Thanks for the video. We also got a retriever and you really help us to decide which campervan buy. Next week we will finally get our California. So excited!!!!
I spend 2yrs drifting around France in a 64reg T5 that i had converted....fantastic time of my life, i have now just ungraded to a new MH that i full time in...Love it
Great inspiring video yet again guys love you two well three with the adorable bentley you guys come over as such warm and friendly people and you inspire me to get out there and enjoy life . keep up the brilliant work luv ya and thank you , Jeff xxx
The Volvo XC60 is a great car, I'm very space limited so wanted a compact diesel estate which was fun to drive but would also tow well. A Volvo V50 R design fitted the bill perfectly. The 6 speed powershift double clutch seems ideal too, and copes well.
Hi Both, Thanks for the video...it was fun to watch. We came from the T4 California which had a Westfalia interior. And we recently bought a T5 Caifornia. The T4 is a nice van for start but she was 22 years old and showing some wear, beside the wear it is a noisy van to drive. The T5 has so much more comfort and is a super van to drive. We have planed our anual (mid June) holiday trip trough the south of the UK, Starting in Dover going along the south coast towards lands end Cornwall. From there up north following the coastal line. On the way back we will go by Stonehenge, Oxford, frome there back to Dover. We will avoid motor ways and large main roads... an other benefit of the VW California. Have fun and enjoy life Frans & Anita
Thats going to be a brilliant trip! Especially when you get into Devon and Cornwall! Make sure you add the South Downs to your list of places to visit. Also a lovely part of the South Coast. Thank you very much for watching :-)
Hi Gill and Bill, sure the South Downs was included in our route.. We will enter around Pulborough and exit somewhere around Winchester. Yes we are looking forward to this trip..And the VW is the perfect traveller for us. We are now orientating for small camp sites, we usually stay for one or max two nights and hop to the next. So suggestions are welcome :-) Cheers.... Frans...
Only just come across this video and really enjoyed it, thanks. We bought a vw conversion last year and I love it! Main reason was our 3 dogs and the freedom it gives us as well as cups of tea on tap! We had an old motorhome years ago but our dogs hated it so then we bought a lovely new caravan and towed it with our Mondeo estate, we loved that too because of all the space it gave us. I really enjoyed towing it too even though I am in my late 60s. Now we rent dog friendly cottages and have the lovely freedom of the campervan (I would sleep in it all the time but my oh isn’t into it as much as I am having spent years as a guide leader on camping trips!) can’t wait for lockdown to be over!
Thanks for a great, informative video. We are planning to retire early and go travelling across Europe. (Next April!) Been looking at these VWs for several months and I really think this is for us.
Great video guys! We always get asked why we bought a panel van and converted it into a campervan over buying a caravan or motorhome. It's all about what works with your lifestyle :) Looking forward to watching more of you videos from two fellow dubbers :) P.S. Your dog is super cool!
He sure is isn't he! He's definitely the brains behind the operation! Hopefully he doesn't realise this, ditch us and go solo!! 😜 Thank you so much for your support
We are almost about to take the plunge, but for us will be a vw conversion. Just sorting out selling the car and caravan and then it's onwards and upwards. Great video guys. 👍
Good job guys, we love our motorhome, we just tour around Scotland at the moment, we would be lost without Desmond, but we had caravanned for nearly 30 years, so we knew what we were looking for. Everyone has their own ideals as to what works for them, I love your outlook and really enjoy your videos, keep up the great work. Ps we are planning to come across the border in the summer.. eeek!!! Exciting times ahead :-)
In Sweden people use VW golfs to tow caravans and there are usually no problem, a Volvo xc60 is MORE then enough for almost everyone, unless you are towing a gigantic caravan, I mean we use our VW Passat GTE for caravaning all the time with my family of 5.
Just found your channel when looking at the Caravan, Motorhome show. really great content. We had an old Vdub then sold it and bought a caravan ( as we're old.) I assume your down this end of the country listening to you saying you were in Poole and Bournemouth? we are in Blandford so not far. so now for a look at some of your other blogs. Good luck and happy travels.
great video and we tottally agree with you. best thing we ever purchased our is a very high end high specd full conversion using as much oem components as possible including the california bed. at over £50k people just carnt understand why? but boy have we used it the kids love it and we have been away most wends. oh we do have a twin axel caravan we tow with it for our main holidays so we still have the camper down the beach. best investment ever, major memory maker. hope we cross paths sometime. you going to busfest in malvern?
Perfect... I'm so pleased you tow a caravan as well as I've always wanted the excuse to buy a caravan but we have felt that it would be overkill. Now you have shown us that it isn't! :-) Unfortunately we will be on our honeymoon during Busfest otherwise we would have loved to go. Thank you so much for watching
not overkill at all, ours is the 140bhp and tows like a dream, its not for everybody i know but gives 100% flexibilty for longer stays we only have the caravan because we had it before the camper. . have fun on your honeymoon and congratulations.
Great video delighted you have a dog because that is my situation. How much did you pay for it and where from. Thanks again for going through all the other options and for why the didn't work for you (or should I say Bentley) 😜
Very inspirational and likeable folk you are. And (as a cat person) your dog is adorable. I can't deny how shocked I was when looking into the price of one of these. Shame as I am a self employed musician/photographer who could really make use of a dream van like this for working.
Funny, I'm currently thinking of buying one. I've already done one month in new zealand in a van and loved it. But I'm not sure that I will have the same (good) experience in europe, and not sure how how the california is a good investment, but you gave me some confidence for this big buy.
Hi, Time is ticking for us here in Spain. 150 DSG 4motion starts it's life on build week 36 2017. Hopefully it will arrive in time for our first trip to..... Blighty in February to visit or granddaughter & new arrival in Taunton.
Actually these vans are pretty cost effective, provided that they are used regularly. Even bigger vans than these make pretty decent everyday vehicles. They also keep their value much better than almost all cars. They are still valuable after twenty years. They are also pretty well rustproofed too.
Hi guys another great video, can I ask what camera you use and what camera you used at the end of the video as there was a great deal in deiffernece of the quality. I want to do more vloggging when we are away and was just wondering the difference between using an iPhone and a dedicated camera. I know Dan Trudgian uses the canon g7x which seems to work well.
Thank you very much for watching, all the shots of us talking in this video were filmed on the iPhone 7 plus. It's a great camera, struggles a little in low light but all other times it is brilliant. The best from the iPhone 7 plus is unlocked using a £10 app called Filmic Pro. It allows you to adjust the exposure and other features that are otherwise locked on the built in camera app. The final shot of bentley on the beach is filmed with my DJI Mavic Pro Drone. The G7X is brilliant but I don't believe it has an external microphone input which I have found is vital for outdoor shots on a campsite with even the slightest wind.
Hi...We live in Bournemouth/Poole and in the early stages of looking into buying a campervan. You mentioned a place in Bournemouth that does campervan conversations who let you check them all out. What's the name of this company? Great channel guys, we've just subscribed! All the best - The Eales Adventures
Hi guys, We’re just about to buy our first camper. We have an American bulldog and was just wondering how you travel with your dog? I’m concerned he will be skidding around everywhere in the back. Thank you in advance, we can’t wait to get out on the open road.
I've just come across your videos on RU-vid and I've subscribed as I'm thinking of buying a California.I just have a question I have three young kids their 2 ,5 and 7 do you think the California would be ok for room as I see you can get an optional seat that goes behind the drivers.Id love to get one but if it would be very tight on space I'd have to see.Thanks.
Hi, I believe you need to remove the optional seat when you want to make up the lower bed so ideally you'd have to take an awning with you so you have somewhere to store the seat when sleeping but plenty of people do that. Maybe also look into the California Beach where you have a three seater bench at the back and also a larger bed when it's made into one. You could then have a "slidepod" in the rear section for all your cooking needs? Both options are very cool though and would give you plenty of space.
How do you find the dsg gearbox did you drive the manual aswell.Im test driving one soon and not sure which to choose.This will be my daily driver so maybe auto is the way to go I'm not sure.
Hi guys, great video as usual.... a quick question.....how does the tax on these vans work out year on year now then....was aware things had changed, but not how it affected vehicles over £40 grand. Thanks
Thanks. The government has decided to add a premium tax to all vehicles over £40,000. This means that those vehicles command more tax the day you drive it out of the showroom and then an additional £310 a year for the first 5 years. This is for all vehicles registered after 1st April 2017. It gets a bit complicated but here's a link that will explain it far better than I can... www.whatcar.com/advice/buying/ved-car-tax-changes-in-2017-what-do-i-need-to-know/
hello. enjoyed the video. do you have awning or did you get it retro fitted. We have the elevated roof from the side,which unfortunately means we can't get one fitted .is the vw 4 motion😁
We specced the wind out awning from the factory. This is not the 4motion, unfortunately you can't spec the 4motion with the DSG gearbox in the 150PS engine, you have to have a manual. So if you want DSG and 4motion you have to have the 204PS engine making it a very big jump in price. Thank you for watching :-)
So I've just sat through nearly 14 minutes of this and I've Still got no idea why you have a pink tee shirt on! Please can you post an update? Thank you. Oh, and I like your channel. :-)
Been going through the same thought process and arrived at the same place. However, I live in California. Irony VW's California campervan is not available in California. :-(
Tell that to our government. Get rid of the chicken tax and the van will be available in California when the next container ship arrives. We got sooooo close with TTIP.
Hi, Thanks for the Video.. I'm just putting the spec togther to order our T6. Are there any options you wish you added or possibly any you've found you havn't needed and regret wasting the money? Thanks
Thank you for watching :-) There isn't much I wish I had ordered... I really love the look of the front of the California with the LED upgrade lights but I'm still unsure whether I could actually justify the cost of them. We didn't add a huge amount to ours as it's already an expensive vehicle. We have the standard stereo so I may have upgraded that slightly. I wouldn't necessarily go all out on the sat nav but maybe upgrade to the slightly bigger screen. The multifunction steering wheel is picked by most people but I can't say I really miss it, it's not too far to turn the stereo up and down. Good luck with your order, you'll love it! :-)
Brilliant series of videos... we are considering the purchase of a van - do you know of anywhere who hires them for breaks so we can test out the way of life.... I'm pretty sure we will like it but would love to give it a go first. we are close to Cirencester in the cotswolds. Thanks in advance.. Martin
Hi, thank you so much for watching our videos. www.kamperhire.co.uk hire out VW Californias, it's not exactly local to you but if you incorporated a break to France or the south coast then it could work. Also a lot of the VW Van Centres that sell VW California's give you the opportunity to hire one but they don't have all the camping equipment included, it's just the van. We placed a deposit on one and they then lent us one for free for a few days.
Hi guys plus Bentley. I think I´ve watched almost all of yous shows. Absolutely inspiring. But I can´t remember, in which one you introduced the telescopic dog ramp, that was fitted in the back of the Cali. Where can i find more information on that specific ramp? Thanks for a fantastic show. Bjørn from Denmark
Hi! Thanks for watching and I’m so glad you’ve found it so inspiring! The video for our dog ramp is here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-K7z-snA85P8.html Hope that’s helpful. 😊
It's fine, we always try and find a space away from other cars but I've always done that because I don't trust other drivers. At least if somebody does park too close to us we can still get in through the sliding door.
Hey both, I think you've made a great decision, it fits your lifestyle and situation perfectly by the sound of it. I have to say, I have this vision of Bentley walking backwards in a motorhome which did make me laugh out loud! Bless him. If we were in the same position as you and lived near the coast we'd do the same without doubt. Looking forward to following your adventures, keep up the good work :)
Here is a question you can't answer, why is that car not available here in California (or the US). We had a VW camper years ago and really enjoyed it. Now we are looking into a van conversion but unfortunately VW won't be a consideration.
Do you use a portable toilet during night if need be ? Would a 2 to 3 week holiday in one be too long or are they better for short trips like 2 to 3 nights at a time ? Are they warm enough in winter particularly sleeping up top and is there a good heating system? Almost sold on getting one.
Kevin Douglass Hi Kevin, Thanks for your question! Yes we do have a porta-loo for the night time. Yes you can definitely go away for longer periods in one! Obviously you don't have a shower on board so it would be a good idea to stay at campsites that do. We have a diesel heating system on board that keeps the top bed lovely and warm in winter. It's brilliant. Very good system. Though I would recommend a Cali-Topper for the winter months which just adds another canvas layer over the pop-top.
so, Im really loving this camper van, thank you for this video, your feedback and reasoning on why you purchased it, is fantastic.... Now, Im in Canada...would you know how much this van costs? in Canadian dollars?
Thank you so so much for watching our videos. I just did a google currency conversion so it doesn't take into account the correct taxes etc but if it was the same price as here in Blighty it would be around £82000 Canadian Dollars according to google.
thank you for doing the conversion...I did not even think of that lol and wow $82,000 Canadian Dollars eek. I didn't think it would be that expensive. Well, Im sure it would be worth it though. Thanks again for looking it up for me. Also, I did watch a few other videos of yours...great stuff, great RU-vid Channel
Love the video.. my question is; how do you get on with the side door on the drivers side? I reason I ask is I owned a T4 transporter van with passanger side opening and I see all Brit conversions use that configuration. Is there much of a difference?
Thanks for watching, we don't have an issue with it being on the "wrong" side. We just park the van front in first. I know some people have had issues at some campsites where certain wardens have been picky but we haven't had any problems yet. It could cause a problem if you were letting passengers out the back all the time at school runs for example but you can easily climb through to the front and out the passenger door if required.
We live in the states and can't seem to find these vehicles. Do you have any suggestions? Can we have one shipped from the dealer that you purchased from ?
I'm not sure I'm afraid. I imagine you'd have to use a specialist importer but I'm not sure what the rules are for importing a car in to the states. It does seem very strange that they aren't available in the states
Hi guys got back from wareham Wednesday going back down Friday love it . Just seen your video as usual very good Brilliant you use it on your night shift 😴 Hope you do videos of your European trip with the camper Definitely saving for camper 👍🏻👍🏻
Hi there, could I ask you please - when the double bed is up, can Bentley lie underneath? Would love to know as we have a dog too! Thanks in advance, love your channel
Oh ok, thanks very much :) We watched your vids for ages last night and really love all the info. and tips from your experiences. We don't own one yet but sometimes borrow my in-laws small motorhome and love it! Thinking of saving for a SWB campervan and will start looking at some to appreciate the differences. So many out there - but esp. loving the Cali. Thank you again very much xx
You can get some VW conversions which have a different style of bed and they would have space underneath for a small to medium sized dog. You'd have to try a few out and see which works best for you. Thanks again for watching. We really appreciate the support.
When you were at the NEC BIRMINGHAM , you showed the microtowels stand by Giso. Their website is no longer available, and their email info@giso.UK doesn't work.😞
T6 is much better and cheaper. There are so many layout options available. I will never understand the appeal of this van. We have a mwb Sprinter, a Renault master and a t6 all converted ourselves which are perfect for our needs.
When we ordered we were told we would have to wait 6 months however it reduced to 3 months. A colleague of mine went to enquire at his local dealer and was told 12 months now but I'm not sure if that's accurate or not.
What mpg do you get from the automatic? Not sure which to go for so am hiring an automatic for a week trip to Scotland in October with my dog, can't wait!
We get about 38-40mpg day to day. The automatic is brilliant and I'd highly recommend it, it makes it such a relaxing drive! You're going to have a fantastic trip in October! Enjoy :-)
Double clutch autos such as you would have here (DSG) carry no penalty in fuel consumption over a manual. They are a big advance over epicyclic automatic boxes
Bought my VW California in 2012, costing over £46000 and settled down for a life of great holidays. However, this was to be no fairytale happy ending and in fact it was the worst vehicle that I have ever bought. VW had not mastered the paintwork on the new aluminium roof and the van was in and out of the workshop, causing a lot of anger and frustration. To make matters worse they would not even buy the van back, even though it was under a year old and put me off by offering a ridiculous amount. The final thing that finished me off was when the driver side door hinges dropped, causing the door to scrape on the footwell. As soon as this was repaired I sold the van, losing £14000 in total. VW are living on their past name and can turn out crap vehicles like anyone else. You pay your money and hope you get a good one!!
To be honest, I'm a bit disappointed. I stumbled upon this as I was looking for an answer to why there is such a market dominance of VW in this niche. I thought I'd find out what is so special about Cali, but it seems that you never even considered other options. Maybe that's why :)
good informative info. Tip.. most owners do not have dogs, but its great if you do. Just stop banging on about your dog ! He's lovely mind... but too many references as you love him so much. My neigbour is the same. She has a lab.. called Bentley. l
Paul Tuohy We will make the videos exactly as we see fit. The question posed was “Why did WE buy a California” and a huge part of that was because of the dog. It was our opinion and we both stick by it.
Lizzie that's just fine ! Please don't think i was being critical! I did quantify my negative with a positive to you each time. Clearly a social media comment fail by me ! You do exactly as you see fit. I love the enthusiasm and insight from your perspective. Its your gig ! Great to share a similar love. Our 1959 Canterbury Pitt conversion (Holly Bus) - (HYT 878) bought for £1500 in 1989 still wins (for us but stolen in '96) but the cali we bought this year is stunning and I need to work on Wendy to keep it! I think our Cali (Dickie Bus - DK16DKD) beats the excellent review you did on the Marco which we were considering. The electric fold down bed may seem 'first class' but the Vw version - pull strap and down - suits us fine - and you no doubt. Keep on it and I'm so sorry if my thoughts annoyed you. I get the same on social media in my job via twitter so I should know!
