# Are Bailey selling its new motorhomes easily ?



## duds (Sep 23, 2007)

I see lots of brand new Bailey motorhomes for sale in dealers up and down country and wonder if they are not selling well due to the exterior shape which is boxy and old fashioned. Anyone know?


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## cabby (May 14, 2005)

I have noticed this as well down on the south east, from Portsmouth to Kent, the dealers seem to have a good stock. :lol: :lol: 
Mind you the price is right for a lot of people.

cabby


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## GerryD (Sep 20, 2007)

Have you noticed how many hire fleets have changed to Bailey? Have Bailey been selling cheap to attract brand recognition.
Or, could it be the sudden withdrawal of the 10 year warranty at the time that most others have moved to a 10 year warranty.
Have to agree, they are pig ugly. Even from the back, there is no design.
Gerry


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## ttcharlie (Nov 29, 2011)

I know someone who works for Bailey and from talking to him they has sold alot a few weeks ago.

They seemed very unbeat about the volume that were getting sold.

Looks wise they might not be to everyones taste, but they are very good value.


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## ttcharlie (Nov 29, 2011)

...Double Post!!


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## GerryD (Sep 20, 2007)

The motorhome industry is different from the car industry. A motorhome manufacturer has sold a vehicle as soon as it is delivered to the dealer. A car manufacturer has not sold a car until it is registered.
Therefore, Bailey will count sales as soon as they deliver to the dealer. Doesn't mean that there is a retail sale.
Gerry


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## ttcharlie (Nov 29, 2011)

GerryD said:


> The motorhome industry is different from the car industry. A motorhome manufacturer has sold a vehicle as soon as it is delivered to the dealer. A car manufacturer has not sold a car until it is registered.
> Therefore, Bailey will count sales as soon as they deliver to the dealer. Doesn't mean that there is a retail sale.
> Gerry


Ah, never new that.

Does lead the question though of would dealers be buying stock if they did n't sell, or are they pre existing orders for Demos??

If they made a Bunk bed version I would look at one.


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## Nethernut (Jun 4, 2008)

I do know that they are selling well in this part of the country, our dealer has sold all his allocation of 745s and has some customers on a wait list.

We had quite a few Germans admiring our van on our trip, several times they even asked to look inside. We are very pleased with our Bailey, no problems, drives well, got a true mpg of 32mpg over 2700 miles of mixed driving, not bad for a 7.6 metre van fully loaded. Everything worked, bed is very comfortable as are seats, loads of storage. So much so that for the first time in 36 years we travelled and and came back with a couple of empty roof lockers!

Gerry[/quote]

Ah, never new that.

Does lead the question though of would dealers be buying stock if they did n't sell, or are they pre existing orders for Demos??

If they made a Bunk bed version I would look at one.[/quote]


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## cabby (May 14, 2005)

Surely that dealer could have obtained some from other dealers to make a deal.more like the buyers want a newer reg van.we keep meaning to go and have a look at them, but they do not have the layout we want.

cabby


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## aldhp21 (Aug 4, 2008)

GerryD said:


> Have you noticed how many hire fleets have changed to Bailey? Have Bailey been selling cheap to attract brand recognition.
> Or, could it be the sudden withdrawal of the 10 year warranty at the time that most others have moved to a 10 year warranty.
> Have to agree, they are pig ugly. Even from the back, there is no design.
> Gerry


I was talking to someone last week camped next to me at Le Mans in a Baileys. He runs a motorhome hire company. He's switched to Baileys and gave the reasons as, easy to maintain, well built, good customer service. Which is the total opposite of Swift in his own words.

I had a good look round his van and thought the quality of it was superb. Agreed it is a dated look but if they did the layout to suit me I would be tempted.

Alan


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## duds (Sep 23, 2007)

The large dealer in SE I spoke to recently said the exterior looks werer putting customers off thier stock of new vehicles but the price is good for excellent interior value and quality


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## Jean-Luc (Jul 21, 2005)

In my tugging days I had a series of Bailey's and never had a problem with them, excellent quality and dealer service.

But, their motorhome does have the look of a caravan bolted to a cab/chassis unit, IMHO not a very attractive looking vehicle but the quality should be good if Bailey are maintaining their high standards.


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## sn56 (May 29, 2012)

We had a really good look at the Baileys and were keen on a 760. Excellent quality and very good value for money with the modern construction and the Alko chassis.

In the end I didn't think it was viable at the plated weights: it may have been plated-up to 3850kg but the axle weights on the Alko plate were unchanged from the Peugeot 3500 base at 1850kg front and 2000kg rear, so you would have to load up very precisely to say the least to actually use all of that 3850kg!

In addition, with the extra-extra-long wheelbase of the 760 (increased over the 740/745 which are the same overall length) and the lack of anything weighty over or behind the rear axle, I felt that you'd struggle to keep within the front axle limit even with just 2 people on board: very little chance of ever being able to use those 4 extra belted seats just behind the driver.. 

The dealer wasn't keen on me taking his new vehicle out of the showroom to the local weighbridge though, so we decided against.


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## urbanracer (Aug 22, 2007)

I visited a local motorhome dealer at the weekend and he said they are selling well,have sold out of one model and was waiting for more stock.
They do come with a lot of well thought out extras,provision for bike rack,door drip strip,underfloor storage,external aerial for radio fitted and a lot of other small items that overall make a good package.
One model I had a look at although only about 6M long is wider than most other vans and it felt spacious but I do see what others say from the rear it looks a bit old.


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## organplayer (Jan 1, 2012)

*organplayer*

Have owned a Bailey Approach 740 motorhome since Jan. This is the warmest m/home we have had in the last 17 years. As a second home for long term trips I feel it is second to none. The after sales and info help from Bailey is good. The dealer from whom we purchased it told me last week that they are selling them ,but people ordering now must wait until September for delivery. As we had acquired ours prior to 20th Feb, we retain the 10year guarantee at no cost. As an indication of the quality testing by Bailey, look at the Bailey web site. Do/did other motorhome manufacturers put thier products through such tests?. I wonder. Finally, as far as our summer weather goes, perhaps we should all go off to Spain, Portugal or Morocco to get some sunshine, as we do in the winter months. Food for thought me finx.


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## uncooldave (Jun 27, 2012)

*Bailey motorhomes*

have ordered a new Bailey motorhome(740SE), looks terrific value for money, excellent build history.
Our dealer within Northamptonshire has sold every Bailey he haas stocked and now has a waiting list.
What is this old fashioned look about? How reliable are Skoda, or were Lada.
Fashion is in peoples head!


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## Nethernut (Jun 4, 2008)

*Re: Bailey motorhomes*

I agree Dave - I certainly wouldn't buy something on looks, quality, reliability, price, layout and most importantly safety are my reasons for choosing the Bailey. So far we have not been disappointed.

Jan



uncooldave said:


> have ordered a new Bailey motorhome(740SE), looks terrific value for money, excellent build history.
> Our dealer within Northamptonshire has sold every Bailey he haas stocked and now has a waiting list.
> What is this old fashioned look about? How reliable are Skoda, or were Lada.
> Fashion is in peoples head!


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## duds (Sep 23, 2007)

The proof of the product will be in the durability and used resale values on desirability in time. It does look rather like a Bailey caravan stuck on back of a van body and my wife cannot stand the graphics chosen. Hope later models will see a change on current design


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## eddievanbitz (May 1, 2005)

Our workshop has a weekly through put of brand new Baileys having satellite, solar and security fitted.

They seem well made and thought out, most of their owners seem delighted and enjoy adding the additional toys to make them better.

My fitters enjoy working on them as the build quality is good and the electrics are well thought out!

Eddie


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## metblue (Oct 9, 2006)

*bailey motorhome*

Hi PJD wrote,How do you fill the fresh water tank with water?

Where is the water pump situated?

How do you drain it down?

What is he finish like around the top of the bed?

How do you watch TV without an arial?

Can you survive with 1 leisure battery?

Answers as follows,
1) with fresh water from a tap
2) under the bed
3) same as yours ! pull plug from inside tank !! Simples !!
4) better than any Autotrail we have owned.
5) do as most do, have fitted a satellite system !
6) Add another as I have always done !

Will probably fit a solar panel or two, as have done before,can afford to do/fit whatever with the £30,000+ we have saved by not purchasing a leaky,badly finished Arapho with more faults that you could shake a stick at ! :lol: :lol: :lol:   

Get off your high horse about Baileys,read the reports on this forum about Autotrail motorhomes and there numerous faults and disgruntled owners before becoming a stuck up ass !!


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## AndrewandShirley (Oct 13, 2007)

We went to buy a Bailey as we were impressed with the layout and build quality.

Sadly they are not planning to build any LHD. As we live abroad most of the time, there are now out of the equation.

Shame really.....


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## ttcharlie (Nov 29, 2011)

Its a shame that we can't just support a British Company who are trying to offer us the consumer, a home made product.

No motorhome is perfect, or without fault, and Bailey have a very good reputation in the Caravan Market, lets hope they also develop this in the MH Market.


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## TM59 (Mar 11, 2008)

Well thought out van at a good price. Have been told because of the construction methods used, a habitation check is a lot more expensive. 

Can anyone confirm!

Trevor


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## pete4x4 (Dec 20, 2006)

It used to be because Bailey insisted that the bolt torques in the Alutech construction were checked every year but after 3 years or so in the caravan market that requirement has now been dropped as the bolts were found to retain their tightness ( is that a word?)
Habitation check should now be no different to a wooden framed unit


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