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cars deffo ****ed so need a small cheap van for time being before i get a new one.
anyone got one or recommend one?
Vw transporter kombi
Fiat Multipla with a tow bar bike rack.
Haven't you done this once already?
The answer is still the same combo or courier unless your budget has increased over £1k. Also consider citroen c15, very basic but very cheap.
yeah, just looked and you're right. i did ask before.
just got indoors from trying to revive the car but no. van it has to be
old shape combos on van trader going for 600 quid taxed and tested .... high milage but bomb proof isuzu engine.
will get you a year as there isnt much to go wrong in them unless you buy a turbo one you have a very agricultural vehicle .... although the glow plugs in the isuzus can be expensive so be sure to turn up early to any viewings and check that the engines cold before you view....
I'm looking to get rid of my 53 combo, its been a brilliant van if your interested - Great in the snow! Its a little more than £1k but ultra reliable.....
Message me if your interested, but if not combo's are great little vans and great for running about in.
Whats wrong with the car mate? It sounded from your last thread like a heli-coil was needed which is a sh!t load cheaper then a van.
Besides, if you buy a van people will think you're a peado/dogger/pikey (or all three).
the corsa is too small and battered. we tried liquid metal and it didnt work.
OK - get the corsa, ahem, bodged and flog it first. There are ways. But sell to someone you don't care about as the bodge will eventually make the spark plug explode out of the engine.
Then buy a hatchback.
What is it with vans?
escort van?
very long for a small van, you can kip in them - but you get 2 bikes in easy enough (1 and sleeping is possible with the front wheel off).
Drives like a car and dirt cheap to run and service. Loved mine.
VW Caddy love mine 😀 As above, drives like a car, pretty economical, two bikes in with wheels on no probs.
what about a citreon berlingo? Great for bike stuff, but not too great a getting up the hill in Herts 😉
I know it's a bit of a mum wagon but I opted for a chrysler voyager (it was the pool car at work) I've had it over a year now and won't change it for a van.
Does the job for all my biking needs, bike fits in whole and I have plenty of room to get chaned.
Or can easily fit 4 in and bikes for a weekend away.
Apparently the grand voyager is a foot longer.
More comfortable than a van, especially as it has those comfy captain chairs in.
i dunno what to do/get
wether to get a lease/buy kind of thing or buy an old van for under agrand
FIAT/Lamborghini D'oblo. If you can find one in the Orange (bikes or Murcielago SV ) colourway that I did, you can pick one up for less than £1000 notes with less than 70K on the clock if you're lucky, that's the SX with the 1.9D though. The JTD is the one everyone wants, but it costs more, and doesn't give the same fuel mileage.
I've slept in mine with my kids during Rally GB. Went camping with the family in Scotland and didn't have to use the wing mirrors to see out the back on the way there (all the kit was under the parcel shelf, bonus), a week later, went back to Scotland riding with friends, and folded the seats, got 2 bikes stood upright, and all our kit in my car, and the other 5 lads were cramped into my mate's T5 with 3 bikes on the rack, and 2 in with the passengers while we carried their bags in comfort.If I had the later model with split rear seats we'd have been able to carry 3 full bikes and our kit with the extra man.
It's a fugly mother, but it's damn practical, cheap, and economical.
I still want a Scooby to rally around in, but this car has been fantastic to own.
I really didn't want to buy it initially, but my wife convinced me it made sense, and she was right. It made perfect sense.
It's a great cycling/family car that's cheap to run.
peugeot partner. buy for less than a grand. reliable. love mine. fits bikes in without needing to take wheels off, and can sleep in it at a push.
second skyline on a doblo. good and cheap, if you get a van be aware that speed limits are lower on a roads (50 not 60) and cameras can tell the difference from your reg,
In our household we've had both Doblo (1.9jtd) and also were on our second Berlingo. We had a first gen 1.6hdi and now on our second which is the latest version with the same engine slightly more power.
The berlingo never ever let us down and was superb on long runs. Newcastle to Paris was our best run for economy and it'd happily tank along at 70 plus without much strain.
The new lingo will be out of your range price wise, they're still way too expensive really. It improves on everything that needed addressing on the first berlingo, so, the ride is better, handling better, comfort in general better. Sound proofing vastly improved.
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Looks like chaos, but thats three xc bikes with wheels off..
still had 5 people in car... i don't get away enough to justify a rack.
The doblo, only issue we had with ours was clutch related as the miles piled on.. superb vehicle otherwise and the handling was awesome for something so slab sided. Used to wizz round a roundabout and the skinny tyres at the back just skitter about. Barely any turns lock to lock so it's a fun thing to drive.
getting a 05 berlingo
Nice one.
I have an Astravan, can get 3 bikes, 2 dogs and camping gear in with ease. With just bikes in the back i can get 4 bikes in , all bolted to a mount with just the front wheels removed. My old 1.7dti never did less than 48 mpg even when caning it.
Am on my 5th Astravan now, ideal for me wouldnt have anything else.
good choice
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/dodes/2650333405/ ]Stuffed berlingo[/url]
Don't worry about speed limits, on small vans they are the same as cars. It's only non car derived vans or those over 2250 (?) kg that it applies too. Mobile cameras (i.e. manned ones can tell the difference if they're awake but fixed ones can't - tho if one catches you you'll get done for being over the lower limit).
Some fixed cameras can, the ones that film all the time (dont have the flash) so be warned.
a small van has a different speed limit to a car??
it really does depend on the vehicle ....
combos dont come under the lower limit but the transit connect does - due to the combo not being able to take the same payload as the connect and being car derrived
wont have to worry in a berlingo - none of the engines in them strong enough to pull the weight to put it into the upper weight limit although im sure there will be a loop hole somewhere that means you do ....
What you need is a soft top Bedford Rascal you will really look the part then.
And as a plus it has the same design as a Ferrari!
2 seats mid engine and rear wheel drive!
Your Berlingo - as long as it is car-based and not van-based i.e. windows in the back and a second row of seats - will have the same speed limits as normal cars. If it is van-based (no windows*) then you need to do the van speed limits. Also be aware that the tyres are different between the 2 types of vehicles - van-based use reinforced tyres (and you will fail an MOT if you don't haev the right sort of tyre on it, car-based uses 'normal' tyres.
The handbook that comes with the car should state what it is, but if in doubt, ask a Citreon dealer to confirm.
* As a general rule, but isn't the only thing that gets considered!
few people have mentioned it already but a vauxhall combo is a good option. Reliable and you dont need to take wheels off etc as the cargo space is plenty long enough, I found with some of the other small vans there wasnt the room to fit longer wheelbase bikes without removing the front wheel, also height inside can be an issue especially on longer travel bikes.
none of this matters if you are going to lie the bike down but then you risk damage when carrying 2 or more bikes.
make sure you sticker it up tony, revive the joy that was our (now departed) combo.
really wish i'd kept the stickers 🙁
look at the nissan delivery
I had one for years and have only just changed it - there not fast or quiet but they are super reliable (unlike all the french shite), have an up and over back door (god send - ask all the people who have sheltered under mine)7ft deck in the back so confy to sleep in and easy to get bikes in with dismantleing (sp)
You can get a nice clean one for well under a grand if you look hard enough > sold mine for that and I still miss it in a way
top van nuff said
g
ps toyotas are in similar style but a bit bigger
We had a Scudo for a while (yes I know it's a Fiat)
Small with three front seats.
Rear doors and sliding doors both sides.
Very cheap, but I'm sure there's another manufacturer that would have re badged the same van.
Got a Vauxhall combo, really rate it. Brilliantly reliable, just a bit slow. I don't think they actually sold a turbo version in the older shape, but conversion using the astra/cavalier engine is really easy. I regularly achieve approx 52-3MPG from a tank full, but fuel economy noticeably suffers above 65mph.
Theres no legal requirement for the MOT having high load rated tyres. Unless your planning on using the van for more than a couple of bikes and some kit, its not an issue. I currently have mine on extra load tyres, which is a nice half way between standard car tyres and full heavy duty high load.
Considering a VW Caddy next, but typically of a VW hold there price so bloody well.
[i]look at the nissan delivery
I had one for years and have only just changed it - there not fast or quiet but they are super reliable (unlike all the french shite), [/i]
don't Renault own Nissan now?
they are part of the same group now but they were nissan when they made this one
vauxhall nissan and renault vans are now the same van albeit with slightly different trims but as to who is the main company I'm not sure, I think the new engines are renault (i now own a vauxhall version and its quite a nice van quick, economical, quiet and comfy but lacking the character of the old nissan) g
what is a nissan delivery?
Belingos got discussed a while back IIRC
http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/citroen-berlingo-views
As it says in this thread and elsewhere, the speed limit issue is weight related - and the 'car derived stuff' in not necessarily a good guide. 50 in a 60 and 60 on a dual apply to my MK3 caddy (older models are lower gross laden weight), but the speed limit issue didn't stop me buying it, cause it's a really nice drive and suits my purposes well.
the delivery is a verson of the vannette but a bit smaller with an up and over tailgate rather than doors
dont think those speed limits apply to tranny size vans i think it only 7.5 tonners and above cos the limits for them are 40 on single lane 50 on dual carriage and 60 or whatever the limiter is set at on mways as are hgvs g
He's said he's getting a Berlingo, why do folk insist on continuing to recommend others?
r.e the speed thing, I read that if it says 'car derived van' in the logbook [u]and[/u] the laden weight is under 2 tonnes, then the limits are the same as a car.
Although 'card derived van' is a bit of a vague definition, kinda dependant on who filled the reg docs in.
I'd think anything Transit size would fail on both counts and suffer the lower limits. Combo, Dispatch, Caddy etc must be borderline on the weight (check your log book). Fortunately my Mk2 caddy is under 2 tonnes gvw, so ok.
[url= http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/DriverSafety/DG_178867 ]more here[/url]
MussEd, because that way it keeps all the small van / car related info in one place.
as its something im interested in, the more varied suggestions the better.
however the rules regarding speed limits have already been linked (cough) so further speculation or examination of personal beliefs is a little pointless, but a sublist of which van looking cars are actually vans is handy to know (mk2 caddy not on my short list tho)
If it’s exclusively for Bike use i.e. mainly weekend motorways use, 3-4 people + bikes why not practise a bit of “bangernomics” and go for a late 90’s Estate Car instead, Vans are generally a tad more to tax and often way more abused/higher mileage than a similarly aged Estate car, I’d always prefer to be buying a £1K Car over a £1K van…
You have to think about who’s owned the car before you, Sedate old farts drive Estates (My Dad for instance: carefully, serviced regularly, Boring safe, pristine) Cowboy builders and plumbers will have raped your Van several times over before offloading an MOT failure into your lap…
You’re still gonna be taking off wheels to get more than 2 bikes in a Combi/Escort type van but you’ll more than likely only have seating for 2 people, a well packed Mundano/406 Estate could just about accommodate 3 riders + bikes before you need a rack, plus empty it out and leave it on the street/Drive during the week and nobody is going to be breaking in looking for tools or scrap copper, 3rd party insurance should do the job…
You can still do a bit of adaptation, remove a rear seat maybe add a (Gulp) roof box for kit and the option of a tow bar rack is a good one if there’s more of you, While I’d quite like a Van Myself I can see some drawbacks....
As for speed limits applied to Vans/Car derived Vans… I was under the impression that all Road Laws are “not applicable” if you are driving a van….