Yes- I think I will look for some more qotes, based on your prices!
Could someone please tell me what a "flange" is? Also- what is "split charge" and "bypass relay"? A non-technical reply would be much appreciated!!!
I've had a reply from Tom at the Dandy Owner's Club, who has been very helpful in giving me more info about the different models of Dandy, and the possibility of putting them up by myself. I'm now thinking that it would be better for me to look more closely at the Designer 5 berth, as I think the 6 berths would be way too heavy to manage alone.
Does anyone have a Designer that they can put up single-handed- is is manageable? Bear in mind that I'm a short woman of 5ft 0" of average strength...
I even managed to have a sensible conversation with my other half earlier and he agreed that if he was coming along we could just put up the Awning to get the extra room we would need! (I think he's coming round to the idea... slowly!).
Hmm... need to get the towbar issue sorted out soon before he goes off the idea again! Next step will be to try to find a reasonably cheap Dandy somewhere... preferably in the Central Scotland area.
A flange towbar bolts to a steel plate on a frame attached to the car - you can see the bolts. A swan neck is a bit more sleek & expensive. Don't worry about electrics, the fitter will sort that out. You can put up a Designer by yourself, but it is much easier with two. You can get gas springs fitted to help turning the beds. Get a set of caravan steps to assist putting the awning fabric on the roif.
I'm sure someone will correct me if this is wrong, but we were told that newer cars need the bypass relay, and that bumps up the price of the towbar quite a bit.
Wow! Think I will have to bypass the Renault dealership after all... Phoned them today for a quote and to supply and fit a standard towbar with double electrics through them would cost £517.60. Think theirs must be gold-plated or something!
I'm waiting for another couple of quotes from other fitters in Glasgow, so hopefully they wont be as expensive...!
Twin electrics (or 13 pin) is the way to go, you never know what lies in the future, it may be a little more expensive now but adding the second socket later could prove more expensive in the long run. You may not use it but better to have in case you need to.
Hi. Looking at the Towsure website, a standard towbar with bolt-on ball - as per the "flange" above would cost £127. The dedicated wiring kit for lights seems to come out at about £80 and the supplementary kit £48. Then you have to fit it!!!
With regards to erecting your Dandy, I haven't a clue as I've never owned one. But remember your kids are getting older all the time and a co-operative 9-year-old can be a lot of help. Even a three year old can help out in some ways, even if it's only carrying things like tent pags for you while you hammer them in. (Having said that Im assume you need pegs of some sort with a Dandy)
Hiya Sharronmac. We used to have a Delta but found it too small - 2 adults, 1 teen and 2 dogs, so moved up to a Dimension. We had to go to Birmingham for the one we wanted. That was around October and we have never had it up since then!! I think we've forgot how to do it We're going to try and get to a very, very quiet site to have a bit of a practice before we go away in it at Easter lol.
Were are you in North Lanarkshire? We are in Coatbridge.
Hiya Lesley- we are based over in Cumbernauld, not too far from you! I've seent he video on youtube of the setting up of a Designer- looks quite manageable. Probably a different story when you actually come to do it yourself!
I was laughing at your comment about finding a very, very quiet site to practice in first. You feel so self-conscious about setting up for the first time, don't you? We did with our Coleman tent. But the sense of achievement when you've done it is great!
On the towbar side of things, I've now found a fitter in Glasgow who is quoting £209.99 plus VAT- better than the other quotes I've had. I've also has another quote from a mobile fitter who will do it for £255 including VAT- this would be more convienient, as it would be done at the house. It would cost an extra £20 to have it done at the workshop just outside Glasgow.
What does everyone think of this? Sound reasonable?
Sounds fair enough. I've had my last two bars fitted by a mobile fitter. The same firm fit them for a lot of dealers on a contract. The work will be gauranteed & as all bars are CE marked & therefore up to the manufacturers spec they don't have an impact on the warranty (apart from when the towbar itself causes a problem like the one above where the electrics failed). Remember to tell your insurance. It won't change the premium as it is an accesory rather than a modification, but as long as they know about it they can't refuse to pay if it gets bent in an accident.
Re the above post from Imclaff (thanks, Lesley!) I've now agreed to purchase the very same Dandy!!! I was just by chance in Aberdeenshire yesterday for a very different reason, and discovered I was half an hour away from where the Dandy was being sold! What are the chances?!?! It resulted in a very nice trip up to Macduff!
It's a 1995 Designer which is fully winterised, 240 and 12v electrics, gas struts and comes with both a Handy Porch awning as well as a Movelight XL awning (lots of other extras, too!). All this for £1,550. I'm so pleased- didn't take long at all to find my Dandy after all! The owners were great at demostrating it, too (thanks, Kate and family!). I've had a go at lifting the beds with the gas struts and think I could manage it on my own... (at least it will get me fit!).
Hopefully get the tow bar fitted this week (i'm going to use the Mobile service after all), then pick it up as soon as I can arrange it! Now I just have to worry about towing it home for the first time...
Watch out for a few more posts from me when I get it, as I'm sure I'll have lots more questions! lol!
Sharon, Dandys are great, I hope you find a good one - we bought one recently and have a Renault Grand Scenic with the1.9 diesel engine which we tow it with.
We have a smaller Dandy Delta ( 4 bed) and frankly don't really notice that it is there, in fact I keep looking in the mirror to make sure it hasn't come away.
We paid quite a bit for our towbar from a specialist towing centre as we particularly wanted a detachable one. As the car is used every day and the Dandy not very often we didn't want a towbar on all the time. I have an unfortunate habit of reversing into things from time to time and a towbar can do quite a bit of damage to other vehicles even at very low speed
It just clicks on and off in a minute and as we are planning on keeping both car and Dandy for a long while was worth the extra to us.
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: What Towbar for a Dandy?
We're going to try and get to a very, very quiet site to have a bit of a practice before we go away in it at Easter lol.
