A new (to me) medium van....

[Smallfry]

That was my other option...just buy a bigger car .

It would seem like a popular requirement to carry long stuff...I don't see many options for clever bulkheads. Even my Volvo could fold the front seat to get longer items into the car for example!

My old Combo has a vertically hinged cage bulkhead, and front passenger seat folds flat in order to get longer things in.

In some respects, new vans seem to going backwards

 

[qwakers]

my combo does not even have a radio (seriously, only comes with bluetooth link and speakers, no way of receiving dab, fm or am, internet radio only) it does 36 mpg average, 70% max load all the time, a roads, dual carriageways and town work, no motorway, this is cornwall

my first company van, a 2012 partner, was loaded about the same, had everything i wanted in a van and did 50mpg in the same environment (except i drove it far harder, no telematics back then )

 

[GRW]

My old Combo has a vertically hinged cage bulkhead, and front passenger seat folds flat in order to get longer things in.

In some respects, new vans seem to going backwards

My daily is a 2011 Kangoo. Mine has the same feature of hinged cage bulkhead & folding passenger seat.
It's come in handy a few times, and overall the space & usefulness given thr size of the outside is impressive.
1.5dci Diesel. 112k miles.
Mines not impressive on mpg (I have squealy & a bit draggy rear brakes that won't be helping to look at) but they have a good reputation if serviced.
(In work they've seen hardly any 1.5dci's in for cyl head work or refacing after gasket failure, & rate them).
A Euro5 version of mine would be lower tax & ULEZ I believe too.

 

[Jackimus]

My daily is a 2011 Kangoo. Mine has the same feature of hinged cage bulkhead & folding passenger seat.
It's come in handy a few times, and overall the space & usefulness given thr size of the outside is impressive.
1.5dci Diesel. 112k miles.
Mines not impressive on mpg (I have squealy & a bit draggy rear brakes that won't be helping to look at) but they have a good reputation if serviced.
(In work they've seen hardly any 1.5dci's in for cyl head work or refacing after gasket failure, & rate them).
A Euro5 version of mine would be lower tax & ULEZ I believe too.

Thank you for reminding me to look at my dragging rear brake!!

 

[Nomad]

That was my other option...just buy a bigger car .

It would seem like a popular requirement to carry long stuff...I don't see many options for clever bulkheads. Even my Volvo could fold the front seat to get longer items into the car for example!

My brother had a VW Passat estate (model B4 ?), with the back seats down that could carry vast amount of stuff - he did regular trips around Germany & Northern Europe loaded with car parts and had no trouble. It also managed a 1200 mile trip in 24 hours with me as a passenger
When a car can carry that amount, do you really need a van?

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Mine has the same feature of hinged cage bulkhead & folding passenger seat.

This is the sort of design I think is very useful.

 

[dieselsamurai]

My old Combo has a vertically hinged cage bulkhead, and front passenger seat folds flat in order to get longer things in.

In some respects, new vans seem to going backwards

My old 63 plate berlingo had 3 seats in the front and the passenger seat folded into the footwell with a removable section of bulkhead so you could fit 3m 110mm pipes or without any lefthand vision a whole sheet of plasterboard !

 

[Turbo]

I have a 2014 euro 5 dispatch 2l hdi and love it. Dpf system was fubared so I got it mapped out and it transformed the van.
Comfortable to drive and I'm getting 38mpg on local runs.

The dispatch/expert/proace/vivaro/scudo are all the same van.
Avoid the 1.6hdi engine, they are troublesome. Guy I bought my van from had bought a newer 1.6 engined one that spent most of its life at the dealer with engine trouble. Eventually he got it replaced with a brand new one with the reliable 2l hdi engine.

 

[Pond frog]

I have a 2013 Peugeot expert it’s done me well, no problems except for the normal maintenance stuff you expect.
I hope to replace it next year and will go for the same or one of the other stellantis variants, the big advantage to me is they as standard with sliding doors on both sides which I find invaluable for loading Awkward shaped things.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

I have my eye on a Peugeot expert sport at the moment.

Does anyone happen to know if Renault vans have the button that personalises the safety features like their cars do?

My Dacia is basically Renault group and has it...my startup routine is to hit the start button...then to hit the personalised button twice and it's job done.

My hearing is terrible....but the bings and bongs come thro incredibly loud and they don't seem to stop!

 

[500e]

We Had 2 Berlingo's and 3 Doblo's
Both OK I drive like @fizzy and all did big mileages 150k+
Berlingo not so good fuel and rust, Doblo no rust not so good tire wear, 1.9jtd D did 40+ however driven one had syncro ring break at 100K dont remember the box out being a pain.

 

[Monkey Harris]

I'm in a similar boat, keep toying with the idea, although ULEZ isn't a concern for me.
Trouble is every time I start browsing somebody I know gets there's done over and their tools nicked, and so I revert back to sticking with a car.
Have you considered an MPV? You get quite a few of those van derived disabled conversions kicking around quite cheap I reckon could make a good stealth van project.

I've got a vw caddy was WAV..
So cheaper to buy, fitted a floor and adapted the bumper, back to near normal...

Won't attract tool thieves

 

[dobbslc]

Does anyone happen to know if Renault vans have the button that personalises the safety features like their cars do?

I'm not sure about the Renaults but the 2024 Citroen hire van I had was a total PITA and a bit dangerous on the motorway when it tried to tug me all over the place!
It was very distracting with all the flashing lights and binging noises.
It kept "seeing" 5mph signs everywhere and thought I was speeding all the time!
The infotainment system was a total mistery to me when I tried to turn all that crap off, it never seemed to work in the same way twice.
If it was my money buying new I'd demand all that crap was removed or at least easily disabled.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

If it was my money buying new I'd demand all that crap was removed or at least easily disabled.

Agree....I find it incredibly distracting too.

Our EV often gets confused on the A1 and thinks it's a 30mph when it's clearly a 60mph! Then there's the random steering wheel tugging.

The Dacia has a customise (read disabled) button on the dash....I've decided I will only buy a new car if it has a dash button!

 

[dobbslc]

I actually let that van 'drive itself ' up the M1 for a few hundred yards (no-one nearby) and it sort of kept between the lines but it's not nice having the thing trying to pull me back towards an artic lorry that I was giving some space as he had drifted over a bit.
****** dangerous really but if it keeps the useless politicians happy...

 

[pedrobedro]

Our EV often gets confused on the A1 and thinks it's a 30mph when it's clearly a 60mph! Then there's the random steering wheel tugging.

Our Vitara thinks I'm approaching the car in front too fast and flashes the dash up in red and starts braking for me, scared the bejesus out of me first time it did it.

 

[Robotstar5]

Our Vitara thinks I'm approaching the car in front too fast and flashes the dash up in red and starts braking for me, scared the bejesus out of me first time it did it.

I'm the same when Mrs. Robo's driving, I keep trying to find the brake pedal in the passenger footwell

 

[Wedg1e]

I might be slightly biased, having driven Connects since 2003 (currently on a 64-plate which we'll have had 11 years next month).
First one did 137,000 miles in 6 years with just a broken wire under the slam panel that knocked out the alternator (build error in the factory) and a wheel bearing replaced under warranty.
Second did 127,000 in 5 years, that had to have a cylinder head under warranty, otherwise it was flawless.
Third one is currently on 166,000 miles, it had a new clutch and flywheel at 130-odd which we think was down to a cretin who drove it for one day and came back complaining it was 'difficult to launch off the line'. Apart from that it now smells like a high-mileage diesel but still starts and runs fine, mid-40s to the gallon average consumption but will do well into the 50s if you stay away from the number 80 Takes about an hour to change oil and filters, on my driveway. I forget what the service intervals were (15k maybe?) but I started ignoring them once out of warranty and it gets done every 5000 miles.

It had a lower balljoint replaced a couple of years ago and one rear spring snapped last year... rear arches starting to corrode. Think it's still on the original exhaust. 6-speed, cruise, limiter, aircon (that doesn't work at the moment), voice commands, reversing sensors, dual passenger seat (joke that it is), load-through bulkhead so you can get 3m lengths in, can also carry 8 x 4 sheets. Also I doubt if it's had more than 3 lightbulbs replaced in its life (just as well as it's a major operation to get the rear lights out and you needs hands like a paedophile to get into the headlamps).

Due to changing operational requirements at work we've recently acquired 4 Peugeot Partner/ Citroen thingies, but they're 'orrible tinny things compared to the Connect, lots of engine noise (can't hear the Connect's), not quite as spacious in the back, admittedly they 'launch' better but the latest two have massive widescreen tellies for a dashboard which I find a total pain. A couple have terrible vibes through the clutch pedal as well.
I'll stick with the Connect - in fact I'm looking to buy it when I leave
If cash is tight you might aim for the last of the old shape LWB (pre-2013) with IIRC 120PS - they have more headroom in the back, but then the economy isn't as good as the new shape - and I doubt you'd get into a ULEZ.

Watch out for Tourneo Connects (the people carrier version) that have been used as taxis.
As someone else pointed out, there are a lot of wheelchair-converted Connects around, the rear ramp might have other uses (might get a small lathe up it ).

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

This morning I've been looking at new vans!

Quite like the look of the Nissan Primastar. Was also looking at the latest VW transporters...I hadn't appreciated that the new version is basically a rebranded ford transit custom (is that really true?). Do they also adopt the wet belts from ford too...there's no way I'm buying anything with a wet belt!

 

[dobbslc]

Yes they are Transit vans.
Not 100% sure on the wet belt but I think they still use them.
Talking to my VW van life mate yesterday, he was in a VW dealers and was talking to the sales guys and they didn't sound impressed as no-ones gonna buy a Transit at VW prices