Hi everyone,

I was wondering if among the legal eagles in forum land I would be within my rights if I asked the dealer to connect up and run everything in the van BEFORE I sign anything or hand over any more money?

I just don't want to hook up and drive away with a verbal assurance that everthing is ok only to find on our first night in the van that we have to go back to the dealer and try to get some "service".

It would seem from the experience of other members that this has happened and the phrase "you accepted it, if you have any problems call the factory" comes to mind.

An ounce of prevention Etc.

a good dealer will do that anyway. pick up our vvan next week and that is what theyll do.

hi my dealer spent more than an hour going over everything and run all appliances

When we bought our second hand van it was plugged in so we could test everything - the dealer spent an hour going over "how to do" things and was very helpful when we had to ring a month later with a question about switching from gas to electric HWS - take a pen and paper to jot down info as we were were so excited we forgot much of what was said and the manuals did not always help. Safe and happy vanning.

The dealer should have a check list that he will go through with you and get you to sign off on.
All appliances, lights, etc should be switched on, using 240V, 12V and gas as appropriate.

We spent 3 hours with the dealer before anything was signed checking, testing etc. The service was great. A couple of minor issues still surfaced and the dealer personally came out, checked and said drop the van back on our last day before going to the boat and it was fixed on the spot.

When we picked our van up the dealer could not be more helpful, he introduced us to the guy who spent half the day taking us over our van and answering any questions we had, and we had a lot. He even missed his morning and lunch breaks to show us how everything worked and where everything was.
We were very happy with the service.

Cheers
Bygrave
Happy Vanning

I found that there were so many things to check & I was told so many things to remember, that realistically it is impossible to ensure everything works properly.

Not that we found any unpleasant suprises when we got home, but there are just too many things to check them all. Even now, we have probably stayed in our van for a combined 10 weeks or so & still have not used everything.

Best thing to do is write yourself a list & tell the dealer that you have a checklist that you want to go through so you can see how/make sure everything works.

You really need to stay in your van in order to check some things and some things may not be obvious at first anyway.

Not sure if you are purchasing privately or through a dealer although I am guessing from a dealer. If from a dealer, don't stress too much because most will try to do the right thing. It is usually only the horror stories that are told and the ones we remember.

Good luck & enjoy your new van.

We pick up our new van in June and we have been told that even after the dealer does an extensive check it is wise to hang around the area for about a week trying out everything before leaving so that any niggly bits can be put right.
That is our plan!!!

So far we have asked a lot of questions and have been treated with a great deal of respect on all ocassions.

We have booked in for a weeks stay at a van park just up the road in order to test and check everything prior to two trips we have organised.

I intend to keep a log of our travels and things I feel are important.

CHEERS.........