In this vlog, Kathryn Bird recounts how her 2015 motorhome broke down just before a guided Wandering Motorhome Club trip to the Loire Valley, forcing her to borrow her inâlaws' motorhome for the journey and for the upcoming NEC Show. She reflects on the reliability of her aging vehicleânow around 78,000â100,000 milesâand questions whether to keep it given upcoming adventures, including a Morocco trip. Kathryn outlines a detailed wishâlist for a replacement motorhome, emphasizing storage, a garage for helmets and an eâbike, sufficient payload (especially if she exceeds the 3.5âtonne limit), an awning, solar panels, lithium battery, a decent fridge, wardrobe, bathroom, and a fixed rear bed (avoiding noisy dropâdown beds). She notes size constraints (max ~7 m) and the need for four seatbelts for occasional child passengers. She explains the regulatory implications of vehicles over 3.5 tonnesâspeed limits, toll passes, vignettes, and stickers. Kathryn describes her plan to research options at the NEC Show, including filtering by size, videoârecording exterior plaques and interiors to remember models, and narrowing down choices. Finally, she promotes a live âBuyer Bewareâ workshop aimed at new and upgrading motorhome buyers, covering decision trees, questions to ask, and the purchase process.
Chapters
Despite it looking almost identical, this is not my motorhome. My motorhome broke down a few weeks ago and caused absolute carnage because yet again I was on my way somewhere very important and it just stopped working as it was supposed to do. So this time I was on my way to meet the next group of our guided group trip with the Wandering Motorhome Club, and I was taking a group of people across from the UK down into the Loire Valley. And we were meeting up in a campsite near the Channel Tunnel, and I literally, I had just done the MOT on the van. It was fine. I'd gone down and done the Shepton Mallet Show. It was fine. I'd parked it up near the house, loaded it up, and 2 days later got in it to drive down to Kent. No indicators. The hazards worked absolutely fine, but the indicators just didn't work. So that created this entire, oh my goodness, how do I lead a guided motorhome trip? When I don't have a working motorhome. It was an interesting challenge. And this is Adam's parents' motorhome, and they very kindly offered to lend it me for the trip. And then now that I'm back, they've also lent it me to go up to the NEC Show because my motorhome is in the garage and is hopefully gonna get fixed at some point. But it has now become a thing in my brain, like, how trustworthy is my motorhome? It's done a lot of miles now. I think she's up at about 78,000. 100,000 miles, and while the engine is fine, it's all the little bits and the sensors and stuff that are just starting to give me pause. And should I continue to keep this motorhome when I've got so many other things planned and adventures planned? I'm going all the way down to Morocco next year. Like, is it time to sell? So as I'm filming this, the NEC Show is in like a few days, and one of the things that I am going to be looking at At the NEC Show is, do I want to change my motorhome? And if I do want to change my motorhome, what do I want to change it for? Now, I've obviously done thousands of miles in my motorhome, and there are some things I really, really love about it. So I love the fact that it has got the extra dining area. I love the fact that we've turned the rear lounge area into a proper bed because it means I don't have to make it up every night. I love the fact that it's got a proper wardrobe and it's got a proper fridge. fridge, and I love the fact that it has got an awful lot of storage. Those are all things I really like about it. It's also got a really decent amount of payload on there, although we are cutting it a little bit fine when Adam joins me on my trips because we're just aboutâ I think the last one we did was like 3,450. However, I've now done my C1 license, so I can now either upplate that van, or if I'm changing it, go for one that is over 3.5 tonnes. So there are some considerations for the new van on what I want and also things that I need to think about. So for the new van, I definitely want some decent storage. I want a garage. I do not have a garage on my current motorhome. This motorhome doesn't have a garage either, but the Bailey one that I took up to Iceland had a fantastic garage and I really liked it. And especially now we're doing more touring with the motorcycles and things, somewhere to put all that helmets and gear and all of that stuff. And also I'd like to carry like an e-bike when I'm on my and stuff so I can go and explore a little bit easier. That would be really nice to be able to have all of that in a garage nice and safe. So that's something to definitely consider. The other thing, of course, is to consider payload. So whether I go above or below 3.5 tonnes, making sure I've got enough payload to carry things like the e-bike and all my gear. I want to make sure I have an awning on there, some solar panels, all of this kind of stuff. I want to make sure that there is enough payload on whatever vehicle I end up with to be able to put put all the stuff that I'm used to travelling with. If I do go over 3.5 tonnes, I need to consider things like speed limits when I'm touring. I need to consider things like getting vignettes or GO boxes when I go into Austria or Switzerland, because there's a slightly different process when your vehicle is over 3.5 tonnes, and also just general tolls. You need to have certain toll passes if you're over 3.5 tonnes, and things like the Anglesey stickers and stuff that you have to display if your vehicle is over 3.5 tonnes. So those are all things to think about if I do decide to go up to a heavier vehicle. Other things that I definitely want from the new vehicle is I definitely want a wardrobe. This one doesn't have one, or technically it does, but Adam's parents have turned them into shelves, which is fine. But for me, especially because I do so many shows and things, I like to have everything hung up and sort of ready to go. So I definitely would like something with a wardrobe. I definitely want a decent-sized fridge and decent storage. This has got less storage than I'm used to, and it's been okay. But there's a lot of stuff sort of sitting around all over the place, so I would definitely want some proper storage. I do not want a drop-down bed, or if I do get a drop-down bed, it needs to be at the rear of the vehicle. So this motorhome doesn't have a drop-down bed, whereas my one does, and just the lack of noise has been so, so nice. I'm really good at stopping rattles. It's one of my superpowers, and even with all my superpowers, I cannot stop that drop-down bed from making all the noise. Like, the actual screws and the rails just Rattle, especially when you're going down a bumpy road. So this one is so much nicer and quieter. So I definitely don't want the dropdown bed. I definitely still want a motorhome rather than a smaller camper van because I don't like the smaller feel of a camper van, even though there are vans I love, like the Adria Twin, but I just don't think I could spend like 6 weeks in that, maybe on my own. I definitely still like having the double sort of living area. So like a bed or the end lounge and then a dining area separate, because I think for the way I use the vehicle, that works really well. I wouldn't mind having the bed that dropped down over the rear lounge, but again, if I want a garage, that isn't a setup you're going to see a lot. I want a decent bathroom where it's got a shower and stuff in it because I like using them a lot when I'm on my own. It's now raining really hard. So then some other things I need to think about is obviously the size of it. I really don't want to go above 7 meters. I mean, 7.2 meters would be fine, but I think 7.5 and up It limits you a little bit on where you can stay. And I love the freedom of having the smaller van. So obviously my last motorhome, or the one I have now, was 7.8 meters and it was fine, but it was just that little bit longer. So there were lots of aires and things that you couldn't use. So I think 7 meters is kind of my max with a little bit of wiggle room. Age, obviously my motorhome that I have now at the moment is 2015. So it's 11 years, nearly 12 years old. So I think something within the last 5 years, I don't think I could afford a brand brand new But I think something maybe a year or 2 old, maybe up to about 5 years, it would have to depend on, like, the warranty and all that kind of servicing and all that kind of stuff. So I'd have a look at that. But those are the sort of things that I'm looking at. I definitely would still like 4 seat belts because obviously we take the kids occasionally, even if they don't stay in the van, we go camping and then I have a tent next door. So it would be nice to be able to still do that. And then I also need to make sure that there is somewhere for Mac, although he tends to sleep on the bed, so that's easy, but just somewhere that I can secure him when we're travelling, make sure that He's comfortable. So those are the things that I need to consider. And then obviously, of course, if I do change my van, I need to consider things like getting an awning fitted, getting solar panels, getting a new lithium battery, getting rechargeable LPG put on. Then I've got things like my tracker and the alarm system and all of these extra bits which can add up an awful lot of costs. So it is a big decision. I haven't made up my mind yet, but I am definitely going to be spending some time at the NEC Show going around different options. And I know at the NEC Show, or new models, but you can get an idea on what you like, the kind of layout you like, the kind of brand you like, all of that kind of stuff. The NEC show, in the October one particularly, is huge, so I will be spending a little time every day sort of breaking it down and just looking at the ones that suit my needs. If I go into every single motorhome, it's too much, so I'm gonna try and just whittle it down. I mean, first thing I'd whittle it down would be by size, so Maybe I'll just look at all the 7-meter ones or 6.5 to 7-meter ones, and I'll just go through. And one thing I had, definitely a tip that I would recommend for anyone who's in the same boat, is video the outside of the van and the name, the plaque with all the information on it. Video that first, then video the inside, because at the end of the day, we're like, oh, what was that one? And it had this, and you can't remember what they all are. So video them if you like them. So go in, check, see if you like it or not, and then the ones that you like, go out and video the outside and the plaque and then the inside, and you'll be able to remember. able to remind yourself of them. So that's what's going on. My motorhome is still in the garage. Adam's parents obviously need their motorhome back after the NEC show, so I will be motorhomeless until they can fix mine. But it will be interesting to see what the next week brings. If you're not already subscribed to the channel, you better get on that so you can watch this space. Now, if you are in the same boat, if you're looking to exchange your vehicle or upgrade to something different, Or if you're brand new to motorhoming or campervanning and you're thinking about buying your very first one, I'm running a Buyer Beware workshop on Monday, and that is going through everything to think about, all the different sort of decision trees and things that you need to have in your mind whilst you're going around to look at different options. And then once you've found one that you think is the one, then what you need to consider, questions you need to ask, how the process works, things to be aware of, all of that good stuff. So ideal for brand new buyers, but also for people like me who are looking at exchanging or changing theirs up, then you'll find that useful as well. All the videos for that will be below this video and it will be live, so you'll be able to jump on and ask me any questions that you may have. So I hope you can join us. Right. That is all from me. Fingers crossed and we will see what happens next week. Thanks as always for watching and I'll see you next time. Take care. Bye. Bye.
