Very close to taking the plunge!

[Rhyddin]

Hi all,

Thought I'd jump into the forum, having watched for a little while!

I currently drive a 2013 Audi A6 3.0d Quattro and pull a caravan, when time allows. I love my caravan and have no desire to get rid of it (especially as my 8 & 9 year old still love going away in it). I also love my car, driving around 15k miles a year, but I do dream of a day van for those days out and the option of being able to quickly go away, without the caravan but still with a bed behind me. Add to the fact that I've just had my car valued and it has lost £20k in 2 years and I'm now seriously considering the jump to a Beach.

An SE would be an unnecessary duplication of facilities (& I want at least 3 seats in the back) so the Beach is the ideal way to go. I had the option last week, from my local VW Commercial dealers, of a Blackberry Beach which is being built this week, with great spec and a 12-13% saving on list, but the T6 has me hesitating. Plus, and more influencially, my wife is not convinced at the idea of extra monthly payments because her car is only 6 months old with a bit still outstanding.

Therefore, I think I've pretty much decided to hang on until 2016, by which point my wife's car will be paid for - and mine will be worth even less! In the meantime, I'm absorbing as much information and experience as I can from yourselves - hope you don't mind! ;-)

Particularly interesting to hear about people who use their Cali as their every day vehicle, as mine will be.

Anyway, good to join the forum and keep sharing your experiences!

 

[calikev]

Hi and welcome. You should find all the info you need on the beach

 

[Hotel California]

Welcome !
From an Audi quattro to a Cali ....so start saving for a 4Motion
If not your questions are answerd afther reading the forum inside-out , just ask and the answer will come ....let's hope!

 

[Rhyddin]

Ha, yes! The T5 beach is limited on options for the engine and drive train, unfortunately. The SE gets all the best combinations.

I'm hoping that the new 204ps diesel, DSG and 4Motion makes it into the T6 Beach. Be expensive, mind you, but it'll hold its value better than my Audi! MPG will have to come into play, too.

 

[motacyclist]

Welcome Rhyddin; when you get, it you will love your Cali more than your car

 

[AlanC]

Welcome to the forum.

I use ours as my everyday drive. It is better than our car as it is auto and has heated seats. Perfect!

Alan

 

[cozmo1589]

I use mine every day and it's great however rusting roof and failing egr valve which loads suffer from has dented my affection for the California

 

[Meoncoast]

My view is the PLUS points out weighs the negatives of owning a California, ours is a daily drive and now runing at over 40k and 3 years old. Our is a beach hut with wheels and a lot cheaper than a hut on the south coast.
Happy campervaning here and ps welcome to the forum

 

[Rhyddin]

Thanks all. I agree with the mobile beach hut idea and am pleased to hear about Californias being everyday vehicles. I love the idea of taking a break in the back or working back there if I get to a customer with a little time to kill. How is the insurance on them, in comparison to a car?

I'm off to google 'egr valve' now!

 

[Skylark2.0]

Thanks all. I agree with the mobile beach hut idea and am pleased to hear about Californias being everyday vehicles. I love the idea of taking a break in the back or working back there if I get to a customer with a little time to kill. How is the insurance on them, in comparison to a car?

I'm off to google 'egr valve' now!

If you want business use (more than just to a specified place ifwork) then it restircts your options and puts the price up. I am a consultant and when I visit clients I go in the van and use it as a mobile office. I also have an indiscression on mine (my fault) which puts the price up again. We use safeguard who have been brilliant. Ours was £450 which was several hundred pounds cheaper than my very restricted other options.

 

[WelshGas]

The California DOES NOT suffer from a " rusting roof ". It is Bi-metallic corrosion because of the aluminium alloy used in the front roof section and the elevating section. It can be cosmetically unsightly but the rest of the steel in the California will have rusted away before it causes any structural problems.

Rant over.

When you get your California you'll kick yourself for waiting so long. Also, a much better tow car for your, dare I say it, caravan.

 

[cozmo1589]

The California DOES NOT suffer from a " rusting roof ". It is Bi-metallic corrosion because of the aluminium alloy used in the front roof section and the elevating section. It can be cosmetically unsightly but the rest of the steel in the California will have rusted away before it causes any structural problems.

Rant over.

When you get your California you'll kick yourself for waiting so long. Also, a much better tow car for your, dare I say it, caravan.

Oh please forgive me For it was I who used the word rusting, I didn't mean to offend. If I used the word rusting incorrectly then I stand corrected. In the future I'll use the wording corroding roof instead. To a layman like me though, whether they all suffer from rust or corrosion, it all look the same to me - awful unsightly bubbling blistering paintwork that can take a year or two for vw to get their act together to sort out under their anti corrosion warranty.

 

[WelshGas]

Having owned a Land Rover Defender for a number of years, I know the difference, and there is a difference.
The roof corrosion is unsightly as I mentioned but it is a different process. I'm sorry you are upset at my comments, that's life, as they say.
Have a good day! I am.

 

[cozmo1589]

Having owned a Land Rover Defender for a number of years, I know the difference, and there is a difference.
The roof corrosion is unsightly as I mentioned but it is a different process. I'm sorry you are upset at my comments, that's life, as they say.
Have a good day! I am.

It's not your comments that upset me more mine that did you I think if you re read all the posts however what has really upset me is buying a very expensive and supposedly premium motor home that is corroding already and needing its egr valve replacing at a cost of £1200:00 and it's only 4.5 years old and covered a mere 31,000 miles. Add to that the buffoons who run my local vw dealership and you've a recipe for one unhappy owner. My only saving grace is they seem to hold their value well and so I should not be loosing out too much when mine is fully sorted and I sell and then buy something a little more reliable that does not corrode at such a young age ;-)

 

[WelshGas]

I know what you mean, but you only have to look at other forums for premium vehicles. Basically the designers and manufacturers have gone too far in many respects to pander to the political and green lobby in trying to make vehicles that work and fit in with the publics needs. The California/T5 is not the worst by a long shot and the roof corrosion has been accepted by VW and is being fixed. Nothing lasts forever and as you say the California residuals are good so VW must be doing something right in the long term.

 

[AlanC]

Hi Rhyddin

The EGR valve can be a problem if you use your van only for short local trips. My daily commute is about 6.5 miles, know I am lazy, but my excuse is I am just about to retire! However, we regularly travel to the West Midlands and London on grandparent duties plus weekends away, and the steady motorway runs cleans it out.

If you fancy improved fuel consumption and a little more power under your foot, then a remapping company can arrange to disable the EGR I believe. Not something I would do while the van is in warranty though.

Alan

 

[cozmo1589]

Hi Rhyddin

The EGR valve can be a problem if you use your van only for short local trips. My daily commute is about 6.5 miles, know I am lazy, but my excuse is I am just about to retire! However, we regularly travel to the West Midlands and London on grandparent duties plus weekends away, and the steady motorway runs cleans it out.

If you fancy improved fuel consumption and a little more power under your foot, then a remapping company can arrange to disable the EGR I believe. Not something I would do while the van is in warranty though.

Alan

Well my Cali has done 7000 miles per year and that's a mix of town driving and regular trips from south coast to Sheffield, London and to visit our daughter in Paris. After 31,000 miles the egr has given up the ghost and now it's a £1200:00 fix.

 

[Rhyddin]

Thanks all. I'll be sure to keep an eye out for symptoms of EGR problems when I do get my Beach.

Can't wait to see the T6 spec for the UK! Looking at the German brochure, their spec levels appear to have dropped so, hopefully, the same won't happen here. The options list is already looking long after getting used to the luxuries in my car! I love my xenon lights, front & back sensors, reverse camera, google sat nav, self parking, heated leather seats, 4 wheel drive, 7 speed auto, etc but I accept some will have to go.

The question then is which almost important? Not that bothered about leather but xenons are just awesome! Sensors are a must with the size, I believe, but self parking is a seldom used party piece. 4 wheel drive has been great but probably not necessary while a DSG auto box is superb but mpg drops in the Cali. What options do you think are necessities? The awning is a given but the rest need some verification.

Cant wait to learn more!

 

[cozmo1589]

Thanks all. I'll be sure to keep an eye out for symptoms of EGR problems when I do get my Beach.

Can't wait to see the T6 spec for the UK! Looking at the German brochure, their spec levels appear to have dropped so, hopefully, the same won't happen here. The options list is already looking long after getting used to the luxuries in my car! I love my xenon lights, front & back sensors, reverse camera, google sat nav, self parking, heated leather seats, 4 wheel drive, 7 speed auto, etc but I accept some will have to go.

The question then is which almost important? Not that bothered about leather but xenons are just awesome! Sensors are a must with the size, I believe, but self parking is a seldom used party piece. 4 wheel drive has been great but probably not necessary while a DSG auto box is superb but mpg drops in the Cali. What options do you think are necessities? The awning is a given but the rest need some verification.

Cant wait to learn more!

Definitely agree with you re xenon lights and parking sensors front and rear and also agree about not needing self parking. Two things re self parking. There's a video doing the rounds this week showing a volvo about to do a parallel parking maneuver infront of employees and the press and instead it ploughed into the unsuspecting crowd watching and my brother in law last year had a brand new top spec range rover sport with self parking, on the day he got it with me in the car he gave the self Park a go for the first time and although it did Park itself it went up and down the high kerb a few times while doing it and in the process managed to scrape both nearside alloy wheels. One option I will never choose to have nor pay for either.

 

[Rhyddin]

Definitely agree with you re xenon lights and parking sensors front and rear and also agree about not needing self parking. Two things re self parking. There's a video doing the rounds this week showing a volvo about to do a parallel parking maneuver infront of employees and the press and instead it ploughed into the unsuspecting crowd watching and my brother in law last year had a brand new top spec range rover sport with self parking, on the day he got it with me in the car he gave the self Park a go for the first time and although it did Park itself it went up and down the high kerb a few times while doing it and in the process managed to scrape both nearside alloy wheels. One option I will never choose to have nor pay for either.

Oh no! That would be heart breaking!
Mine parks around a foot away from the kerb to avoid damaging its wheels but, as a big car, this means it's generally outside of the parking bay on the other side, as a result. The parallel parking isn't bad but it's only as straight as the cars on either side. Definitely a novelty but nothing more.

Hoping that the xenons are a more affordable option on the T6 than they were on the T5 as I believe LED lights now join the option list.

 

[shaun5]

We swapped our VW Touran for a Beach. The insurance was £60 a year cheaper. Daily driver with squeaks and rattles. Somehow has more character than the Caravelle which, although more refined, didn't feel as much fun as a daily driver. Not to mention the added camping facilities on board. You WILL smile on every drive. Take the plunge today. Tomorrow may never come.

 

[WelshGas]

Fuel economy wise I don't think there is that much difference. I've got the 180 4Motion, on my trip to Nordkapp I've averaged 31.137 mpg on a fill up in UK to my last fill up after 5,004 miles and that was not economically driven, 90 on the Autobahn etc. also I used the diesel heater every night, so that was included in fuel used but of course no mileage given. The dashboard computer says 32.9 so that seems pretty accurate as that calculates fuel used for mileage given. If I had been a good boy and driven economically I'm sure I would have been up in the high 30's.
Don't forget the California has the stealth properties of a brick!
If you want super economy then the California is not the vehicle BUT if you want fun every time you sit behind the wheel, then it will cost something. Just enjoy it. Mines my daily driver, SWMBO has a MX5, fun to drive but not in the same way.

 

[GrannyJen]

Business use:
My SE is insured for that simply because of the mileage that I do and that professionally I am a writer and considered never to be retired (A true observation though). The extra premium works out at £30 p.a for unlimited mileage (£327).

Love/hate factor: The California is possessed of some well-known long standing problems, roof, egr valve etc. So was my BMW that I exchanged it with, having just paid out £2,500 for my other BMW to have a well-known engine management fault corrected at just over 3 years old. It does intrude on the love affair, a bit like an interfering mother in law, but in a modern vehicle some technical issues are about as unavoidable as interfering MIL's.

Living with one: Apart from the Mother in law, and mine has been the absence of any 240v charging ability for nearly a year now, the original flourish of white-hot passion has settled down to a "we all have faults and I will forgive Albert all his faults" for the vehicle is beautiful. Nothing has ever delivered smiles like mine does, nothing has ever lived up to it's promise so efficiently, nothing has ever given me such a feeling of confidence, nothing in a vehicle has ever created such an enduring respect.

I've just bought Albert some nice new carpets and had him valeted. My last few vehicles were lucky if they got a couple of rubber mats and never even saw a sponge and bucket.

 

[rippers]

Having owned a Land Rover Defender for a number of years

You'll know all about corrosion then lol my father in law is Landy mad and when we bought his 90 we looked at so many that where corroded and bubbling.. then there is a the chassis.. wow I thought old VW T2's where bad but at least they are 40 years old and not 10 lol
Great toys thou the Father in law has a lot of fun in his. I just need to fix up my '60's Puck so he can come camping with us.

 

[Rhyddin]

Business use:
My SE is insured for that simply because of the mileage that I do and that professionally I am a writer and considered never to be retired (A true observation though). The extra premium works out at £30 p.a for unlimited mileage (£327).

Love/hate factor: The California is possessed of some well-known long standing problems, roof, egr valve etc. So was my BMW that I exchanged it with, having just paid out £2,500 for my other BMW to have a well-known engine management fault corrected at just over 3 years old. It does intrude on the love affair, a bit like an interfering mother in law, but in a modern vehicle some technical issues are about as unavoidable as interfering MIL's.

Living with one: Apart from the Mother in law, and mine has been the absence of any 240v charging ability for nearly a year now, the original flourish of white-hot passion has settled down to a "we all have faults and I will forgive Albert all his faults" for the vehicle is beautiful. Nothing has ever delivered smiles like mine does, nothing has ever lived up to it's promise so efficiently, nothing has ever given me such a feeling of confidence, nothing in a vehicle has ever created such an enduring respect.

I've just bought Albert some nice new carpets and had him valeted. My last few vehicles were lucky if they got a couple of rubber mats and never even saw a sponge and bucket.

Excellent - and thanks!