We are a couple from the Netherlands who flew to Scotland. My girlfriend and I spent 12 days on the road with this camper van, Arthur. Upon arrival, I noticed that Arthur looked much worse and more poorly maintained, both inside and out, than the advertisement suggested. However, at that moment, we had no choice but to accept it, as we otherwise wouldn't have had a camper at all.
First, I want to say that Graeme, the owner, was incredibly friendly and gave a clear explanation about the van when we picked it up. During our trip, he was always helpful and responded quickly via WhatsApp. So, we are very satisfied with Graeme as a person.
The van "Arthur" provided us with a pleasant holiday. We managed to overlook its shortcomings and had a wonderful time together. However, I want to provide an honest review of the van, which is different from what the advertisement suggests.
Given the severity, I will start with the last day of our vacation. On the last day, we discovered a flat front tire in a parking lot. When I tried to replace it, the jack was not working, there was no wrench, and even worse, the tire was dangerously worn out. The tire was so worn that the metal wires were exposed, cutting my finger while I was changing the tire. I also checked the other tires, and the other front tire was also worn down to the metal. At that point, we still had a 1.5-hour drive to Edinburgh to reach the airport. This was the last straw for us. We had been living with all the other issues throughout the holiday, but I want to take this opportunity to address them.
The lock on the driver's door does not work, so I had to exit through the passenger door to lock the driver's door. The lock on the sliding door did not work from the inside. This door can only be opened from the outside, which is a fire safety issue because it's the only unobstructed door in the living area. Additionally, the sliding door did not close properly, requiring several attempts to shut it. The inside of the sliding door was unfinished.
The side mirrors cannot be adjusted. They are supposed to be adjustable via the media system, but this did not work. The electric cooler does not work, so we had to use bags of ice cubes at the bottom. These bags were not watertight, so there was always a puddle of water in the cooler.
The kitchen light does not work, and cables hang loose inside the cabinet. The camping chairs had broken armrests, and the camping table had a broken tabletop. The countertop was water-damaged. The kitchen cabinet doors were held shut with a makeshift strap.
Under the carpet, the floor has four old wheelchair attachment points sticking out, which are unnecessary and should be removed to prevent tripping hazards. There are also two slot holes in the floor.
It became clear to us that the van has not been maintained or refurbished for a long time. There were additional issues such as a broken middle beam of the bed, a broken toilet cover, no spare car bulbs, incomplete toolsets, warped cabinet doors, dirty dishes, low power steering fluid level making the vehicle hard to steer, and neglected engine maintenance making it extremely loud.
June 2024
Michal
Yvane
Glenn
Jonathan
Julie
Gareth
Jay
Alice Laffan &