Volkswagen California 2.5 TDI SE PD (174bhp)

oooh , I could go on and on about my California, but because I have to get on with other stuff ,here is just a quick summary.

Its a love afair with campervans for everyone and I`m no different . My model : Vw california 2.5 tdi 4motion 174bhp, 2005. ; the vw t5base works a dream and never complains . With the 4wd we are able to go just about everywhere on our adventures and inbetween it carries along the motorways in spain and france like an audi a6.

But the CAMPER details are not built to last, the VW camper concept seems untested, far too fussy. Although there are a couple of small items left out( light in the rear compartment for example) it has to be said that they have managed well to fill the space and consider everything on might need . BUT BUT BUT every thing is built to break. and I dont mean through rough handling:

where do we start?

1 the kitchen tap, broken in 3 places .. the swivel spout doesnt stay on anymore , the 90 turn tap is snapped on the inside circular plastic retainer , the metal connection switch fell apart , I managed to fix this micro gizmo once but the second time my luck ran out .

2..the cudboards above the water tank and gas- these have a plastic locking device that snap with the slightest catch on the retainer when opening: I have tried to fix with araldite but it snapped right away . the SLIDING cudboards are made of a multiple of vertical slats which over time separate from one another leaving a thin grey thread of rubber hanging from the broken slats. This has happened to 5 or six of the slats especially close to the sliding handle.

3 the roof cudboard above the rear compartment . A clever use of space as long as it stays up but after 50000kms it decided all of its own accord to refuse to lock shut , falling at the first bit of driving vibration.NO amount of messing about with it will get the latch to function again and therefore for the last 60000kms i have been driving with my rear view miror offering no other view than things falling out of this open cudboard.

4 The kitchen sliding window: the plastic locking system again misfunctions after a while. The supposedly clever 90degree turn that the opening force must take is simply too much for the plastic mechanism. VW dealer has tried to fix it twice and now given up.

5 the window blinds : they had a lovely neat feeling when new and are obviously a borrow from train window blinds , but again two side blinds are broken because the plastic runner within the window structure has snapped- impossible to fix without buying and installing an entire window mechanism(of course) . Also the blinds for the front window, again very niffty, sadly have a tendency to split at the top and bottom of the sliding arms. also the magnetic retaining locks fall out (of course impossible to replace)

6 The roof. simple excellent use of space and super comfortable , but the light in the roof area , which could easily have an on /off switch like a standard torch , instead has a rotory motion half egg function . It is as delicate as an egg of course , the back falls of , the mechanism doesnt function . BUT HERE IS THE WORST THING ABOUT THE ENTIRE VAN- the roof is electric and works very well , however if while your camping you use the heating or refrigerator too much then the computer above the rear view mirror instructs the lowering function to fail.. OK not the end of the world , all i have to do is use the manual lowering toggle or the reset button once the battery is up to speed.. BUT both the manual toggle and the reset are situated behind the computer panel which is heart breaking to dismantle . There is no easy button like a removable car cd player, instead you have to put 2 penknives behind the plastic fascia(which breaks of course) and wrestle the computer box out from its holding slot . the computer promptly breaks (300euros) .This has happened to me on about 15 occasions, once almost resulting in the end of my marriage ( not to the van but to my wife).I have literally been reduced to tears by the madness of this setup and how there isnt stab marks all over the dash of my van is a mystery.

7.. The reclining seat: there is a handle that facilitates the recline to bed function . again the plastic handle does not match either the force require to open the lever nor the metal cable that operates the release. Had to replace this and it still operates poorly , cant allow anyone else to operate the recliner seat because the handle will surely come off in their hand.

8 . the two tables- firstly the table in the door. fab table fab use of space but the legs are not fixed to the table in a way that last 15 uses. I have had to reinforce and restick 2 of the legs back on . Also the handle that holds the table in place in the sliding door is again plastic and has broken - and cant be replaced with out dismantling the whole door and no doubt buying a whole mechanism. I have given up on it .

The table that slides along the kitchen face again with its solitary leg and lateral movement snaps off at the slightest encouragement . Fixed 3 times, and waiting for the next.

9 The refrigerator opens on an hydraulic arm which rusts- well it would as its not stainless and is perpetually in a damp enviroment.

Without going to the van and looking through the special box of broken plastic parts i have stored over the last few years , I cant recall anything else. I realize its not a landrover and not to be treated like one, but my feeling after a 6year , 106000km love affair with my california , is that I wish I had bought Mercedes or westfalia. and thats what I will do next time.