Mark Dalton

Motorhome Valeter

It’s second time around for Mark, who left Southdowns three years ago but came back in July to rejoin the valetting team.

Q How did you find yourself working for Southdowns again?
A In 2007, Mercedes made me an offer I couldn’t refuse so I had been working for them until this summer but there wasn’t much job security. As I liked working at Southdowns the first time, I was happy to come back when I heard there was a vacancy.

Q What does your job involve?
A As part of the valetting team, I’m responsible for cleaning the motorhome exteriors and windows. When you’re working on cars, there’s not much involved in exterior cleaning but motorhomes are completely different because they are much bigger and have a very different profile with a lot of detailing. It’s absolutely vital to keep them looking as clean and shiny as possible on the outside because if they don’t look really good, customers won’t even bother to look inside. Vans that have been sold and are being handed over to customers are always a priority and everything else is cleaned in rotation. I normally clean two of the smaller vehicles a day or one big motorhome – working on a Concorde Liner is a major job because they’re so big. Vehicles that have been taken in part exchange are often time consuming too because they have often been kept outside and some haven’t been used for a while which means they need a lot of attention to bring them up to sale standard.

Q What is the best thing about working for the company
A I work with a good group of people and I’m on the go all the time so the days go by very quickly! I really enjoyed going to the recent international caravan and motorhome show at the NEC in Birmingham to get all the vehicles ready for visitors. Although it was hard work it was really interesting and good to have a change of scene for a few days.

Q If you could take a motorhome anywhere in the world, where would you go?
A Although I don’t have a great personal interest in motorhomes, it would be good to take one down to Cornwall – a bit more luxurious than camping in my tent.

Mark used to work for the Benetton Formula One team and likes to keep in touch with his old workmates. At this year’s Belgian Grand Prix in Spa, he had his picture taken with the F1 trophy by PolishTeam Renault driver Robert Kubica.