 195 kw and at a big guess, 15% more noise
Aus-Kiwi said
10:54 PM Oct 23, 2018
Yes the smaller engine has to work harder Its more suspension , harmonics coming through body . My old bus- motorhome I fitted larger dia tyres . 18 to 20.5 steer tyres all round . Made a heap of difference. 18 truck tyres are not available in Australia.
montie said
07:29 AM Oct 24, 2018
When towing a caravan you are separated from the interior noises and rattles inside your van, unlike a motorhome.
Belongings in cupboards, some appliances such as stove covers and ovens, cutlery drawers etc do need rattle management as most motorhome owners will tell you. In addition the chassis base is a cabover so you will be sitting beside the motor as you drive.
Recommend you test drive a couple first.
Landfall said
09:19 AM Oct 24, 2018
Strongly suggest you check out the Lemons caravans site on Facebook, re Avida. That should change your mind pronto on that brand.
Lots of good info there including a "black" list of brands.
Noise is more prevalent from things rattling about in cupboards, etc. Once you get used to all the various noises it becomes background noise.
Cheers
cjb1 said
02:21 PM Oct 24, 2018
thankyou for all the above comments. will now take one for a test drive as advised. cheers cjb1.
Aus-Kiwi said
02:51 PM Oct 24, 2018
Same applies to caravans . Just the driver doesnt know whats going on . I was passed . Going on private Rd to station . Thanks for the dust !! Looking through back window of caravan I could see the microwave bouncing around . We where doing under 40 kph . Assume he was over 70 kph . He spent the next two days cleaning up stinking spilt milk .
Geeco said
04:11 PM Oct 24, 2018
My MH is a C class cab/chassis style while the models you indicated are Van conversions. Ours is Fiat Ducato based similar to a number of the van converters so vehicle engine noise & running gear would be similar. We have not found any problems with noise from this area, on good roads ours is just like a car. On not so good back roads you do feel the suspension more than in a convential car, remember they are basically all light trucks. We have not experienced any drumming and I would think the same would be true for van conversions. Remember they are full of sound deadening items such as bedding, lounge seating etc that act as sound absorbers. As has been stated by other contributors you will need to use sound absorbing wrapping to crockery & glass wear, it is no big deal & should certainly not be considered a deal breaker.
I chose a motorhome after towing boats for years. Caravan or motorhome - one is no better or worse than the other it really depends on you and your needs. There are some excellent brands & layouts available in the market, take you time and pay particular attention to chose a layout that suits your needs. In a van conversion the bed area is often used as a sitting area during the day. It then becomes necessary to make your bed each night. Some offer a fixed bed at the rear with the seating at the front so the bed is always made up. Those are the kind of areas to consider. Good luck with your search. Cheers.
Ozzie_Traveller said
08:30 AM Oct 26, 2018
G'day Chris
A beaut Q from you as a prospective MH owner / user
We graduated from Toyo Hi-Ace vans to our Sunliner MH built onto a Ford Transit chassis - and in each case we're "sitting damn close to the grunt department". The Transit is heaps quieter than the Hi-Ace, even tho it's diesel vs the oldie in petrol
Over the 15yrs we've had the MH we've been thru various tyre brands, and some appear slightly noisier than others - tho brand names escape me these days as they change every time I need new tyres [ps- I get about 50k from tyres, with about 15-20% of my total running on awful dirt roads]
Inside the MH we do have various noises. Upon delivery, the cupboard doors had small rattles - immediately fixed with a strip of foam tape, and never a problem since then. On good bitumen roads there is almost no rattles from our plates or cutlery - however there is heaps of rattles from the flyscreen door's internal mechanism, and without pulling the entire thing to bits, there's not much we can do about it. I would estimate that the door provides us with 75% of all noises ... and really, it ain't all that much
One thing I did copy from the Hi-Ace days was to insert some sheet-foam stuff under the driver / passenger floor mat. This is from Clark Rubber, it's 10-12mm thick with a shiny surface on one side ... it lasts about 10 yrs before it crumbles and was about $100 all up
Hope this helps
Phil
Peter_n_Margaret said
10:45 AM Oct 26, 2018
Geeco wrote:
Ours is Fiat Ducato snip....., remember they are basically all light trucks.
Actually, the Fiat Ducato rear suspension is custom made specifically for use in motorhomes, and not by the Fiat factory.
The rear wheels tend to be as small as possible so that they do not impact on the interior floor so much and that leads to poor performance on bad roads, especially when they incorporate dual wheels and high pressure tyres.
Cheers,
Peter
Geeco said
08:38 AM Nov 3, 2018
Peter, My understanding is that in Europe Fiat do make a chassis for motorhome converters. Autotrail is one of the manufacturers that use this option. I was told the Australian converters use the Al-ko versions to produce their C class models.
cjb1 said
08:45 AM Nov 3, 2018
Thanks again people. All good comments. one thing I know is that noisy vehicles do not cater for pleasant touring. cheers.
Tony Bev said
01:39 PM Nov 3, 2018
It is possible to have a noise free motorhome
My brother has managed to do so, by packing everything correctly
I shall put my hand up and say, I have a noisy motorhome
I have tried to stop all the noise, but find it easier to just ignore it
Perhaps if you are concerned about the noise, cjb1
It may pay to hire the type you are thinking of buying for a week, just to see if you can eliminate all the noise
Hi, currently use a LandCruiser 200 towing a caravan. Great comfy smooth quiet vehicle to tow with. However getting over towing caravans and would prefer simplicity of a MotorVan such as Adria Twin 600, or Avida or Horizon or Trakka or Avan , all simaler . Question is are they a smooth and quiet, or is there a lot of Road Noise and drumming ? cheers .
I drive an A class Motor Home. Built on an engine chassis base. Earlier in the year I purchased a set of tyres from Tyroola online. The tread pattern is a much more aggressive pattern that the Dunlops I had on before which were basically straight grooves round the circumference. These new tyres are more like a 50/50 4x4 road ,off road mix. I would say that the road noise inside maybe 5% louder than before so from that point of view the tyres haven't made a great deal of difference. No drumming at all.
I've recently ridden in a Ducato MH. and it had standard Road tyres and was on a par with most vehicles of that size.
I'm sure someone will answer about the actual vehicles you mention.
Belongings in cupboards, some appliances such as stove covers and ovens, cutlery drawers etc do need rattle management as most motorhome owners will tell you. In addition the chassis base is a cabover so you will be sitting beside the motor as you drive.
Recommend you test drive a couple first.
Strongly suggest you check out the Lemons caravans site on Facebook, re Avida. That should change your mind pronto on that brand.
Lots of good info there including a "black" list of brands.
Noise is more prevalent from things rattling about in cupboards, etc. Once you get used to all the various noises it becomes background noise.
Cheers
My MH is a C class cab/chassis style while the models you indicated are Van conversions. Ours is Fiat Ducato based similar to a number of the van converters so vehicle engine noise & running gear would be similar. We have not found any problems with noise from this area, on good roads ours is just like a car. On not so good back roads you do feel the suspension more than in a convential car, remember they are basically all light trucks. We have not experienced any drumming and I would think the same would be true for van conversions. Remember they are full of sound deadening items such as bedding, lounge seating etc that act as sound absorbers. As has been stated by other contributors you will need to use sound absorbing wrapping to crockery & glass wear, it is no big deal & should certainly not be considered a deal breaker.
I chose a motorhome after towing boats for years. Caravan or motorhome - one is no better or worse than the other it really depends on you and your needs. There are some excellent brands & layouts available in the market, take you time and pay particular attention to chose a layout that suits your needs. In a van conversion the bed area is often used as a sitting area during the day. It then becomes necessary to make your bed each night. Some offer a fixed bed at the rear with the seating at the front so the bed is always made up. Those are the kind of areas to consider. Good luck with your search. Cheers.
A beaut Q from you as a prospective MH owner / user
We graduated from Toyo Hi-Ace vans to our Sunliner MH built onto a Ford Transit chassis - and in each case we're "sitting damn close to the grunt department". The Transit is heaps quieter than the Hi-Ace, even tho it's diesel vs the oldie in petrol
Over the 15yrs we've had the MH we've been thru various tyre brands, and some appear slightly noisier than others - tho brand names escape me these days as they change every time I need new tyres [ps- I get about 50k from tyres, with about 15-20% of my total running on awful dirt roads]
Inside the MH we do have various noises. Upon delivery, the cupboard doors had small rattles - immediately fixed with a strip of foam tape, and never a problem since then. On good bitumen roads there is almost no rattles from our plates or cutlery - however there is heaps of rattles from the flyscreen door's internal mechanism, and without pulling the entire thing to bits, there's not much we can do about it. I would estimate that the door provides us with 75% of all noises ... and really, it ain't all that much
One thing I did copy from the Hi-Ace days was to insert some sheet-foam stuff under the driver / passenger floor mat. This is from Clark Rubber, it's 10-12mm thick with a shiny surface on one side ... it lasts about 10 yrs before it crumbles and was about $100 all up
Hope this helps
Phil
Actually, the Fiat Ducato rear suspension is custom made specifically for use in motorhomes, and not by the Fiat factory.
The rear wheels tend to be as small as possible so that they do not impact on the interior floor so much and that leads to poor performance on bad roads, especially when they incorporate dual wheels and high pressure tyres.
Cheers,
Peter
My brother has managed to do so, by packing everything correctly
I shall put my hand up and say, I have a noisy motorhome
I have tried to stop all the noise, but find it easier to just ignore it
Perhaps if you are concerned about the noise, cjb1
It may pay to hire the type you are thinking of buying for a week, just to see if you can eliminate all the noise