Need a van for work - what should I get?

[timmaaah 0]

Hi everybody!

I'm in the position to purchase a van for work - budget is £3500 max. I've been looking at the following:

Fiat/Citroen/Peugeot Scudo/Dispatch/Expert - prolly the JTD version

Nissan/LDV Vanette/Cub

Mercedes Vito (108 or 110)

Volkswagen Transporter

Toyota Hiace

Need it for tool transportation, and for lugging general building materials like plaster board (on a roof rack - 8x4 foot sheets!!), copper piping/osma piping etc etc et al.

Anyone had any experience with any of the above vans? Pros and cons? Anyone got one for sale? :lol:

Any other suggestions I may have missed?

All input greatfully recieved!

TIA

Timmaaah

On a down note, may well have to get rid of the 'rado :( :( :(

[BILLCOR 1]

The bigger the van you get, the more crap you'll pile in it, your not gonna get much for 3.5k if you start lookin at mercs and vw's, I've got a Fiat Doblo and Citreon Berlingo, both pretty good, got a nice 8x4 rack with rear roller fitted to the Doblo, have a look for ex-Gas/Elec, usually well serviced and mileage not to high, you should get a 3-4yr old for your money

[mr.ots 10]

I have a Toyota Hiace and it has been very reliable. Not as well speced as a VW or Merc, but for value and reliability it's up there and general running costs are good.

 

If you are cosidering one try and get one of the post 2001 models with the D4D engine, not sure of the price range of these. Mine is a pre 2001 model and needs to be serviced every 6000 miles instead of 10,000 for the later ones.

[joby 0]

Toyota Hiace ! Had one for four years fantastic van we called it the Terminator because it took everything you threw at it and still came back for more, only ever needed routine servicing and a radiator :) Ended up selling it on ebay to some indian guy who shiped it back to india i had people fighting over buying it on ebay :) couldn`t believe it, Even got back what i paid for it, Fantastic Van. Got a Mazda pick up now and just as pleased with that But miss The Old Terminator :(

[timg60 0]

Brother in law had a vito 108cd and loved it it ................till although being a 2001 plate rusted like a ford and then the ecu blew after only 100k. And was classed as wear and tear by the insurance company :censored: Though from what I can gather they have sorted to rust out on the new model but you aint going to get one for 3.5k.

 

Stear clear IMHO

[Sonicriot13 0]

I took a Fiat Scudo in P/X at work last month (against a Hyundai Matrix of all things). We've still got it cos our odd job geezer loves it and refuses to let it go to auction. Seems like a nice van but it smokes like a b*stard despite it being relatively low mileage.

[aposegil 0]

a mate of mine has a cargo vanette which I borrowed for a weekend and its excellent. Loads of room to lug stuff and pulled well.

 

its been reliable for him (he actually selling it)

 

only down side them not having turbo means its a bit slow getting there but def very good strong engines. Last of the old siple ones to run.

[n3p 3]

Bedford rascal! Saw this the other day, and had to take a photo! lol

[DaveStorm 0]

I used to use a Fiat Scudo on a Y plate and while I had no complaints about the carrying capacity, it was the non turbo version, as such it was gutless and took forever to get up to a decent pace, especially with a full load. It was also poverty spec so not very comfortable to live with day in day out. I'd imagine the non turboed Citroen and Peugeot variants would be exactly the same so avoid these.

 

Now I use a Peugeot Expert HDI on an 03 and it is much much better. Carrying capacity is identical, it handles pretty well (for a van!), they are a lot quicker with the torquier turbo engines and therefore more relaxing to drive plus you also get modern luxuries as standard such as remote central locking, leccy windows, mirrors, audio controls on steering wheel etc. One thing to note is look for evidence of a recent cambelt change, both mine didn't have evidence of this so were done for peace of mind @ around 60k miles ish.

 

You should be able to pick up a decent enough one for £3.5k.

 

HTH :)

[Majik 0]

Fiat/Citroen/Peugeot Scudo/Dispatch/Expert - prolly the JTD version

Generally Very Good Vans

Parts and Aftersales much better with Citroen & Peugeot , Early ones were either XUD or WD4 mechanical injections, no problems with these, but in your budget you could easily get a HDi Version which are abit more refined.

Make sure the cambelt & tensioner has been changed at schedule.

 

Toyota Hiace, D4D very good vans but check condition of turbo and smoke coming out the back, these can suffer from oil pump clogging up eventually damaging the turbo, probably the result of poor servicing.

 

Mercedes Vitos are very robust and are good to drive.

With any van do the usual checks service history etc, the later common rail diesels can be expensive on parts especially (renault/vauxhalls) and if you run them low on fuel they can sometimes bring debris into the fuel rail which shows up as an injector fault on the diagnosis, therefore requiring the unneccessery cost of replacing injectors.

 

If your planning to do many miles it maybe worth getting out the AA warranty.

Hope this helps

[dub envy 0]

Fiat/Citroen/Peugeot Scudo/Dispatch/Expert - prolly the JTD version

Generally Very Good Vans

 

I strongly disagree with that. I had a 55 reg non turbo Citroen Dispatch for 2 years and hated it. Company van so had no choice. Slow, handles like a bag of poo and the dash was awful. Seats were comfy though. Took it back to Citroen 4 times to get the side loading doors to shut properly but they never really fixed the problem. As it had no bulkhead you would get a constant draught down the back of your neck and on motorways the noise was terrible. Was like driving with the window an inch open.

 

We also had Peugeot Experts on the fleet and they were just as bad but slower. Hills??? forget driving up them in 5th gear.

 

I now have a 57 reg facelift Dispatch and love it. Even the base model 1.6 is turbo'd. The dash is much more useable and it handles like a car! Not gonna get one of these for 3.5k though.

 

Your buget aint very big so I dont think you'd get a decent Transporter for that money. Hiaces are nice. A friend picked up a LWB model not long back. Huge load space. Not keen on the dashboards though.

 

All I will say is, stay away from old shape Dispatches/Experts.

[daves16v 1]

Company I work for use Renault for their vans but they've had alot problems with them hence the reason they bought a VW when one finally died.

[dub envy 0]

Oh yeah, I wouldnt buy a Renault/Vauxhall Vivaro either. Had a couple of these as hire vans. they are fantastic vans, massive in the back (had a high top too which was HUGE!), like the dash layout, seats are comfy, but the ride made me feel sea sick. The front just sort of bounce and drift about. Quite unpredictable when cornering too. It's a shame because the DCI 140 Vivaro is an animal of a van. No van could really come close to it for accelration and speed. Had 128mph on the speedo up the M40 with ease. Only thing that I came across that was faster was a new VW Caddy. The 180bhp Transporters are peobably quicker too! Had the 140for 2 weeks while my old Dispatch wasin the bodyshop, and by the end of the first week of having it I was looking forward to having the Dispatch back... thats how much I hated the ride.

[Majik 0]

I strongly disagree with that. I had a 55 reg non turbo Citroen Dispatch for 2 years and hated it. Company van so had no choice. Slow, handles like a bag of poo and the dash was awful. Seats were comfy though. Took it back to Citroen 4 times to get the side loading doors to shut properly but they never really fixed the problem. As it had no bulkhead you would get a constant draught down the back of your neck and on motorways the noise was terrible. Was like driving with the window an inch open

Yeah, agree the non turbo versions are sluggish, but the turbo dispatches were good in their time and there wasnt much that could compete for the same price & engine. The Peugeot Citroen diesel engine was probably the best in the class untill Germans and Japanese caught up.

I drove a nissan 2.3 vanette or cargo and i swore never again, it was that slow!

[waynos 0]

i wouldnt go with a vito, thats what i drive at work. we have two which seem to have a growing list of problems. the turbo has gone despite regular oil changes etc, door check straps breaking, roll bar link bushes that wear out in a few months, poor range on the remote locking (not the battery or key which was over 100 pounds) brake lights keep going, dodgy cd player that makes strange noises and very tail happy in the wet. However on the other side they are a smooth drive, pretty quick and ok on fuel,