Autotrail Tracker EKS awning

Hello and welcome to CT and the wonderful world of motorhoming.

Our motorhome came with an attached windout sun canopy and a safari room that can be attached. We have never used the safari room, not easy to erect 😉. Never needed and would have to be removed before moving off for any reason.

The windout sun canopy is a great asset 😆. Used to offer shade from sun, shelter from the rain. We never leave it out whilst not in the motorhome - we've seen the damage caused when a breeze got up in someone's absence 😲😲.

There are threads on here over the years about NOT over buying before you've had several runs out. There are cupboards, lofts,  sheds and garages all over the country full of what we thought useful/essential 😂. The search facility on this forum is not good so can't pinpoint them.

Another BIG issue with buying for the motorhome is weight of essentials ie other half, fuel, some water for the loo flush and a cuppa, crockery, pots and pans, cutlery, toiletries, clothing and footwear all weigh and add up! It is easy to exceed your payload VERY EASILY. Added extras including a sun canopy are all added weight.

Most of us stock our motorhome in ready for action mode - just add water, contents of fridge and ourselves for the off 😆. But to begin with there's no reason not to take things from indoors.  Make a list of what your activities require and add. 

We have several must haves external silverscreen keeps out heat and cold in the cab, and 'unbreakable' crockery buy from IKEA at 50p an item. 😆 to name a couple.

Don't be frightened to ask questions, there are no silly ones! There's lots of experience and knowledge amongst the posters here. Sometimes there are lots of ways of doing the same things 😉

B2 wrote...

"sue with buying for the motorhome is weight of essentials ie other half, fuel, some water for the loo flush and a cuppa, crockery, pots and pans, cutlery, toiletries, clothing and footwear all weigh and add up! It is easy to exceed your payload VERY EASILY. Added extras including a sun canopy are all added weight."

...and beat me to my regular 'weight' advice...

the EKS has grown recently from 5.99m to 6.44m long, and has a MIRO of 3190, that's a lot for a 'small' van....so, only 310kg of payload) with no wife, no water, no anything else......

the fresh water tank is a large one (unusually for AT) at 135l, so it's easy to be travelling with half a tank of water (65kg) and OH (nominal 75kg), add in AT's Personal Allowance Payload (for food and clothes etc) of 84kg (for two people)  and you've lost 224kg of your 310kg....so only 86kg left for all the 'proper stuff' most folk carry.....

chairs, tables, BBQ, toilet fluids, levellers, leads, hoses, adaptors, 2nd gas bottle, bikes, tools, manuals, map books, Wastemaster or other water mgt items....the list goes on....

dont forget any factory fitted options and dealer added accessories that you've chosen will also add weight and reduce payload....as will that heavy awning....

you can even do the sums the other way...by using the AT Weight Calculator.....this adds a passenger (OH @75kg) and the Personal  Payload Allowance as above (84kg) and leaves you with a number for everything else....151kg....

now, this might sound a lot, but it's tiny, in reality....

fill the water tank and you've lost 135kg of this......ie, all of it.

even at half a tank this only leaves the 80 odd kg I mentioned above for all the 'stuff' I listed and more....

If you or your OH are more than 75kg then this will reduce the payload further......

i don't post this to scare you, though as a novice I propably have, and I apologise.....but I don't apologise for helping you understand weights and payload issues as they often aren't considered by new purchasers, and salesmen are pretty backward at coming forward in this area...

throw in the fact that manufacturers are allowed a +/- 5% tollerance on their stated weights and this can further erode 'brochure' figures.

IMHO, it is imperative that you weigh this vehicle before signing....

weigh it at a weighbridge or with dealer weight pads, with yourself, wife, at least half a tank of water, gas bottle, full fuel tank if possible (or be able to make an allowance for this) etc...

in the meantime, find a way to weigh all the stuff (incl an allowance for the new awning) that you will be taking with you.....pots, pans, cutlery, food, shoes,boots other clothes, jackets, book, iPods, iPads, PC, leads, batteries, Chargers, etc.....

this is in addition to the other list above for larger items like chairs, bbq etc. Which must also be weighed.

so weigh the van (fuel. Water, people, etc) .....weigh all the stuff (both lists)....add it together and hope it doesn't reach 3500kg....

If this turns out to be an issue, it is possible to upgrade the van to 3650kg to give an extra 150kg of payload, but their are licensing issues which may or may not be valid in your case...

ok, sorry to have 'stuck a spoke' in your dreams, but this is a serious issue which needs addressing before youve parted with your cash.  

Thanks for the info so far, i did anticipate weight issues, we currently own a Sterling Eccles 442 and so are conscious of limits and distribution.

The salesman at Chelston recommended registering it under 3650kg to help with this problem, and so the extra 150kg will come in useful.

The reason for an awning is that we have an English Springer doggy and we tend to use a small travel crate for the little fella to sleep in, as well as a couple of chairs and a spare kitchen sink, so rather than leaving stuff lying around behind a wind break a small awning would suit our needs.

Our intention is to buy a lightweight but, need advise from other EKS owners as to their purchases.

Martin, Sue and Georgie dog.

I'd hold fire on buying an awning for a couple of months. After that period of time you'll know whether you will want the extra work to put up and take down and store. Also you'll be on many campsites where you will see some MH awnings and you'll chit chat to the owners about their experiences and then decide if and what sort you will want.

One thing you quickly learn with a MH, GD, is how much stuff you can do without.

When on site, you could store chairs under the van, as you could a collapsible dog crate. Alternatively, put the stuff in the cab which is what we do when pitched with anything bulky. Some people find a small pop up tent useful for storing things when on site and that doesn’t hamper movement of the van. Imagine having to dismantle/disconnect an awning just to drive across the site to do your tanks! Have you not wondered why so few MHs sport full awnings? The wind out canopy is a different matter altogether.

Personally, I would find an awning so much trouble that it would negate the benefits of having a MH (for me) and I’d think I might as well have kept the cvan. 

Each to their own, though, but please be aware of the downside. It’s been suggested that you try the van for a few nights before you commit to an awning and I heartily second that suggestion. 

i know Chelstons very well..and I'm sure they will be happy to help with any requests.....

the 3650kg upplate is useful, as you say, but you may not be aware, this is just a 'paper' exercise to increase the MTPLM, but does not increase the individual axle weights....

front axle rarely an issue, but sometimes, the rear axle limit of 2000kg can be 'tricky'......(the front limit is 1850kg)

now, you don't have a large rear garage which tends to concentrate most of the 'stuff' in one place (behind the rear axle) however you do have your kitchen appliances all at that end of the van.....so it may well still be significantly rear biased...

If it were me, this would be my plan.....

when the van comes into Chelstons (prior to them doing the PDI or fitting any extras) go and visit them with all your weight info to hand and get them to weigh it as above.....and check those axle weights with all your extras spread across the axles (say) 40/60.

the invisible 'killer' can easily be that 5% 'tollerance' I mentioned earlier...hence the importance of weighing 'your' van.....

with a MIRO of (say) 3200, a 5% variance in the wrong direction is an extra 160kg.....more than the total payload AT says you have left after the Personal Allowance......

Always, always, always, take brochure and 'nice salesman' info with a huge pinch of salt....much better to check things yourself

some, perhaps more experienced buyers, make 'weight' a condition of sale, so if the actual van doesn't meet their requiremets, it's not an issue AFTER payment....I certainly did, my dealer more than happy to weigh the van and send me the details.....I particularly wanted to run at 3500 so this was an important criterion for me.

good luck, happy to help more if you need it..

BB.

PS, good advice re: the awning...

We use a pup tent £20 , to put the chairs ,bbq and other bits that we don't want to carry round when we go out , plus it makes a good pitch marker 

That would be my preferred option, too, Husky. 

It’s no great loss if it doesn’t work out either. 

Well it would appear that the MRO is 3190kg (Auto trail figures) giving a potential 310kg inc driver for the 3500kg rated EKS and 460kg for the 3650kg rated EKS, max gross train weight is 4750kg so a sensible load of accessories should be a safe bet.

Our dog gets very muddy on a daily basis and i have no intention of letting him into my shiny new van until he has dried out or is at least clean so i still think an awning will be the route we take.

Is there any body out there with a Tracker EKS.

You might get away with carrying the kitchen sink with 460kg, GD, if you're careful. Are you towing, only I wonder why you quoted the GTW as this has no bearing on a solo vehicle?

We're only trying to point out the pitfalls and possibly save you wasting your money because, as you said yourself, you’re new to MHs. Ultimately, it’s your choice.