Autosleeper Kingham - what's gone wrong in 2 years of use? HD 1080p

We have now had the Kingham for 2 years and spent over 130 nights away, travelling over 8,000 miles. So what's gone wrong with it during that time?
Inspiration for the film came from a comment by viewer Mark Mills, so thanks Mark for the suggestion.
SMC motoromes at Newark can be found at www.smcmotorhomes.co.uk/ , no affiliation with the Company other than being a happy customer.

[@markonmotoring]

Good to hear most of the issues were easily rectified. It's a nice looking van which is probably worthy of a few more videos in the future.

[@phillmather1455]

Dear Wolfie. I really enjoyed your impression of your water pump whilst priming, it was an incredibly realistic performance. Did you train in the performing arts?

[@An.Individual]

The problem with the submersible pump is that it is inaccessible with an underslung tank. Otherwise they are really good.

[@grahamatwell5120]

Hi I have just come across your channel, probably because we have the same van, not the exact same van as we have the Truma heating/water heater and it is fantastic, Bluetooth and GSM controllable.

[@WolfiesWheels]

Thanks for watching! I had reached the point with the Whale heater that if it couldn’t be made to work reliably I’d have to put my hand in my pocket and have it changed for the set up you have. You don’t hear of many problems with Truama set up…

[@paulie4650]

The dimples are on the metal work bolted to the cabinet under the flap.

[@lllbet-r4z]

Oh dear , these problems have completely put me off even considering this van , which I was keen on .. too many problems in a new build ,, a shame

[@WolfiesWheels]

Hi. Not sure if you have a Motorhome at present, but if you do and it is reliable and suits your needs then - unless there is a compelling reason to change it -you’d be better off keeping it ! If you are looking for a motorhome, then to be honest all new motorhomes and campers have issues. For example, we have had two new Hymers before, and both needed warranty work for leaks and corrosion (wheels and internal fittings), so the Kingham issues we had seem to be pretty par for the course. It’s not really good enough, but I’m afraid from my own experience and what I read on various forums, it’s just how things are in the modern cost and corner cutting world. If you are looking for a Kingham, maybe one that’s a couple of years old might suit you as the teething problems we had should have been sorted by the first owner 🤔. Good luck with whatever you end up with 👍🏻

[@allanb52]

So glad I did a self build. You call that good?.... we bought our 08 Vivaro 7 years ago, with 112,000 miles on the clock, recently fitted a new clutch at 170,000 and gear selector...and a set of tyres..and that's it apart from servicing and an odd small part for an MOT. The conversion, 1 new submersible pump at £10, easily fitted and nothing else, after 150+ nights and 70,000 miles at around 40mpg. Our last trip, 10,000km form Portugal to Greece and Turkey was trouble free...except my old Tomtom packed up, replaced for €89 in France. I would NEVER buy a new van, or indeed a non-self build, they are too complicated, I have no leisure battery, no split charge system, no solar and don't need it. I have a simple cold box, but if I ever decided to buy a fridge, I would buy a USB rechargeable. Your van sound like a nightmare....and it sounds like you haven't been anywhere with just 3,000 miles a year.

[@El-Tel63-Terry.]

What a moronic reply...

[@davidstokes2701]

Hi Wolfie, really helpful videos you’ve posted as we are considering selling our 2010 Wildax and getting a Kingham. My question is how you’ve got on with the single glazed (mostly) non-opening windows? Has condensation been a problem and/or cold? We don’t do much in the depths of winter but do travel a bit in Oct/Feb. Thanks

[@WolfiesWheels]

Glad the videos have been helpful. The single glazing isn’t as big a problem as I expected, although you do get a small amount of condensation if it’s cold outside and you’ve had the heating on all night. The blinds have a silver foil type backing which I think helps. I think I’d prefer a couple more opening windows as overnight when it’s hot it can get a bit stuffy. If you open the skylight and close that blind to keep the light out, it restricts the airflow benefit so you have to kind of mostly close the skylight blind and leave an air gap and hope the light doesn’t wake you too early

[@davidstokes2701]

Thanks that’s very helpful Wolfie. Appreciate the quick response.

[@tonks1968]

Hi. Really like the layout and size of your Kingham. Have you had any issues with the windows only being single glazed, in terms of condensation and general heat loss?

[@WolfiesWheels]

Thanks for watching and commenting. I was apprehensive about the single glazed windows when choosing the van as our previous vans had all been double glazed. However they seem to be fine for the use we put the van to, we tend to use between March and November so don’t do prolonged cold weather camping. The blinds fitted to the side windows are foil backed, which I think helps reduce heat loss and condensation. At the front (windscreen and door windows) I would recommend an external screen such as Silver Screens as the windscreen definitely suffers from condensation overnight. Hope this helps😀

[@davidholliday32]

Thanks for the video as im looking to buy one my question is have you had to do any upgrades like to the battery and sola, we will be staying in ours full time, thanks

[@WolfiesWheels]

Thanks for watching and the question. We have not upgraded the battery or solar, as for our needs (up to 4 days off grid) the factory set up works fine. But we did find that watching the TV did have a big impact on the battery level so if you watch TV a lot and will be off grid for extended periods then more solar and battery upgrade would be worth doing. Personally I would not use this van for full timing, the insulation and heating systems are not really in the same league as the fully winterised A class Motorhomes from the European manufacturers such as Hymer. These have double floors and heating ducts between the floors, and all the water pipes etc run through this void and are far less susceptible to freezing than the set up on the Kingham. The blown air heating reaches all parts of the Motorhome too, as opposed to the cab area in the Kingham feeling cold as there are no heating outlets in the cab. For what we use the van for, the Kingham is a great van. But I wouldn’t want to live in it full time.

[@davidholliday32]

@@WolfiesWheels ok thanks

[@bpn6c1]

Nice Citroen 2CV

[@vanish6116]

hi, great vlog we have a kingham just bought. Can i ask how you restrain your beautiful fur babies ?

[@WolfiesWheels]

Thanks for watching and your kind comment. One problem when discussing “how your dogs travel” on open media such as Facebook, KZbin etc is that whatever you say, someone will always tell you you’re doing it wrong/illegally/unsafely and so on. Hence I am very reluctant to say what we actually do, but suffice it to say it complies with the appropriate legislation. I am sorry I can’t be more helpful but I don’t want to put my head above the parapet on this one!

[@vanish6116]

@@WolfiesWheels no problem I know what you mean, cheers

[@paulie4650]

Hi could u send me a pic of the surflo pump set up please . Thanks Paul. Ref the side piece on the kitchen,where there are 2 dimples,get some pliers and bend them inward a bit,I do it on mine. Thanks

[@WolfiesWheels]

Thanks for the tip re the dimples, I’ll give it a go 👍🏻 . I’m not sure how to get the photos of the installation to you, but if you email me on [e-mail] I’ll send them over. Regards Wolfie

[@phannaby2623]

Hello Wolfies Wheels. I also bought my kingham from SMC and out of the five faults you mentioned. FOUR of them happened on my Kingham. Drop down worktop Whale heater Whale water pressure switch Twenty amp fuse Sadly as i bought mine in 2021 the warranty has expired. Too much of a coincidence?

[@WolfiesWheels]

Hi - thanks for watching and taking the time to comment. It certainly does sound as if these are areas that AS should reconsider - especially the Whale set up. I wonder whether you and I have had vans from the same production batch as mine was from May 2021. 🤔

[@An.Individual]

I think you recommend SMC Newark as a good dealer. Is that correct?

[@chopper602]

I'm not that keen on SMC . . . they admitted to damaging my van whilst there for warranty work, but it shouldn't really have happened. It necessitated a train ride home and a train ride back again the following weekend. My last visit was a for a repair to the shower, which should have been covered under warranty, but wasn't, and they, in my opinion didn't do a very through job. I won't be going back (it's a 2 hour drive for me anyway).

[@jonathanblow7022]

We had a Motorhome from SMC. They were very poor at fixing faults and always had a reason why the fault wasn’t repaired or parts replaced. The service manager was always unavailable to meet with you. Their service costs are disgraceful £350 +. I would not buy from them again.

[@danielwaugh9895]

Whale heat system is rubbish I have nothing but trouble with mine in my motorhome

[@WolfiesWheels]

Gotta say I agree…we even discussed swapping it out at our own expense but in the end decided not to (for now anyway..)It does do a great job on the hot water though…

[@fontie]

I'm one my third heater other 2 would work on electric but error with 5 lights on gas apparently water damage on one of the circuit boards. Not good. If this one goes I will look into getting a diesel heater fitted.@@WolfiesWheels