It’s on the Horizon

[Method7]

After running our 1999 V-280 for 12 years we are a little bit sad to be collecting our MP Horizon next week.. Difficult choice but the flexibility of the Horizon aligns with the way we enjoy the V-280. With a young family we really just needed more room to sleep.

So much work ahead getting the vehicle ready for a summer of cycling, surfing, and seafood. We will need a towbar and a roof rack, we also want to fit the V-class folding table (another thread)

Happy to hear you advice regarding the above and essentials like the best bed toppers, insulation gadgets and so on....

 

[Ridgeway]

Hi,
You must’ve been pleased with your V-280 to have run it for 12 years and got attached to it. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed with your new vehicle for one moment.
We bought a new M/P in June ‘18 & have been delighted with it.
My only advice with regards to buying accessories etc is hold fire and see what you really need! We decided to do exactly that rather than buy lots of stuff on a whim we might never use. The most important thing I would say buy is a decent quality electric hook up lead. We didn’t buy a mattress topper and find both of the beds extremely comfortable. If we us the downstairs bed we sleep on a quilt and it’s fine.
I did buy a pair or ramps for levelling but have never used them amd they’re rather bulky so they remain at home!
The other bits we have since bought and leave in it are; decent plastic crockery, cutlery and an electric kettle. We bought a gas bottle but have only used the hob once, preferring to use the kettle if we’re on a site’s electric.
One luxury we treated ourselves to is a Brompton folding bike each, perfect for sight seeing on when away in the van!
Enjoy your new Horizon .

 

[Method7]

Hi @Ridgeway,

Thanks for the advice, we are getting a Horizon so no need for crockery but we will definitely take your advice to test the waters first.

The V-280 was the grumpy member of the family, we were never really sure if it would behave, it never really left us stranded but as the years went on our ~3000 miles a year was becoming very expensive, just recently the central locking controller failed, MB no longer make parts needed and it is labelled as a anti-theft component so fitting a used one is unlikely to work..

Having said all that we love that car, it has personality and we learned to live together I will miss that v6 2.8 petrol engine.

I have a Brompton, she was my daily commmute for nearly 10 years, that’s a good point, I should dust her off.

 

[Method7]

Today I picked up our MP .

One of the good and memorable days involving a short flight from Southampton to Manchester, MB Whitefield picked me up in a cracking C-Class and I had a clear 237 mile run home.

To be honest I’m blown away, just over 4 hours behind the wheel and I hardly scratched the surface, what a great drive leaving me with loads of things to lookup in the manual - things to try and questions to answer.

The odd thing is that it’s not that different to the V280 apart from the fact that I kept operating the indicator instead of the cruise control , they are galaxies apart yet there is something very familiar about the MP.

Let the good times roll.

 

[Nelson400]

After running our 1999 V-280 for 12 years we are a little bit sad to be collecting our MP Horizon next week.. Difficult choice but the flexibility of the Horizon aligns with the way we enjoy the V-280. With a young family we really just needed more room to sleep.

So much work ahead getting the vehicle ready for a summer of cycling, surfing, and seafood. We will need a towbar and a roof rack, we also want to fit the V-class folding table (another thread)

Happy to hear you advice regarding the above and essentials like the best bed toppers, insulation gadgets and so on....

Hi there! We too are young family with Horizon, and interested in folding V-class table and best mattress for downstairs bed that doesn’t take up too much space. Did you have any joy on the v-class table compatibility and final reco for mattress? Thanks so much for any advice you can offer!

 

[Method7]

Did you have any joy on the v-class table compatibility and final reco for mattress?

Hi @Nelson400 i did quite a lot of research into retrofitting the table and as far as I can gather you will need to replace the 2 middle seat runners. The table fits to a secondary track that isn’t part of the non table option. We have been living without the table and have more or less given up on the idea now. Instead we have a dometic fridge that works quite well as a table, is easily moved or removed and works on 12v, 240v and gas.

As for the mattress topper we got a Outwell Dreamcatcher 7.5, it folds onto the bed extender well (with duvet and pillows) but when packed up it is by no means small.. maybe about the size of 2x10L addBlue cans. But it is comfortable and the hardness is adjustable and it can be used elsewhere, like the fridge. Both of these work well for us, they both offer a lot of flexibility for various applications.

The folding table would be great for day to day use and impromptu picnics, board games and so on but I think we will try to cope without it now.

 

[Nelson400]

Hi @Nelson400 i did quite a lot of research into retrofitting the table and as far as I can gather you will need to replace the 2 middle seat runners. The table fits to a secondary track that isn’t part of the non table option. We have been living without the table and have more or less given up on the idea now. Instead we have a dometic fridge that works quite well as a table, is easily moved or removed and works on 12v, 240v and gas.

As for the mattress topper we got a Outwell Dreamcatcher 7.5, it folds onto the bed extender well (with duvet and pillows) but when packed up it is by no means small.. maybe about the size of 2x10L addBlue cans. But it is comfortable and the hardness is adjustable and it can be used elsewhere, like the fridge. Both of these work well for us, they both offer a lot of flexibility for various applications.

The folding table would be great for day to day use and impromptu picnics, board games and so on but I think we will try to cope without it now.

Thank you so much for the advice! If you have the details of the fridge I’d be interested in exploring that option. If I gain any further insight on the table I’ll let you know but yes, looks like a challenge! Thanks again!

 

[Method7]

This is the fridge, it comes with several options we have the external gas bottle option because we have a gas BBQ that uses the same type bottle. Dometic make a good range of fridges.
Dometic RC1200EGP Gas Portable Cooler, 12-230 V, Silver https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004M8BRW6/?tag=unique09f-21

Edit: When running on gas it needs to be level, we had a couple of occasions when it seemed to not be working, the van was on a slope facing up slightly and we were camping behind it.. we levelled the car and all was good again.

 

[Nelson400]

This is the fridge, it comes with several options we have the external gas bottle option because we have a gas BBQ that uses the same type bottle. Dometic make a good range of fridges.
Dometic RC1200EGP Gas Portable Cooler, 12-230 V, Silver https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004M8BRW6/?tag=unique09f-21

Edit: When running on gas it needs to be level, we had a couple of occasions when it seemed to not be working, the van was on a slope facing up slightly and we were camping behind it.. we levelled the car and all was good again.

Thank you so much - very helpful!