# AutoTrail Product Description



## Foxtrot (Jul 26, 2007)

We purchased our new Cheiftan in April, my question concerns specified items (1) listed as being standard in the brochure but not fitted.
1 all overhead lockers should have lighting, the wiring is there but no lights.
2 internal mudgaurds fitted to the Fiat cab, the front half is fitted but not the rear half (how strange!!!).
When speaking to AutoTrail they confirmed both (1&2) should be fitted but when we approached our dealer, Simpsons of Yarmouth, they say AutoTrail have denied these are part of the normal specification on their top of the range motorhomes.
It would be nice to know the truth on this, the locker lights are definitely in the brochure and the absence of mudgaurds could lead to a rust problem.
If any other 2007 X250 Cheiftan owners have 1 or 2 please let me know.
Regards


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## 96299 (Sep 15, 2005)

Hi Foxtrot.My burstner wasn`t fitted with mudgaurds either.I too thought this strange.Surely they must come with them as it all looks cheap and nasty without them fitted.

steve


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## 96299 (Sep 15, 2005)

Just phoned my dealer up about the mudflap issue,and he tells me that they dont come with them.Optional extra 8O I find that extraordinary and bang out of order considering the amount of dosh we spend on these things. :? 

steve


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## Mikemoss (Sep 5, 2005)

If it's any help the AutoTrail website lists both concealed lighting and in-locker lighting as being standard features on your model. Not a whisper about mud flaps though.

Hope you get it sorted.


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## Foxtrot (Jul 26, 2007)

HI
Just to prevent any confusion, when I talk about mudgaurds I am refering to those fitted to the wheel arch not mudflaps.

I would have thought that mudgaurds (wheel arch covers) would be fitted as standard, I cannot imagine buying a car, even the cheapest on the market, that didn't have these fitted, let alone a £62,000 MH. Mine has the front portion fitted but not the rear half.

Not fitting them must be an invitation to rust as this area gets soaking wet and muddy, even in the glorious summers we enjoy in the UK.

I would very much welcome a comment from AutoTrail on this but I think there attitude is "if they manage to get it out of the factory & accepted by the customer, tough luck"
Doug


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## Tucano (Jun 9, 2006)

Doug,.
Don't have the rear of the arch covers fitted to our 2006 Autotrail Apache either but then again we only paid £40,000 for it !!
First van we have owned and we will never buy an Autotrail again, now call it an Autotrial, much more apt,
Regards, 
Norman


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## 102001 (Dec 3, 2006)

I took delivery in september and it isn't fitted with internal protectors(i think with the water ingress problem they are expecting these models to rust from inside out rather than just the bodywork 
as to internal lighting all side cupboards are fitted with lights but mine is a lo line and the large lockers above the cab have wires hanging down but no lights i think the only reason the wires hang down is due to sticky pads in sufficient the wires weren't intended to be connected


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## some-where-in-oxford (Apr 18, 2006)

Swift on a Fiat X250 chassis. Have inner wings fitted forward of the suspension strut but not to the rear. Rear of front wheel arch is undersealed. The plastic is finished on the rear edge so looks as if it is designed that way.

Looks like its like this on all Fiats.


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## glacier (Jun 24, 2006)

When at Brownhills the other day all their new Autotrails (2007 fiat chassis?) had no front wheel mudguards, this despite the fiat base chassis cab having the fixing points for them on the wheel arch edge - two holes if I remember correctly.

Know doubt it is an optional extra on a base van model and if you bought a LX of SX commercial van constructed on the chassis they would come as standard.

We have a 2006 Hymer Camp Classic and neither front or rear have them or mudflaps and, in the case of the rear, it is a real annoyance as the grey waste empty point and entry electric step get covered in road dirt on even the shortest trip


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## Foxtrot (Jul 26, 2007)

Hi 
From your replies it would appear that the rear mudgaurds are not filled, even though the holes for fitting are there. I cannot believe on a MH this price that they do not come as standard, I don't know what the LX/SX variants are but doubt that they cost anything approaching this MH, and why are the converters buying low spec cabs in the first place?

I will persue the locker lighting, mine has the wiring in place in all lockers but no lights, according to the literature there should be lighting in all overhead lockers, this includes the large locker at the front on our lowlines.

When you say AUTO-TRIAL, I think we have all had bad experiences with poor build quality etc, my dealers (Simpsons) are very good at rectifiying problems but it is such a pity that shoddy workmanship spoils what is essentially a good product.
We vowed never to buy another AutoTrail, this is our second, but when we went to the shows etc it is difficult to find others that have the interior quality on these, although with this one we did upgrade to the grand frontier range fabric as we didn't think the "terry toweling" fabric fitted as standard would be durable, like a lot of the cheap cotton fabrics in the continental MH's. It also seemed to us that the majority of continentals also don't have much of a lounge area, normally seem to come with seating/dinette arrangement. I hope this changes by the time we come to replace this one as we too are not great fans of AutoTrail.
Having said that my dealer assures me AutoTrails have less problem than most other makes he deals with.
I can only say that I think the whole MH industry has very low quality aspiration & management, I am looking forward to the day when South Korea etc get involved then we could see some real attention to detail.
Doug


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## 102001 (Dec 3, 2006)

*bad build quality*

i have had kentucky,hobby,autocruise motorhomes previously and had several minor build quality problems with them all the only reason went for autotrail this time is it is fairly easy to get replacement parts where as with hobby and kentucky i had to wait months for most items , iv built up a fair list on the autotrail in 3 weeks but nothing serious
1. flip down screen packed in

2. passenger seat hits mains socket when swivelled restricting it

3.wall paper around kitchen window and bathroom window coming away and bubbling on corners

4. kitchen draw runner faulty

5.sealant around rear wheel arches coming away

6. rear garage door locks wont stay in

door separating bedroom and bathroom doesn't stay clipped in

dealer fitted option faults

1. alarm system will lock habitation door remotely but will not unlock

2. satellite system not tracking properly while driving

nothing really major dealer to busy to look at it until 25/10/07 but contacted sergeant electrical who supply flip down screens and they kindly sent me a replacement today in exchange for the faulty one


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## ingram (May 12, 2005)

This 'wheelarch' problem was mentioned elsewhere a while ago: may have been in the 'panel van forum' but not sure.

As I recall, it was said that the rear guards are fitted to some of the larger engined vans; maybe the 160 or 130? which is why fixing lugs are present...... I am not positive about this as it was only read 'in passing' but have a search for 'wheelarch' or something like it.
hth

Harvey


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## Foxtrot (Jul 26, 2007)

Thanks for various replies, sorry hear so many faults on your MH gjc, although most serious seem to be with dealer fitted options. Make sure the garage door locks are turned that extra little bit otherwise they do not stay in. they can be pretty stiff.

Thanks ingram I will do a search, mine is the 160 & I understood they should be fitted & was told as much by AutoTrail but dealer says they are now denying this. I find their attitude of always trying to wriggle out of their commitments very annoying, think I will have to rant on the phone to them. You would not think they would want bad publicity, every time I ring them(which is not that often) they make out I am the only one with a problem, they should try going to some rallies where inevitably the conversation gets round to discussing problems & this then dominates the next few hours.


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