Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[old van man]

nope its not a mistake if this price is to be believed what value would they put on on a proper vintage caravan, ??? http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/vintage-classic-caravan-spritecadet-vwcamper-compatible-/110580045101?pt=UK_Campers_Caravans_Motorhomes&hash=item19bf15952d

[Dalek63]

Those people in exeter are mad, I asked them about a small window from a Carlight they are breaking and I would have had to take out a second house loan to buy it.
_________________
I can resist anything except temptation ! ( Oscar Wilde)
"Don't try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig." ( Mark Twain)
http://www.period-classic-caravan-club.co.uk/

[gresham flyer]

They say in their blurb about standing out from the clones,ok be a clown like them.
Its a bit like advertising a grotty brown Maxi on ebay for £4,500.
It really annoys me how people describe anything little more than 10 years old as VINTAGE.

Sprites, were the cheap end of the caravan market in the 1970`s,(sorry sprite owners)my father had a caravan hire, sales and repair business in the 1970`s and we used to go to Newmarket and pick up new caravans from the factory.
It was not unlike some of the car plants ,churning out inferior products of the day.
They were the Allegro`s,Maxi`s BL products mass produced etc of the time.
After a weeks hire they were falling apart.

I really enjoyed visiting the other end of the caravan market, the likes of Carlight etc, their factory was great to visit,small,friendly and you met proper tradesmen building a quality product,normally two men producing a handbuilt item.
It is quite a shame that we do not build things now like we used to,if you want quality you have to purchase older items from the past.

[fordf350camper]

Thinking when i have finished my 1935 caravan selling it.Well i may get 1000s for it if this is worth thats sort of money.MMMMMM

[old van man]

In the back ground i can see a Thomson snail and Wessex craftsman both of Ebay this year , i wonder if these will only get restored when a customer is found, willing to pay £1000s for the service ? OVM

[scooterdaz]

We should all know by now that ebay prices are no reflection of the real price of something, but its nice sometimes if your selling and your counting the money at the end, after ebays took their wack. Ive just bought my first vintage? caravan, a Sprite Alpine and yes i would agree, they do feel and look cheap. If i were to be honest it would not have been my first choice after seeing all the fine looking vans at the shows, but it came along at the right price and its my starter van, it certainly wasn't 4500k. Just wondering whats the difference between vintage, veteran and classic anyway

[49barndoor]

Ebay clown

[gresham flyer]

Sorry but vintage is not that item in your mums shed purchased from Homebase 10 years ago.

Veteran- built up to 31/12/1904
Edwardian- built 1905- until 1915
Vintage- built 1919- until 1939 (after the Great War)
Classic- built 1945-1973`ish or a quality item built perhaps after this date,this will cause some debate.

Post 73 i.e. Aston Martin,Ferrari,Bentley etc, but not a Vauxhall Nova,with a hubcap missing,and ten grands worth of sub woofers in the boot.

Classic,Retro,Vintage,Bygone etc are all miss used in todays spoken word.

Gresham.

[Scarlet Snail]

I agree, but it's nice to see a Sprite at the rallies, they really stand out from the crowd! But seriously, I have an old Sprite in my collection which we used to tow with a Maxi, not really brown, more a hearing-aid beige. Each to their own, some VW owner might pay for it. One day in the future it will be a real classic...

[49barndoor]

[Scarlet Snail]

Apologies, barn door, just my odd sense of humour! I have had veedubs in the past and love them. Not enough room in the driveway to keep everything!!

[Salopian]

[Scarlet Snail]

classiccars.com says: Formerly a term describing cars built between 1915 and 1925 but now used broadly, especially in England, to include cars manufactured between 1920 and 1942.
So doesn't include caravans at all. Anyway, it actually refers to the year that grapes grew to make wine.
Here's my suggestion:
Classic - a caravan with glass windows.
Vintage - a caravan older than me.
Historic - a Sprite with a pop top.

[yorkshireretro]

i love sprites and would much rather my sprite than a carlight, winchester, etc etc.

[Cameron]

Just discovered this thread and found it quite amusing.

As someone with quite a varied collection of caravans ranging from a budget Sprite to a Regency which cost more than a house when it was new, Sprites will always be my favourite.

The thing is, craftsman built caravans like our Carlight, Safari and Regency are great, but they're heavy, delicate, cumbersome and hard to maintain. My little Sprites just keep on going. They're lightweight, easy to work on and above all else, a bit of fun. We've attended many a rally with a "proper" caravan and hardly got a look in, but Sprites always draw in the crowd as people used to have them, they remember them.

We've experienced a lot of snobbery from so-called enthusiasts over Sprites, but some of the earlier pre-1965 models are as rare as hens teeth now. My 1960 400 is just one of two still knocking about, my 1964 400 is certainly the last all original one you'll ever see and my 1958 Alpine is just one of four known surviving models. They need someone to look after and preserve them. They are, after all, THE caravan that got many people started. They deserve to be treated with the same respect as any other classic caravan.


PS, we have a Maxi too, thankfully blue and not brown...