What do owners think of the Symbol Plus

My earlier thread was concentrated on the Kemerton XL but needing to stick to under 6 meters on my driveway, can anyne tell me what they think of tzhe Symbol Plus? Pros & cons please TIA

I own a 2020 Symbol Plus. In my time I have owned a VW microbus, a Symbol and 2 German Ford Transit based Hobby motorhomes. I decided to down size to a PVC from a large coach built because of Covid travel restrictions. Driving and parking a lumbering coach built vehicle in the UK is a nightmare.
 
I have no regrets at all in downsizing to the Symbol Plus.
 
The good
 
·         Driving is great especially with the air suspension
·         Parking is easy
·         Plenty of oomph !
·         Sitting inside with the sliding door open is superb on a sunny or breezy day
·         The kitchen area is very practical
·         The wet room is a little tight but functional
·         The preparation for sleeping is quick especially using Duvalays
·         Plenty of cubby holes for storage
·         The privacy of having tinted windows
·         Room for a second leisure battery & larger solar panel(s)
·         And so many more………
 
The Bad
 
·         Access to the loo cassette
·         Closing rear door can blow out kitchen blind
·         On a cold night kitchen end is warm whilst cabin end is cold (overcome with the use mini oil fired radiator
·         Position of TV aerial socket
·         Restricted storage for larger items
·         Reversing camera could be better
 
You have to compromise, I didn’t want to drive, park and live in a mobile bungalow, some do !
I have overcome most downsizing problems. The installation of  a Vanstar swinging arm bike rack overcomes the issue of access to the loo cassette when carrying two electric bikes.

Thank you very much for the detailed info, just what i needed to hear. i am coming from a 7 meter "A" Class with 2 double beds which although is exstemely comfortable, it can be worrying driving in places that are a little narrow and places that are only more accessible to van conversions. Although we dont travel with much stuff as we have learnt over many years to only take what you definatley need but things like chairs and tool kits and obviously we need to carry adblue. my concern in the symbol plus wouldbe where to put stuff as assuming the bedding goes under the off side settee.

May I ask why you need to carry adblue?

We configure the van into two single beds in the evenings each with a Duvaley. Daytime the Duvalays are rolled up and secured with wide luggage straps. One is stored underneath the hanging cupboard and the other is stored behind the driver’s seat. Thus the settee becomes a very comfy chaise longue for afternoon snoozes with the sun pouring in through the open side door.
 
We carry a large lidded waterproof box to store the boring camping essentials (leads, hoses and collapsible paraphernalia) This however turns into a stable camping table once we have landed.
 
An A class motorhome and the country roads of Devon, Cornwall, Wales and Scotland do marry well. Super in Euroland but floundering in the UK.

Dbvwt wrote:May I ask why you need to carry adblue?

Some new motorhome models (my 2020 Fiat 2.2) requires to be topped up with ad blue every so often, there will be a blue filler point next to the fuel cap. Can take in excess of 10 litres to fill. Warning when low will appear on the instrument cluster. So I carry 2 X 5 litre containers in an emergency !! Hope that helps.

Thanx again morristraveller for your info gratefully appreciated.  Is your symbol an auto and what bhp it it?

yammy wrote:My earlier thread was concentrated on the Kemerton XL but needing to stick to under 6 meters on my driveway, can anyne tell me what they think of tzhe Symbol Plus? Pros & cons please TIA

Does it have to be the Symbol plus, or is the requirement a panel van <6metres. 

I have the Sussex Duo (think of it the same as Warwick Duo with a couple of extras).  It’s 5.9 metres, has everything including full 4 ring cooker with grill and oven, fridge with freezer compartment, bathroom with shower and toilet (with a simple toilet cassette access). It has a comfortable rear lounge with 2 bench seats, converting to singles (or 1 double if you prefer). I use a Duvalay which I use as a seat topper during the day, so no storage, and means bed prep is 30 seconds.

Obviously if you specifically want a Symbol plus then ignore the above.

Happy hunting.

yammy wrote:

Dbvwt wrote:May I ask why you need to carry adblue?

Some new motorhome models (my 2020 Fiat 2.2) requires to be topped up with ad blue every so often, there will be a blue filler point next to the fuel cap. Can take in excess of 10 litres to fill. Warning when low will appear on the instrument cluster. So I carry 2 X 5 litre containers in an emergency !! Hope that helps.

Yes I realise that, my van also needs adblue but I never carry it. When the warning comes up you still have 1500 miles and adblue is readily available.

Same here. There is ample warning of low AdBlue levels. I top up before setting off on a long trip but don't carry it with me. AdBlue is obtainable at numerous outlets if the need should arise and, tbh, I feel carrying 2 x 5litre containers is way OTT when the space could be utilised for other things.

There is also the fact that adblue supposedly has a shelf life so probably not great to have it sitting around in the van for long periods.
Sorry, thread going a bit off topic!

Thanks for all input on and blue, the van has only done 2500 miles and haven't had any warning lights yet !!!! Got a 2 week trip in June, hadn't thought about topping up before we go, can you overfill and blue ??

Sally wrote:

yammy wrote:My earlier thread was concentrated on the Kemerton XL but needing to stick to under 6 meters on my driveway, can anyne tell me what they think of tzhe Symbol Plus? Pros & cons please TIA

Does it have to be the Symbol plus, or is the requirement a panel van <6metres. 

I have the Sussex Duo (think of it the same as Warwick Duo with a couple of extras).  It’s 5.9 metres, has everything including full 4 ring cooker with grill and oven, fridge with freezer compartment, bathroom with shower and toilet (with a simple toilet cassette access). It has a comfortable rear lounge with 2 bench seats, converting to singles (or 1 double if you prefer). I use a Duvalay which I use as a seat topper during the day, so no storage, and means bed prep is 30 seconds.

Obviously if you specifically want a Symbol plus then ignore the above.

Happy hunting.

I do like the duo but I prefer the openess of the symbol and my requirements are to be less than 6 metres.

yammy wrote:Thanks for all input on and blue, the van has only done 2500 miles and haven't had any warning lights yet !!!! Got a 2 week trip in June, hadn't thought about topping up before we go, can you overfill and blue ??

I don't know but if it comes out of the filler, you'll know

Yes, just top it up before you go. With a 1500 mile warning, I can't see you'll have a problem.

Thanx yet again for info, never had to deal with adblue before

We all have to learn these things. It’s what sharing on a forum is all about. 

We have owned a Symbol Plus for four months now and are great fans of the end kitchen, we have always have panel van conversions in the past and they have always had access through the barn doors at the rear.

Since using the Symbol Plus we think that having the kitchen and wash room across the rear makes the van feel very spacious and being able to use the wardrobe door, cupboard door and privacy screen to close off the whole back end is a real bonus. The major con for us is that the single bed on the N/S of the van is a little to narrow, however, there is the option of making up the transverse double.

Still early days for us in this van yet, but over all very pleased.

Thank you very much for all your replies. Appreciate it.

WE agree with Dbuwt 
we have a 2019  Symbol {not the plus model } we found our new to us in summer this year .. we had a very good explore and   looked all around about the room and space .
we have done 4000 miles still running on its tank of add blue we will go and get 10 L  when the warning light comes on ..

We have a Stanway with the same rear kitchen/bathroom layout. it works very well for us, no squeezing past as in a galley kitchen etc.
Having come from a Topaz with a similar (smaller) front layout as per the Symbol Plus, we liked the big opening door. However the seat beside the door blocked access when made into a lounger or bed. Not ideal when a dog wants to go out at night.
The Stanway on the other hand had a lengthwise pullman style dinette/bed on the offside with lots of room inside the sliding door. Enough room to modify the seating to provide 2 single lounging seats/beds across the van or a double bed lengthwise on the offside. The front seats are not used/needed and I have removed the seat swivel to make the cab more comfortable. The same ideas could be done to a Symbol Plus.

 And for Morristraveller. To improve heating I changed all the ducting to 65mm, a huge transformation.
Good luck with your decision