[Closed] STW Forum 'Leisure Vehicle' Purchase... help please

Ford S-Max??

have a look at the Caddy Kombi too...

VW Touran, although not going to fit the 4 x 4 requirements, otherwise huge boot, 3 rear seats fold independantly or come out completely. 7 seat versions available, extra 2 seats fold down one hand and become the base of the boot.

Fuel economy is good on the diesels for such a big vehicle, I get 50 to 60 mpg. Pleasent to drive, better than our Honda CRV 4 x 4. Whack a towbar on for a bike carrier and a roof box on the pre installed roof rails and you'll be able to lug all the loads you want in comfort.

Don't fancy Ford, still have the wallet raping scars when Mrs Boblos Focus needed lots of TLC.

The Caddy Maxi Kombi looks a real option. Bit bigger than a Touran so can get more kit in? Anyone actually got one please?

skoda yeti? not sure if it would be quite big enough, but they seem universally well regarded.

Subaru Forester?

The older version is available in crazy nutter STi guise.

I'd say Ford Galaxy...................if you didn't have an aversion to Fords.. 😉

Berlingo/Partner - and 4x4 is an option if prepared to shell out for it.

Doblo Boblo? Not as refined. But cheap and tough.

Cheers Chaps. Question: How in the whatsit thingymebob am I gonna get a tandem in the back of a Berlingo or Yeti (apart from cutting it into bits)? 🙂 I think I need a loading length of near on 2.5m to get the beast in...

This is going to be a 'spare' vehicle for leisure use only so something that's slow depreciating would be helpful. Points towards T5's and Caddy Maxi's (both Kombis)?

Does anybody else do soemthing similar? How about a big f off estate...? E class/A6 or some such? Problem with that is it's a bit like what I use daily and I really want a 'do it all leisure (pleasure?) wagon'.

Berlingo claims 3.3m in short version. This is what the Mulrispace is based on, and on the latest model the back seats don't just fold, they come right out so you have the full 'van' space.

[url= http://www.citroen.co.uk/new-vans/van-range/citroen-berlingo/#/new-vans/van-range/citroen-berlingo/ ]LINK[/url]

Read your link properly TW - that's cubic mtrs. Loadspace extends to 3mtrs, but with front seat out of the way. I'd imagine carrying a tandem, he'd want space for his mrs to ride too?

There's nothing that's refined that will take a tandem whole. If it's 2.5m long then your looking at large vans or large van based cars to get a load bay that long, then again you mention a T5 so perhaps your idea of refinement (and performance) is masively different to mine. The load bay on an A6 is about about 2m.

Edit. A Espace might do the trick if you pulled out all the seats on one side and made the wife sit in the back. The V6 offers ok performace but isn't great on fuel.

Sorry 3m. Passenger can sit in the back on the other side. Or you can bung it in diagonally. Is wheels off an issue?

I have an older style Berlingo. My bike won't fit in 'straight', but angled I can get 3 fully built bikes in, and 3 people, 2 in the front, one in the back.

Thanks gents. I'd prefer not to faff with the tandem when slinging it in so wheels on would be a bonus. We had to stuff it in an estate car to get back from Montpellier once when SNCF gave us a helpful 'non' as we stood on the station platform. Predictably, one wheel was covered in dog shit and swmbo wasn't amused (as she was also avec merde shortly afterwards 🙂 ), so the less faff the better.

As for refinement, I mean in the scale of van type vehicles. So something with some insulation and carpety stuff on the walls to keep the din down.

I'll have a look at a Berlingo and the little Citroen/Peugeot/Fiat vans though the limitation here is 3 passengers?

C'mon STW help me out here, puleeeease 🙂

We got our tandem in a Berlingo with back seats down and just front wheel off.

Qashqai +2 ? It's longer than the standard one to get the extra foldaway seats in the back so may take a tandem.

New Peugeot Expert or Citroen Despatch in Passenger carrier style rather than van style?

Doblo here.

Mine's the older style one (58 plate), which can now be picked up very cheaply.

The 85hp 1.3 diesel is an excellent engine (they also do a 75hp,) split folding rear seats, very comfy and quiet, tough as old boots.

Bit bigger than a Berlingo, but cheap tax, cheaper to buy and surprisingly good fun to drive.

You're more than welcome to try it for size if you're anywhere near the north west.

Disco 3 - take the front wheel off, drop one of the rear seats (all three fold down separately), and you should be fine. Obviously 4x4, reasonably thirsty (30mpg average with a light foot), buy an 05 and it'll not depreciate hugely (and have cheaper road tax), as refined as you like. Can fit three normal MTBs with a front wheel off (just easier that way). Easily take 5 and a load of climbing gear.

But - it's a £40k car when new, so expect £40k car running costs. And if it's not been really well maintained, there's every possibility that it'll cost you a lot when things go wrong.

How many times are you going to want to load the tandem? It's going to have a huge impact on vehicle choice. Would you not be better with a vehicle that did 95% of what you wanted and sling the tandem on the roof?

Thanks everyone. Surprised about the Berlingo swallowing a tandem with just the wheel off.... It's wasn't a swb tandem was it? (AKA a unicycle 🙂 ) I'll have a look at that and a Doblo <oh dear>

That Expert/Dispatch caught my eye, if you can get them in Combi style. I hired a Dispatch van and it swallowed the bike whole.

Land Rover? Not sure. Bit scared of potential bankrupcy... 🙂

As for occasional tandem use, this vehicle is a leisure vehicle and will only be used for carrying bikes/tandems/climbers/hillwalkers/gear so the ability to do these things without grief is very high on my list otherwise there's no point buying it. I could get roofrack aggro from my current cars without spending any more money 🙂

Thanks everyone, keep 'em coming please.

Anyone actually got one please?

Not got a Kombi, but got a Caddy Maxi Life that I share with my old boy, I generally use it with the back row of seats out (so a Kombi with rear windows). Cracking machine, although I only use it for biking trips, rather than as an everyday car. My Dad finds it quite big day to day as an every day runaround, though no more so than a T5.

Various storage combos:

Megaavalanche trip:
No back seats at all, two bikes on rack, eight in the back (5 of which were DH), and all our kit. Bikes were stripped down.

Weekend trip:
Two rows of seats, 2 bikes on back, 3 inside, 5 people on board in comfort.

The boot is big and tall so could take plenty of kit if you didn't to go down the bike rack route.

[IMG] [/IMG]

Brycey, you're a star. A man with a caddy maxi.... Can I aska couple of q's please?

Does a Life have 3 or 2 rows of seats?

When the back seat row is in do mtb's go in upright and fully assembled?

Is the back seat row easy/quick to get out?

Are the back seats split so you can have some up and some down and do they fold out of the way (tip forwards)?

What's the load length with the back seats in and out please?

Which engine do you have? I thought the 2l TDI thingly looked worth a punt?

I see it's an '08 plate (assuming that's yours), had it from new? Any downsides/issues/problems?

Happy to help where I can.

A life has three rows of seats.

Got it with 4000 miles on it as a demonstrator, put about 20,000 miles on it without missing a beat. It's a 2.0l (140PS) and goes very well, probably about mid 40s mpg(there's no trip computer and I haven't calculated).

The middle seats split 1/3:2/3 and also fold right forward on that basis. They come right out with a bit of spannering, but it's not worth it as they fold so neatly.

The rear seat is a bench, so it's either all up or all down, and it folds out the way in seconds, or comes right out with a bit of footering about with a star-drive for 5 mins.

With the rear seats out you get three or four bikes in the boot, although front wheels off.

With all seats up the boot isn't huge, but still surprisngly useful due to it's height. Think large hatch back boot only wider and much taller.

Not sure of the exact dims, and I'm not near it at the moment. From memory there's a pdf drawing on the VW Commercial Vehicles website.

As I said went to the Mega 2-up, with 10 bikes on board and a load of kit no problem in the summer. Then at New Year we went away four adults, two kids and loads and loads of kit and food/booze. Again no problem (see below).

Any more questions, feel free to ask.

Cheers

[IMG] [/IMG]

Thanks Brycey, that looks like 'it' for me.

I might end up with the old 1.9 as the new 2l are about ~£5k more. The older car seems to be around the ~£12k mark which is a lot for a 'spare' vehicle but not in the grand scheme of things...

Any pit falls to look out for?

They're not necessarily older, just two different models (I think). For what it's worth my mate has a T5 with the 1.9 104PS, and it is absolutely fine. Mine is pretty nippy, but that's hardly a major requirement for this type of vehicle.

We ran about 20 Caddy's at work with the smallest engine (60PS or something ridiculous), and we had a lot of hassle with clutches and gearboxes. I presume this was from them being under-powered and therefore ragged, rather than an indication of Caddy quality.

I'm no mechanic, so apart from the obvious stuff don't have much buying advice I'm afraid.

I'd say shop around as well. We were laughed out of Glasgow VW when we said what we were willing to pay, and then got a great van from Wrexham a couple of days later. A bit of a drive, but not in the scheme of things, and that was when the model was not long out. You see a lot more of them about now. So I'd say have a goo dring about, I would have thought £12k would get a decent example.

Edit: Just had a look on Autotrader and VW Approved; surprised how expensive they still are. Still worth a phone about though.

We put a tandem in a Zafira - only needed the wheels off also had it in a meriva but that was a bit tighter

As mentioned, one of the best cars that I've ever owned was a Forester. Hilarious when it lost grip to all four wheels

Sorry TJ, I wouldn't have a Zafira free (well OK, not quite true, free mebbies, for money certainly not). My experience is anecdotal but the 2 people I know who've had them have become great friends with the local dealer.

I think I may have settled on the Caddy Maxi Life. Just need to confirm I can get the bike in it intact and find one for the meagre sum I'm prepared to sink into it 🙂

Thanks everyone for their help. This isn't a done deal yet so further suggestion welcome. Assuming we get there, this'll be the second vehicle I've bought via STW 🙂

Boblo

Should have said in my earlier ramblings; if you removed the rear seat, and part-folded the middle row you'd get a bike or two in fully built no probs, and still carry four people.

boblo - Just what I could hire that would take it.

Any decent sized people carrier should be able to. Taking the wheels off gets it below the critical size

TandemJeremy - Member

boblo - Just what I could hire that would take it.

Any decent sized people carrier should be able to. Taking the wheels off gets it below the critical size

That's true enough. I saw someone with a Citroen Pick-arse-o at the weekend and they'd wedged their tandem in with the wheels off. Just don't fancy the pallava every time we take it out so I want something I can get the tandems in fully built. If I really, really, really had to compromise, it would be by taking the front wheel off but that's about it 🙂

Thanks Brycey, that's what I thought with that split row of seats. I can stick the tandem down the 3rd that's folded and keep the other two for self loading freight or gear.

Older shape Galaxy / Alhambra / Sharan. Find a nice late model One. Fords finished about 06, VW about 07 & I think the last Seat's about 59 reg. Av 32 - 40 mpg. And that's real world by the way. (Never ceases to amaze me the figures some people quote). Not the most reliable but cheap to fix if they do go wrong.
You'll get a tandem in upright. Floor totally flat, & rear wheel can roll straight down the middle to the dash.
Wasn't keen at first but wouldn't be without ours now. Even lugs a 1500kg caravan about with no fuss.

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[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/takisawa2/5862346831/ ]IMAG0568[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/takisawa2/ ]pten2106[/url], on Flickr

Got a Caddy Maxi at work, useful sized vehicle, ours is a very agricultural base spec and very definitely feels van like, but 5 people and a lot of big kit will go in, especially as it is a commercial one with minimal trim, but plenty of tie points.
2nd row seats are a bit bulky folded, but just a few bolts to pull them out like brycey said.
Been pretty handy for shifting staff and kit for festivals.