# Trigano Tribute Sofa Height Problem



## 104610 (May 19, 2007)

I am creating a separate thread for this after picking up on a previous post that the Tribute sofa height fault has gone through to the production vehicles. This is of importance to me and may result in me cancelling my order for the 650. I would appreciate feedback from owners who have received their vehicles if they have this fault or not.

When we ordered the Tribute 650 in Feb we viewed the 550 at Danum. We noticed the excessive height of the sofa which made sitting on very uncomfortable as our feet were swinging 3 to 4 inches off the ground. Due to my wife having poor mobility she could not even sit on the seat without being lifted up!

We were told by Danum that the 550 we were looking at was pre-production and had many such faults that would be corrected on the production vehicles. This was backed up by info and posts on forums, including this, by people being told by dealers that this was one of the problems that was being rectified hence holding up delivery. 

These faults, and others, appear to still be present. Since ordering we have discovered the poor design of the toilet and the fact that to sit on it comfortably with the door shut you need to be a super model or annorexic. A similar physique is required to get into the shower cubicle on the 650 through the very narrow door.

I was prepared to pay Danum to carry out modifications similar to Lazzas to sort out the toilet and shower but I draw the line at also paying them to reduce the sofa seat height which will also involve reducing the height of all the bed components, by the time I have finished I may has well paid for a custom van conversion. I understand what you are saying Oldenstar but I am not prepared to pay for a van with sofa seats and have to sit on stools I may as well go camping.

Its not a case of "you pay for what you get" as other "budget" panel van conversions such as the Firebrand Devon have no such problems. I think it's more of a case of rushing to get the vehicle out regardless of its poor design.

I would really appreciate feedback on this from all 2007 Tribute Owners 550 or 650 please.


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## LAZZA (Oct 28, 2006)

*650 seating*

Hi boy wonder 
We have had our 650 for a week now and yes it does have its faults like the tiolet compartment and the height of the seating is a little high,however we have had to compromise with both of these problems.The tiolet compartment wall i have altered which was a big step for me to take but it has made it much more usable,as for the seating problem,we have a plastic caravan step that we used on our last motorhome and my wife puts her feet on it whilst sitting on the settee and finds it very comfortable.We find this ok but obviously doesn't suit everyone. Timberland do produce fine vans but we could'nt afford another £10000.Good luck with your search and i'm sure you will find the right van that suits you and the wife.
Cheers Larry :lol:


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## oldenstar (Nov 9, 2006)

Hi Boy Wonder
Firstly while I was waiting for my Tribute to come I rang Trigano (Auto Trail) on the number given on the Tribute website to ask several questions, one of which was regarding the seat height. I too had been told at one of the shows that the seat height would be reduced from that of the prototype.
The guy on the phone was quite honest and said they could not reduce the seat height of the bench and rear seats because they would then be too low to use the driver and passenger seats for the longtitudinal single beds. (In practice this would not have mattered to me because having tried the single for one night when I was allowed away on my own, I went back the next night to the cross-van double which I found more comfortable).
So I knew what I would be getting. Also you misunderstand me regarding the stools-I don't sit on them, I just rest my feet on them. We park them behind the drivers seat whilst travelling and unfold them when necessary. They are about 6 inches high and I definitely need one to use the overcab storage space properly.
I agree with Lazza-it is all about compromise; cost, value for money, etc etc., so we all have different priorities.
I have to say I wanted the 650 rather than the 550 at first, but was persuaded by the wife. In my view the 550 washroom and toilet (more or less the same as the older Tribute) is much better, the 650 being compromised by squeezing in the shower room and adding a wooden edging to the sink, making Lazza do his woodwork to sit on the loo.
Also putting a full size wardrobe at the offside rear compomises the area in my view, blocking out the rear window. If they had added a worktop height cupboard instead with extra high level storage this would have opened up the area, and given extra worktop space.
I wanted an oven but she said it was not necessary, and that our 60 litre fridge is big enough, so that was that.
Sorry if I have not helped you but all in all, so far, we are well pleased with our 550. We are off tomorrow for several days in Wales so I hope we are still of the same mind on our return.
Best wishes for your choice
Paul


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## 104804 (May 28, 2007)

Thanks chaps, thats what I needed confirmation of.
Comparing with Timberland (which I have not compared with Lazza !) they certainly are good value hence I had made my choice and put a £2k deposit down and ordered one but what worries me is there is more than a single compromise here. Infact there is not much left thats not a compromise according to posts:

With all due respect I do not want to be stuck with a white elephant once the new shape novelty has worn off and Firebrand's panel van conversion on the new shape hit the streets - which is the same price and has an interior designed with people in mind. I would hate to think of the tributes secondhand value 12 months down the line with all these problems. I will try and get out of the transaction before its too late, 
Thanks again.
Robin


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