It's a while since I posted on here, last time I was looking for a trailer tent!
Well, we're searching again.We were camping in Dorset in our Raclet Solena when my other half, Janice, had a fall in the trailer tent. She's 74 now and although her injuries are superficial,(bruises to legs & feet)it's taking some recovery, so we've decided it's time to move up to a small caravan. There's only the 2 of us so we don't need much, but there's a complication (isn't there always?). We have a car from Motability, currently a Toyota C-HR, which has been fine for towing the TT at 499Kg, with a towing limit of 725Kg.
Before going awaylast month, we confirmed our order for the next car, and chose a Ford Tourneo Courier, which is coming at the end of September, and has a towing limit of 1000Kg. So any caravan we choose to buy is gonna have to have a MTPLM of under 1000Kg. We'll have up to about £8K to spend on our caravan
Can anyone suggest suitable makes & models, or point me to websites with that info, 'cos other than Freedoms, Lunar Venus or Ariva, Elddis Xplore 302, and Bailey Discovery D4-2, I can't find any. Janice refuses to have a pop-top, so I'm not suggesting an Eriba Puck!
I can only suggest a look on Auto-Trader.
You can refine the search parameters for various requirements including price, weight, distance etc.
Good luck with your hunting
A good place to get a feel for the market is Caravan Finder. It's NOT a listing of all vans that meet your requirements per se, but what's on the market at any given time, so worth re-visiting from time to time as new stock comes on the market. I've entered your limits (sadly the filters won't go as low as 1000Kg max MTPLM, only 1100Kg, but it's close enough for research. https://www.caravanfinder.co.uk/caravan_search_results.html?be=all&ma=all&mo=&pm=a........ Not exactly a vast choice to choose from currently on sale!
Strangely, your budget limit does you a favour in a way, as older vans were generally lighter than newer vans! But a conventional caravan with MTPLM not exceeding 1000Kg is a tough one to crack! Lunar were VERY good at producing high spec vans at low weight, didn't quite corner the market, but rather dominated it! I've got a 2016 Lunar, had it for 8 years now and absolutely love it. It was one of the few newish largish vans that met my 1350Kg max towing limit.
Can I suggest a folding caravan like a Gober. Once the roof is raised, it's just like an ordinary caravan in terms of space, I found the likes of pop-top Eribas claustrophobic with the low roof around the sides and your head in a 'tent' in the middle when stood up! Downside of Gobers is you have to refit the high level cabinets once the roof is raised, as they travel on the floor! Gober joined a long list of now defunct brands, as they closed down this year, which may influence you, but they were regarded are extremely high quality.
Our caravan would probably meet your requirements perfectly. It is under 1,000kg, and has loads of room for the two of us. It also cost well under your budget. However, we have no plans to sell despite its age.
They are quite rare now though in good condition, so the value is probably starting to climb.
My 1993 Lunar Premiere would also fit your requirements 740KG unladen about a 1000KG. With a large double at the front if you pull the slats out or two singles if you want more space for toilet visits at night. If you fall out or have a visitor there is a single bed at the back that can be left up or converts to a dinette. Again bit like Colin it's not for sale but they are about, condition is vital though !
I would reconsider pop-tops and have a look at some before ruling them out. If its the canvas pop-top sides you don't like, take a look at the Trigano (340, 380. 420 - all under 1000kg miro) as they have panel sides.
I store my 340 in my single garage and its easy to tow due to lower drag.
Fleurettes and Rapido are the older models.
There is a 340 (£6k) and a 380 (£5k) currently listed on Ebay Post last edited on 26/07/2026 21:10:13
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Topic: Caravans suitable for our new car.
via mobile 04/7/2026 at 9:58pm
