On the Saturday morning train back to London we were unanimous that we had to cut our losses on the deal. I contacted the proprietor to let him know and despite his protestations that’s what we did. It meant losing the deposit but that was a price we were willing to pay for the lesson we’d learnt. We’d been so keen to get a van that we didn’t spend nearly enough time looking it over and weighing up the negatives. Note to selves – no rose coloured glasses next time!
Back at Waterloo station we had a drink at the Fire Station Pub (recommend this). Not deterred we started looking again at the camper van market and kept circling back to our previous 2nd option. It was another Transit, this time a T350 long wheel base in blue, it looked very well appointed and tidy but the colour (all blue paint, curtains and cushions) had been the previous reservation. Starting to see through this cosmetic stuff and now more focussed on the bodywork, wear and tear, undercarriage and mechanical soundness, we took another look. It was still on the market with a family owned motorhome sales company and since we’d last looked they’d dropped the price by nearly £2K (billy bonus) to sell it before the winter. With eyes very wide open (this time) we arranged to go the following day (Sunday) to view and test drive.
We set off early (in the car this time) and arrived just as they opened. “Big Blue” as they referred to it, was sat, gleaming on the forecourt. It was immaculate outside, underneath and within. We test drove it; it started from cold and drove like a dream.
A ‘54’ plate, it had only done c. 42,000 miles and has a well documented service history. It started life as a private school minibus and was converted c 7 years ago. The previous owner had upgraded his van and traded in “Big Blue”. We spent a lot of time pouring over the vehicle on our own and apart from the colour scheme (which Sal already had ideas for new flooring and curtains to soften) we couldn’t come up with any reason not to buy it. At the price they wanted it was a good deal and just what we wanted (have I convinced myself?). We paid the deposit and agreed to come back the following weekend to collect it after a full service and with renewed MOT and habitation certificates. We had a good feeling about “Big Blue”. No pressure, let’s hope ‘he’ can live up to expectation.
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