I'm looking to buy our family's first caravan. We are looking for a used 4-berth, but are restricted by the towing limit of our car (Citroen C4 Grand Picasso 1.6HDI), which is 1180kg. We have £5000 to spend.
We have a young child (will be 18 months old next summer), so we would like a rear dinette layout to keep her sleeping area away from the main living area.
So far I have seen some older Avondale Darts and Lunar Chateau models that fit our criteria. What other models should I be considering? And what are people's opinions of the lightweight Avondale and Lunar vans?
We have an Elddis Firestorm 400/4 mtmlp is 1080kg it has an L shaped rear dinette with a bunk above, it can be made into a double and the front makes into a double
ours is a 2000 model, dont know when they stopped making them though
Bailey Ranger 470/4 models are 1179kg mtplm. That is an ideal match!! Granted it is a side dinette rather than a rear dinette, but the large bathroom gives you a separate area to get dressed out of the main lounge area. This is not possible on smaller models with a bunk across the rear of the van.
However as I stated on the other thread, you do not tow your nose weight, that has to be included within your vehicle weight. So with a nose weight of 70kg (if possible with you car) you can tow a van with an weight of 1250kg.
Hi iscacamper,
We have the 5 seater C4 Pic, its an excellent match for the Zenith 4. We have had the Zenith from new in 2005,we love the layout, back in 05 our two teenage sons still came on hols with us but now its just me a the OH.
No major problems,No damp. I have fitted an ALKO Stabiliser and ALKO Shocks.
Back to the Pic, its the 1.6hdi 110bhp,it tows really well on the Autobahns over here in Germany a handles the hilly stretches with no probs.
This June we spent 3 weeks touring Sweden, all the way up to and beyond the Arctic Circle, it was a fantastic trip and probably the best test the outfit has had, needless to say it passed with flying colours !
Thanks for all the suggestions. We put down a deposit on a 2008 Lunar Chateau 400 at the weekend, weighing in at just 1150kg MTPLM. Looking forward to picking it up now!
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: Lightweight 4-berth recommendations
