Hello from Suffolk
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Hello all,
I am new to Dormobile (have not got one yet).
But I am not new to Land Rovers as I have far to many (Series IIa 88, Series IIa 109 One Ton, 110 CSW and a 130 (which is going to be sold for this project)). I am after a Series IIa 109 CSW Dormobile 8) or one I can put the Dormobile bits on like seats and roof with bunks.
Is there anything to know about living with a Land Rover Dormobile on holidays/traveling, also any advice about them I should know.
Thanks for reading this and helping.Hi Spider
Welcome to the Dormobile forum.
Is there anything to know about living with a Dormobile? That depends if your a backpacker or a happy to pay for the extra luggage sort of a person? If you fall into the backpacker category, you will be fine. if your the extra luggage sort of a person, you need to learn to be a backpacker.
The main trick is, if it doesn’t fit in the cupboards, leave it at home. The lighter you travel, the more you will enjoy your Dormobile IMHO. We did this on our holiday this year and had a great time. You can see the pictures in the trip report section.
There are lots of us on here using our Dormobiles, so if you have questions, do not be afraid to ask them.
Cheers Mick
Thanks for that, we normally take the oz tent when we go away and live out the back of the 110 main thing seem to be the lack of roof rack on a Dormobile for the stuff like kayaks etc. Think they will have to go on a trailer behind (well it could be a caravan behind instead). We spent 3 weeks in Scotland and the Outer Hebrides 😀 this year but it would be nice to move a round from place to place more. Saw lots of people in camper moving around the Islands
HI Spider
It was towing a caravan around the coast of Northern Scotland that convinced me I needed a camper, but lack of money delayed purchase. In the mean time we had larger frame tents and a couple more classic caravans to match my series 2’s.
Personally, I believe the Dormobile is best used on its own with only the simplest awnings. we did this and we were set up in under 5 mins. Roof up, awning out, sat with a glass of wine and feet up.
As for kayaks, nothing is impossible. I fancy carrying an open canoe down to the ‘Gorges du Tarn’ and have thoughts in rigging a rack on the Dormobile for canoes/kayaks. But, it is probably simpler just to hire one when I get there, as they would have to be removed every time you wanted to lift the roof. The only problem with trailers is the cost of putting them onto a ferry.
Spent three years rebuilding our Dormobile and haven’t finished yet.
Mick
I am trying to avoid the caravan thing/route. Love camping but for trip where it rain a lot and week ends away a Dormobile seem like the best answer, plus the love of Series Land Rover (not sure a 110 Dormobile look right). Was your always a Dormobile or did you convert it? If so how hard is it to fit the pop up roof to the Landy roof and seats etc.
Hi Spider
Mine was converted straight from the factory and I am only the third owner, but only the second to use her. The second owner got her to restore her, but had too many projects and left her in a hedge bottom for 14 years. She was robbed of her gearbox, floors, cooker unit and wardrobe. Luckily the seats had been stored as they are very hard to find in any sort of condition.
The price of Dormobile’s have rocketed over the last couple of years, so you might have to build one depending on you budget. Very good examples have sold for £12,000 recently and one in similar condition to mine has been valued at a minimum of £7,000. Of course, people have been very lucky and have quite recently picked up Dormobile’s that need work for less then £1500.
I was very fortunate that I have made a lot of good friends through this forum and the Series 2 Club. Between the members of both forums, they found me most of the parts I was missing. Only the wardrobe proved to be elusive, but a member of the Series 2 Club kindly lent me one to copy. If you do go down the route of building a Dormobile on a Series 2, my advice is to not be afraid to ask. You never know who may have a spare roof sat in their garden!
Regards Mick
Welcome on this forum and good luck for your searches
😀 bienvenue spider sur ce forum et bonne chance pour tes recherches 😉
Hi Spyder
Whilst nothing can beat the classic dormobile – there are other options. 💡
Dormobile still supplies bits for converting vehicles – such as more modern defenders like our privious 1996 TD5 and now our 07 TDCI puma.
It all depends how original you want to be, and how much of a compromise you want to make.
The MW dormobile landrovers are fabulous vehicles and I would love to own one – but they are precious and my lifestyle wouldn’t do one justice – nor would my mechanical skills!(well I’m a nurse not a mechanic! 😳 )We have kept a hard top roof with has a full length brownchurch rack and use V bars for our kayaks and canoes -We carry racing K1’s & K2’s so it was a bit of a priority to ensure good support these long fragile boats.
Our set up still allows us to sleep and cook in the waggon, carry the boats or what ever we want to shove on the roof with out compomising our personal space. We have a quick errect awning for the back for day trips and a large side awning for longer trips, so dont miss the roof height. 😉However having said that I have seen a couple of fab roof racks designed for the pop top which fit over the cab area like a ladder rack and then a frame over the end of the waggon which allows the top to pop – but these have a draw back in that you have to take the boats off to pop the top.
So if you have a will – there is aways a way! 8)happy paddling and good luck with your waggon!
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