Couple offer sound tips on acquiring wheels overseas

Press, 14 January 1986, Page 24

Couple offer sound tips on acquiring wheels overseas

By

ROBIN CHARTERIS,

London

correspondent of “The Press”

The highlight of an overseas holiday for hundreds of Australians and New Zealanders each year is a campervan tour of Europe — but such a venture can raise as many problems as it offers opportunities. Should they buy or hire a van? Lefthand or right-hand drive? Should it be pop-top, conversion, or custom-built? What about different regulations, insurances, taxes, reliability, routes to take? Where’s the best value for money? Taking advantage of the antipodean enthusiasm for campervanning are an enterprising New Zealand couple, John and Jan McCarthy, formerly of Auckland, who have established the Campervan Advisory Service in London. For a surprisingly low fee by British standards — and for free in many cases — they will answer all the above questions and more. Their services also run to hiring out vans and to viewing, testing and, if required, buying vans for visiting holidaymakers. John, a qualified A grade mechanic with garage premises of his own in Hackney, will even do any repairs, major or minor that vehicles may require.

With six years and some 60,000 miles of personal campervanning experience behind them, the McCarthys know what this exhilarating form of holidaymaking is all about.

One of the biggest questions facing campervan holidaymakers, they say, is whether to rent or buy a van. And there is no set answer. For a holiday of up to eight or ten weeks, hiring is often best. There are no

time-consuming problems before the holi- . day in deciding what to buy and for how >« much; nor are there afterwards, when « selling a van at the end of the summer season can be a real worry, says John, r > especially if the seller has a plane to £ catch and is forced to accept a sharp- % eyed dealer’s last-minute offer. Buying and later re-selling is usually better for longer holidays, but owners ” must then be prepared for maintenance » and the possibility of breakdowns. It also £ means the buyers need somewhere to stay while they find a van and that can ’ ’cost considerable time and money. The traditional Australian House van • market no longer operates, but there is « a regular van market in a carpark near » Waterloo Station. ;

John advises holidaymakers to be * cautious of the market, although it is still ’’ one of the best places to find a bargain. » Dealers operate there and are not always as scrupulous as they might be. « The best , time to buy a van is at the * end of the summer season, from Novem- / ber until after Christmas. Prices then can be up to £5OO lower than in spring or 2. early summer. Conversely, selling should * be done at the start of the season 2 wherever possible but this does not

always fit in with holidaymakers’ plan. \ The McCarthys suggest that camper- . van holidaymakers allow between £l2O .■ and £l4O (SNZ3OO and $350) a week for expenses for 2-3 people while travelling. - That should cover fuel, servicing, ferry or toll charges and living expenses. For further information, contact Campervan * Advisory Service, S 3 Cheyne Avenue, South Wood- « ford, London ElB 2DP.