Buying a campervan is an important decision for many people. Requiring significant investment and financial commitment, after a property, it’s often one of the biggest purchases people make in their lives. Due to this, we appreciate there are many considerations to make before going ahead and purchasing a campervan.

Here are some of the things we suggest you think about before you take the plunge and purchase…

Who converted the vehicle?

Knowing who converted the campervan and being aware of their credentials is probably one of the biggest considerations you can make when purchasing a campervan. In the UK, there are thousands of campervan converters in operation, so there are a lot to choose from. However, you should choose wisely.

Due to the camper conversion industry being unregulated, the majority of converters haven’t been audited nor do they adhere to any guidelines put in place by an external body. In fact, many of these won’t have even had their vehicles tested beyond the mandatory MOT that the base vehicle requires.

Whilst any two campervans can look the same or very similar to the untrained eye, the truth is they could be very different beneath the surface and this could lead to all kinds of safety complications. To ensure you are purchasing a safe, tested and reliable campervan, look at the approvals and memberships the converter has in place.

At Redline Campers, we are one of only a handful of converters in the UK to be Type Approved by the Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA), an National Caravan Council (NCC) Approved manufacturer, have insurer recognised products, and to build our campervans in an ISO 9001 certified production facility.

How many miles are on the clock?

Whilst campervans are built on commercial vehicles and are designed to cover more miles than the average vehicle, being conscious of the vehicle’s mileage is still important.

Mileage is an indication of the wear and tear of a vehicle, so regardless of the vehicle’s age, if it has covered quite a few miles, you will need to think about the maintenance it will require. You should be aware that the vehicle may require parts such as its timing belt changed in the not too distant future.

If you’re buying your campervan from a reputable dealer, they will either make you aware of the maintenance the vehicle will require or they will have already undertaken it.

What the vehicle was previously used for…

Not all campervans are built on brand new base vehicles. Instead, many converters out there will be taking used commercial vans purchased at auction and converting them into campervans. These vans could have had a previous life as a builder’s van, courier van or similar and could have covered a large number of miles in a short timeframe.

At Redline Campers, over 95% of our base vehicles are VW and Ford dealer sourced. For the most part, these are brand new vans with delivery miles or less on the clock. The remainder of our base vehicles are purchased from select industry contacts and are subject to extensive interior, exterior and mechanical checks before we even consider converting them into campervans.

The warranty you will be receiving 

Regardless of the vehicle being purchased, it’s always very important to check A, it has a warranty, and B, what exactly that warranty covers. The last thing you want is to discover a few weeks or months down the line that you have a vehicle with an issue and it’s not covered by a warranty. 

The vehicle’s service history

To avoid issues later down the line, it makes sense to purchase a vehicle that has been serviced at regular intervals and that hasn’t missed any of these.

How many travelling seats you require

Not all campervans have the same amount of travelling seats, this will depend on the type of seat used in the cab and the type of rear bed installed.

Before you go ahead and purchase a campervan, think about the number of passengers that will be travelling with you. If you have a bigger family or you will be regularly travelling with friends, you might want to opt for a double passenger seat in the cab and a wider three seater bed/seat to the rear.

At Redline Campers, we offer VW and Ford campervans with 4 – 6 seats.

Whether you require a pop top roof or not

A pop top roof will provide standing room inside the campervan, and in most cases will provide additional sleeping space courtesy of an integrated upper bed. If you plan to have more than two people sleeping in your campervan, and if you plan to cook and be able to stand up inside, a pop top roof is a must.

The size of the vehicle

All of the campervans we offer at Redline Campers come in two sizes, SWB and LWB. We build our campervans using VW T6.1 and Ford Transit Custom base vehicles, with both of these measuring 4.9m in length for SWB and 5.3m in length for LWB.

You will find other converters offering other sizes of campervan, these could be bigger, these could be smaller. We find VW T6.1 and Ford Transit Custom vans to be the ideal size for a campervan as these aren’t overwhelming, can be parked in a normal driveway and in supermarket car parks, and as they are of a similar size to many cars on the market. As these vehicles are the most popular vans to convert into campervans, these are views shared by many others too.

Whether you will be using the campervan ‘off-grid’

The beauty of a campervan is that it allows you to venture off the beaten track and go ‘off-grid’. This is something that is not always possible with larger motorhomes. However, if you plan to travel somewhere where a mains hook-up won’t be readily available, you will need to ensure your campervan is suitably equipped. This means ensuring the campervan has a leisure battery, solar panel and an adequate water tank, at the very least.

Do you still have questions about campervans?

If the above hasn’t answered your questions or if it has left you with even more, our friendly team will be happy to assist you.

We have branches in Daventry, Northamptonshire, and Hitchin, Hertfordshire, and our team members in both locations are ready to answer your questions.

You can call our Daventry branch on 01327 703371, and our Hitchin branch on 01462 452856. Alternatively, you can email us at sales@redline-campers.com