# Pilote with rotten shower cubicle - should i buy or avoid??



## mrjrstephenson (Sep 3, 2012)

The walls on the shower cubicle on this pilote need ripping out and replacing as its rotten due to water ingression.

Are pilotes the same as other motorhomes with the rot spreading and delamination - or are they tough old beasts??

Is it worth buying for £11000 and repairing it myself - replacing shower walls with plastic sheeting?

Or is it one to avoid??


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## bigtree (Feb 3, 2007)

I would avoid any van that had visible water damage or had a significant reading with a meter.If it is a Pilote that you have your heart set on keep looking,if not there are plenty of vans for sale.


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## Wizzo (Dec 3, 2007)

I would avoid it. The water ingress could have come from anywhere and spread a lot further than what is actually visible.

JohnW


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## sideways (Jun 2, 2008)

Water doesnt always show where its getting in it could be 6 ft away from where it collects and the damage shows, you might be lucky and find the leak behind the shower wall or it might be a lot more involved than that.


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## Penquin (Oct 15, 2007)

I would avoid for the reasons already given.

The water MAY have come from the shower, but it MAY not and it could be that you can only see one example of where it is apparent. 

If you took the entire shower cubicle out you may well find that the water has spread throughout the bodywork casuing the whole van to require rebuidling inside. 8O  

A can of worms that IMO is best avoided - there are other examples of these vehicles around which probably do not have that fault. :?

On the basis of that known fault the price would have to be very low c/w normal for *any *consideration - do some background research but IMO avoid it unless you are very competent at potentially such complex (and expensive as well as extensive) repairs. 

Dave


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## bognormike (May 10, 2005)

they ARE tough old things - I had a 1999 240g until earlier this year. 

If you are really interested, get damp checks done all round to make sure there's nothing else. If it's just the bathroom area, you have a chance of rescuing things and stripping out. First thing to do is to check all joints & seals, and clean out & replace all mastic, and make sure there is no new ingress. Then strip out every bit of the area & get back to good wood, and go from there to rebuild. A time consuming job, and no guarantee that it will work! But if everything else is ok, and you're prepared to live with any problems, you will have a good motorhome with a few years use....


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## Spiritofherald (May 18, 2012)

I suppose it all depends how good you are with DIY. I wouldn't be afraid to tackle it myself, but then I'm not sure I would be prepared to risk 11K on something that could be a lot worse than it looks.


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## rayrecrok (Nov 21, 2008)

Hi.

The moment anybody mentions "Damp" everybody seems to think that the van is a right off and will crumble before their eyes..

If the truth was known a good majority of the vans or caravans, static or towing will contain damp to some degree.. Damp although not desirable is cosmetic in a lot of cases only a nuisance.. For damp to be dangerous (to wood) it has to have a moisture content of over 20%, at percentages over that various rots can form, so to get to 20% there would have to be a substantial failure point to allow that kind of water ingress..

If you are not practical and unable to rectify any problems you will probably be running round like headless chickens, wringing your collective hands at that dreaded word "damp" being spoken into you lug holes, where anybody with the minimum of skills can rectify where the water ingress is coming from and fix it, it's not like Dave P going up on his roof to fix the tiles, it usually just involves a tube of mastic..

If there is a problem with the plumbing get it fixed the damp will go away after a period of time, if there is water coming in from outside fix it and the damp will go away after a period of time..

There are seam failure points on every motorhome or caravan that has been built, just look for the one on that has failed on your van, because at some time in the vans life one will fail and you will get damp, or to put it another way a higher reading than expected with a damp meter which has indicated a seam has failed.. Fix the bloody thing and you will be alright without having to rip out the side of the van..

Remember 20% and below for a short period is cosmetic, 20% and above for a long period especially if it is warm will cause problems.


Get real folks a higher reading with a damp meter does not mean a trip to the motorhome grave yard.. :roll: 

(edit) So why don't manufactures put "Tanalised" or "Protomised" timber in instead of plain old softwood. beats me or is so there is an after industry fixing their poxy vans that let in water :evil: .

ray.


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## dalspa (Jul 1, 2008)

From the photos it's not clear as to where the damage is - presumably it's around the horizontal join in the shower lining on the rear wall of the van. Is this horizontal join original as I would have though the lining panel would have been full height as on the other walls - has it been put in as an attempt to re-seal? The spray from the shower head would be minimal on this rear wall, so water damage likely to be from another source. Looking at the external photo of the back of the van, there appears to be a horizontal moulding at about the level of this internal join which, along with the vertical corner seam (rear offside corner) look to be a more likely point at which water ingress has occurred. 
If you are willing to gamble on the £11k then it's up to you. Don't know what the otherwise condition of the van is, year or true market value. Has the vendor had any quotes for the repair? Does look to be a lot of van for £11k from the photo, but only you can truly evaluate. Bit of a chicken and egg situation - you can't expose the extent of the damage etc when you don't own it!
David


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## mrjrstephenson (Sep 3, 2012)

*its a 1995 van*

its a 95 van ...and it didnt sell twice on ebay for a starting price of £9000 (reserve not met) ,,,,,

£11000 is good providing its only shower (better at 9 or 10 grand like) - but as said you cant pull a pannell off and look if you dont own it!!

= and vendor said a quote of £290 for some bloke to rip out shower cubicle repace it and seal outside.

I messaged 'Motorhomes Coachcraft' in Luton who said:

We have done a similar problem in Galaxys a couple of times.

Last Bill was about £1250
Without a damp survey it is difficult to guess the extent of the damage to the rear panel that will need rectifying.

............Bit of a difference from £290


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