Here we’re taking a look at the Affinity, a range of models launched by British brand Elddis to replace its Odyssey range, and which sat below the brand’s luxury Crusader range in its 2013 line-up.
The Affinity range sported a darker wood finish for its furniture, and also came with a high specification including 24-hour programmable Alde wet heating.
The Affinity would become a firm favourite with those wanting a high-specification caravan without the weight and cost of the Buccaneer, which was Elddis’s top tourer line-up at the time. So, should it be on the list of those who are after the best used caravans? Let’s take a look.
Model history
The Affinity range was a hit from the word go in 2013, thanks to both its luxury interior and that darker-wood finish on the furniture. There were six models in the line-up, including the 550, which had a layout that made it a a good choice as a caravan for couples.
The 550’s floorplan consisted of a rear island bed, a shower in the middle of the caravan and a toilet cubicle with sink opposite. The kitchen was on the offside, while the front lounge had two parallel sofas. The 550 was also built on a single axle, and used an Al-Ko chassis with ATC.
The Affinity 550 was a popular choice for couples, while other caravan layouts in the line-up – including the 554 transverse-bed model and the end-washroom 530 – offered an alternative.
Over the years the Affinity models would come onto the secondhand market and prove to be a popular choice for those who were looking at buying a used caravan, thanks in part to their generous specification.
The Affinity range would run until 2025, and you can see our review of the 2024 Affinity 550 to see how a later model was kitted out.
Owners did raise the issue of water ingress on occasion over the years, but Elddis worked hard to boost quality.
Price checker
The Affinity 550 can represent a great used buy if you can find a good clean model and one that has a decent service record. Prices will vary so it’s worth looking about, but remember that the further away you find your ‘bargain’ means that you’ll need to travel further in the event of needing any issues fixed.
We found the used 2016 model featured here up for sale at £13,995; elsewhere, we spotted the year’s 550 models priced at around £15,000 and upwards.
- 482 – £12,495-£13,495
- 530 – £13,995-£14,995
- 540 – £13,995-£14,195
- 550 – £13,995-£15,495
- 554 – £15,495-£15,995
- 574 – £15,995-£16,195
What to look out for in a 2016 Elddis Affinity 550
- Water entering side windows
- Water ingress in front panel area
- Rear and front-end exterior mouldings’ stress cracking
- Tyres that need replacing
- Sagging upholstery
- Water ingress around roof vents and skylight roof vent
- Cracked front gas locker lids
- Full service history/repairs
- Furniture fixings coming loose
- Wallboard tape peeling off
Verdict
We gave the 550 model that we found a thorough examination and found it to be in good condition. We did feel that it possibly had a slight damp issue inside the front offside roof locker (which the dealer would put right and reseal) – it looked as though it had only just begun, though, so always check walls for discolouring.
The exterior was mark-free with no dents, and the front panel was again fine. Wallboard tape coming away is a fairly common problem, so that would need sorting.
The specification and overall build for this particular example was still good, and for two people on tour this is a spacious caravan that uses quality upholstery which still had plenty of support. Look wisely and you could have a very nice upmarket tourer for not a huge amount of money.
Alternative models
If you like the dark wood furniture in the Affinity then the Compass Camino 550 – also built by Elddis – is another alternative.
Go for a newer 2018 Compass Camino 550 and, as with the Affinity, you get a great specification. Look at paying around £17,495 for that newer model.
Or you could go for a 2017 Coachman VIP 545; again, this is an island-bed model with a great specification. You can expect to pay around the £17,995 mark from a dealer.
Tech specs
- Price: £13,995
- Berths: 4
- MIRO: 1304kg
- Payload: 153kg
- MTPLM: 1457kg
- Internal Length: 5.79m
- Width: 2.26m
- Seen at: whitfordscaravancentre.co.uk
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