In my experience, dealer warranties on older vans are worthless, even on the rare occasions they are available. You will be taking almost the same risk as buying privately and paying a premium to cover their profit margins.
Trying to find a damp free older van can be a nightmare but they are out there. Be prepared to travel about a fair bit with your damp meter and to pay for the CRIS check on anything you like the look of.
my 20 year old van was advertised as needing a "damp" repair.. i am sure it reflected in the price..
a small "rotten" area under one of the front windows over the gas locker.. very easy to repair with an obvious cause..
it strikes me the the word "damp" is a much abused and confused word in caravan terminology.. it can mean a slight but recent ingress of water or it can mean as rotten as a pair and not fit for use..
as for touring the country armed with a damp meter.. there is a cost to this if its all about looking to save money and obtain a cheap caravan it could make more sense just to pay a bit more in the first place.. :)
with an older van i do think the asking price reflects the condition..
I wouldn't advocate travelling miles and miles around the country unless there was something that looked worthwhile and ticked all the boxes.
I would agree with trog, that the price usually reflects the condition but this is not always the case, especially at some dealerships. I have looked at old vans (obviously trade ins) asking high prices that were so damp you could smell it when walking through the door, no need for a meter. Needless to say there was no warranty given.
We bought a 10 year old van from private sellers on this site. They were retiring from caravanning and included a fantastic awning. Our van was very ancient and past its best although we could have carried on with it for a couple more years. I saw the ad when we were on holiday in Pembrokeshire, the owners were lin the area although the van was in Pembrey. It was a good van, at the right time in the right place. We paid £3000 and are very pleased with it. Something will turn up for you.
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Topic: help for used caravan
