What is a Geist

Geist caravans and motorhomes are manufactured in Germany by LMC and Dethleffs - part of the Hymer Group, the largest caravan manufacturer in Europe.

Built to British standards these caravans have some obvious differences from domestic German caravans, such as three windows on the front panel and the door on the left hand side. But they also have some less obvious differences such as dedicated battery lockers, gas and electric water heaters, external water pumps, ovens and grills – we brit’s cannot do without our toast !

Many British buyers will have viewed previous German caravans as at best quirky and at worst, too compromised to provide a real alternative to caravans designed for the British market.

In short, Geist offers caravans built to German standards, but with all the features expected by British owners – German Efficiency with British Flexibility.

Are German caravans really built to a better standard than their British counterparts?

In November of 2002, the Caravan Club asked members who owned German caravans to complete a questionnaire that covered all aspects of their caravans, including quality and reliability.

Out of 123 members who completed the questionnaires, the largest proportion – 36 were Hymer owners.

What many owners had in common was a boundless acclaim for their chosen model, particularly when comparing it with a UK equivalent. A vast number of contributors went completely overboard about their caravans ‘superior quality’ and ‘solid build’.

On the question of quality and reliability, the German brands scored extremely high marks across the board, with an overall score of 91.7%.

One of the most telling questions asked, was would the respondents suggest that a friend buy a similar caravan?

96% said yes, they would recommend a similar caravan to a friend. To quote the article - recommendations don’t come much stronger than this.

The verdict reached by the Caravan Club was: Germans are frequently stereotyped as having little sense of humour, but when their caravan makers read this they will be laughing, all the way to the bank ! Yes – according to Caravan Club members – these caravans are that good !  

Again in June 2004 the Caravan Club asked owners of Hymer Nova 530 and Burstner Ventana 500 to complete quality and reliability surveys. 

So pleased were the Caravan Club members with their Deutsche Wohwagen that the scores were all but off the scale.

Once again when asked if they would recommend a friend to buy a similar caravan the scores were Hymer 97% and Bustner 95% with none of the respondents saying that they would not recommend a friend to buy a similar caravan.

The conclusion drawn by the article was that - German manufacturing has long had a reputation for scrupulous quality, and all the while it continues to produce and export caravans of this standard and value, UK makers had better watch out !

In May, June and July the Caravan Club published the results of its 2005 quality and reliability survey. This survey has previously been run in 1999 and 2002 . The survey canvases the opinion of Caravan Club members. 

The overall quality and reliability of each brand is rated out of a maximum score of 100. With the notable exception of Vanmaster, all the UK manufacturers scored in the 80 to 85 range. However, the four foreign brands surveyed :Eriba, Burstner, Hobby and Hymer, all scored around 94 - 95.

Put in more simple terms 15% to 20% of British built caravans are in some way defective vs. 5% to 6% of foreign caravans.

The least reliable caravan on the UK market was Explorer's range topping brand - Buccaneer, with an average of 1.9 serious faults per caravan sold. Caravan Club members were most dissatisfied with their Fleetwoods.

The average number of serious faults on the foreign caravans: Eriba 0, Hobby 0.1, Hymer and Burstner 0.18

As one of the Club's readers commented - As ever, the foreign caravans are the best, explaining why sales of foreign caravans are increasing the fastest. This is exactly the picture of the British car industry in the third quarter of the last century. By the fourth quarter, few British firms were making cars and now there are none. As a previous correspondent said, 'God help the industry if the Japanese start to make caravans'

2005 Caravan Club Quality and Reliability study 

Overall Satisfaction ratings

The caravan clubs views was: Given the higher level of user satisfaction with imports, this has pushed up the overall ratings. This aspect should start alarm bells ringing at our domestic producers. If foreign caravan manufacturers can come up with higher satisfaction ratings (all in the 90% - plus range) then the UK has to match that or face the eventual draining away of its previously loyal customer base.

Practical Caravan’s – New Buyer’s Guide describes LMC Caravans as: These Teutonic Titans are solidly built and will last and last.

The New Buyer’s Guide describes Geist Caravans as: New brand of German-made caravans. The idea isn't new - British layouts inserted into solidly made German shells - but trim levels are good, and they are stylish vans. However, with all that spec, MTPLMs are punitive.

Only time (and your feedback) will tell if Geist caravans have the edge over British made rivals, but the signs are encouraging.

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Last modified: February 11, 2006