Long isn’t that much longer really then.
you can do a lot with a bit of extra length (genuinely, does make a fair difference)
Just tell Mrs Weeksy she has a new job as a security guard for a MTB team 😀
How long before the long van gets swapped for a shorter one as it turns better?😉
If you can get a longer one without blowing the budget I’d go for it. The only reason I have an SWB is a) because they’re harder to park in towns and cities, b) the wife has to drive it and she doesn’t like parking bigger vans and c) we’d already spent just over £30k on the SWB and couldn’t really justify the extra.
If you can get a longer one without blowing the budget I’d go for it.
Waiting to see what my mate can find/source, he's put an offer in on 2 LWBs with the intention of me having 1 of them, but depends if they come off or not. We've got a little bit of a timescale on things as we've got events/days of coaching upcoming and the Kuga is being collected Mon/Tues. So i need something either soon, or borrow next weekend too. But that's for him to worry about. At the end of the day, if this van gets to be mine, i won't be unhappy with it 🙂
ok so who bought this one.
I was expecting you to show 2 options (big and small) and then right at the last minute buy something completely different (like a horse box or American bus) at the last minute 😜.
For personal use you can’t really go wrong with most modern vans as you won’t be loading them up heavy and not me giving them a hard life.
I just think that from personal experience the Customs are pretty good and (touch wood) I never had a problem with my old one (2013 and 2.2/125hp) or the new one (2021 2.0/170hp) and you get more/better for your money than a VW.
PS love my heated seats and windscreen (both things I thought were frivolous 3 years ago!!!)
Enjoy the van life
Is that the one you were going to be testing for the weekend? Generally the approach is test then buy
Wonder if that would work in a high enough van 🤔
It would be fine until you started driving then it would sound like a cheap drumkit.
Is that the one you were going to be testing for the weekend? Generally the approach is test then buy
Me? No, I was/am testing the Custom..
The boy gave it approval tonight after driving to get Chinese.
Me, not him.
It would be fine until you started driving then it would sound like a cheap drumkit.
🤣 or you could just strap them up 🤦🏻♂️ 🤣
Seriously weeksy, back off.. buy a LWB 🙂
Me? No, I was/am testing the Custom..
Gotcha, apparently not been paying enough attention
I had a 2.2 Limited Custom until recently. Really nice van, good to drive, fairly practical, easy to work on and was reliable for me.
If you get one there's a few security upgrades you'll want to do sooner rather than later. The drivers door lock can be opened with a pair of molegrips - replace this lock with a 'hi key' lock that can't be done this way.
Additionally the side door has a known weakpoint where crims punch a small hole through with a screwdriver and can open it easily. A company produce a metal cage that goes over the lock mechanism to prevent this approach working.
(Both of these are DIY jobs if you are reasonably competent.)
To be honest the price on that looks a little spicy. I sold mine with slightly less miles, a year newer for £13250 (no VAT) about 6 months ago, and it had a part camper conversion, fully insulated, solar panels, fridge, single rotating passenger seat etc. - and this took 6 weeks to sell advertised on both ebay and autotrader, so it wasn't vastly underpriced.
I appreciate it's a dealer and they need a margin but they're not exactly giving that away, hope you can bargain a deal.
To be honest the price on that looks a little spicy
It's not the cheapest, but it is backed by a mate owning it, plus the fact having driven it i know it's 'right' and not likely to fall apart next week. There's cheaper, but private sales, or more miles or worse condition. For the spec, the miles and condition, it's not badly priced... but no, it's not the cheapest out on the market i'll admit.
How long before the long van gets swapped for a shorter one as it turns better?😉
How long before we're debating the merits of bigger vs smaller wheels, or the 'compromise' option of mulleted van?? 😱😂
Van worked lovely on the day... Sadly my MTB never as i lost a bolt... sadly for me it was a game changer bolt which can't be sourced on the day as it's very very specific to the bike.
But anyway, the van.
It's a little lumpy when first starting at 6.30am in -3deg.... But soon gets to sounding OK in 20s. It's a fairly ticky/noise/diesel engine, but that's a Transit Custom for you.. well, it's actually a van as we know.
Everything works perfectly though.
It does have a slightly ticky/tappy noise on right handers, which Couchy tells me is CV joint potentially, but the van wasn't prepped for sale yet, so that'll get done before i collect. But other than that... no issues at all with it for me. Drives as it should 34-36mpg but a chunk of that was uppy downy back roads and through the gearbox... i think i'll see closer to 40s on a decent run.
I even provided an uplift service for the boy and his team-mate who got 3 full runs with a quick uplift in the van after they'd been sessioning the trails earlier.
Excellent 😀
I even provided an uplift service for the boy and his team-mate who got 3 full runs with a quick uplift in the van after they’d been sessioning the trails earlier.
Excellent 😀
And that's what it's all about 👍🏻 cracking stuff...shame about the Slayer
3 kids in a transit? Don’t know how lucky they are, we used to shuttle FOD 6 up in a Toyota Hiace or similar Nissan back before Fly-up started. Can only dream about the luxury of all that space!
Back when OP said they were off to buy something unexpected I thought we were going to see them with an old Asda delivery van. Decent size beer and bbq meat fridge at least.
It’s a bit small Weeksy - look at this opportunity:
Don’t know how lucky they are, we used to shuttle FOD 6 up in a Toyota Hiace or similar Nissan back before Fly-up started
INSIDE the vehicle?! You don’t know how lucky you were, we used to be hanging onto the car belonging to whatever driver cared least about their vehicle
Back when OP said they were off to buy something unexpected
I don't even recall what either of them 2 we're now. But clearly I didn't buy them.
Much as I love both my Customs, you’re not going to get 40mpg out of it very often, if at all.
Much as I love both my Customs, you’re not going to get 40mpg out of it very often, if at all.
Yeah i've kinda established that after the weekend lol. Which is a little weird as all the Ford figures say 40 should be easy.... but clearly not. It's no biggy though, it's the price we pay for having the vehicle we want of course.
I'm off down to my mates place for lunch and a chat over a mince pie. I don't think i'll be buying this particular van that's on the driveway, he has a couple of other options that tick slightly more boxes in terms of condition and miles on the clocks.
Obviously though when you got newer/lower you have to up the budget, but not massively and not by so much that it cripples you... but this is currently where we are with it. Obviously this all depends on what they've sold this weekend and have coming in, but this is leading the charge at the moment.
Which is a little weird as all the Ford figures say 40 should be easy…
Not really, they all lie through their teeth
e.g. https://vans.honestjohn.co.uk/realmpg/ford/transit-2014
Everyone knows manufacturers measure fuel economy with the van on a treadmill, with a strong tail wind.
Saying that, I just checked my 2.2 Boxer on that website and it's showing an average of 32.2 which is higher than I'd expected. I might be on the high side since I've got the smallest body and it'll never be fully loaded.
Which is a little weird as all the Ford figures say 40 should be easy…
In comparing with friends, it seems that the older engines in Mk7 Transit do better than the newer engines or models of Transit or Custom... 🤷♂️
Around the doors, eldest_oab's SWB, High Roof, 2.2tdci 125 6sp manages maybe 35mpg if he is easy on it (under 30mpg if not), if he cruises at 60mph he is getting 43mpg, but take it to 70 and it is back at mid-30's...I guess no surprise that taking a brick shaped, 2.5t vehicle around the roads = crap mpg's....
Vito 119 XLWB (235bhp Pendle remap)
Liverpool to Hull Ferry
Shell V-Power with a dose of Archoil D6400
Wow... that's mighty impressive mate.
Onto van security...
https://www.avrmobiles.co.uk/product/van-hook-locks-and-anti-peel-fitters/
I'm thinking this set ?
On mine we do get about 42Mpg. But I'm very light on the throttle and I also use this
https://www.halfords.com/motoring/engine-oils-and-fluids/fuel-and-oil-additives/dipetane-1ltr-fuel-additive-147953.html
I'm not sure the Dipetane helps but I have always added it to my vans and don't seem to get the DPF issues some people get and most of my trips are fairly short
So the van is a happy place indeed 🙂
Drives lovely, goes well, quiet (for a van).. No clunks, rattles or bangs..
Yesterday i had a set of hook locks and anti-peel backet installed.. So that's done.
But i've also got a Pragmasis ground anchor that i'm debating fitting (or returning). It does mean drilling 4 holes in the van floor and i'm not actually sure how much the ground anchor actually brings to the party overall. So i'm in a little bit of a debate on it.
i’m not actually sure how much the ground anchor actually brings to the party overall. So i’m in a little bit of a debate on it
It'll slow them down but TBH if they're already inside the van they've likely got cutting tools so any chain or ground anchor won't stop them fully. I couldn't face drilling into my van floor so simply have the meatiest motorbike lock chains through the anchor/lockdown points - yes, they're attached with big bolts that a spanner would loosen, but better than nothing.
Now 25k miles in my 67-plate 2.0 Transit Custom 130ps and generally average 35-36mpg all-round. Best ever tankful was 39.9 mpg over 560miles Edinburgh to Helston - it was over 40mpg but the rolling hills on the A30 knackered that.
Q for the Transit drivers out there: are they galvanised in the newer models?
But i’ve also got a Pragmasis ground anchor that i’m debating fitting (or returning). It does mean drilling 4 holes in the van floor and i’m not actually sure how much the ground anchor actually brings to the party overall. So i’m in a little bit of a debate on it.
More security, more better, makes that difficult conversation with the insurance company less painful. Mine stipulates the bike must be locked to something inside the car, so thats usually looped round one of the tie downs in the back.
Glad your enjoying it. I wouldn't want to be drilling the floor. We run the chains round the base of the seat. We also have an alarm fitted, the same as what the insurance insisted on for the camper. The blue flashing light in an annoyance but still a further deterrent.
2016 Custom.
Q for the Transit drivers out there: are they galvanised in the newer models?
🤣
I’ve no idea if do-able but could you find a local company who would weld in your ground anchor rather than having to drill holes?
I’d put it in one way or the other - if it’s a decent ground anchor and using locks above about 16mm shackles then it rules out bolt croppers as a way of stealing your bikes. They’ll have to use an angle grinder which is loud and still likely to take a couple of mins - a 16.8mm d-lock generally needs 2 cuts. If you have an alarm on the van and it’s going off all that time too then it all helps.
🤣
I should change my username to RustyFordTransit 🤣
To be fair, the current Transit Custom does appear to be fairing much better than previous Transits. I know that's not exactly a good marker to use, but they certainly don't seem anywhere near as bad.
🤣
Ah! I'll stick with the Trafic; they seem to be pretty good body-wise, without the Transporter Tax! Although mine's far from a show-pony.
Confused by the terror of drilling holes in a van. I'm about to drill hundreds of the things and they'll all be deburred, rust proofed, painted etc.
I wouldn't bother welding a ground anchor to a van. Wouldn't be any stronger than 4 big bolts and a big, thick spreader plate and you might burn the thing down in the process.
