MMM – September 2019

September 2019outandaboutlive.co.uk 31

MANUFACTURER

Buyer found for troubled Lunar

A bu yer has been found for Pres ton-
based Lunar Caravans, which
manufacturers motorhomes,
campervans and caravans.
The compa ny was put into
administration in July under the
contro l of FRP Adv isory, which
said Lunar had “faced seve re
cashflow issues in recent months
following aperiod of challenging
trading conditions resulting i n the
administration appointment. Al l
production, including the 2020
models, was suspended.”
Fears were growing that a buyer
would not be found, which would
result in the closure of the factory
and mark the end of Lunar, which
has been part of the British leisure
vehicl e in dustry for 50 years.
However, according to Joint
Administrator, David Acland, a buyer
has now been f ound but its name has
not been revealed.
“The joint administrators have
provisionally accepted anoffer for
the bu siness and assets of Lunar
Caravans Ltd andhope to be able
to confirm this deal inthe coming
days,” confirmed Dav id.
Despite this, all Lunar production
staff have al ready been made
redundant and allmanufacturingat
its factory has ended.
“We arenow ap proaching
the planned summer shutdown
and without funds to continue
we have sadly had to make 124
redundancies,” said David.
Lunar wascreated in 1969 –the

TECHNOLOGY

Carthagolaunches latest

LED headlights

PremiumGerman manufacturer,

Carthago, hasrevealed all-newhigh-

performance LED headlights. These are

standardonmanyof its top-endmodels

and optional onothers.

The new lightshavea range that

is 30mmorethanstandardhalogen

headlights. Inaddition, theirlif e is

25,000hours, which is aboutthe same

asthe vehicle servicelife. Theyalso

use 70%less energythanstandard

halogen headlights.

SHOWS

THE MARTIN LEWIS MONEY SHOW HEADS

TO SHEPTON MALLET MOTORHOME SHOW

Visitors to the SouthWest Motorhome Show onFriday 6

September, can meet inancial guru, Martin Lewis. He will

attend the Shepton Malletevent to answer visitors’

inancial questions and queries whilst he ilms the latest

series of his TV programme.

Over the years, Martin has saved the nation millions of

pounds – whether that’s giving out frank advice on energy

switching, credit card debt or savings. His money-saving

expertise is sowell regarded, he’s one of the most Googled men in theUK!

Taking place at the Bath &West Showground, ticketsfor the event are £5 in advance

or £7 on the gate.You can expect to seeover 300 new and used motorhomes and

campervansfor sale aswell as thousands of accessories from 130+ exhibitors.For

more information and to book, visit showgoer.co.uk

year of the first mannedLunar

landing – andhad produced

caravans and, periodically,

motorhomes f rom its Preston base

until last month.

Lunar was an early entrant i nto

motorhomes, launc hing a Mercedes-

based model in the mid-1970s.

It returned to t he motorhome

market six years ago with the

launchof a compact campervan

• the Vacan za CampingCar. This
  diminutive camper, based on the
  Nissan NV200, was still built by
  Lunar andsold in Europe, al though
  Lunar soon turnedits attention
  to making larger coachbuilt
  motorhomes andvan conversions.
  In 2014,it launched anew van
  conversion based on the Mercedes
  Sprinter. This rear lo unge Landstar
  was joinedby a rear washroom
  layout later the same year.
  In 2016,Lunar started making
  coachbuilts under the Telstar an d
  Roadstar names. It then ration alised its
  range, offering Landstar campervans
  and Roadstar motorhomes. Last year it
  entered a short-lived partnershipwith
  Wellhouseto produce smaller campers.
  Lunar dealers will continue to sell
  models they have instock, butther e
  will be no new-season Lunar models.
  It is unclear whether owners who
  have warranty issues with Lunar
  models will have those warranty
  claims respected.

BASE VEHICLE

Fiat’s electric Ducato

Fiathasrevealed anelectric Ducato.

The new DucatoElectric will

bereleased in 202 0 andhasbeen

developed through aproject aimed at

ensuringthereis notrade-off interms

of loadandperformance. This electric

version will belaunchedprogressively

starting withmajorfleets andthen

eventually will goonsale across Europe.

SHOWS

Freeshow tickets for

MMMsubscribers

MMM subscribers will get two free

day-visitor tickets tothe Malvern

Caravan Showinthe nextissue. The

showtakes placeatthe Three Counties

Showground, Malvern, Worcestershire,

from4 to 6October andwill havemore

than 200new andusedmotorhomes,

campervans and caravans for sale. Find

outmoreat showgoer.co.uk

NEWS