Burstner, Hymer or Malibu?

What ever make you decide on ,when looking at dealers ,do not buy from one far from home as most if not all LVs will entail some "warranty" work as do cars but you will be very lucky to be able to take an LV to any where but where you bought it from

And what ever you decide on go local to dealer for first trip ,to enable them to hopefully come to you to sort out any niggles

All that you have mentioned are good well built continentals.  Whichever you choose will be good.  The final choice is very much a personal thing that often hinges on some minor detail that is important to you.  

I can’t comment on the brands mentioned but the new 9 speed TC auto box in the Fiat seems to be a winner. It's very smooth👍🏻

In the UK, both Hymer and Carthago are perceived as premium brands. Carthago own Malibu. Malibu products do not target the premium market. Hymer own Burstner and the latter build motorhomes that are lower spec/priced compared to Hymers. Comparing the three makes is not very fair as Hymer products are pitched at the higher end of the market.  

I'm on my second Hymer. My first Hymer was faultless apart from wear and tear in the eight years we owned it. Our second one is better designed but the need for weight reduction has compromised the robustness of build; the design is better in the newer one. Neither of mine has suffered damp so I would buy another if I could stomach the increasing prices. Hymer options can wrack up the price very quickly!

I suggest you compare the dealers of these products as the dealer has a significant role to play from new through after sales. 

The size of motorhome you are considering will almost certainly need to be over 3,500kg and thus drivers will need a C1 licence entitlement. A large garage suggests you intend carrying bulky and/or heavy items so make sure the garage floor and the rear axle can carry the weight. If you haven't investigated payloads and weights of motorhomes, I suggest you do before going any further.

I now see why the OP is asking about C1 medicals in another thread.

Be very sure you're going for the right van before buying one of that size and weight, Dellers, as it's an oft made error to buy too big a van due to trying to replicate the space in a caravan. Been there, done that but, fortunately, was able to move on which is why I often say that big is not necessarily better.

Very important with continental “garage” motorhomes to look carefully at payload. We have looked at some models where to get down to 3500kg the payload can be as low as 200kg. You need as an absolute minimum of 500 kg and probably nearer 700 kg if you are going to make use of the garage. Base weight should include a full tank of water and driver plus passenger. It is common for the manufacturer to state that you shouldn’t travel with a full water tank; 100 litres weighs 100kg.

16 years ago we were advised by an experienced motorhomer not to buy the biggest we could afford. Instead, decide how long you expect your trips away might be,  and then buy the smallest one you could live in for that time.

we hoped to go on 6 week trips and ended up going Spain and Portugal for 12 weeks followed by 6 week trips around Europe.

We bought a 3.5 tonne, 6 metre long Hymer coachbuilt. It's proved ideal for us. Classe deux on the peage, easy to squeeze into small rural sites, and big enough inside. 

We've clocked up 168,000 miles in our hymer and she's showing her age. It's the Fiat bit that's beginning to cause problems.

Buy a Hymer!!

Hello all. Cannot thank you enough for the great inputs which are really appreciated. Its really funny right now with so much demand, one dealer (who we favoured at one point) just could not be bothered to return our calls so guess what, crossed off the list despite he had our order at that stage still I guess he did not have to try. Looked at many and yes the Hymer was then top of the list. Final decision day last week, all seemed very even twixt both of the remaining choices, great layout for us and that's important in our case. In the end the Burstner won given it has the 9 speed that Tinwheeler mentioned, I thought it was brilliant and given I am getting lazy so order placed on Thursday and we are both very pleased. Yes I have also been asking about the C1 renewal which has to be tackled in 3 years (but cant find my post for some reason to thank the respondents who were incredibly helpful to me with links etc to .Gov website and would like to but how??). Yes we paid more but went 'local' JVB66 so very happy with that advice. Its funny having to consider the weight issue so carefully, we just piled whatever we wanted on the boat so goodness knows what she weighs now! The Burstner has a good payload for us so once again really pleased with your advice Hitchglitch, we think with what interests we have and where we fancy going we should be OK. Planning on Training etc from the word go as it happens so as soon as we get on the road will post a warning to you all! Thanks once again, its great to know we have joined a club with great members and hope one day to return the suggestions to others from our experience. Derek & Cathy aka Dellers.

Dellers, you can find your posting history in your profile or by tapping your avatar. Your other post is here -
https://www.caravanclub.co.uk/club-together/discussions/information-technical-tips-advice/motorhomes/c1-driving-licence-renewal-problems/?er=P692567#P692567

I hope everything works out as you want.👍🏻

Hi Tinwheeler, thanks for the link I will get used to this site eventually!

I did get a lot of help from Members and the best clue in case anyone is watching is this entry from the .Gov website, really helped us and now quite relaxed about the test, famous last words eh?

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/870849/inf4d-d4-medical-examination-information-notes.pdf

Dellers