I have been looking at vans for the past while and while the heart wants a Transporter, the head cannot justify the extortionate prices. As soon as you add a 6th gear and air con the price rockets. Even the Transit Custom is quite expensive compared to the Trafic.

Looking at the newer versions of the Trafic 2014 onward with the 1.6BiTurbo short wheelbase probably in Sport spec to get all the nice extras. The thought at the moment is to buy as a panel van then when funds allow fit a row of seats in the back (2 plus 1 split) along with windows and swivel captains chairs in the front. Does anyone know if fitting the rear seats is a reasonable idea when it comes to cost etc? I have been looking at the Combi versions but it looks like the seats don’t fold and the certainly don’t have the 2 plus one split. I need the 2/1 as I would mostly remove the single seat allowing space for bikes up the side.

The vans get reasonable reviews online and 15k gets you a really good spec low mileage option. Anyone got any views good or bad on these vans?

The thought at the moment is to buy as a panel van then when funds allow fit a row of seats in the back (2 plus 1 split) along with windows and swivel captains chairs in the front. Does anyone know if fitting the rear seats is a reasonable idea when it comes to cost etc? I have been looking at the Combi versions but it looks like the seats don’t fold and the certainly don’t have the 2 plus one split. I need the 2/1 as I would mostly remove the single seat allowing space for bikes up the side.

This is exactly what I did with my Trafic. I had Scotseats fitted by Seafield Coachworks in Edinburgh. Total cost was (IIRC) over £1,000. It involved fitting spreader plates below the floor. Worked really well. I could even reverse the seats when using it as a “camper” thus giving a bit better use of the space.

The van has since been fully converted but I still have the Scotseats. If you go down that route we could perhaps come to a deal on them.

Had a new trafic in 2013, crew sport 115, great for the first year then the dpf started playing up and we had to get rid of it after it packed in 3 times in 6 months. If it wasn’t for the dpf faults I would have kept it, great to drive, went well and plenty space for bikes and the kids.

Scotroutes,

That’s good to know thanks. was the £1000 just for the fitting cost or did it include the seats? If you still have the seats when I come to buy a van then yes I would be interested in doing a deal. How do you find your van?

I have the older model, 59 reg. Love the van. Pre conversion I’d get 40mog from it. Nippy enough, pleasant to drive. I drive Ford Tourneos for a living and while they might be a more pleasant, car-like place to sit, they are sluggish and poor handling in comparison.

That I spent a small fortune to have it professionally converted says it all.

This is with the double seat fitted and reversed.

IMAG0147 by Colin Cadden – Flickr2BBcode

IMAG0148 by Colin Cadden – Flickr2BBcode

I’ll see if I can find the invoice for the work Seafield did.

@Scotroutes, do they by any chance have isofix?
We are looking at doing something similar, but the only suitable seats I have seen so far are the OE ones from a Transit Tourneo.

Sorry, no ISOFIX.

to get all the nice extras.

Did you see if they come with a heated screen now?

I need the 2/1 as I would mostly remove the single seat allowing space for bikes up the side.

You can get one bike in wheels on in the rear of the SWB factory crewcab (with bulkhead), two if you take one front wheel off.

Used to get two in with wheels on, but bikes have got longer!

The newer bi-turbo’s are supposed to be very quick and economical. My old 08 plate cost me £1500 in injectors with only 55k on the clock.
Hopefully they have sorted that problem out.

I have had a 2015 DCi140 Sport from new. Previously to that I had a 2013 Dci115 Sport with the old 2L single turbo engine.

I would say the older vans were built better, but the newer engine is better.

I have had the side door handle fall off mine, the bumper pop out and various trim bits pop off.

The old one was solid.

I would like a transit custom problem is my local Renault dealer seems to come up with deals that ford can’t even get close too.

You would need to modify the Tourneo ones as ours have a clip in system into the runners set into the floor. They also weigh quite a bit when been removed. Its definitely a two person job to lift them out of the back.
I wouldn’t call the 170hp ones sluggish

I have a 2l 2013 vivaro sport.

ours is a crewcab. I`ve removed the bulkhead, fitter a pop top and rear bed/cupboard thing coooker, front swivel.
I`ve left int eh factory seats for now but we will probably get some fold flat ones at some point so the downstairs bed is slightly bigger.

If you can get a minibus version for the most flexibility with seats and to get the factory seat fittings.

We do a fair bit of camping in it and its great.

(i cant work out how to do pics)

My old man has the Vivaro minbus, couldn’t give the seats away. Not had any issues from it in the year he has had it, it’s a 13 plate.

We have had a few vivaros up until 12/13 plate.
Most unreliable Vans the company has ever owned. Total electrical failure, gearbox failure, clutch failure and some other things I can’t remember, I think one caught fire. Company got shot at 30k miles and moved to Transit customs.

All fixed under Warranty but we lost too much work. The newer ones might be better but I personally wouldn’t touch one.

A few weeks ago I picked up an 11 plate swb Trafic sport with full conversion. Its got 6 gears, air con, sat nav, alloys, towbar etc. Low mileage too at 45k. Its the 2.0 dci 115. I love it, drives great. I use it as my main vehicle. I’m currently getting 38mpg according to the trip computer.

Not sure if the injector issue has been fixed on the new ones (that you’re looking at) but the main cause for it on the older ones was a leaking scuttle panel seal allowing water to pool in the injector housings, causing them to seize and fail. There’s loads of videos online on how to strip and re-seal properly. I had a garage do mine, hopefully should prevent it from happening.

I had a 2008 LWB factory Sportive double cab for 8 years and was a great van. Gearbox needed bearings at the end of the eight years. I am now a year into ownership of the new 1.6BiTurbo version of the same van (although the LWB is another foot longer – handy for the longer bike wheelbases).

The 1.6 seems more spritely than the 2.0 in the older van and more economical. I prefer the LWB version as all our bikes go in without wheels off etc.

vmgscot, do you use your van as a daily driver? If so do you find the LWB any more of an issue parking etc?

I am very tempted by a LWB next after two SWB vans.

@bazzer – it’s my only vehicle so used for everything EXCEPT daily commute (I’m lucky I can walk the 4 mile commute to/from work). I live in rural Scotland so very little city parking. Not had any real problems parking (has reverse sensors) but have subconsciously adapted to spot the types of parking bays that suit. Most multi-stories seem to work OK.

Had a 17 reg trafic lwb bi- turbo and it was great to drive. Got a great deal brand new and sold it with 55,000 miles on the clock.Had no real issues apart from the cruise control giving up after 30,000 but Renault fixed it under warranty.Found the lwb easy to drive and converted mine myself to have a Rock and roll bed plus space for 3 bikes with wheels on.

Had mine remapped so definitely not slow and averages 45mph depending how my right foot behaves.

Scotseats also do seats with isofix if you need them

Thomas Nagy, YouTube Electrician, ran his Trafgic for a good few years & raved about it. It had quite a few milee stop-start around London. There’s a few videos on his channel, obviously aimed at tradesman but interesting nonetheless.

I have a LWB 57 plate as a daily driver. Get a reversing camera and it’s fine. Currently doing a DIY camper conversion. Have a bed permanently in place, and can fit 5 bikes in without removing wheels.

had one of the new Opel Vivaros last week in the alps.

had an hour drive up to Davos each day. 20km Autobahn, the rest being windy alpine roads.

i found the driving position ok, but there couldn’t work out how to adjust the arm rest and the fact there is no arm rest on the outside is annoying.

origianlly i was a bit annoyed when it came to pulling away, overtaking and trying to give it some beans up the steep pass roads. that was until i turned off the eco mode. was much better after that, but i still found the power and to be quite narrow.

the interior was a bit busy and plasticy. no decent cup holders either.

oh, and the headlights were crap!

would happily sit at 175kmh on the German Autobahn on the way home. fuel economy was good (although the eco switch was on for the most part). despite being ragged up to Davos each morning and being opened up on the Autobahn it still returned 8.5l/100km for the week after about 1200km of driving.

oh, and the cruise control was a little annoying, but maybe that is just me.

i might be a little biased as i have a 2009 T5, 2.5ltr with 130bhp. my van certainly has more torque and a better driving position. fuel economy is about the same.

Does anyone know if the crew cab / combi vans have the same mounting for the rear seats as the minibus models? What I am thinking is that I could buy the combi and replace the rear seats with a 2 plus 1 row from a minibus model? Sensible idea?

My son had a bi turbo 1.6. Injectors went under warranty early on, nearly 2 months before he got it back. Then about a year later it packed up again, still under warranty but they claimed it was bad fuel that had caused the issue and quoted him 4-5k to repair the engine. Independent fuel test proved the fuel was fine and after 6 weeks they caved in and fixed it. Otherwise he loved the van but got rid of it as soon as it was fixed.

I don’t think the crew vans have the same mounting points as the seats are built into the bulkhead. If that’s the way you want to go, I’d buy a panel van and fit the seats separately.

Personally I’d recommend buying a LWB crewcab – once the wheels are off my tandem fits in the back with ease.

I definitely don’t want the LWB as it won’t fit on the driveway! The plan is to remove the single seat so bikes have room up the side and the backs need to fold down so that there is room to sleep in the back.

If I bought these seats https://bit.ly/2DGNe4M would the floor mounts be able to be mounted to the floor? Anyone know of a coach builder/garage I could ask to get a professional opinion?

Thanks

Cheers guys, its not the actual parking I was worried about, just fitting in standard size spaces. The SWB is probably no longer than an E Class estate.

Work parking would be fine, its the odd trip into town to do shopping and that sort of thing, like visiting the parents and having to park on the street.

If you are bolting seats to the floor of the van then you will also need spreader plates fitted. Any decent coachworks should be able to advise. If the spreader plates are bolted in then you should be able to remove/refit fit the seats fairly easily. Without having the seats and van it will be difficult to tell if there is anything structural blocking the fitting of the spreader plates. I know they had to drop the fuel tank on mine.

Crewcab vs van; I borrowed a Crewcab for a trip. It was nice having the separation of seating and load area but I wanted the flexibility of being able to use the van as a “camper” and access from the side door definitely made it better.

SWB vs LWB; THE LWB feels no different to drive and I soon got used to spotting the right sized parking spots. The additional space is useful.

I have a SWB of the new Renault Trafic. It’s pretty much the same size as a large SUV (a couple of cm shorter than a Q7 and same width)

They are easy to park – it’s just a box and you can see the back corners in the wing mirrors – also parking sensors help. I have no trouble parking in standard spaces. – just as long as you reverse in!

Does anyone know if the crew cab / combi vans have the same mounting for the rear seats as the minibus models? What I am thinking is that I could buy the combi and replace the rear seats with a 2 plus 1 row from a minibus model? Sensible idea?

my LWB crewcab vivaro has different seat mounts to the minibus. you wont be able to do teh above without adding bespoke fittings.

teh crewcab Seats are mounted to teh pillar behind the sliding door. (with a couple of small locator screws in the floor).

we have a rotating passenger bench and use the front for seating and hte back for bikes/sleeping. (and the pop top)

The bulkhead is easily removed. its just a plastic sheet. Ours had a renault logo on it behind the seats! i cut the bulkhead to dress the rear of the seats. I`ll get around to covering it with auto trim at some point.

we didnt want windows in teh back so we went for teh crewcab but the seat fittings in teh minibus are better/more flexible and you may not need to do any of that strengthning nonsense if you buy the right seats.

The crewcab, even with facory seats, has shedloads of space and is pretty comfortable. Kids are well happy (and safe)

Had my Vivario for a number years now and certainly the best van I’ve had and value for money. Would I buy again yes I would

oh – if you are getting aftermarket seats fitted you`ll need to chat to your insurers

you may find youll get asked to provide a safety certificate from teh fitters.

technically you can bolt any old shit in the back and legally drive people around – its mad – but its worth doing properly.

I went and saw a quite nice campoer with posh fold down seats but these were held in place with small 2″ square spreaders under teh load floor. No way i`d want to strap the kids or mates into those!

I have a 2016 SWB sport crew trafic. Only had it a few months but it’s great. More room than I expected in the back (behind the bulk head) and really quite to drive compared to previous van. I use it on the daily commute and school run and actually prefer it to the family car. Gear box could be more refined but everything else is nice will be interesting to see how it fairs over time.

The bulkhead is easily removed. its just a plastic sheet. Ours had a renault logo on it behind the seats! i cut the bulkhead to dress the rear of the seats. I`ll get around to covering it with auto trim at some point.

Any pics? Just bought a LWB crew cab and thinking of removing bulkhead and putting in removable seats.