ON SITE INSIGHTS

Reader team member Carol Longton has had more bad luck with her Auto-Trail Cheyenne motorhome

Last time, I reported that my ’van had to be transported back to Lancashire by a recovery truck. Unfortunately, the problem proved to be anything but minor, with a repair bill of , which was thankfully covered by the warranty.

Within 20 miles the temperature gauge shot into the red and the motorhome began to lose power

Since then I have continued to have problems with the ’van losing coolant every time I take it out. It has been back to the garage twice and when I last collected it I was advised that the garage still wasn’t happy with the situation, and that they wanted to book it back in and strip it down again. However, I was assured that it was okay to use for the weekend break I had planned.

TALK I hope this proves helpful

All Trading Standards teams can offer customer or dealer advice, but only the dealer’s local Trading Standards team can take criminal action; and this will be subject to any bespoke local conditions in addition to the criteria above.

All Trading Standard teams are currently subject to internal staffing and budget cut-backs. Therefore, no team will proceed unless they’re confident of success, because they have been discouraged from wasting taxpayer funds by pursuing dealers already

Here’s what to do if a tick latches onto your leg. The age-old advice about burning it off was wrong after all (fb.me/1BbuKbLIz)! www.twitter.com/pmotorhome as general background information. If anyone spends their life savings on such an expensive ‘once-only’ retirement package I would advise them to follow the ‘buyer beware’ message very seriously these days. Malcolm Walkinshaw Via email

DON’T MISS OUT ON LOVELY LIMOUSIN I enjoyed reading Sarah Wakely’s Grand Tour of the

Limousin in your June 2012 issue, because it brought back happy memories of a tour that we made to the region last year. Like Sarah, we found that the area was quiet; although we travelled in August, we rarely found the aires full. We enjoyed a couple of days in Limoges and the historic town of Brive-laGaillarde is also worth a visit. Like Sarah, we also stayed at the free-of-charge aire in Uzerche, although it was a little busier when we toured!

supported by various other taxpayer-funded initiatives. This all means that genuine customers, such as Gerald, who have clearly been mis-sold to and now face huge expense to put things right, will sadly find themselves completely alone – even if their dealer was proven to have been at fault, but is refusing to co-operate.

Limousin is a wonderful, unsung touring destination out about...

AT THE UK MOTORHOME SPRING FAIR, NEWARK

Which one place would you like to visit that you haven’t yet?

Alas, this proved not to be the case: within miles the temperature gauge shot into the red and the ’van began to lose power. Luckily, I managed to limp to the motorway service area which was yards away. I phoned the dealer who was full of apologies and they sent a driver to pick me up and arranged to recover the ’van.

It is very disappointing as I’ve had the Cheyenne for less than six months. As I write I am waiting to hear if the ’van will be back on the road in time for my week’s holiday which is only days away! We’ll have to wait and see how this saga plays out.

“The north of Scotland appeals to us, as does the Isle of Skye, as we have never travelled that far north before. The midges and rain have always put us off travelling there!” Colin and Pat Picard, Skipton ’Van Autocruise Starlet

“We would like to go to Italy as it is a bit further afield than we normally travel to in the motorhome. However, touring that far might be a bit too expensive.” Frederick and Patricia Braybrook, Keighley ’Van Auto-Trail Cheyenne SE

“We would like to go to Ireland because it looks like such a beautiful country. And if we toured there in a motorhome we could take our time.” Pat and Bryan Bellars (mother and son), Colchester ’Van Laika Ecovip

“Germany appeals to us as we like the stellplatz system and have always wanted to travel alongside the Rhine. Of course, the beer festivals also hold a certain appeal!” Sue Dewar and John Magee, Hull ’Van Swift Escape 686

Don’t miss the UK Motorhome Summer Fair, from June -July . See www.uksummerfair.co.uk

10 | July 2012 | www.practicalmotorhome.com “We love Bournemouth – it’s a wonderful place, and

I think the way of life in the area is great”

Spurs manager Harry Redknapp

We were on our way to the Dordogne, but would also recommend Limousin as a destination in its own right.

If any reader is touring down through south-central France and needs an aire to stop at near Poitiers, I’d suggest heading for the Futuroscope theme park. It has a barrier entry system and for €8 you can stop in the car park for 24 hours. It felt safe and secure, and you can arrive late at night, too. It’s also enormous: there were around 40 vehicles when we stayed, with room for plenty more. And you’re not obliged to visit Futuroscope either. To find the aire, head through the main entry barriers to the park and turn right. Colin Peterson Tunbridge Wells

HOW DO WE SOURCE SPARE PARTS? My 2003 Auto-Sleeper Pollensa needs a new cold-water storage tank. I therefore attempted to order a new one via the Auto

Ray Stephens has had trouble sourcing parts for his Auto-Sleeper

Sleeper website, as we have done many times before when we have needed spare parts for our motorhome. We have usually had no problems but on this occasion we received a reply saying that ‘this part was no longer available’. This means I cannot use my taps and have no access to hot water on tour unless we stay on wellequipped sites. Have any other readers had a similar experience when trying to buy from a manufacturer with an eight-year-old motorhome? Ray Stephens Via email

PEANUTS GETS SOME NEW PLATES We received the following from our Gentleman Jack, on renewing your number plates, which he thought might help Practical Motorhome readers.

“A friend who has enjoyed reading about Project Peanuts has treated the ’van to a set of number plates with its name on. There were paint drips on the old ones which could have acted as a chart for all the different colours Peanuts had been over the years!

“I had been looking for a new set of plates before the gift and had been quoted over

WIN! A weekend camping package to the UK Motorhome Summer fair

Visitors to the UK Motorhome Summer Fair 2012 can expect to see a huge range of new and used ’vans for sale from some of the UK’s best dealers, plus all kinds of spares and accessories. The event takes place at the picturesque Shropshire & West Midlands Showground in Shrewsbury from Saturday June 30 to Sunday July 1.

It will be combined with two nights of fantastic free entertainment for weekend campers, on a giant outdoor summer stage. Pre-booked weekend camping at the Summer Fair is priced at just £40 per pitch (or £50 on the day). To pre-book, call 01775 723 723 or book online at www. uksummerfair.co.uk. Day tickets are priced at just £6 each, or discounted in advance.

Organisers of the UK Motorhome Summer Fair have given us six weekend pitches to give away. Each package includes two adult weekend show tickets, entertainment on Friday and Saturday night, plus a free show guide. To be in with a chance of winning, simply answer the following question:

Which county is the UK Motorhome Summer Fair to be held in on June and July , ? A. Kent B. Shropshire C. Dorset Send your answer, and name and address, to us on a postcard, to our editorial address (see p ), clearly marking ‘Summer Fair Competition’ on the front. Or, email your answer, name and address to competitions@practicalmotorhome. com with ‘Summer Fair Competition’ in the subject line. You can also enter online at www.practicalmotorhome.com. The first six entries drawn after the closing date (June ) will win one of the weekend packages. For full terms and conditions, see p .

How to make Practical Motorhome your magazine GET INVOLVED

O ne of our big strengths is that we’re an interactive magazine, with you, our readers, contributing some of the very best content that we publish. Here are the many ways in which you can be involved and, remember, we pay for the stories we publish.

publish. we stories the for pay jYOUR TOURS We publish reader adventures and travel stories each month. Pitch your idea to us first, and we’ll send you our guidelines. Email Sarah@ practicalmotorhome.com jTALK Our letters pages: something to get off your chest? Got some advice to share with other readers? Or a holiday hotshot picture to send? Email talk@ practicalmotorhome.com jA TOUR THAT CHANGED OUR LIVES The last editorial word: if you’ve got a story to tell, email rob@ practicalmotorhome.com jTECHNICAL Got a technical problem with your ’van? Email workshop@practical motorhome.com. And if you’ve carried out your own self-build, tell us and other readers about it. jSELL YOUR ’VAN WITH US Our classified service is free for private sellers at www. practicalmotorhome.co.uk/for sale. Upload details of your ’van and it will appear in the mag, too.

www.practicalmotorhome.com | July 2012 | 11