Well, that was interesting! At least we learned something from it and I'll eventually figure out what that is, I guess.
On Friday, as planned, we left The Sidings before dawn, travelling to Taunton in order to receive our beautiful camper. It was parked up ready for us, paid for and insured. We climbed in and waited for someone to come and take us through everything and to hand over. Meanwhile we checked it over, and made sure the things that had been promised had been done; and that's when things started to go downhill.
My first disappointment was with the shower floor repair. The tiny nick that simply needed a touch of filler had certainly been filled, but with a dirty finger that left an unsightly smudge of resin. It was worse than the original problem! Gareth had found that a door catch hadn't been replaced as promised and it was clear that the van hadn't been fully valeted, as evidenced by the dead flies falling out of the skylights. When our displeasure was communicated a number of grease monkeys appeared with spray bottles and rags to put things right. As I showed one of them the dead flies in a skylight, water dripped and alarm bells rang! No amount of reassurance from the salesman that it was a fixable problem would convince Gareth that the seals hadn't been compromised, either by weathering or the pressure wash we were told was probably the culprit (who pressure washes rubber seals and skylights anyway? It's bound to create problems!). Our confidence in the vehicle was shattered, Gareth said we'd have our money back and we drove away again with me in tears.
Being neither of us in any state to think what we should do next other than find somewhere to stay, we booked a room at a quirky little BnB called the Fitzhead Inn and drove around in circles trying to find it. It proved to be cosy, with friendly company in the bar and a nice meal. As I snuggled into bed, determined not to think about the “what next” Gareth busied himself on the laptop. Gently he mentioned that the night before, he had come across another camper - same model, a bit younger but with a higher mileage. It was for sale privately in the Peak District. Did we have anything to lose by going up to see it? The seller’s emailed response was positive, so off we went again in our little Berlingo van full of dogs and the worldly goods we were carrying with us.
The M5 in pouring rain is no fun, and made worse by lane closures and crawling traffic. Rain became snow by the time we got onto the M6 and we began to wonder about the road conditions on the way to Buxton where we had booked into the Palace Hotel for the night. A cuppa for us at Richard and Libby’s and a run in Fenton Park for the dogs was a nice break, giving me the opportunity of some cuddles with Margot and a rare calling-by chat with my eldest and his lady. We missed Seb though, who’d been delivered to his other grannie for a sleep over.
We arrived in a Christmas-card Buxton in the dark. The Peaks were white and the camper van seller was questioning the possibility of our being able to see the vehicle, parked as it was in a barn in a remote high-up farm. We picnicked that night in our dog-friendly room, bathed and watched a film, hoping that the weather would be ok in the morning. It wasn't, but the seller was happy to oblige us with a viewing if we could get there and so we did.
The van was no match for one we'd left behind in Taunton, at least in terms of its interior. This one has been used but it has been loved, and being a Hymer, has withstood being lived in and everything works. We've been back at The Sidings for a few days until the camper is ready for us on Thursday. Wish us luck that we are luckier this time.
Reflecting on the experience of dealing with a dealer, particularly after hearing other tales of dodgy dealerships I am dismayed that quality control and apprenticeship training is not up to scratch. Obviously it's a risk buying secondhand, but we are finding that a good honest private seller inspires more confidence than a dealership where guarantees mean nothing at all.
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