THE CHEAPEST CARAVAN BUILT IN BRITAIN? Honest thoughts on the brand-new 2023 Bailey Discovery D4-4L
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 15 июл 2024
- Bailey of Bristol kindly lent me this brand-new prototype 2023 Bailey Discovery D4-4L for the first ever thorough live-in test that this model has had. Come along with me for the weekend and find out what we get up to when caravanning and I put the new D4-4L through it's paces. Here's what happened...
00:00 Outtake
00:18 Introduction
01:45 Discovery D4-4L Overview
02:23 Picking Up The Caravan
03:16 How Does It Tow?
04:23 Arriving at the Campsite
06:14 Day One Activities
08:01 The Bed
09:01 Kitchen
12:31 Adaptable Seating and the Side Dinette
15:30 Day Two Activities
17:09 Washroom
20:30 Wardrobe and Storage
22:30 Is This Caravan Suitable For Children?
24:59 Assembling The Bunk Bed
30:09 Final Thoughts
32:39 What Can Be Improved?
36:01 Is It NotAnotherWhiteBox Approved?
Let me know your favourites in the comments section below!
Find out more about the 2023 Bailey Discovery D4-L and the rest of the Bailey Discovery range on the Bailey website here: www.baileyofbristol.co.uk/touring-caravans/discovery/discovery-d4-4-l
Remember to join the NotAnotherWhiteBox Facebook group: groups/notanotherwhitebox
Happy Caravanning,
Cameron.
#notanotherwhitebox
Follow NotAWhiteBox on Twitter: @notawhitebox
Follow NotAWhiteBox on Instagram: @notanotherwhitebox
Follow NotAWhiteBox on Facebook: notanotherwhitebox
Also, check out my Classic Sprite Caravans website: www.classicspritecaravans.co.uk
#design #caravan 
Авто/Мото
Your better off in a caravan because you know it's clean because you've cleaned it and it's your own bed because you brought it with you and you have all the things you need which is home from home which you could not do in a hotel or a bed and breakfast,, having to make small talk when you go down for your breakfast in a hotel and you find you've missed breakfast in a caravan you can eat when you want to. Picking your own little spot on a caravan park where you can just be on your own with your partner or family without being judged for who you are....
My thoughts exactly, having all your own things and your own timetable is brilliant. I have difficulty eating out so self catering is our only option on the whole. The caravan gives us freedom and instead of one getaway a year we can go when it suits us and the sun is shining
Great video and review. Making us more excited for our D4-4. Will keep you updated.
Thank you and thanks for supporting the video premiere as well. Looking forward to seeing how you get on with your D4-4 😎
Loved this review! Practical and fun - great overview of what looks like a fabulous caravan !
We have just bought the Bailey Discovery D4-4 and absolutely love it 😄 this looks by far the best caravan for 4 people 😊
Thanks, hope you enjoy your new D4-4!
What a brilliant review!
Lovely little caravan, we have been caravanning 35 years and had huge caravans and Motorhomes but its so nice id like one after seeing your video.
The kitchen would sell it to me and bits like the shoe cupboard, agree its a fab idea 💡 x
Thanks for your lovely comment 😊 Yes, great things really do come in small packages! It’s surprised me how much I didn’t miss a big caravan when using this. I guess it’s not about the space but more about how the space is actually used.
I can honestly say that your caravan reviews are simply the best I have ever watched, many thanks 🙂
“You have to stop at Gloucester Service.” Yes or Tebay Services on the M6 which is in the same ownership.
Love this ❤
Great video Cameron. I was really impressed by this model when I took a look. Completely agree on value for money.
Good to see you back on our devices & haven't some motorway services moved on a tad.
I'd love to do a caravan factory tour ...
Thank you! I’ve been liaising with a couple of manufacturers to see if I can do a factory tour, but sadly don’t have time this summer. But there’s a few things in the offing for later in the year… watch this space!
Very enjoyable video. Well done!
Thank you! 😊
You raised some interesting point camo.
I do think the kitchen is great, but my comments stand about the cooker. it should be 1 induction 1 gas and take up less space.
When the D4-4L was announced I looked at the layout and though it looked great. We prefer single beds when caravanning and I thought the extra length on the offside, provided by the forward dinette seat would give 6ft 2ins tall me a really good long bed. And, yes it would, BUT the nearside bench is just 4ft 5ins long and I doubt many partners are about 4ft 3ins tall and able to sleep there. Now if the lounge benches were another foot long that would be ideal. But I can see that unless you want to reduce the size of that excellent kitchen it means the van has to be made a foot longer. That would mean a 14ft 8ins inside length which is still unusually short for a 4 berth, the D4-4 itself being 17ft 4ins internally. Then again our Phoenix + 420 is 13ft 2ins inside but it doesn't have that dinette seating area feature.
Wow, that service station is amazing ❤ The caravan is lovely 🥰
After watching & re-watching this video dozens of times over the last 12 months, finally took the plunge and just ordered this model. Your comprehensive review of the clever and functional design aspects combined with the light-weight of the van quickly convinced us this was the right option for our first ever caravan. We’re complete newbies and our first time towing will be when we collect the van in August. Just wanted to say thanks & let you know how much this review has helped us and I hope 2024 is a great year for you and the channel!
Great review.
Thank you 😊
Nice to see some multi-functional design like the dual layout for the side dinette
Absolutely. It’s about time that caravans got smarter with their use of space. Since small space living, vanlife and tiny houses are all the rage nowadays, you’d think manufacturers would pinch some more space saving ideas! Kudos to Bailey for being smart with this design.
Great review, really informative and could tell you genuinely liked the van. Im in-between this van and swift base camp 4 as a first time van buyer. Keep up the good work.
Thank you, glad that you enjoyed the review! I’d definitely choose the Bailey Discovery D4-4L over the Swift Basecamp 4. The layout just works a bit better and the washroom and kitchen are larger in the D4-4L. But I think the Swift Basecamp 2 is better than the Bailey Discovery D4-2, as the Basecamp 2 has a significantly better kitchen arrangement.
With the bunk bed I thought it was clear you left one pillow up in the diner, if you kept only the metal frame you had 4 pillows. I love your videos, specially this one with the remarkable Tatoo disappearance on your arm after opening the bathroom cabinet. I felt the coziness when you put the kettle on. Great video!
Another great review with deep information. Thanks! I watch your videos because the US caravan market is such a vast dirge of options not innovated since the 60s. And please don’t get me started on how an F-150 is the minimum towing device. The Brits have it so good! Thanks for listening :-)
Thanks for watching. Yes I’ve noticed how trailers in the US are so many decades behind those in Europe. We always say it’s because European manufacturers have had to innovate to save weight due to our smaller cars. Americans haven’t had that problem, though it’s just appearing as more people move over to EVs
@@NotAnotherWhiteBox - Oh, I wouldn’t call the need to go lighter a problem so much as an opportunity. 🧐 Americans seem enamored with the F-150 Lightning and Rivian, with no understanding that the power of these “aerodynamic as a bookcase” heavy vehicles are still way harder on the environment. Innovation can come in so many ways. Witness the Truma heating systems-so much better than what US campers are used to-in many ways. All I know for sure is that you would be very bored here Cameron! 😂
Great review 👍
Thank you 🙏🏼
Nice review thanks
When I purchased our new c'van i said "It MUST have an oven"
In practice, the oven has been used just once !
By comparison, the B&M AirFryer is quicker and cheaper to use.... I use the standard oven for pan storage 😉
I think this is the thing - until you settle into caravan life and get some experience under your belt, you don’t know 100% what you want and need from a caravan. The nice thing about the Discovery range is that it has just enough of what you need to get you going, and people can add in things like a solar panel, motor mover etc… as they go. I expect a lot of buyers of these will be first time caravanners.
Really enjoyed this video/review. Also, I like the windows without 'faffy' show curtains. Great stuff boys 👍👍
Love glouster services!!!! Great video thank you 😊
Bless....2014 - N.A.W.B should interview the owners for a Not Another Grey Services! They opened Tebay in 1972 after the m6 cut through the farm!
This one is my favorite 😊
The cushions fit the bunks perfectly but you’ve just placed them incorrectly 😊
Great review, really helpful with all the plus points you picked up. Bailey D4-4L or Basecamp 4 is the question? It's handy being able to transport a couple of bikes inside which you can do with the Basecamp. But the heating, toilet, kitchen etc of this caravan look great. Like another it would be handy if the extra beds were a bit more than midget sized as it does limit their use, one moment the kids fit, next year they have grown out of the bunks.
I had to laugh at 21:29 in the video when you talked about the shoe cupboard and there were a pair of shoes on the floor next to it! Keep up the good work.
Haha yes I noticed that in the editing process! The campsite grass was cut and left on the ground so we were wary of getting it all over the caravan that wasn’t ours 🤣 Between the BC and D4 range, I think the BC2 is better than the D4-2, the D4-4L is better than the BC4, and the D4-4 doesn’t really compare other than with the physical size of the discontinued BC6. Or maybe the BC3?
Although, you say that this is a new layout for Bailey, but our very first caravan was a Bailey Discovery 474 which, although an older and more traditional design of caravan, was a very similar layout, even down to the side dinette which could be converted into bunk beds! However I will say that I loved that layout, and so I also like the look of the new 4-4 too! ❤
For pure value, it puts the Basecamp 3 2023, which you reviewed about 7 months ago, in the shade.
It does rather. I still prefer the overall quirkiness of the BC3, but this has a better kitchen, washroom and feels a bit more substantially built. Not to mention it’s about £2500 less to buy in the first place and the only real spec difference is the BC has a solar panel as standard and an external shower and gas BBQ point.
Quite possibly, although the Basecamp 4 is probably a better comparison to this one. The Basecamp 3 must be the smallest caravan with a fixed bed layout so deserves recognition for that.
Great review. Nice to see your other half included as clearly your caravanning is very much a part of your lives together. One downside - have you parted company with that lovely Rover?
One of the last caravans I went on holiday in, as a kid with my parents, was a Bailey Scorpio Loire, which was a palace compared with the previous one we had, a Cosalt Clubman 414 😂 the Bailey had all mod cons like hot water and built in toilet, the main reason we got it was because the layout was better than some others, the kitchen was at the end but the door was towards the front. Its surprising how far caravans have come since the 70s and 80s. I suppose manufacturers are going to be looking towards building caravans like this Discovery as they are more economical for towing, it's also going to be interesting to see how caravans and caravanning change as we move towards using electric cars, which I'm guessing means electric cars be charged using the same electric hook up as what the caravan uses at sites.
As kids our first caravan was an elderly even then 1966 Sprite 400 with a hammock bunk for my brother and ... gas lighting.
Mum & Dad fastened a brand new, very grand Isabella awning to the side.
Even at my tender years I thought the contrast was remarkable 😁
@@martinkitchin6204 the very first caravan I can remember us having in the early 80s was a Lynton, it was a European model so the door was on the wrong side 😆 it also had the plastic windows which were quite a modern thing back in the early 80s as many still had the glass windows.
It has to be combination of lunar 462. Lunar 462 has excellent bathroom.
Should have towed it with a Discovery 5
Grand Cameron, but would like to see the storage areas shown below each seat base - front and side seating. Both for storage availability and also, to gain some insight on weight distribution for n/s wheel and o/s wheel.
Have been advised there is a spare wheel stored beneath the off side front seating area (?). But is this correct ?
Would also be good to highlight more the benefits of the longer A frame/drawbar, in the less pitch and yaw this offers.
On the side base cushions making a bed, surely this is via two backrests and 'both' seatbases ? In video you appeared to try and fill the space with one seat base cushion missing, though maybe my eyesight failed me :) ?
But otherwise a good review and way better than most. Cheers, Gary
Just came across your channel and immediately subscribed. Great detailed review, it may well get me back into caravaning after many years. Seems like you have Chris well trained up as cameraman and cook!
How about looking into caravans suitable for towing with EVs? (sorry if you have done so already and I've not seen it), but you could review the car/caravan matches. New EVs coming out every day and charging infrastructure is developing very fast.
Sold!
My partner and I were looking at a lunar Lexan 15/2 but if this goes into production then I might have to go new.
I had my heart set on an Elddis Explore 304 , could Elddis loan you one Cameron 😊, I love your reviews ,now I’ve seen this I think this is the one , in everyone’s opinion, what do you think would be a better buy.
Thanks for your complements! The Xplore range has now been discontinued though Elddis haven’t ruled out it’s return at some point. In my experience, the Xplore range is poorly built compared to a Bailey Discovery. They’re prone to leaks around the front window and in the roof. Also the ABS plastic panels crack and fixing them generally isn’t covered by the warranty. It’s been so prolific that I found out there’s actually a guy who’s specifically set up a business to repair them! The D4-4L or Basecamp 4 is definitely a better buy. There’s more spec on both for a start
Do you have any advice for someone embarking on towing for the first time (single traveller, 2 dogs). Is this the sort of size I could go for?
Referring to your latest comment on Facebook about the Basecamp 2018! It was looked after and served us well. Would you expect new condition after 5 years of use. 😊
Hi Richard, it wasn’t yours that I was referring to. I saw one at a dealership in the midlands a few weeks ago and it just looked so ropey for a five year old caravan. It probably was neglected and not looked after very well, but even so, it was £16,000 and I expected that it would look a bit fresher than it did. I’d love to be able to buy a new caravan now that I could be fairly certain I could keep it until it became a classic.
@@NotAnotherWhiteBoxNo worries Cameron. Yes you are right the build quality on new caravans doesn't fill me with confidence! :(
It is a shame that Bailey has not offered a microwave even as a cost option, they could even go all out and put some solar and bigger lithium power cells or could even go gas free, I have even seen diesel stoves - cookers used in camper vans including heating and hot water. Look at the future, EV need lighter vans as that is what they can tow but they can also power the caravans via V2L, put all these elements together and I would think you are on to a real winner.
The bunks are for children apparently. An adult probably wouldn’t be comfortable. If I lived in Britain I would definitely buy the Bailey Discovery.
That's intro guide need 1.25x speed in speech😅
I just wonder. Why doesn’t English caravans have the round sitting group like the Scandinavian and German caravans do?
Please, please will you do proper links that easily link to manufacturers/dealer with independent details of the caravan/product your video is about.. Or is it just me and my older Samsung Tab A, that I can't highlight/copy/paste on RUclips. Sorry if I'm the only one, does anyone know what the problem is. I've stopped watching vid with no links of product, my stiff fingers get irritated at 1 finger typing of Web addresses, especially if they have symbols in i#1.
Where's the Rover?
It’s not really suitable for towing this caravan. The mighty V8 is deceiving; the car only can tow 1200kgs because it’s so light and it tends to be most comfortable with no more than 1,000kgs on the back.
water ingress can be a cruel mistress.
😝 *Promo SM*