wish I had read the Reviews
wish I had read the Bailey of Bristol reviews before sending my caravan for repair, I thought it would be in good hands but what a poor decision, 8 to 10 week repair ended up 32 weeks unbelievable, at approximately week 7 We was told all parts were in and it was going into workshop and would be complete in 3 weeks after many excuses and poor customer service from Bailey of Bristol who clearly don’t care about there customers after 32 weeks We finally got our caravan back, the poor service is far to much to list, rapid response is not a logo Bailey Of Bristol will be taking on any time soon, 3 holidays cancelled and numerous weekends, thanks for nothing never again, Poor staff at this firm Gillian and Chantelle try so hard to help but seriously let down by there powers to be (thank you) Chris the new supervisor nice bloke thank you and good luck sorting that shower out. I haven’t received a survey email so here goes I’ll do it myself 1, how good was we at returning your calls Terrible 2, how good was we at returning your emails Terrible 3, how satisfied are you with the time frame of your repair Terrible 4, how easy was it to book an appointment to collect your caravan Terrible 5, could you talk to a director No they hide behind there staff 6, would you use us again Ha ha ha ha I’d rather snap me arm off READ THE REVIEWS
The build quality is pretty poor the wiring and plumbing is a mess.
For the top of their range Caravan the build quality is pretty poor the wiring is a mess and the plumbing diabolical. It is very difficult to access the water switch over valve and the drain valves, they are buried deep under the seat behind the tanks. Filling the internal tank relies on watching for the tank to overflow, if they had spent less money on the disco type lights, they could have fitted an overflow indicator and an easier access tap. Even the kitchen tap is installed the wrong way round. Communications with the Potential Customer and or New Customer is virtually non-existent.
Brilliant Alicanto Porto 2…
Took delivery of our Alicanto Porto 2 at beginning of August & have been away in it and love everything - bed is huge and exceptionally comfy. Lounge area is huge and love the "L" shaped kitchen. Large fridge & Freezer and good storage space. Love the flush fit windows. Large toilet and shower. Pleased the extractor fan above the cooker has returned. Love the upgraded Grey/Cream - great soft grey flooring under carpets. Missing radio and grill pan (however dealer has grill pan but not had a chance to collect yet).
Discovery D4-2 Issues
Bought a new Discovery D4-2 in February 21. it was the ideal size now children had stopped coming with us and it had a bike rack option which we took and a bespoke awning which made a massive difference with space, so fantastic or so we thought. The first set of problems started to occur which we gave benefit of the doubt. Bathroom door would not close properly, the electrical cables had dropped down and were hanging down in the way of the front nearside steady winder, the plastic clips which hold the seat backs away from the caravan walls were breaking and the adhesive screw covers were peeling off and the spotlight with USB port kept blowing a fuse each time a cable was plugged in. All reported to dealer and sorted out accordingly. After a few more outings in the van, it became apparent that there is some design issue with the cupboards going around the top of the van because a door fell off because the screws had pulled out, I believe this is caused by the springs on the hinges, which appear to be too strong for the door and frames to cope with. The frame work has also become loose and on opening other cupboards you can see the whole frame twisting and this is causing the fixings to work loose, very poor indeed. The wiring at the rear of the van has also recently dropped down whilst travelling so didn't know until we arrived at destination, lucky it didn't quite reach floor level so never actually got damaged as best as I can see. I have looked under the rear to see what holds it up and it appears that it is only 1 plastic clip the type you push cable in and the plastic comes back together, it obviously opens up easy as my cable had come back out. Whilst inspecting the cable issue I noticed that 2 of the bolts that I guess hold the floor to the frame of the van were not fixed all the way so the washers were clanking about, again this questions my thoughts on how safe is this caravan and whether it is actually fit for purpose. I have had Bailey vans for 20 plus years but this one and my previous which was a Brindisi which I kept for a short period of time are/were more than disappointing
Had a unicorn Vigo 2022 .had issues…
Had a unicorn Vigo 2022 .had issues with the roof but this was rectified. Small niggles alround. Poor quality for £30 thousand pounds our first new van and our last still missing parts and four matteress Later and still does not fit. Very disappointed. Dealer tried but not very hard to resolve the problems. After sales rubbish will ma!e and shame if not resolved soon
Bailey Pegasus Messina
Really happy and excited to eventually collect our new Pegasus Messina caravan, it’s been a long and frustrating wait for it but it’s here at last. We had to wait 11 months from initial order to delivery due to a mix of covid restrictions and supply issues. Collected it on 17th June from our local dealer who went through all the usual handover details and explained everything to us and then it was all up to us to go and explore with it. We’ve had 4 outings so far from quick weekend breaks to longer 10 day staycations and have thoroughly enjoyed the new van, the layout was the main reason for choosing the Messina and it certainly works for us, the bed is spacious and comfortable with plenty of unserved storage and wardrobe space, the mid toilet/shower gives plenty of room and the kitchen/lounge area is impressive, the only downside here would be the lack of worktop space while preparing food etc. The build quality of the van so far has not given us any problems although we are still awaiting a grill pan and the fitting of the ATC system. The internal finishing of the van is average although I would say there is a definite reduction in the quality of the panelling being used now compared to our 2014 that we traded in. We have also had an issue with water ingress from the large front window which when examined it only appeared to have sealant on all 4 corners and not fully around the window frame however this was found early on and is being addressed by our dealership. All in all we are happy with the van and the extra width certainly makes a difference internally, externally it doesn’t tow any differently although you become aware of the extra width when you are on narrow roads/lanes and extra care is required.
Build quality not great
Having already owned a bailey persuit we was so excited to buy our brand new alicanto grande, however we have been left feeling very disappointed. On collection, the dealer wasn't great as we didn't get the wow feeling from them, clearly Saturdays are busy for handover and selling but a little care and attention for spending nearly 40k would have gone a long way. On collecting the vehicle it was apparent that there was no real pdi check done on the caravan, cupboards catch, they aren't level, solar panel didn't work, leds not stuck down properly, seal around shower tray coming away and there was already a scuff and a dent in the fridge door. Not really what we expected from a brand new caravan. 2 days after buying the dealer wanted us to bring back so they could put right but as the dealer is nearly anhour and a half away for us this would mean 2 further trips to drop off and pick up the caravan. Been left deflated and disappointed with the build quality and checks from dealer
Bailey Adamo 69-4
Before we took the plunge on which motorhome, what brand, which layout (the list is endless), we started doing our homework back in 2021. Where for several weeks looking at various layouts and manufactures, we created a list of pros and cons which compiled into our short list. Looking over the many people that had gripes against all major brands of Motorhomes. After looking at brochures and physically looking, we had 2 types in mind, a fixed bed or a drop-down bed, where we felt the fixed bed was a space only used for when you slept and just a big area for not being in use except for when sleeping. So, we ruled out that option and went for the drop-down bed, which then reduced our short list to a sizable amount. This is only our opinion, as for some, other layouts would work better for them. This was when we decided to look carefully at the Bailey brand Motorhomes. After a lot of thought we decided to place our order for a Bailey Adamo 69-4 in 2021. Due to the issues with shortages of components (no fault of Bailey), our motorhome eventually (after a year) got delivered, we were not disappointed. it is a fab motorhome, yes, we have a couple of issues that we have raised, but this is nothing new to any new car or in fact even a Kitchen. There will be always little things that may need tweaking or something. As for our Adamo, we love it, we count the number of days when we go away again, and they are so easy to work with. Bailey and our reseller "Lowdhams" have been fab and we are very lucky to have such a vehicle that we wanted and as for the build quality, we have no issues with. I think this is where people forget that caravans/motorhomes have to be light, flexible, but also practical, and that is why build quality you are not going to get a piece of mahogany or Oak (unless you are then looking for the larger Motorhomes that have a massive MTPLM, it has to be very light and being light, too much oomph and it will break. As for Bailey motorhomes, we personally can't fault them and the build, personally, I think this is all down to what you are expecting in a build. We found the Bailey Adamo is very competitive with its rivals, don’t take my word for it, take a look yourselves. If you are expecting your motorhome to be usable, practical and smart looking, then there is no problem, Bailey it is!
Some problems to look for buying a new Bailey Caravan
Purchased a Series 5 Cabrera in June this year. Love the layout and general design but having bought Bailey on recommendation from several friends, boy are we disappointed with the quality. Apart from no table or ATC for which we're waiting, the overall build quality is amateurish. We are working with our dealer but I'm posting this here so others can check before they buy. - Front panoramic window fell off the first time we opened it. A strip of metal, which I assume is the hinge, fell out. It wasn't attached to the window. Window now gaffer taped closed. Not sure if the stays are damaged but the dealer will take a look. - Door under sink fell off as screws have pulled out of hinge - Door over sink refuses to latch - One strip of lights in bedroom stopped working after a week - Silicone at base of shower around tray is not stuck to the tray so we're wondering where the water went as we'd used it for 5 days before we spotted it. - Vinyl flooring not laid flat and is rucked up around battery box and in bedroom. Worse in hot weather. - The shelf trim has fallen off in one eyelevel cupboard - A piece of polystyrene at the back of the same eyelevel cupboard is also falling off. - There is a bulge in the ceiling in bedroom where the roof panels join inside. It's unsightly but what's causing it? I think it aligns with the join on the exterior panels so is it a screw that's too long pushing the ceiling down. - Externally on the roof look at the screw fittings for front and back panels. The caps are either missing or broken and bodged up by silcone. Some are not even over the screws. - Again on the roof there are gaps at the back which in my opinion should we sealed but are not. Water will get in. - Very creaky floor around washroom - One screw cover missing in washroom - Two external grab handle chrome inserts are very loose as some locating lugs are broken. As the broken bits are not in their slots one can only assume they were missing when assembled in Bailey's factory. And as for the quality of the tissue paper from blinds...I know, I bought it knowing they were like that but after two weeks of use I give it another year before a finger goes through them as they are so difficult to close. Personally I'd like to see Bailey do a recall on them and replace for more substantial cassette blinds (with flyscreen) To balance it out, we love the fixed bed, the storage, how light and airy it is, how well it tows and basically how well it fits our needs. There will always be things that could have been designed or positioned better but what suits me might not suit someone else. But overall it's a disappointing first experience of Bailey Caravans. It seems their QC person missed our caravan... Update on 30 Aug After Bailey's reply. Thank you for your stock reply Bailey. I am working with my dealer on these items. However, it would improve my confidence in Bailey as a manufacturer if perhaps there was some acknowledgement that some of these issues are purely poor manufacturing standards and lack of quality control. All you seem to have done is dumped it on the dealer.
Bailey Unicorn Cabrera S5
We have purchased a Bailey Unicorn Cabrera S5. We love the layout of this caravan with the fixed island bed at the back and the centre bathroom. Beautiful caravan but seriously let down by a number of poor quality and design issues. The fridge door is warped and the fridge doesn’t work on electric only gas. The front blinds are not fit for purpose as they do not fold back correctly. They feel as if they are made of paper and don’t have any longevity. The curtains are just a thin strip of material hanging down which do not cover the windows. So in a blind failure they would be useless. We are still awaiting the ATC and table. Hopefully Bailey will resolve these issues and get back to the 1st class manufacturer of caravans that they have always been in the past.