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69 Dormobile, UK RHD *** SOLD ***

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MartRogers

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1969 Dormobile, UK RHD.

I have had her for ten years now, i brought her around 2 years after she had been restored. I am selling as i havent used her for a while as i have a split also and could do with the funds for my business, it is something i thought i would never do as i know this bus so well and thought i would keep her for good. Needs must though and sadly i have to let her go.

Excuse the amount of waffle but i thought it best to describe everything warts and all.


Engine

She has had a new engine around 5 years ago, it was a brand new Brazilian 1600 twin port, i have covered maybe 5000 miles since and as you can imagine she runs just fine with no leaks or smoke, i also fitted new clutch, started motor, carb and alternator at the same time so good for many miles of trouble free motoring.
The heater works fine, she has genuine heat exhchangers and a standard exhaust.

Interior

Unfortunately the original Dormobile interior has long gone, she has a Westfalia rock and roll bed / seat and side seat. The bed is full width and theres loads of room and very comfy.The other units are home made, the fridge unit is using many parts from a Westfalia i.e. sink and fridge, the fridge is a 3 way gas, 12v and 240v one, there is an electric water pump also.
The pop top is in nice condition with new seals on the windows so no leaks !
The canvas is original and in pretty good condition, there is some gaffer tape over a small split in one corner, i have seen somewhere that the original material is available to repair this if you so wish.
The front seats are half leather from a Rover, very comfy. There is a clock in the dashboard.
There is a Diesel Eberspacher so its nice and toasty inside. The diesel tank is on the roofrack. It has a thermostat so it will cut in and out as required. I have grafted a Honda Melody exhaust onto it and you can hardly hear it run.
I had a top box made professionally designed to house two 6*9 speakers with plenty of storage room inside.
The cooker folds down from the side of the wardrobe unit. There is plenty of storage space inside the unit for food etc.
There is a JVC head unit with built in DVD and colour screen, this is linked to a second screen in the back also. There is a decent amp and 12" sub in the back, also two speakers in the doors, the sound is nice. The stereo also has av / audio inputs and IPOD connection / control.
There are a few extra guages, two nice original smiths gauges sit on the top of the dash for temperature and battery voltage, there are also two lcd displays showing the voltage of the main and leisure battery.

Bodywork

The bus was professionally sprayed around 12 years ago, it has held up well and shines up a treat although there are a couple of minor blemishes appearing around the bottoms of a couple of the arches, they are not rot and just require sanding back treating and spraying.

The only other bad point is around 6 months after i brought her i left the bus parked in the garage for a few weeks and the handbrake siezed on, when trying to free it i managed to drive into a lawnmower ! Basically it uncovered the fact that there is some filler in the front end, this is not to cover up rot but a repair on a very light front end shunt (probably similar to mine !) The filler has cracked where i hit the lawnmower but has never got any worse in the last ten years and is not that noticable, i have attached a pic of this also.

Generally though the bodywork is great for a bus that has lived in the uk for the last 43 years, i have not been able to find any evidence of welding underneath and it still wears its original belly pans. As you can see from the pictures you wont see many buses from the uk with original floor pans like this.
I have been quoted £850 to sort the bodywork out but lack of time and funds means i will not be getting it done before i sell and at least you will see exactly what you are buying and not a van that has been freshly sprayed with hidden problems.
The sliding door, boot lid, engine lid etc are all in great condition and again apear to have never been welded.
There is a 70s roof rack on the back. Also she has quarter light windows
Both front doors and boot are on the same key, ignition is on another key, i dont have a key for the sliding door so have always just locked it from the inside. It may be that it is on the same key but is just siezed but have never stripped it to look.



Suspension

The bus is lowered with Red 9 dog leg spring plates on the back and red 9 coil overs on the front, it could be raised by about 3" with its current setup if you so wish.
Tyres are all good.

History

The bus comes with some great history dating back to when she was new, she was originally from Bristol and has lived in Portsmouth, Stafford, Northants to my knowledge. i have the following

Original service book, stamped up until mid 70s, early service history right from its first service in 69 where a full service cost around £12 ! , loads of mots, information supplied with the aftermarket seat belts, loads of receipts for various parts, engine etc etc.Basically i have everything apart from a gap from about 75 - 85 where the owner didnt keep anything unfortunately.

General

The bus has been layed up for the last 18 months in a dehumidifed unit, I went up to my unit today expecting to spend most of the day getting her running but in fact spent 4 hours digging her out as she was blocked in by loads of crap and less than a minute to get her started, i have given her a good run round today and all is exactly as when i parked her up.
She has a towbar and electrics, i have been told this is a Westfalia one and quite rare but cant confirm this.
I will put 12 months MOT on for the sale and 12 months of free tax. I have driven many trouble free miles in her over the last ten years and i am more than happy to drive her for a few hundred miles now and expect no troubles, i would suggest however that the purchaser should repalce the fuel lines and give the brakes a good check over before using too much but other than that she is ready to get out and use for the summer.
If i had the time then i would sort the few issues on the bodywork and replace the interior with an original Dormobile one, this would make her into an extremely desirable bus.
I also priced the number plate a few years back and was told it was worth around £1500 (SHY STIG) but couldnt contemplate selling that as its original to the bus.
There is a Toad imobilser on the engine also.
I think i have covered most things but im sure ive missed some bits, if you want any more pictures then let me know.
Please bear in mind i have just pulled the bus out today and not washed her so what you are seeing is a bus thats not been cleaned for two years and still full of sand from out last camping trip ! The bus does come up a treat after a clean and polish.

I have put a few pictures on here but for a lot more see the following link

http://s261.photobucket.com/albums/ii69/martrogers/Bus/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


Price is £11,000 or very very near offer, the bus is based in the midlands.


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I can be contacted on the following email address

[email protected]
 
Hi I am very interested in the bus, would it be possible to have a look one eve this week?

Cheers

Paul
 

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