First outing with our Vanroyce

[oldcarguy]

Went away for a couple of days, covered 500 miles, 400 with the van on the back, good mix of driving conditions, m-way/town/country + driving home in the horrendous weather yesterday and sitting in jams on the M1, car behaved perfectly and the caravan towed very well, cruise control was a boon on the hilly roads and reckon i got 30 + to the gallon(derv), so quite pleased.

[Vanroyce]

They are very good vans but I would say that :D:D:D;)

Which model have you got.

[oldcarguy]

They are very good vans but I would say that :D:D:D;)

Which model have you got.
Its a 1988 365/2, its quite old but its all original and been well cared for.

[Vanroyce]

''SNAP'' :} great little caravan that puts a lot of modern vans to shame, has a very high level of standard equipment that most vans don’t even have now (as standard)
Don’t be afraid to use it in the deepest of the winter months as they are extremely warm.

This is our little outfit on our way back home yesterday (fag stop) :o
http://i68.photobucket.com/albums/i29/jdxx/DSCF0194.jpg

[oldcarguy]

Oooh, your posh, youv'e gotta cassette toilet.:}:}:}. whats the little door at the front for?

[Vanroyce]

I thought they all came with cassette toilets, maybe it’s because ours is a 1991 van?:shrug:

The little door at front is for the battery and I keep my mains 240 lead in there.

[funtime frankie]

The 1st van that we had was a vanroyce... The rolls royce of caravans, absoloutley brilliant!. Then the kids got to THAT age (13 - 16 ish) & didn't want to go anywhere with us, so we sold it... Now they're all grown up... yipee!! we bought a 2berth Bailey Discovery, & just came back from a week in windy Brean. Ohh it's so good to be back as one with nature. Got the freesat working, fridge chilling the wine.. watching various awnings wafting past our van in the breeze. Oh Joy!!!:D:D

[oldcarguy]

The 1st van that we had was a vanroyce... The rolls royce of caravans, absoloutley brilliant!. Then the kids got to THAT age (13 - 16 ish) & didn't want to go anywhere with us, so we sold it... Now they're all grown up... yipee!! we bought a 2berth Bailey Discovery, & just came back from a week in windy Brean. Ohh it's so good to be back as one with nature. Got the freesat working, fridge chilling the wine.. watching various awnings wafting past our van in the breeze. Oh Joy!!!:D:D
Ah, awnings, thats my next test, never put one up before, so should be fun. We have a full size one and a porch awning, so might start with the porch and work my way up from there.

[HarryM1BYT]

Ah, awnings, thats my next test, never put one up before, so should be fun. We have a full size one and a porch awning, so might start with the porch and work my way up from there.

They (full sized) are easy, especially on a still dry day. Start by working out how the poles fit togther and lay them out on the ground, with any suckers or what ever attachement is used to fit them against the caravan in the rough place they will be needed.

Start threading the awning in the rail, the best place to start is always with the tightest bend in the rail furthest away from where you start - that will usually mean starting to thread it in from the front, not at the bottom, but from the higher entry, level with your waist. Take along a tin of spray furniture silicon polish and spray it into the rail to act as a lubricant, then add more every few yards as you push it in.

Run it all the way around until the end can be fitted into the front rail and pulled down along the final bit to the ground - forward all the way, then back in to go to the ground.

Then you fit the poles, starting with the centre one, leaning the vertical back towards tha caravan so its weight helps push the front of the awning away. The horizontal pole ends usually fit to the caravan via sockets already fixed in place, suckers, or some sort of socket clipped onto a special rail on the awning.

Finally, fit the door panels in place and peg it all out. As a matter of course, I always fit the storm lines - those which peg out from the front at each corner. For our awning you can get specially made nylon straps for these, but I just use rope and rather than pegs, I use those chromed steel spiral things which screw into the ground - sometimes sold to tie dogs up to.

For years I threaded the awning the wrong way from the back, assuming it was better to do the tighter bend first - don't its the hardest way. For years I never tried a awning, but now would not be without one, except for a short overnight stop. For our next trip, we will be trying for the first time some carbon fibre poles which I have just aquired. They are bit over one third the weight and not nearly so hard when they fall and hit you on the back of the head.

[Chuckles]

I am in a bit of a quandry....... Vanroyce 520ET and a 2.0ltr Connie.
Love both but I don't think the 2.0 litre is up for it.

Any thoughts before I sell one of them???:(:(

[reworht]

If the Connie is a good one - swap the caravan for something a bit lighter. I think a good, heavier towcar will be harder to find than a good, lighter 'van!

[RPWC]

Your car is perfectly capable of towing your caravan ,the v6 and the diesel have a towing capacity of 1600kg. To give you a bit more torque why not see one of the T4 owners ,and get the 177 remap for your car?

[RPWC]

If the Connie is a good one - swap the caravan for something a bit lighter. I think a good, heavier towcar will be harder to find than a good, lighter 'van!

Agreed Rod,with a towing capacity of 1600kg,our cars will be hard to beat,without going for a 4x4, yuch! If I hadn't bought the Rover,I would have gone for a Vauxhall Omega diesel,or a Volvo V70 or S60 diesel,as they are the only vehicles that come close to the towing ability of the Rover.

[reworht]

Agreed Rod,with a towing capacity of 1600kg,our cars will be hard to beat,without going for a 4x4, yuch! If I hadn't bought the Rover,I would have gone for a Vauxhall Omega diesel,or a Volvo V70 or S60 diesel,as they are the only vehicles that come close to the towing ability of the Rover.

I looked at exactly the same range of vehicles Richard - quite fancied the Omega but everything I saw was either rusty, 'iffy' or an ex taxi (luckily, not many 75s have been used as taxis). My new Bosch MAF plus Marinabrian's Xpower upgrade has made a really worthwhile difference to my car - you'd swear it wasn't the one I bought!

[Canonite]

Your car is perfectly capable of towing your caravan ,the v6 and the diesel have a towing capacity of 1600kg. To give you a bit more torque why not see one of the T4 owners ,and get the 177 remap for your car?

Just to clarify mate, the 177ps upgrade can only be done to the 160ps variants of the MG ZT 2.5 V6. It can't be applied to the Rover 75.
The 2.0 V6 is 147ps and can not be changed. Well I guess you could put a stainless fat exhaust on it and fit an induction kit but I doubt you'll get much gains.
Looking at Colin NI guide on towing weights it shows the 2.0 V6 is good for 1450kg braked, which is still a good weight. Only the 2.5 V6, the diesel and the V8 can tow 1600kg.

[trikey]

I am in a bit of a quandry....... Vanroyce 520ET and a 2.0ltr Connie.
Love both but I don't think the 2.0 litre is up for it.

Any thoughts before I sell one of them???:(:(

Will be ok until you come to a hill! maybe the torque of a diesel would suit you better when pulling a vanroyce.

[Le Mans 190]

We also have a Vanroyce 450 EK and love the style and finish of these vans :D

[1gp]

I am in a bit of a quandry....... Vanroyce 520ET and a 2.0ltr Connie.
Love both but I don't think the 2.0 litre is up for it.

Any thoughts before I sell one of them???:(:(

ye , sell me your vanroyce.. what year is it ?:}

[Chuckles]

Well that may be an option - it is a 1993 and we have had it for the last ten years or so. It is always stored in the workshop and at this point in time is undergoing some minor service work. If your serious, send me a PM/email and when I have a minute will take some photos.

I have been hankering for an airstream trailer/caravan type - using a 4X4 of course..but I still have my motor home. The caravan was as a standby in case I can't afford to fill up with 60 or so gallons of fuel (@10 - 12MPG)!.

[1gp]

Well that may be an option - it is a 1993 and we have had it for the last ten years or so. It is always stored in the workshop and at this point in time is undergoing some minor service work. If your serious, send me a PM/email and when I have a minute will take some photos.

I have been hankering for an airstream trailer/caravan type - using a 4X4 of course..but I still have my motor home. The caravan was as a standby in case I can't afford to fill up with 60 or so gallons of fuel (@10 - 12MPG)!.

pm sent .:}