Hi, there

any opinions on the 2.0 vs 1.9 engines?

Conventional wisdom has the 2.0 as the one to go for, but they’re like hens tea, are they really so much better?

As always, much appreciated

Alex

Had the Expert for 6 years, 1.9. would have one again. It was a gift from the old man when he retired and didnt need the works van anymore . . . my sister got the buisness, I got the van.
Great on fuel, cheap IMO on parts, it had 2 sliding side doors which were really useful. Could camp at races in it and could sleep full lenght in the back with ease (6’2″).
Ran it into the ground and sold it for scrap 4 years ago . . . . its still being used now!
Have the old peugeot Partner now, a bit nippier than the expert but no where near as versatile.

We ran a Scudo for 133k with 1.9 XUD Turbo – great engine and far quicker than our new shape comfy but plodding 1.6HDI Dispatch. The 2.0 JTD / HDI also supposed to be very good.

I wouldn’t buy any of the non-turbos I tried (but there were a few versions over the years so maybe not all the same). Non TD was completely different experience – gutless and very noisy with a lower final drive ratio.

If you are on a limited budget, have a look at a Toyota Hiace with the D4D engine, won’t let you down and a bit more space than these, cheers

Had an R reg atmo Despatch, great utility vehicle but pretty unrefined and dang was it slow.

I have a 1.9 non turbo expert and it’s slow and gets slower on the slightist hill. And will be fine when I fix the rear doors to stop them popping open as you drive
the turbo one would make it the perfect cheap van

I have a 1.9 non turbo expert and it’s slow and gets slower on the slightist hill. And will be fine when I fix the rear doors to stop them popping open as you drive.

Agreed.

I had one for 6 or more years, 1.9D Expert.

Pros: Reliable, Cheap to run, service, fix, Handle well, loved the twin sliders, comfortable to drive.

Cons: So very slow (I think my 1970 1.6 VW camper was quicker to 50) and rather loud at motorway speeds. Back doors kept unclipping at the bottom. Not dangerous just irritating.

If I was in the market for a super cheap reliable work horse I’d have another without thinking. Would consider noise proofing or a TD.

I favoured the Peugeot at the time over the Fiat for the Immobiliser system.

In the old shape, Turbo vs Non-Turbo was an absolute light year of difference (we tried both for long drives before buying). TD XUD was quiet, fast and a pleasure to drive, no problem overtaking and blasted up long fast drags. The only niggle was slightly heavy cable cluth which also required a new cable every 50,000 miles (not a hardship at £30 and 15 mins to fit). Would probably still be driving it now if a spinning BMW hadn’t totalled it.

Our new shape 1.6 HDI turbo is nowhere near as good – OK it is reasonably refined and quiet, but took 5000 miles to run in and even then it looses speed on drags. Overtaking needs an awful lot of road and forward planning as there is just nothing in reserve when you put foot down….