Which van to go for ???

[tigler]

OK , this is a how long is a piece of string question !!

The need has arisen for me to buy a van and it's an area where my knowledge and experience is limited.
Depending on what is available for my budget of around £2k , which I know is restricted but thats how it is , it will be the largest of the small vans , like the Berlingo , Doblo etc , to the smaller end of the panel vans like the Peugeot boxer etc , and it will be diesel. Obviously , on this budget the larger vans would also have to be older and higher miles so , how much of a problem is that ? It will not have heavy use or do high miles.

Now , the question is , which vans have the best rep for reliability , engine and transmission wise ? There is a distinct possibility that it will have a common rail diesel and I don't want a van with an engine that is known for endless problems and being expensive to repair !

Any advice and info will be appreciated.

 

[phasesonix]

avoid common rail if you can, if you don't drive fast you could easily get a clean low mileage 2.3d 108d vito(96-00) for 2k. change the oil every 6k and it will last a long time. If you prefer somthing newer and faster I would go for a vw transporter(not the 1.9d though)-keep looking on ebay for about 2 weeks and a good one will turn up.

berlingos are cheap and very easy to find and the 1.9d (xud9) is very reliable(I think they stopped doing them in 06?)

 

[mike os]

avoid transit

 

[Hitch]

I have to vote for the berlingo, only ever had the 1.9d ones, one i have now is on 106k problem free. The one i had prevoius was on 146k when i sold it. Again trouble free. Parts are cheap as chips too, and basic jobs are easy.
You could get a pretty newish one for 2k.
I bought the mrs the car version, had a starting issue, it starts up, but cranks a few seconds longer than i think it should.

 

[cjbp]

I'd avoid Peugeot if I were you, having seen the welding required on a 4 year old van, and the power steering pump/rack and box needing to be replaced, and the corrosion on the wheels..


If this work has been done however, then you should be ok.

 

[Bigjoe]

Id be cautious about an older vito,very good vans in general but the rear engine mount can start to fall apart and if its not changed (i believe MB redesigned it) the it can knacked the engine crossmember,as a former boss found out when i he knew better than me and ended up with with a bill of almost £3k (engine out job to replace it).

Ill second a vote for the xud engined pug/citroen version.

 

[tigler]

Good stuff , this is the stuff I need to know about !! Thats not the first time I've been advised to avoid Transits !! One van I do like is the Renault Trafic / Vauxhall Vivaro , any opinions there ?

 

[mike os]

I have a 2 yr old vivaro... would buy another tomorrow (nissan is identical too, all built from same parts... renault)

Have heard rumours of problems on older models, but never met anyone wo has experienced them...

 

[Hitch]

I know 2 people that have had vivaro gearbox faults, both the 6speed box...they are a nice drive though.

 

[SC_BK]

You need to decide what size you want and how much weight you will carry, £2k will buy you anything

avoid transit

Each to their own but I would tend to disagree with that statement

 

[eil]

Toyota hiace powervan,very underrated, some suspension problems on high mileage but good reliable van in my opinion

 

[mike os]

You need to decide what size you want and how much weight you will carry, £2k will buy you anything





Each to their own but I would tend to disagree with that statement

My last "old" transit ...65-6 yrs old.... in one year... new clutch... known problem £500+, injector pump, known problem .... £1000, turbo, ditto......£550, gearbox started playing up & it went next day.

never again

 

[cazl1994]

You need to decide what size you want and how much weight you will carry, £2k will buy you anything





Each to their own but I would tend to disagree with that statement

i would disagree with them too weve got a transit no problems
i would avoid vivaro/traffic lots of pepole have trouble with the pumps and gearboxes

 

[Hitch]

Weve a transit at work, 6 years old, needed welding for MOT

 

[mike os]

ah yes I had forgotten the state of the painted rust....5-6 years old & rusting through from inside......

 

[SC_BK]

Weve a transit at work, 6 years old, needed welding for MOT

Is it a SWB by any chance?

 

[Hitch]

Er, yes, 'tis.

 

[SC_BK]

All the English mk6 (and I guess mk7) Transits rust much faster than the ones built in Turkey. The biggest they can build in England is a MWB med roof. So must rusty mk6's are SWB

 

[Wedg1e]

I'm on my second Connect LWB in 7 years. First one went 128000 miles on its original discs; once it was out of warranty we just threw oil and filters at it every 10K, the only breakdown in 6 years was a broken wire that knocked out the charging system. Once Ford told me where to look, I fixed it in 10 mins.
Just as we decided to replace it, it developed a starting problem but once running it was fine. It's since been spotted on the roads of Leeds, a year on.

900Kg payload and can fit 3m lengths of material in it.

Buy one.

 

[michael1703]

merc sprinter?

avoid the nissan and its 3 or 4 other compatriats under other badges which share the same body and chocolate gearbox

the gearbox effects a large percentage, then theres door locks/flywheels/window motors and lots of other defects