I really should know the answers to these as I have been caravanning long enough to know better. We just bought a 2001 Coachman Pastiche 540/4. There is a switch behind thea door to switch thd water pump from external / off / internal, but I cannot find an internal water tank anywhere. Do I have one or is this just a standard switch?
Apparently the front drawers come out, but I cannot see how. I don't see anything holding them down, but I don't want to pull too hard, and if there is nothing holding them down, what stops them falling while being towed?
I don't appear to have any side / marker lights on the front either. All my other caravans have had them and I thought they were mandatory. Should I have them?
My 7kg gas boittles look lost in the front locker, what size bottles can I put in there?
Finally, after a 5 hour journey home, my leisure battery was only showing 12 volts. The 12n and S plugs were connected, but my old caravan was made in 1992. Do I need to alter the wiring on the car to charge the battery? Or have I got something set wrong in the caravan?
I feel a bit daft, as someone with as many posts who has been caravanning since I was a child having to ask such basic questions.
All the 12 volt equipment is working, I was just a bit surprised to see the voltage so low after a 5 hour tow. It could well be a problem with the car, or that the wiring is incompatible as I am sure the wiring standard changed around 1998. I will have to look at the wiring on the car tomorrow as I just discovered the indicators stop working when I pressed the brake (despite being told they were working yesterday when I checked them) I had the same fault on my old caravan, so it can be a safe bet the fault is on the car after all. Just bought a new 12N socket to go on.
Click on my profile and have a look at the bottom photo with the front of the Coachman Amara. Are the front lights in exactly the same place as mine? If they are then the lighting bulbs are in the centre of the reflectors. On the older vans the lights were higher up with just the reflectors at the bottom. The ones in the photo should be all standard on Coachman caravans around this period.
In the front drawers, is there a plastic round disc at the top with a slot in it? If there is then slot should be vertical to lock it which it probably is positioned now. Turn it to the horizontal position with a coin (not a screwdriver) then you should be able to pull open the drawer.
If you have a pump switch marked external / internal then there should be an on board water tank which is normally found under the offside front seat near the water inlet from the pump outside. If there isn't then it may have been removed and re-plumbed just accept the external water barrel.
Are the 7Kg. cylinders Butane (blue)? as normally the Propane cylinders (red) are usually 6kg. sizes. That's what I use anyway.
I am familiar with Coachman caravans because I have been in the Coachman Owners Club for many years so I get to see the majority of models of all ages on the rally field.
I found the front marker lights, they are indeed inside the reflector. Too low for me to see in my mirror. Looks very nice, I bet the bulbs are not easy to change though. I'll take a look under the offside front seat tomorrow for a water tank, but I didn't see anything in there when I waslooking for the best place to mount my mover wiring. The water inlet is towards the rear of this one though. There is a round drum under the bed, but I took this to be the water heater. The seller didn't mention an onboard water tank which is why I was confused by the switch. I'll have a look at the drawers tomorrow too. It's getting a bit dark out there now and I brought the leisure battery in to charge it up. The green indicator was showing on it so couldn't have been that low. Maybe the voltmeter is just reading a bit low.
The bulbs in the reflectors are quite easy to change actually. If you lift up the front locker you will see the rear side of the bulb holders with 2 wires connected directly behind each reflector. All you have to do is turn the black bulb holder about a quarter of a turn and the holder comes out. My reflector was cracked and you could see water moving about inside so I had to change the whole reflector and bulb unit.
The round drum which is probably the water heater is about 2 feet long and is usually covered in polystyrene which is the main body insulation. If you go outside the caravan where the drum is located there should be a large white plastic cowl about a foot square which is the flue to the water heater and possibly a water drain plug will be visible at the bottom left hand corner. If this is the case then it's not an onboard water tank.
If you telephone Coachman Caravans on 01482-839737 their customer relations are quite helpful and will advise with your query plus if you request a handbook for caravans built in 2001 they will send you a handbook for approximately £5. I purchased one from them a few months ago which includes all the useful technical data you need to know about your caravan.
Thanks Tango. I have the handbook that came with it, but no mention in there of an onboard water tank, I was just a bit confused by the switch. Having tried the switch, when you switch to external tank, a light comes on on the switch. When switched to onboard tank, the corresponding light does not come on, so I suspect it was just a case of being the standard switch regardless of whether the tank is actually fitted, or as you suggest, the tank has been removed at some point.
The drum at the back is right by the filter / pump fitting. It has a drain valve inside next to it and looking at it again now, I remember the seller pointing out that the cover from the flue alongside had to be removed to run on gas.
The brakes were miles out of adjustment, so they have been adjusted up today and the motor mover is now fitted. All that's left now is to use it.
I think the battery must have been very low to start with as the habitation relay is working since I couldn't get the lights to come on with the car connected earlier. (My split charging relay has stuck on)
I forgot to look in the drawers, I'll look tomorrow. I'll be out giving it a polish before we go away next weekend. We will probably leave the drawers in place anyway as the kids will be sleeping one each side. They complained about sharing a double bed in our last caravan. I was amazed at how well it towed in comparison to the old van. it weighs about 75% more, has no stabiliser and is about a foot longer, but felt at least as stable on the back of the car. It just took a bit longer to accelerate. Certainly got chance to get the feel of it on the 190 mile trip home on Thursday. Turned out to be a long day, but not nearly as bad as the day we had on Saturday to look at it which involved two breakdowns 19 hours on the road (including almost 5 hours in a recovery truck).
Yes, I did manage to get the top of the drawers off. With the drawers removed, you can see the clips holding it down. It's not a slotted disc on these though, just four plastic clips that turn around. Not sure I'd want to sleep across them though they stick up quite a bit, at least 30mm at a guess. They are the same as the ones that my old caravan used to lock the table against the bathroom wall.
I just wondered whereabout in Wales you were as we are running a holiday rally in New Quay for the Coachman Owners Club in July for a 3 week holiday rally.
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: A few questions on a Coachman Pastiche
