Merc Sprinter vs Ford Transit vs Fiat Ducato vs VW Transporter vs………

I need a van for bike hire duties. It will carry 20 bikes.
Which would you recommend from a real world reliability and running cost point of view.
I will buy new.

Transporter too small, you need a Crafter if it has to be a VW. I don’t know which is the biggest but the Ducato will probably be the cheapest.

The sprinter/crafter will be nicer to drive and they’re more manoeuvrable. Fiat won’t be as well built, but will be cheaper. We use both as ambulances. No idea about the transits. Our lwb T6 would be too small.

How’s the vid coming on Iolo? You’d never get 20 bikes in a Transporter BTW 😉

20 bikes suggests a trailer.

Look into what is going to be the most reliable!!

We have Sprinters at work….the new ones drive very nicely….all of them have had multiple breakdowns though and all are less than 6 months/15k miles old

We’ve got a Renault Master on hire at the minute which has actually been really reliable and drives really nicely too.

I’ve had a LWB Transit as personal hire van a few years ago….really impressed with that, but only had it for 2 days.

My motorhome is based on a Ducato…..meh, drives okay….its basically impossible to read the speedo, cruise control is shocking too. It does weigh almost 3.5 tonnes though and a fair bit of weight is up high so that probably doesn’t reflect how the normal van would drive.

I had a quick spin in a new T6 a few months back…..basically like a car! 20 bikes aren’t going in one though.

20 bikes whole in a van means a lwb sprinter or crafter. If you’re buying new then the crafter is also the MAN TGE and you may well get a better price from MAN on the same van bar badges. New lwb ducato (or other badged ones) will be a lot cheaper but are not reliable – but are a huge amount cheaper.

Based on my own experience in running a MK7 Transit (current shape is a Mk8) – takes plenty of abuse but rubbish design and construction. I find it unbearable from a driving/ergonomics point for more than a few hours.
Our works Ducato has generally been good small things have broken – door cables/handles/interior trim but drivetrain wise it’s been good. Was cheap but ergonomically it’s uncomfy for me like my Transit is.

A friend has a new Crafter and loves it after running Transits for years. Ergonomically I find Sprinter/Crafters the best – the steering wheel is lower and more in front of you car style whereas the Transit and Ducato are more ‘bus driver style’ with the steering wheel flatter which hurts my shoulders/neck. But I am a 6’5 lanky freak of nature.

https://www.karabag.de/magazin/artikel/vergleich-fiat-ducato-vw-crafter

Found this the other day. Might be of interest.

I’m tossing up between a Ducato (l5h3) or a Sprinter/Crafter.

Both engines are solid. The loading area of the ducato is bigger.

I use an Iveco daily at work along with a Sprinter. I don’t like the way either of them taper in, robbing you of usable space. The Sprinter has lots of rust spots despite being only 3 years old. Oh, and the sliding door mechanism packed up. So much for German engineering. Prefer the driving position of the Daily over the Sprinter. Daily has a bouncy seat which is nice.

The Ducato and Daily are galvanised. Crafter and Sprinters are not.

I’m looking to convert it to a camper and an tending towards the Ducato. Larger interior (you can sleep across it if you’re not a lanky git) and a larger payload win it for me.

I run 2 Peugeot Boxers and both have had a couple of tiny niggles, but nothing major. They are however v.cheap, I paid less than £15k + VAT new, Sprinter and Crafter (and MAN) were all 10k more expensive for a like for like spec.

Will you hire 20 bikes out every time? Probably not.

I really think you need to look at a trailor.

Maybe as your business expands you will have 2 trailors. A big one and a smaller one to help with fuel costs.

A trailor can be fully enclosed and secure so you can set it up to lock bikes and charge at the same time.

A trailor opens up a lot more vehicle options. Maybe a caravelle for carrying passengers for multi day riding?

Uplift trailer.

So much easier than bike jigsaws in a van, and means you don’t need a van like a double decker.