We are another family of tenters going to look at a caravan for the first time at the weekend. Its a Cosalt Clubman 4 berth which he says is the same as an Abbey Executive?? Late 80s. Bought 2 years ago, been in storage and used once since then. Says its dry bla bla and gave me the link to an Abbey Executive on Ebay which is the same.
Going to get or borrow a damp meter before we go, what else do we need to do? We have a Saab 93 2 litre turbo, is that going to be ok with this van? Assume it is as it goes like s*** off a shovel lol
Any tips or advice most welcome. £600 isnt a huge amount of money but it is to us so we dont want to make a huge mistake.
All that really matters is that it is not riddled with damp. check areas around floor/walls & ceiling/walls. If its damp it ain't worth buying. For £600 you should have a working caravan tho, cooker/fridge, should work & check lights ain't corroded.
Unless you have evidence that tyres are less than 5yrs old budget for changing them asap even if not worn & if caravan ain't been serviced get at least a 'chassis service' involving removing wheels/hubs & greasing bearings/adjust brakes with replacments possibly being required.
With handbrake on. Push coupling in & out. It should be smooth but v stiff, if it moves easily you need new hitch damper, £50 for part.
your car will be fine offer them 550 if its half tidy it looks as if its in need of moving by the ones its parked next to.
dont worry too much about the meter you will be able to see any damp. look in all the boxes and feel walls for exessive spong. check chassis.
a going over with AutoGlyn polish and couple of days tlc and it should be fine.
remember an amount of dirty is better than shiny clean as it shows they whant rid and are not hiding anything. (genuine) its like the old trick of bread and fresh coffee trying to sell a house. it glosses over the bad points.
its a fair price esp that there is an awning etc.
have bought many items from that site its better than E Bay sellers are more honest I have found.
Ask for proof of age if possible, when i bought my very first caravan a Monza back in 1982, the Clubman was the next model up, ABI and Colsalt were the same company back then, so theres a chance your van could be early 80s rather than late, although pricewise if its been looked after and kept in decent condition you have probably got a bargain, a week in a static on Haven can cost more than that!
I think you will find that the Abbey Executive was the next model up after the Clubman, like modern caravans of today, each bodyshell of a certain brand had several levels of trim finish and equipment upgrades, and this is the same with your caravan you are considering here.
Julia
Post last edited on 16/02/2011 11:36:09
------------- Just love to be out amoungst Nature and Wildlife
Celebrating 37 years of Caravanning in 2019, Recently Considered Retiring, but Totally Addicted for Life!
Quote: Originally posted by teepee on 16/2/2011
How much are new tyres roughly? So, if there are signs of damp, walk away? Thanks for the comments, very helpful.
Depends on tyre size required. If you are going to be towing at motorway speeds at least get mid range tyres so from £100/pair upwards. Usual cause of blowouts is old/degraded tyres.
For damp, check for spongy, discoloured areas mainly around wall/floor/ceiling joints, if you find that, unless you are prepared to dismantle inside of 'van & do major repairs, leave it.
I did some research and its possible its around 1984 from a thread on the Preloved forum. Not really bothered about age if its sound though. He says his is better spec than the Abbey Executive, whatever that means in reality.
dont worry too much about the new high spec tyres. a pair of remoulds will do fine they are guranteed and now days are called Budget Tyres. you are only going to do around 500 miles a year. and if you go fast and over loaded you get what you get.
ATS euromaster carry out free caravan tyre check just google your local branch. explain your budget and see what they have.
check the existing ones for tread and any sign of cracking if sound you should be ok. only thing is if the van is sat for long periods eg months with out moving that can "shape" but you will know that when towing.
if in doubt take them along to a good firm and pay the £10 to have them checked. have known people who change their tyres every year "more money than sence" and yet wait untill the car tyres go bald.
ensure you get a spare wheel though. cant count the times I have seen units jacked up with tyre and tow car missing. for the sake of a few kilos weight its plain daft.
Quote: Originally posted by teepee on 16/2/2011
I did some research and its possible its around 1984 from a thread on the Preloved forum. Not really bothered about age if its sound though. He says his is better spec than the Abbey Executive, whatever that means in reality.
I think he may be telling porkies on that one lol, now Abbey did make a 'Piper Executive' which was a grade inpar with the Monza. The Piper had a brown and cream body colour and decals, the Clubman should have tones of Green for this era.
Both had one piece roofs and single glazing with plastic windows.from the 82 season onwards, they also changed from imperial measurements such as the 1200 for the 12ft vans ect, to the metric 3.60,ect and these numbers were also displayed as part of the decals. the Piper's bodywork was also quite textured, as aposed to the smooth pressed pannels with a few ridges of the Monza and Clubman.
Julia
Post last edited on 16/02/2011 18:05:36
------------- Just love to be out amoungst Nature and Wildlife
Celebrating 37 years of Caravanning in 2019, Recently Considered Retiring, but Totally Addicted for Life!
I only have a pic of the back of the caravan in the storage compound, but it does have green down the side. Going to see it at the weekend, will post back here how it turns out.
I might be a bit late to this one, but I bought a 1988 and it was riddled with the dreaded damp. However some time, effort and a handful of materials got it into a very useable state (3 years of caravanning in Devon and Cornwall).
My advice would be to check the running gear first. Tyres can be replaced fairly cheap but get a nosey underneath. Look for serious flakey rust around the axle, and how low the whole thing sits on it's 'suspension'. Also check that the chasis sits square against the base etc.. Also spot on advice from Tentz regarding the hitch just see if it's in good order. (it can be greased and serviced if ok).
Ideally see if it can be moved a bit. this will check the brakes haven't seized and it stays still when the handbrake is on.
Then move inside and do the following
The old sniff test. (Lots of air freshners is a dead give away). If it smells bad then there must be something causing it.
The touch test, run you hands over the walls, especially in corners and around doors and windows. If you feel a soft or bubbled up patch then there's some serious water ingress. usual places are in top corner cupboards or around the front / rear windows lower down (you'll need to move some cushions). Hotspots are usually in or around the toilet, entrance door, and front windows.
Sight test - if you can see staining to the wallboards there's a good chance some water has/is getting in.
Floors - feel if the floor is level and not 'springy' especially around entrance door and kitchen.
Appliances - see if you can get the heater and fridge working? If possible. Most things can be fixed or replaced cheaply from breakers yards, but your fridge and heater are likely to be the most expensive.
Knocking - Not really any use other than to watch the seller squirm a bit
Shaking Head and Nodding - useful to negotiate price
Seriously though, for the price, you are probably looking at finding some level of previous damp/water ingress due to age, and there will be some rusty bits. The important thing is to make sure it's safe and will not fall apart. Then be prepared for a summer/winter/spring/autumn of tinkering, improving, and cleaning (That happens no matter what age the van is ) Remember anything can be fixed with enough time patients and money. The trick is to know how much of each you have spare.
good luck and PLEASE dont rush into it look at my unit in profile it took a little waiting but they do exist.
if on a limited budget look at it as £75 each time you or anyone uses it so £500 outlay and five use it stands you in £125 sell it on for quick sale at £350 and go onwards. I am at present £400 in pocket. EG if the van melts I am at no loss what so ever. and have good look backs. and thats without insurance!
Thank you for the additional posts, I am making a note of what you say ready for Saturday. I have now been sent pics of the van as it was tightly parked in storage until now. Looks ok (ie better than I thought lol), 2 things he said were that regulator and gas pipe have been nicked from the compound and also spare wheel might have been nicked too but he might have that in his shed at home. Also front window is cracked on the inside, is there anything I should look out for on that?
As far as im aware the Clubmans of the 82 era were only fitted with single glazed acrylic windows, it was in the early days of plastic windows instead of glass, and double glazing was almost unheard of in both the housing front and leisure industry, no matter what price range you bought into. Even my mid-range '88 Avondale only had single acrylic glazing, it wasnt until i bought my third van in 92 that we actually got the double glazed type.
If your Clubman does have double glazing, its probably had replacement windows at sometime. If its a single glazed thats cracked, you may get problems with leaks during heavy rain, where as an internal only crack on double glazing is really only superficial, apart from you may get some misting between the panes when the van is heated in cold weather.
Julia
------------- Just love to be out amoungst Nature and Wildlife
Celebrating 37 years of Caravanning in 2019, Recently Considered Retiring, but Totally Addicted for Life!
Been to see this caravan and it wasnt for us. All the cupboards and surfaces were damaged, the walls were spongy in places although no smell of damp. No spare wheel, he thinks it was stolen from the compound. We just didnt have a good feeling about it and didnt want to spend £600 on it. At least now we've seen our first caravan and know what to compare with.
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: Old van Cosalt Clubman
) Remember anything can be fixed with enough time patients and money. The trick is to know how much of each you have spare.
