Lady Ferguson Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 (edited) Hi everyone, Well the time has come for HLT to buy their first van (we normally borrow one) and I just wondered what you'd recommend? We're currently looking at an 02 plate Ford Transit SWB - 68,000 miles on the clock, virtually no rust and has only been used to ferry a motorcyle around. We don't want to spend more than 4k ideally. Any info would be great, including what to 'look out for', what to avoid etc. Thanks Edited February 26, 2012 by Lady Ferguson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Ferguson Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 Can't go wrong with a well loved Transit Mandy... the real 'creme de la creme' of vans has to be the VW Transporter really... they do hold their money well though... DO NOT on any account be tempted by a cheap LDV .. they are absolutely rubbish in the extreme... MB Sprinters are not as good as they once were either... but porbably too big for your needs anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ploughmaster Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 Most van drivers I know seem to think that the Mercedes Sprinter is top of the tree VW are grossly overvalued second hand - therefore an expensive to buy as well as expensive to run. Old LDV Convoy vans are insanely cheap and reasonably reliable, and parts are easy to come by and fairly cheap, but being an evolution of the old Leyland Sherpa from the 70's, they are very primitive and not pleasant to drive at all. OK for short local work, but not a machine to be relished for long trips or continuous daily use. The newer Maxus (partly designed and developed by Daewoo) on the other hand is a very competent vehicle from what I have been told by several people who drive one, certainly not in the same league as a Merc or even a VW, but rated as OK as a basic load carrier. The biggest problem is that they are not built or sold here now, and there were relatively few sold here before LDV went under, so there is not much incentive for continued back up from the service and parts industry. Whether the ones being made in China will come here, who knows. The Transit is a well thought of, although similarly basic van in my opinion. They were always poular and regarded as the backbone of Britain having been designed and built here since the 60's. My biggest objection to them being that all the recent ones (except the chassis cabs) are now built in Turkey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1/32 farmer Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 cant realy go wrong with a tranny melady but why buy when you can rent/hire one like udi does or lease /just add fuel or look at the connect just a tad smaller Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Ferguson Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 Well Clive... I can only speak from my expreience of runninbg a fleet of vans which usually goes between 9 and 15 ... currently 11... LDV Maxus... I've currently got 4 that I run.. they have been the worse vehicles I have ever bought.. not helped by the dwindling parts supply and hugely over priced parts when you can get them - NEVER AGAIN... I could go on for hours with thge list of common faults to there vehicles. Sprinters... agree.. most driver loves them.... but then again they don't have to fix them - The post asked for advice from an owners perspective I believe.. not that of an employee/driver.... latest models are a lot more unreliable than the previous models... I've bought and sold vans since the days of the 307D's and the 508' even... this week.... a 100,000 miler sprinter needed a new UJ on the propshaft... they are peened in at the factory and you have to buy the complete unit - shocker ! .. £650 just to replace a broken UJ... and at 100,000 miles that shouldn't even happen really. It's sister van snapped a halfshaft the previouys week at 115,000 miles. ANother had engine management issues last week too... 95,000 miler from memory. VW vans hold their secondhand value... why do you think .. a bit of a no-brainer really .. Mandy is you want to give me a call or a PM I'd be pleased to give you a few more pointers on what not to buy.. but as I said in my previous posty... you can't go wrong with a transit in my opinion.. good enough for BT.. good enough for HLT Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
convo Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 transit vans are still the back bone of britain (the good old transit as they say ) as you know Mandy i am in the motor trade for the money you have to spend that is probably your best bet to be fair ,if you start looking at other things like mercs and vw for that budget you will be looking at vans with higher mileage on and that is really what you do not want , the vw and mercs are no longer deemed as the most reliable vans any more ....please do not listen to any one that says as long as the vans have been serviced the high mileage does not matter total crap the rest of the van like the breaks ,suspension and gear box has also done the high millage ,,,,,,may be worth looking at vauxhall vivaro,nissan primastar or Renault traffic these are the same van with 6 speed gear box they great on fuel the 100dci or 115dci or for a bit more money the new shape Citroen dispatch or the Peugeot expert 2.0 L hdi like i have ,these are great on fuel ,both these two style of van drive like cars ,,,,do not consider the Citroen or Peugeot 1.6 hdi ( these will not pull the skin off a rice pudding ), hope this helps and not confuse you more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 I feel a new topic coming on...What Van's Have You Been A Driver Or A Passenger In ...I've been a passenger in a few of the one's my father used to drive during his working life from early Ford Transit van's ( and the Ford model before that which eludes me at present) to later Transit mini buses.He liked the Ford Transits but loathed the Land Rover's he used to drive during his last job at Clinterty Agricultural College near Aberdeen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Ferguson Posted February 26, 2012 Author Share Posted February 26, 2012 cant realy go wrong with a tranny melady but why buy when you can rent/hire one like udi does or lease /just add fuel or look at the connect just a tad smaller We have considered that, but we do more fairs that you guys do (and would do more) and the sums just don't add up for all the local fairs if we hire. I have considered leasing ps never fit all our stuff in anything smaller! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Ferguson Posted February 26, 2012 Author Share Posted February 26, 2012 Can't go wrong with a well loved Transit Mandy... the real 'creme de la creme' of vans has to be the VW Transporter really... they do hold their money well though... DO NOT on any account be tempted by a cheap LDV .. they are absolutely rubbish in the extreme... MB Sprinters are not as good as they once were either... but porbably too big for your needs anyway. Thanks, Marky. I agree with your comments on the MBs - the one we've been borrowing is lovely to drive (Vito), but it's sooooooooooooo rusty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Ferguson Posted February 26, 2012 Author Share Posted February 26, 2012 transit vans are still the back bone of britain (the good old transit as they say ) as you know Mandy i am in the motor trade for the money you have to spend that is probably your best bet to be fair ,if you start looking at other things like mercs and vw for that budget you will be looking at vans with higher mileage on and that is really what you do not want , the vw and mercs are no longer deemed as the most reliable vans any more ....please do not listen to any one that says as long as the vans have been serviced the high mileage does not matter total crap the rest of the van like the breaks ,suspension and gear box has also done the high millage ,,,,,,may be worth looking at vauxhall vivaro,nissan primastar or Renault traffic these are the same van with 6 speed gear box they great on fuel the 100dci or 115dci or for a bit more money the new shape Citroen dispatch or the Peugeot expert 2.0 L hdi like i have ,these are great on fuel ,both these two style of van drive like cars ,,,,do not consider the Citroen or Peugeot 1.6 hdi ( these will not pull the skin off a rice pudding ), hope this helps and not confuse you more Loads of help - thanks for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Ferguson Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 It's a pity that we dont live nearer to each other Mandy... my vans and trucks sit here doing nothing each and every weekend ! Would you be replacing a car with this as well.. or is this a planned addition to the fleet... I'm also wondering if you've considered a trailer perhaps ... to go behind a current (or future) 4x4/estate tytpe car .. saving on tax and insurance too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Ferguson Posted February 26, 2012 Author Share Posted February 26, 2012 Well Clive... I can only speak from my expreience of runninbg a fleet of vans which usually goes between 9 and 15 ... currently 11... LDV Maxus... I've currently got 4 that I run.. they have been the worse vehicles I have ever bought.. not helped by the dwindling parts supply and hugely over priced parts when you can get them - NEVER AGAIN... I could go on for hours with thge list of common faults to there vehicles. Sprinters... agree.. most driver loves them.... but then again they don't have to fix them - The post asked for advice from an owners perspective I believe.. not that of an employee/driver.... latest models are a lot more unreliable than the previous models... I've bought and sold vans since the days of the 307D's and the 508' even... this week.... a 100,000 miler sprinter needed a new UJ on the propshaft... they are peened in at the factory and you have to buy the complete unit - shocker ! .. £650 just to replace a broken UJ... and at 100,000 miles that shouldn't even happen really. It's sister van snapped a halfshaft the previouys week at 115,000 miles. ANother had engine management issues last week too... 95,000 miler from memory. VW vans hold their secondhand value... why do you think .. a bit of a no-brainer really .. Mandy is you want to give me a call or a PM I'd be pleased to give you a few more pointers on what not to buy.. but as I said in my previous posty... you can't go wrong with a transit in my opinion.. good enough for BT.. good enough for HLT Thanks again. We'll test drive the transits next week (there are two actually - the other is an ex BT medium roof) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Ferguson Posted February 26, 2012 Author Share Posted February 26, 2012 It's a pity that we dont live nearer to each other Mandy... my vans and trucks sit here doing nothing each and every weekend ! Would you be replacing a car with this as well.. or is this a planned addition to the fleet... I'm also wondering if you've considered a trailer perhaps ... to go behind a current (or future) 4x4/estate tytpe car .. saving on tax and insurance too Well we're thinking that we need two cars anyway now and it would be so much easier to have a van sat outside and ready to load up each time. It would also make life easier when Frazer goes to auctions and has loads of stuff to bring back Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nick henton Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 Have you considered the vauxhall vivario its an identical size to the SWB transit i think for you it will be all about the internal size and how much stuff you have got to fill it Regards Nick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris.watson Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 (edited) i dont know which vans are the best, but a transit van cant be all that bad, theres loads of them down at dale farm here in essex. and by the look of them they are road tax exempt, as none have a disc in the window.and they run on red diesel. Edited February 26, 2012 by chris.watson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tractorman810 Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 merc sprinters are by far and away the best, familly members run them for deliverys, no agro, but they also hold their prices very well,and like mark said, not cheap to sort when they do go wrong ,keep away from the merc vitos mind' engines ok, but they rust somethign terrible despit holding their values well , for me transit is by far and the best a more sensible option for what your looking for, good and reliable, i drive one every day and its very comfortable, does well on the derv to , mines loaded every day to the limit and it pulls extremely well, one van i would saty away from is the vauxhall vivario, we had them at work, and they lasted one season so to speak, we are now going transit again, terrible for bits just falling off like trim ect ,service times are longer than the transit, but they spent more time in the workshops inbetween them with faults, know of 3 at least in our yard that have had ful engine rebuilds ,all have done less than 20 k before they went and thats serviced every year, and the guys driving them are watched a lot more than me for oil and alike checks. apparently the renault and nissan versions are ok, look the same, but the build quallitys a lot better?? always thought they came from the same factory have you considered a transit connect??? they can carry a fair old bit in the back, and are more car like in size drive feel wise, had one at work for courses and they are nice to drive on the motorway. if packed properly it should get what you want in ok, they will take a 1 ton pallett through the back doors , ok, can be hard to find as they are loved by sparkys and plasters, but like the normal transit good and reliable, guys at worked were not happy when we lost them from the fleet, the vauxhal combos similar in size, but i found them uncomfortable on distance drives done plymouth to stone several times and its not nice,ford connect was far better , fair size in the back again mind, bit like the connect Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FordTractorCrazy Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 I cant really say much more then already been said, although (but this may be because i am on the mainland) i am missing a van in this. At my work we drive a dozen vans, the older Mercedes sprinters are rubbish because of rusting and plenty of maintance, stay away from those.. Renault Traffic seem to do well as do the Ford Transits. i have been driving a Toyota H200 (the one i am missing in here) which seems indestructable (mine is 17 !!! years old right now) and low maintenance, at my job we drive 5 of these, all older then 10 years by now, and they hardly ever require repairs, just maintenance. Full consumption can be a bit high though, judging the engine uses a very high rpm compared to other engines. VW transporters are also great, but as been mentioned before, quite expensive to purchase, even second-hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Ferguson Posted February 26, 2012 Author Share Posted February 26, 2012 merc sprinters are by far and away the best, familly members run them for deliverys, no agro, but they also hold their prices very well,keep away from the merc vitos mind' engines ok, but they rust somethign terrible despit holding their values well , for me transit is by far and the best a more sensible option for what your looking for, good and reliable, i drive one every day and its very comfortable, does well on the derv to , mines loaded every day to the limit and it pulls extremely well, one van i would saty away from is the vauxhall vivario, we had them at work, and they lasted one season so to speak, we are now going transit again, terrible for bits just falling off like trim ect ,service times are longer than the transit, but they spent more time in the workshops inbetween them with faults, know of 3 at least in our yard that have had ful engine rebuilds ,all have done less than 20 k before they went and thats serviced every year, and the guys driving them are watched a lot more than me for oil and alike checks. apparently the renault and nissan versions are ok, look the same, but the build quallitys a lot better?? always thought they came from the same factory have you considered a transit connect??? they can carry a fair old bit in the back, and are more car like in size drive feel wise Thanks, Sean. We've been warned off the Vauxhall too. I think the Connect would be way too small, unfortunately - we struggle to fit everything in the Vito ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tractorman810 Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 i used to be able to buy transist direct off BT ,at absolute bottom book, despite of condition or milage , can see if i still can if you want, i know they stopped the car version a while back, the connect like i say is surpriseingly large in the back, may be worth a look at least, its all a question of packing :laugh: just ask andy how the whole ftf stall got into the golf last april :laugh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
super6 Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 Transit gets my vote too, so much more maneuverable than a Vivaro and much more room in the back when comparing swb ones. The vauxhall is a pile of cr@p. I know as I drive one for work unfortunately. It replaced a Transit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lady Ferguson Posted February 26, 2012 Author Share Posted February 26, 2012 i used to be able to buy transist direct off BT ,at absolute bottom book, despite of condition or milage , can see if i still can if you want, i know they stopped the car version a while back, the connect like i say is surpriseingly large in the back, may be worth a look at least, its all a question of packing :laugh: just ask andy how the whole ftf stall got into the golf last april :laugh: I agree that there's lots of room in the Connect (there dealer we checked out had one), but it just doesn't have sufficient height for our stands, unfortunately. :'( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deere-est Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 Interesting topic, I'm looking at a van to replace my superbly reliable and dirt cheap to run n escort van. Seems daft to change it really but you have to progress. I was looking at Transit Connects, for the money though I just as well look at SWB flat roof Transit. What U do quite fancy is a Transit Crew Bus but they often get wrecked! No Tranny jokes by the way Pullups! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tractorman810 Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 what after recent pics we have seen tris ?? :laugh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deere-est Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 Sssssssh! Indeed, exactly what I was referring too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BK741 Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 At work we run Fiat Ducato vans. We swapped from Ford Transit's and were not very impressed at frist with the Fiat's but they have been brilliant vans. We are agricultural engineers so the vans are loaded up from day one and are expected to go every where dirt tracks,fields,farm yards ect and pull a trailer when needed. We dont do mega milleage but my old van 54 reg 2.3 swb was great, comfortable to drive and plenty of power. In over 74,000 miles it had a front wheel bearing, four tyres and rear brake shoes. Several sets of front brakes but I think that was my driving style! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.