bema123 Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 I'm thinking of buying a Elddis Autoquest 2005 model on a Peugeot Chassis anybody got any comments good or bad all gratefully received :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mel wood Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 You may like to read the article in March MMM "Living with a 2003 Compass Avantgarde 400". The Compass is very similar to an Autoquest - I think that a basic difference is the seat fabric. The owner in the MMM article has had the van from new and is very positive about it. I think that in essence the 2003 and 2005 vans will be the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyB Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 I'm on my 2nd Elddis Autoquest. Both are based on the X250. No problems with either, and the interiors don't seem to have changed much. May be best to check if the van you want has electric blown air heating as well as gas. Cheers Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tracker Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 Very much built down to a price to compete with cheaper Italian imports to start with and was said to represent good value for money when new. Quite how well they will have fared over the years is unknown to me but they shouldn't be any worse than any other lower end van and as long as all the usual checks for damp, furniture security, body twist, delaminated floor etc are taken there is no reason to suppose that it will be any more problematic than many a van costing a whole lot more! See how it drives and listen and look for shakes, rattles and creaks from the habitation end. If the van were sound in wind and limb, the layout suited us and the price was right I would seriously consider buying one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyreman Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 If its been looked after and the price is right go for it,my first two vans were Eldiss and didnt give me any problems,theres always lots of talk about them being basic and entry level vans but i think the build quality is better than my present swift and i would go back to another Eldiss without a second thought. If your buying from a dealer make sure any niggles have been sorted out before you take it away becuase i'm sure theres no such thing as a pdi check when it comes to motorhome dealers. One thing springs to mind as a minus point for the Eldiss and thats the small water tanks so be prepared to carry an aquaroll and waste water container. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bema123 Posted February 15, 2012 Author Share Posted February 15, 2012 Thanks very much Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe63xnotuse Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 We had one of the "sister" model range,an '07 Compass 120 Suntor and although on the face of it,a very neat and tidy little unit,to brutely honest,it was very much built down to a price... :-S Although I suppose it was pretty well equipped,with full oven,elec & gas heating(blown air & seperate heater)and an additional external locker access,there were quite obvious signs of where corners had been cut... None of the overhead lockers had positive locks,only sprung hinges,meaning stuff could(and did!)sometimes fall out.Also none of the lockers had any shelving what so ever. Worst of all was the cheap'n' nasty,poorly constructed settee/bed frames/bases,consisting of rough sawn,softwood battens just nail-gunned together(..a couple of the "laths" on ours' snapped through "knots"...) Also on close inspection,you'd find poorly routed pipes and cables(..resulting in one of the water pipes chaffing through on the rough furniture frames). A pity,as it wouldn't have taken much to correct the above faults at the design(budgeting?)stage... Suprisingly,the base vehicle(the Peugeot 2.2,100hp,5speed),which I initially thought would be the "weak-link",actually went pretty well... Edit: I've just read this back..and it does sound pretty dire..?! :-S Perhaps I should put it into context a little and point out that our previous vehicle had been an '03 AS Duetto...in which everything seemed either forged from solid iron or carved from solid wood..! (lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelly58 Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 Our 1st motorhome was a Compass Suntor 115 on a Peugeot x250 purchased Dec 2006 which we ran for 18 months before upgrading to a bigger fixed bed motorhome . As an entry level motorhome we absoluteley loved our 115 in both size and layout excellent build quality for the price it served us well. we only kept the 2nd bigger motorhome 12 months and then downsized to our current motorhome an Autosleeper Nuevo II EK with the same layout as the 115 Compass , so the compass must have ticked all the boxes for us to go back to the same layout. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
747 Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 I had a 56 reg Autoquest 120 on the SWB Peugeot with a 2.2 engine. As I was working around the UK on contract, I used it a lot and I was happy with it. You will have a Truma heater but it will probably not be blown air, just convection. That is fine in all but the coldest temperatures and it is an easy fix to fit a small fan behind the fire to circulate the warm air (a small computer fan is OK to use). As has been said, the fresh water tank may only be about 45 litres, if it is bigger than that, it will not be much. There should also be an external 12 volt socket beside the fresh water filling point. If so, insist on being supplied with the 12 volt water pump that are supplied by Elddis on all new ones. If you have to fill the tank more often, you should at least take the hard work out of it. If you buy it, check the tyre air pressures. They should be around 50 to 55 psi. A lot of dealers pump them up to the 80 psi marked as the max on the tyre wall. At that pressure, the ride is far too hard and rattles your teeth. Good luck with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolandrat Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 I once owned a Compass 400 which was bought brand new, we toured the usual France and Spain in it and it was probably the most honest, well built and economical van ever. Eventually it was traded in for a Lunar 620 which was even better with a full length seamless roof. How many do you see for sale? They are like hens teeth, the build quality was exceptional. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flicka Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 Hi Bema & welcome to the forum. As others have posted the Elddis Autoquest & Compass Avantgarde - ( built in the same factory but now dropped) are budget vans, but have consistently been good sellers. They are also commonly seen out & about. They were also marketed under Dealers badging (Suntor = Brownhills, amongst others) You don't say which model you are considering, so do check available payload as many were on the 3000kg / 3300kg SWB chassis (hence the small water tanks) They appear to be a bit better in the Waterproofing stakes, than some of the other "budget brands" (i.e. as in very rearly mentioned in threads) but still worth insisting on a Damp Check, before signing on the bottom line. This is the weights for the Autoquest 100 (2003) Maximum Weight (Front Axle) 1600kgs Maximum Weight (Rear Axle) 1650kgs Maximum Towing Weight 2000kgs Mass in Running Order 2661kgs Essential Habitation Equipment 16kgs Personal Effects Payload 97kgs Conventional Load 225kgs Max User Payload 339kgs MTPLM 3000kgs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 Hi Bema It might help you to consider how you will use the van, as well as the quality of it too, ie do you intend to do a lot of wild-camping/using aires, winter trips etc, as this should also have a bearing on the van you buy. Sorry if I'm trying to teach you to suck eggs! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njoy Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 We have been very happy with our 2004 Autoquest 400RL (the Brownhills SUNTOR version) with their extras pack. We have really not seen anything we would have changed FD for until now. We have decided to downsize and have done a good deal part exchange but we are always open to offers. In any event we would be happy to talk to you. Will it be your first motorhome and which layout have you thought about. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aande83 Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Hi all, I had a 2008 registered Elddis Autoquest 120. I travelled just over 30,000 miles in the 3 1/2 years, including Scotland, England, Wales, Belgium, Holland, Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria, Italy down to Sicily, Spain and finally, last year, Greece. The only reason I sold it was, that after visiting the NEC Birmingham show last October, I was offered a good deal for part exchange on a new Peugeot based Elddis Autoquest 120 with a euro V engine and lots of 'extras'. As some of my German friends would say "Kleiner aber finer". It was often the only British van on some of the sites I have been on and certainly amongst the smallest but it could hold it's head high figuratively speaking. I had no complaints and hope to enjoy further forages throughout Europe over the coming years. I never really had a problem with the small 45 litres fresh water tank since it is relatively easy and quick to refill with sufficient for the wife to have a shower or do her hair!! I would have to take a 2nd mortgage out in order to purchase some of the 'intermediate' value vans which don't seem to offer any more value (and I did walk round the Birmingham show over a two day period before accepting the deal I have been offered). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mondo Posted February 17, 2012 Share Posted February 17, 2012 Our first van was an Elddis Autoquest 140 Suntor 07 reg...a Brownhills special...and it was a great van..the U-shaped lounge was good and it made up into a HUUUUGE Bed at night very comfy...we used the overcab bed for our bedding and various other things to be stored near at hand... It had the blown air heating..very cosy on chilly nights in Autumn..little bit short on storage space but adequate...the fresh water could have been bigger only 45 litres but we managed with another 15litre container as well..The 3 burner hob was good the oven was as good as a house ove..er indoors actually made our Xmas cakes in it in November 08 ready for Xmas that year she said it was a top oven just a shame it wasn't a tad larger but as she said she could cook a Sundy lunch in it no problems We toured Northern France and the Vendee in 2008 (Our favourite area) then we overwintered in Spain in Jan -April 09 the van never missed a beat..the 2.2 100 bhp 5 speed was good enough no judder!!..I would have no hesitation in recommending one...We only changed the van to upgrade to a larger van with a fixed bed as we were full timing and wanted a bit more room.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suda Posted February 17, 2012 Share Posted February 17, 2012 Hi. We had an Elddis Autoquest 300 on an 05 plate and kept her for 3 years. We travelled far and wide, home and abroad, France to Greece and Austria to Portugal. She had 16000 miles on the clock when purchased, a Peugeot 2 litre engine,and a big storage box on the back. We paid £17,000 and knew we had a bargain. Only swapped her to upsize to fixed single beds and a bit more luxury. Go for it and live the dream. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocles Posted February 17, 2012 Share Posted February 17, 2012 We ran a Compass Avantgard 120 from 2007 to 2011...our first van, we loved it. Basic spec, but had a nice feel to it, drove great, did 32 mpg once run in. Water tanks certainly small, but not a big problem. We too had a slight problem with a badly routed water pipe, which chafed against the spring hanger and caused a slight leak. Only Traded in last year cos we wanted a fixed bed and a bit more space, which we found in our fab Bessacarr e560. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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