Looking to buy a medium size van soon. It will be 80% my daily 'car'. Needs to be able to fit my bike for track days (occasionally). And also tow the 7 occasionally. Load it up now and again but definitely wont be a work van. Budget 2k-4k. Value for money seems to be in the vauxhall vivaros and merc vitos. Heard a few bad things about the vivaro (gearbox and common rail pump) but otherwise looks ideal. Heard vitos are bulletproof but rust badly and not great on the mpg. Any thoughts on these and others.

I bought a Vito last year the standard lwb which would do everything you need, a quick remap and mine is close to 200 bhp

You are right about rust but if you get a 2008 plate onwards they are galvanised

My opinion!
I've had a VW transporter, Renault trafic and now have a Fiat Scudo 2.0 hid LWB and used them all as my daily driver and to tow my trailer. By far the nicest to drive is the Fiat ( Peugeot expert/Citroen dispatch)
It's light, nimble and economical. I know it's not to everyone's taste but I like it!!

We have had all sorts at Work all doing intergalactic mileage. They all have their weaknesses but for all round reliability the VW is by far the best but they are expensive.

Vivaro are reliable but when they do go wrong they are expensive and secondhand spares in short supply. We do 150k in two years and it has never been diesel problems, gearbox and turbo are the main ones. Good to drive.

We have had Despatch and they are pretty good, drive well and there are lots about as they are cheap.

More important with vans is how they have been looked after. get one with full service history and good bodywork. Badly maintained and used as dodgems is sure sign of trouble ahead.

A work colleague of my Dads has been a driver for 30 odd years. Driven all sorts, but his personal favourite was a Fiat Scudo. Apparently the most "car like" to drive, good on fuel (1.6D) and big enough to swallow all sorts. As I recently posted we had a nasty crash in it and it held up very well indeed. Both he and I walked away with a few cuts and bruises.

At work we've had a Transit Connect for 5+ years - it works well, is easy to drive and it's been plywood lined in the back. Aside from normal servicing, tyres, MoT etc it's been faultless. Hasn't rusted and looks set to be kept for another 5+ years.

A couple of "school" parents drive snorting great USA style Ford pick-ups. They look the part, but the exposed load area would put me off as things aren't too secure in there.

Out of curiosity, what do you currently drive and why are you looking to replace it?

What do you see most on the road?

Transit

Mk7 can be a bit of a b8gger at times, but I've had mine for nearly 4 years and it's great. I got an ex RAC SWB RWD 100 T 330 off ebay for 4K, and I've used it for most things, including towing my Indy; filling it full of building materials; sleeping in; and once a month a trip up North somewhere to do weekends with the Cadet leadership course I work for. It is my daily driver, and I'm going on a trip to Southern Ireland in it in May.

It's been breathed on by an expert, and returns 37mpg regularly, and if I drive steady over 40mpg. As it's a 330, towing the trailer doesn't really bother it or make much difference to the mpg. Not going to talk about bhp since the map, but it flies

The one major job I've done is change the rear axle ratio to 3.73 as the 5.4 the RAC had was great for them but rubbish at over 60MPH. I've also got cruise control working by fitting the uprated dash and wheel.

It wants a respray but once that's done it will be fine. don't want to jynx it but it has been very reliable

It's ORANGE and I love it

I'm a Transhit fan, but only have knowledge and experience of Mk's 1 to 6.
It's always low cost, always my 'car' and always doing exactly what you appear to want it for!
Even a MK6 will now be well below your budget (other people's budgets are always greater than mine), but even so, a good early MK6 with the old-school mechanical injection won't let you down.

My current one is a LWB High Top MK6, 2.4, 3.5T (2 Ton tow limit). Power is 75 bhp, enough for me, but everyone wants more (which is why this van was very cheap). I drive at the Class speed limits, fuel consumption is incredibly favourable, even when loaded and towing to full GTW.

Rust is the enemy. All the Transhits I've had have either started with, or developed, serious corrosion issues.

I personally mourn the fact that good useable VW LT28/LT35s (2nd generation - Type 2D) are pretty rare these days as they were great fun to drive with strong 'grunty' engines and rear wheel drive. My more recent experience has been with (a) Transit Connects which are an easy car-like drive but have a more limited payload/space (b) Citroen Dispatch (aka Peugeot Expert & Fiat Scudo) which are roomy, quite quick, handle surprisingly well and pretty robust.

Michael.

Had my tranny bus 3 years now. Ex NHS, Bi fuel 2.3 duratec. 180k on the clock, sailed through all mot's. Cheap to run on gas and free road tax. Doesn't miss a beat.

What would the scudo be like to get a bike in? Looks a bit on the small side. Transit connects and other car based are definitely out. Even if its possible to fit one in it would be a nightmare getting it in and out. Don't want to go too much the other way though. I get the feeling even a SWB transit is a bit big for everyday use although I've only ever driven a LWB one.

Current car is an a6 estate which has had the back seats folded down for the last 3 years.

A Scudo/Dispatch/Expert will certainly accommodate a decent sized bike - possibly a couple, can't say for sure - never tried it! What it hasn't got is a lot of headroom (Vivaro's have more but are surprisingly 'lowline' as well). However, the sliding door on each side makes access for fixings etc. very easy.

Michael.

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Originally posted by luke2152
What would the scudo be like to get a bike in? Looks a bit on the small side. Transit connects and other car based are definitely out. Even if its possible to fit one in it would be a nightmare getting it in and out. Don't want to go too much the other way though. I get the feeling even a SWB transit is a bit big for everyday use although I've only ever driven a LWB one.

Current car is an a6 estate which has had the back seats folded down for the last 3 years.

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quote:

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Originally posted by luke2152
What would the scudo be like to get a bike in? Looks a bit on the small side. Transit connects and other car based are definitely out. Even if its possible to fit one in it would be a nightmare getting it in and out. Don't want to go too much the other way though. I get the feeling even a SWB transit is a bit big for everyday use although I've only ever driven a LWB one.

Current car is an a6 estate which has had the back seats folded down for the last 3 years.

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i had a vivaro lwb high roof for 12years and yes it did snap a cambelt but that was my fault 7years without changing cambelt or pulley belt once i had repaired the damage i changed the belts every year after and the van ran well only just sold it lots of room good on fuel i do regret selling it but i am no longer self employed so bought a car

Get the mountain bike, my surfboard(longboard, 9'2" and all my kit in my SWB Transit, plus it has a second row of seats from a Tourneo in.

Actually picked my motorbike up with it as well, a TTR250 trail bike which is pretty tall, and it was standing upright facing forward (without my second row seats obviously).
Really driveable as I said before and very comfy