Regent X-treme Off Road

Mikl · Member

Regent X-treme Off Road

mezza56 · Senior Member

Hi Miki

Just do ur due diligence , if you dont know what to look for go speak to a busy repairer about what to look for , Regent have been round for years and probably have had some duds , all manufacturers do .

Dont take one or two peoples opinions as gospel , do ur own research and it will be to ur benefit down the track.

Mikl · Member

Thanks Mezza56...

That's very wise advice... Really appreciate it.

Cheers,

Mike

Possum3 · Guru

Check with Caravan Council's compliance checklist www.caravancouncil.com.au/compliance

It must tick all boxes prior to handover of any monies.

PeterInSa · Guru

Agree Regent have been around for years,

General comments:
Compliance List above is a good start
Seriously look (if necessary with a torch) all the corners/Cupboards/Ceiling Floor for the sign of any dis colouration showing that there has been a leak in the past.
Check the steel under the side walls for serious rust.
Check the payload of the van, more than likely 250KG but some single axle vans are significantly more, great if you are going off road with more water/gear/food.
Check whether the van has been under cover when not in use.( less likely hood of serious leaks)

Peter.

Mikl · Member

Thanks Peter...

Have checked all that you mentioned and have found no discolouration...but haven't checked the metal frame under walls - thanks for the hint... It does look like the previous owner was very particular with looking after the van...and with all the extras he's put on.

Payload is 300 kgs as you suspected...but it will be a job to keep it under that!! Thinking of looking into having an engineer look into re-rating it for payload weight...but yet to be determined.

Thanks again...

Mike (Mikl)

Mikl · Member

Thanks Possum3.... I didn't even know such a site existed. I'll have a look at it soon.

Brenda and Alan · Guru

One other thing I would ask for is a current weigh bridge ticket showing the current tare weight.

How many people have bought caravans only to find the tare weight is not much under the van ATM and once loaded it is over weight.

Alan

Mikl · Member

Yeah... Excellent idea Alan.

Thank you kindly!!

Regards,

Mikl

Warren-Pat_01 · Guru

Miki,
Some points to look at if you are intending to get an engineer to upgrade your payload is the rating of the wheels, tyres & bearings.
I'm stuck with mine as the ATM is just over 2000kg, the wheels are rated at 1000kg each, the bearing set at somewhere around 1950kg & the tyres are 1000kg at 52psi!!!
Everything is sitting on the maximum!

I have not yet found wheels that will fit my van with a higher weight rating & I was told the bearings are the largest used on Jayco caravans!

And I'm certain the previous owners had a weight issue as there are brackets welded to the A frame (for a box?) & the tyres were worn badly on the insides. I've not had the same problem except when checking the weight with the water tanks full (see an earlier posting). And when I fitted new tyres (just after purchase), it was discovered one wheel spoke was cracked.

Warren

Mikl · Member

Thanks Warren...

I'll have to look into it a bit deeper when the time comes.

Cheers,

Mikl

Mikl · Member

Hi Alan & Brenda,

Hope you've had a Great Christmas...

Just getting back to you about the advice you gave me about having the van weighed before purchase.

Just before Christmas, the salesman allowed me to take the van for a test-tow and a weigh-in at the local weigh bridge.

The weights on the Van's plates are:

TARE - 1900. GTM - 2000. ATM - 2200.

I disconnected the van on the weigh bridge and the weight of it came to 2120 kgs without any of our gear on board or any water in either of the two 80 litre water tanks.

So...fill one water tank and we're already to the limit without anything else on board.

I'm now investigating having the van re-rated for weights by a qualified engineer.

I'm still keen on this particular van if we can get the weight ratings up... but if we can't, we'll just have to continue our hunt for the right van.

All the Best to You and your families.

Mike

Tony Bev · Guru

Hi Mike

I have seen plenty of comments on this site, about caravans being stopped and weighed, in the future
It would certainly ruin a road trip, if you were caught overweight

Just out of idle curiosity, did you ask the salesman if they would have the caravan re-rated
Because if they did, and advertised that all the caravans in their yard were not overweight, they may get a few more sales, from some of the more savvy buyers

Mikl · Member

Hi Tony...

Yes I did ask him to have it re-rated, but I had to hunt down an Engineer that is qualified in that area to help the process along.

The salesman is the owner of the yard and unlike other salesmen - I trust this one!!! He appears not to have known that the current tare weight was so high...and I believe him. I've also spoken with the previous owner of the van and he said he has never had the van over a weigh-bridge... so when he had it, the van would have been well over weight with all of the draws and cupboards full and the bedding on and the generator on the back and the water tanks full and --- well... you get the picture.

The Engineer is looking at it today. Very blessed that he could take a look at such short notice in this hectic time of the year.