Why I decided NOT to wait for the GC

[GSX1300R]

Even if you have millions most like to get the best deal they can...It’s just that some people just don’t want the hassle and don’t know how to negotiate the best deal. Some will trade in their vehicle at a ridiculous price and then pay top money for the new vehicle. Don’t want the hassle of selling privately but if you do everything methodically it should go ok..At the present time if you have a VW California the prices second hand are sky high. But dealers won’t tell you that..2 years ago I was thinking about changing my van so phoned Sinclairs in Cardif who I bought it from and they offered me such a ridiculously low price I decided to keep it..Even today my van 2 years later is worth £10k more than he offered me....

 

[c4s2rs6]

What was the extra 10% duty and VAT about, missed that


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[GSX1300R]

What was the extra 10% duty and VAT about, missed that


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

That’s something nobody knows yet..If the government put on a 10% duty on European imports from 1st January 2021.. vat goes on top of the 10%.

 

[DNR]

I’ve done a few mods / upgrades to my Boxdrive recently.

Fitted an inverter and replaced all the useless 12v outlets with inverted sockets. Plenty for the wife’s hairdryer and off grid power...

One of the inverter sockets for our Microwave fitted next to the fridge too.

Also fitted a blind to hide all the garage stuff.

 

[itscalledbob]

I’ve done a few mods / upgrades to my Boxdrive recently.

Fitted an inverter and replaced all the useless 12v outlets with inverted sockets. Plenty for the wife’s hairdryer and off grid power...

One of the inverter sockets for our Microwave fitted next to the fridge too.

Also fitted a blind to hide all the garage stuff.

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Now that’s a great idea! I’ve recently ordered an inverter too and am waiting for it to turn up. I’ll take a leaf out of your book and change the 12v sockets and replace with 240v.
Did you change the wiring to support the 240 load?

 

[DNR]

Now that’s a great idea! I’ve recently ordered an inverter too and am waiting for it to turn up. I’ll take a leaf out of your book and change the 12v sockets and replace with 240v.
Did you change the wiring to support the 240 load?

Hi mate

The wiring is 240v grade, just traced them to a PCB near fuse box. Each 12v socket has its own plug into PCB. Just unplugged them and t”d to Inverter outlets. Reasonably straight forward and no need to re-wire. My inverter has a control panel to make it easy to switch on and off without going in to the cupboard.

 

[itscalledbob]

Hi mate

The wiring is 240v grade, just traced them to a PCB near fuse box. Each 12v socket has its own plug into PCB. Just unplugged them and t”d to Inverter outlets. Reasonably straight forward and no need to re-wire. My inverter has a control panel to make it easy to switch on and off without going in to the cupboard.

great! Will check it out. Are you aware the van is pre-wired for solar? I’ve put a couple of panels on the roof. If you’re interested I’ll post some pictures.

 

[DNR]

great! Will check it out. Are you aware the van is pre-wired for solar? I’ve put a couple of panels on the roof. If you’re interested I’ll post some pictures.

Is it, that is my next step. The inverter eats power quite a bit quicker, so batteries need supporting. Yeah if you can provide some info, that’s would be great! Where did you source your solar panels?

 

[itscalledbob]

Is it, that is my next step. The inverter eats power quite a bit quicker, so batteries need supporting. Yeah if you can provide some info, that’s would be great! Where did you source your solar panels?

the shower breather limits the size and placement of the panels so I mounted the panels on roof bars. Was a bit of a faf but worth it.


I got 2x 185w panels along with a 30a controller from here:

Sunshine Solar Panels 185W 12V Mono - Sunshine Solar Limited

Our 185W solar panel is the most powerful of the Sunshine Solar range for 12V battery charging if you are looking for faster power generation this solar module will deliver. The high wattage output combined with high efficiency monocrystalline cells make this solar panel of particular interest...

www.sunshinesolar.co.uk

not needed To plug in since fitting them.

 

[DNR]

the shower breather limits the size and placement of the panels so I mounted the panels on roof bars. Was a bit of a faf but worth it.


I got 2x 185w panels along with a 30a controller from here:

Sunshine Solar Panels 185W 12V Mono - Sunshine Solar Limited

Our 185W solar panel is the most powerful of the Sunshine Solar range for 12V battery charging if you are looking for faster power generation this solar module will deliver. The high wattage output combined with high efficiency monocrystalline cells make this solar panel of particular interest...

www.sunshinesolar.co.uk

not needed To plug in since fitting them.

Sounds perfect. If you could provide some fitting info / images, that’s would be great. Cheers

 

[itscalledbob]

Sounds perfect. If you could provide some fitting info / images, that’s would be great. Cheers

just gone back to this thread to see if I’d missed anything to discover I’d forgotten to respond to this

it’s a relatively easy job as there is wiring from the cupboard above the table to the 12v consumer unit.

if you pull out the grey desk wiring grommet from inside the cupboard (see 3rd pic), have a fish around you should find a pair of 6mm red and black wires taped together.

Go to the consumer unit and you should find the other end. Mine were taped with white masking tape.

I fitted roof bars and bolted two 185w panels to the bars. There are 10(?) roof bar mountings points on each side of the roof. I utilised the one above the table cupboard to thread the solar panel wires (via a single entry roof gland) into the van and pulled them out the same hole as the pre-wiring. Attached the solar control unit and wired it in. I returned to the other end of the wires added some ring connectors and attached the positive and earth to the 12v consumer unit bus poles.

As opposed to screwing panels to the roof I chose roof bars for two reasons, one because it lifts the panels above the shower vent thus allowing for larger panels and secondly I was a bit uncomfortable drilling additional holes in the roof. A word of warning though, accessing the inside of the van roof to bolt through the bars was a chore.

It worked fine but I later decided to disconnect from the consumer unit and run dedicated wires to both batteries. Running a wire to the front battery was also quite a chore.

Let me know how you get on and if you need any help let me know

I got most of my supplies from a company called sunshine solar.

 

[DNR]

That's a superb job, looks really neat. I might struggle doing the same as I have TV dish mounted where you have your panels.

I'll get up there and have a look this weekend.

I might get one of those width ways.

Thanks very much for the info.

Cheers

 

[rod_vw]

I'd love to hear Pros & Cons of Knaus Boxdrive ownership.
itscalledbob - DNR and anyone else, your thought please.

It's such a shame that it is so difficult to get hold of one here in the UK

 

[knwldgeseker]

Hi @rod_vw , for us literally the only drawback we've found is that it's such a long wheelbase we kept grounding the step if we ever went over the wrong ratio of height/length speedbump, kerb etc. so now we watch out for the problem. May even consider removing the step.

Other than that have not found anything else we'd find fault with that I can think of - mind you, so long since we've had a chance to use it..........

 

[DNR]

I still absolutely love mine. Ive made a few mods to it to suit my needs, think I’ve posted most of them all in this feed. Ive done approx 10k miles in mine now and I would struggle to think of a single criticism of it. there literally isn’t another vehicle on the market I would prefer.

 

[Jester]

Hi @rod_vw , for us literally the only drawback we've found is that it's such a long wheelbase we kept grounding the step if we ever went over the wrong ratio of height/length speedbump, kerb etc. so now we watch out for the problem. May even consider removing the step.

Other than that have not found anything else we'd find fault with that I can think of - mind you, so long since we've had a chance to use it..........

Hi there re step, just interested to know your size of wheel your running.

Thanks.

 

[rod_vw]

Thanks @itscalledbob and @DNR thanks for the instant feed back.

Just a few questions if I may.

• What weight chassis have you got?
• Which upholstery, leather or fabric?
• Manual or Auto and which engine?
• LED or halogen headlights?

Were you able to choose any/all of the above or did you have to go with a dealer's stock order?

Any printable comments about your supplying dealer?

Sorry for so many nosey questions. We have looked at a few Boxdrives at shows and one quite deeply at a dealers but that was upholstered in a light coloured leather which didn't suit us, neither did it have LED headlights and having a Highline T6 with LEDs we didn't want to go back. We think that overall the vehicle is superb but as yet we haven't made our minds up about the specification. We are looking at the possibilities of a converter build a very similar vehicle in 'mirror image' i.e. with sliding door on the left and maybe with an electrically raised bed and having a grill or oven added.

Anyone else with a Boxdrive that would like to express an opinion please do so.

 

[itscalledbob]

Just a few questions if I may.

• What weight chassis have you got?
• Which upholstery, leather or fabric?
• Manual or Auto and which engine?
• LED or halogen headlights?

Were you able to choose any/all of the above or did you have to go with a dealer's stock order?

Any printable comments about your supplying dealer?

I’ve spent a month between lockdowns in France, 6 weeks travelling around the Scottish islands and a few nights in between. Done about 8k miles, very easy to drive and quiet. Really really pleased with it!

3800kg, £120 road tax
I went for the grey fabric
Auto and LED’s are a must have IMO
177bhp.

I have an electric step but wouldn’t spec one again for the reasons mentioned above.

Individual order spec’d to my requirements.
Wouldn’t go with my supplying dealer again but the after sales at Premier Motorhomes Doncaster has been superb.

I’ve also added an additional pair of 95amp batteries, a 2kw inverter, towbar and swing out cycle bracket. I’ll add some pictures in due course.

 

[rod_vw]

I’ve spent a month between lockdowns in France, 6 weeks travelling around the Scottish islands and a few nights in between. Done about 8k miles, very easy to drive and quiet. Really really pleased with it!

3800kg, £120 road tax
I went for the grey fabric
Auto and LED’s are a must have IMO
177bhp.

I have an electric step but wouldn’t spec one again for the reasons mentioned above.

Individual order spec’d to my requirements.
Wouldn’t go with my supplying dealer again but the after sales at Premier Motorhomes Doncaster has been superb.

I’ve also added an additional pair of 95amp batteries, a 2kw inverter, towbar and swing out cycle bracket. I’ll add some pictures in due course.

Thanks, looks as if we had both renew our C1 licenses as we are both over 70.

Where are your leisure batteries, one in the back and one in the engine bay?

Pictures would be nice.

 

[itscalledbob]

Thanks, looks as if we had both renew our C1 licenses as we are both over 70.

Where are your leisure batteries, one in the back and one in the engine bay?

Pictures would be nice.

Yes, the one under the bonnet is standard and the one under the bed is spec’d as part of the energy pack. The pack also included a larger charger and some extra touch panel functions. I’ve built an additional box and doubled the battery storage to four batteries as most of our trips involve wild camping. You can see I attached an inverter to the side of it and wired it following @DNR Suggestion earlier in the thread.

 

[rod_vw]

Yes, the one under the bonnet is standard and the one under the bed is spec’d as part of the energy pack. The pack also included a larger charger and some extra touch panel functions. I’ve built an additional box and doubled the battery storage to four batteries as most of our trips involve wild camping. You can see I attached an inverter to the side of it and wired it following @DNR Suggestion earlier in the thread.

Many thanks for taking the time to answer my questions.

Rod

 

[DNR]

Thanks @itscalledbob and @DNR thanks for the instant feed back.

Just a few questions if I may.

• What weight chassis have you got?
• Which upholstery, leather or fabric?
• Manual or Auto and which engine?
• LED or halogen headlights?

Were you able to choose any/all of the above or did you have to go with a dealer's stock order?

Any printable comments about your supplying dealer?

Sorry for so many nosey questions. We have looked at a few Boxdrives at shows and one quite deeply at a dealers but that was upholstered in a light coloured leather which didn't suit us, neither did it have LED headlights and having a Highline T6 with LEDs we didn't want to go back. We think that overall the vehicle is superb but as yet we haven't made our minds up about the specification. We are looking at the possibilities of a converter build a very similar vehicle in 'mirror image' i.e. with sliding door on the left and maybe with an electrically raised bed and having a grill or oven added.

Anyone else with a Boxdrive that would like to express an opinion please do so.

Hi Rod

Mine is 3.5t, I wanted my son to be able to drive it occasionally.

Mine was poverty spec, but came with a load of extras I didn’t order, included 177 engine and Auto box, and third battery,

Grey cloth which is tasteful and wearing very well considering we have a dog jumping on them on camping trips and my oily mits from motorsport weekends,

I have standard headlights, can’t believe they didn’t throw these in, tight buggers! I put Led bulbs in the driving lights, not keen on the look of the yellow builds, I also fitted daylight led lights.

I didn’t spec alloys as my plan was always to fit black alloys to it.

My dealer was Don Amott in Derby. it was heavily delayed, but that was Knaus’s fault, otherwise I had decent service from them.

Didnt go with the step, glad I didn’t with the comments here. I’ve got a robust metal step with hinged out adjustable legs, takes up little room when traveling.

Agree with bob, it’s a very comfy and quiet drive. I often travel 8 hours at a time with no problem at all. We live in the highlands and motor race throughout the uk. We tow the race car and all our gear, another 3t behind us. Very stable towing vehicle.

 

[rod_vw]

Hi Rod

Mine is 3.5t, I wanted my son to be able to drive it occasionally.

Mine was poverty spec, but came with a load of extras I didn’t order, included 177 engine and Auto box, and third battery,

Grey cloth which is tasteful and wearing very well considering we have a dog jumping on them on camping trips and my oily mits from motorsport weekends,

I have standard headlights, can’t believe they didn’t throw these in, tight buggers! I put Led bulbs in the driving lights, not keen on the look of the yellow builds, I also fitted daylight led lights.

I didn’t spec alloys as my plan was always to fit black alloys to it.

My dealer was Don Amott in Derby. it was heavily delayed, but that was Knaus’s fault, otherwise I had decent service from them.

Didnt go with the step, glad I didn’t with the comments here. I’ve got a robust metal step with hinged out adjustable legs, takes up little room when traveling.

Agree with bob, it’s a very comfy and quiet drive. I often travel 8 hours at a time with no problem at all. We live in the highlands and motor race throughout the uk. We tow the race car and all our gear, another 3t behind us. Very stable towing vehicle.

Many thanks for your comments, they seem to echo others and follow my own ideas. It is such a pity they are so hard to get hold of. I'm sure that most dealers haven't cottoned on to the potential and quality of the VW (or MAN TGE) base vehicle. I spoke to who I believe may have been the sales manager at Don Amott last autumn and he seemed very negative about having stock of the Boxdrive model for the 2021 season.
We are not involved in motor sport but are involved with the classic car fraternity and own a 1946 VW Beetle for which the camper is used as support on trips to distant events.

Rod

 

[DNR]

Many thanks for your comments, they seem to echo others and follow my own ideas. It is such a pity they are so hard to get hold of. I'm sure that most dealers haven't cottoned on to the potential and quality of the VW (or MAN TGE) base vehicle. I spoke to who I believe may have been the sales manager at Don Amott last autumn and he seemed very negative about having stock of the Boxdrive model for the 2021 season.
We are not involved in motor sport but are involved with the classic car fraternity and own a 1946 VW Beetle for which the camper is used as support on trips to distant events.

Rod

Yeah I think Knaus are victims of there own success, lead times are crazy! Although from memory the additional delay on mine was due to supply from VW, so they said.

All good things come to those who wait, get your name down! You will get one eventually. I wasn't bothered who I purchased from, so I literally emailed every Knaus dealer in the UK for their best price, Don Amott was cheapest by some margin, without the freebies...

 

[rod_vw]

@DNR I totally agree, at present both VW Crafter and MAN TGE base vehicles are suffering very extended lead times. Quite possibly these will get worse as Covid is raging in Germany and Poland.

Yet more delays on the way -- https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-56486242