Nuevo or Broadway

Switching the habitation electrics off is a legal requirement to ensure that nothing in the habitation side of the van causes electromagnetic interference that could impair the operation of the base vehicle electrics - which are very sophisticated these days.

AS did use a system for a while that allowed the engine to be run without switching off the electrics but a motion detector did the same job as soon as the vehicle was moved.

Peter

Yes, I've no objection to them being switched off although I didn't realise that it was a legal requirement.    Presumably there is an exception for the 12v fridge operation.    But I think it would be clever if they could turn the habitation electric back on again, for my convenience:snigger:

Trouble is that a lot of people use their vans a lot of the time without camping. If the habitation electrics was switched on every time the engine was switched off, a lot of people would have flat leisure batteries the next time the came to the van.

Peter

Hmmmmmmm........ Very good point, Peter  

We purchased our Nuevo 2 berth in 2011 from Heart of England Motorhomes having looked into all makes/models etc. For the previous 13 years since our retirement my wife and I travelled Europe useing a 4x4 towing large caravans with fixed beds etc. At the 2011 Birmingham show we  said that the Autosleepers product was good but the design did not meet our requirements as we liked the 2berth interior but wanted the 4 berth body with an increase to the plate weight up to 3,500 kgs. Eventually we got what we asked for and took possesion of the vehicle (we call it "THE BUBBLE") and that is what it is!! So far it has been to Africa, as far west as Portugal and as far Sth East as Sicily covering not far short of 30.000 miles, in fact we have just put a new set of tyres on!! We mainly wild camp and have found that the smaller the better. After being a tin tent tugger for all these years with 45 foot of vehicle to worry about this is a doddle!! The only thing that we have to consider when pulling up for the night is "Do we feel safe" If so we use the front seats reversed to make 2 single beds or if feeling a bit vunerable, we make the double bed so as to be able to make a quick getaway!! The extra plate weight and the extra storage well makes up for the 50cms that the Broadway provides. Get it right because you can loose a fortune if you get it wrong. Lots of our friends with big rigs do not have half the fun that we do and are so restricted!! GOOD LUCK with your decision.

So you don't use the steadies when in the double bed then! 

No , but just lately the wife is always saying that she feels vulnerable even when we are on a campsite next to the security guard!! Am I missing something?

Have you ever had to make a quick getaway ?    We never have and we wild camp quite a bit.    Good idea about using the double bed though if you are worried.

Mutleysdad wrote:We purchased our Nuevo 2 berth in 2011 from Heart of England Motorhomes having looked into all makes/models etc. For the previous 13 years since our retirement my wife and I travelled Europe useing a 4x4 towing large caravans with fixed beds etc. At the 2011 Birmingham show we  said that the Autosleepers product was good but the design did not meet our requirements as we liked the 2berth interior but wanted the 4 berth body with an increase to the plate weight up to 3,500 kgs. Eventually we got what we asked for and took possesion of the vehicle (we call it "THE BUBBLE") and that is what it is!! So far it has been to Africa, as far west as Portugal and as far Sth East as Sicily covering not far short of 30.000 miles, in fact we have just put a new set of tyres on!! We mainly wild camp and have found that the smaller the better. After being a tin tent tugger for all these years with 45 foot of vehicle to worry about this is a doddle!! The only thing that we have to consider when pulling up for the night is "Do we feel safe" If so we use the front seats reversed to make 2 single beds or if feeling a bit vunerable, we make the double bed so as to be able to make a quick getaway!! The extra plate weight and the extra storage well makes up for the 50cms that the Broadway provides. Get it right because you can loose a fortune if you get it wrong. Lots of our friends with big rigs do not have half the fun that we do and are so restricted!! GOOD LUCK with your decision.

Hiya
nice to see a conversion from tin tent tugger to motorhome, have been having this debate with some friends about pros and cons of caravan v motorhome. Did you find that you struggled with space in the Neuvo as i really like the new ones with the cab roof skylight but you do lose a bit of storage as a result but being a small van it does make it lovely and light inside and how do you cope with the swing wall shower? cheers Robin.

Peter Brown wrote:Before you go to the NEC you need to make some decisions or you will go round in circles.  A few of the questions:

Is new essential or would you rather have a van a couple of years old that better matches your needs?

Do you plan to use the van more than a night at a time OFF EHU, if so electricity consumption is an issue.

Leisure batteries, one or two?

Solar panel, yes or no?

Truma combi - always needs electricity; Trumatic Fire - doesn't.

Internal water tanks yes/no?

Economy of fixed gas tank or flexibility of cylinders?

Shower in the van yes/no/sometimes?

TV? Satellite? (roof space and power).  Where do you want to watch the TV from?

Where will you store bedding? Chairs?  A luton is a great glory hole and more effective than add on boxes (always said I wouldn't have one - big mistake later rectified).

Comfortable driving position - for both!!

Etc, etc, etc.

In all of this ferry costs are insignificant.  It is expensive and very inconvenient to store the van away from home.  Is the Broadway really too long?

Sorry to be brief but preparing for a few weeks away.

Peter

Hi Peter, great reply, thank you for that, can you explain a little more about the variations in heating / combi systems and whether they work off 12v which i assume most would. The only 230 system for heating would be electric on EHU ? cheers Robin

We don't use the swing wall shower much but on the occasions when we have it has been excellent. Our previous Hymer had a plastic curtain which was far more restrictive - and it helps having separate water controls for the shower. Some vans use the shower head for the basin as well.
Turning to heaters, there are two types of Truma heater/boiler. Peter mentioned the convector heater with a separate boiler for hot water. That is two separate units and either can be gas only or gas plus mains electric. They both need 12V for ignition and flame monitoring, for which 12V consumption is negligible. The convector heater has a 12V boster fan (which can be a little noisy) to blow air to some parts of the van, notably bathroom and that takes some current from the leisure battery. The Combi heater, as its name implies, does both hot water and heating in a single unit, which on modern Nuevos, is under the wardrobe. It will work on gas only, mains only or both together. BUT it has to use 12V to circulate warm air, which is Peter's concern. It has not worried us but we are more often than not on mains anyway. Both types of heater use large quantities of gas for space heatimg but little more than a kettle for heating the water, in our experience. I personally prefer the Combi and it doesn't rattle like the convector heater.

inspiredron wrote:We don't use the swing wall shower much but on the occasions when we have it has been excellent. Our previous Hymer had a plastic curtain which was far more restrictive - and it helps having separate water controls for the shower. Some vans use the shower head for the basin as well.
Turning to heaters, there are two types of Truma heater/boiler. Peter mentioned the convector heater with a separate boiler for hot water. That is two separate units and either can be gas only or gas plus mains electric. They both need 12V for ignition and flame monitoring, for which 12V consumption is negligible. The convector heater has a 12V boster fan (which can be a little noisy) to blow air to some parts of the van, notably bathroom and that takes some current from the leisure battery. The Combi heater, as its name implies, does both hot water and heating in a single unit, which on modern Nuevos, is under the wardrobe. It will work on gas only, mains only or both together. BUT it has to use 12V to circulate warm air, which is Peter's concern. It has not worried us but we are more often than not on mains anyway. Both types of heater use large quantities of gas for space heatimg but little more than a kettle for heating the water, in our experience. I personally prefer the Combi and it doesn't rattle like the convector heater.

Just what i wanted to hear thank you, I am now almost definately going for the Nuevo but having been totally taken with the EK low profile, i now find myself moving towards the ES 4 berth as although i will use it as a couple and a dog van, the storage is so much more handier as i have alot of stuff to take with me ie 2 x 10 pole windbreaks, tables, chairs, dog stuff, satellite dishes etc (one is 50cm and the other 80 cm) plus all bedding etc and i dont want to start worrying about storing stuff in a regimented way!! and i dont think the low profile could handle my junk despite only taking what i need away with me!!

Robin

Here are some comments you may find useful.

We have the Nuevo ES. There are usually three of us travelling so we need the extra berths. However, we do think if it had only been two of us we would still go for the ES primarily because you do have a lot more storage space. The overcab is great for storing bedding ( we use Duvaleys) and other bulky but lighter items. I would not store heavier items in the overcab unless they were tied down effectively.

Having just waxed the van for the first time I haven to admit that reaching the top of the overcab is a challenge :-)

We find the combi boiler very effective.

Previously we had a caravan with the large end bathroom which was great. When we decided to change to a motorhome we knew there would be a big compromise on space. 

The flexibility and convenience you have with a van the size of a Nuevo is worth it. We now move around a lot more from site to site. Even the ease of changing pitch on the same site is great compared to the caravan.

Overall we are very happy with the Nuevo.

I hope you find what you are looking for.

Regards, John

silver wrote:Robin

Here are some comments you may find useful.

We have the Nuevo ES. There are usually three of us travelling so we need the extra berths. However, we do think if it had only been two of us we would still go for the ES primarily because you do have a lot more storage space. The overcab is great for storing bedding ( we use Duvaleys) and other bulky but lighter items. I would not store heavier items in the overcab unless they were tied down effectively.

Having just waxed the van for the first time I haven to admit that reaching the top of the overcab is a challenge :-)

We find the combi boiler very effective.

Previously we had a caravan with the large end bathroom which was great. When we decided to change to a motorhome we knew there would be a big compromise on space. 

The flexibility and convenience you have with a van the size of a Nuevo is worth it. We now move around a lot more from site to site. Even the ease of changing pitch on the same site is great compared to the caravan.

Overall we are very happy with the Nuevo.

I hope you find what you are looking for.

Regards, John

Hi John
that is exactly what i want to hear, brilliant as I was abit concerned that although i have seen a few low profile Nuevo's about, i have yet to see an ES and i couldnt understand why for such a small van that more people are not going for the ES for the larger storage even though its a 4 berth and sounds perfect for 2 people... oh and a dog!! Do you find filling the water with the Whale system a pain due to length of time to fill?

Cheers Robin

Robin

I've never used the whale system. When I ordered the Nuevo I asked that they fit the standard type filler in addition to the whale set up. This was done at the factory with no loss of storage space under the seats.

Regards, John

Having read all the valuable comments made, my wife and I have been using our BUBBLE for the last 2 years with the 4 berth body and the 2 berth interior have found the perfect solution which has required a completely different "MINDSET" to that of towing a caravan as we had for many years. In fact up until 2 years ago I swore I would never consider buying a motorhome. I got to age 65 after being retired for 13 years and started to find towing a big rig which gave us all the space and comfort one could wish for but I started to get stressed which combined with high blood pressure forced us to reconsider our lives that included 6 months European travel each year. I have kept a log of all these years which has included a financial account of each trip. The most noticeable thing was the reduction in cost of using the motorhome instead of the car and caravan. Less fuel - Less Mileage - Less Campsite costs (We now wild camp for approx 60% of the time which at 16 euro's a night is quite a saving!!) I think that the only skill required to enjoy the motorhome concept is a well organised discipline about the way we travel. Any item we carry, if we don't use it, we loose it!!

silver wrote:Robin

I've never used the whale system. When I ordered the Nuevo I asked that they fit the standard type filler in addition to the whale set up. This was done at the factory with no loss of storage space under the seats.

Regards, John

Thank you John, good to hear, having the option is clearly the best way.

Cheers
Robin