Who uses a van for both family and biking?

“Has anyone bought something like a Caravelle, for the adjustable and movable seats, and potentially higher spec interior, and then taken the extra seats out to make it more like a kombi?“

T4 Caravelle here, chosen for the higher spec (carpet & sound proofing) compared to a Transporter, and the Caravelles seem more likely to have twin sliding doors. Makes life a lot easier being able to access both sides.

Recently got a Grand Tourneo Connect which is very car-like to drive but a van-based body. So far its been brilliant, have taken the rear two seats out so its currently only a 5-seater but the amount of space is amazing. Its not pretty though 😉

I have seen a couple of reports that say wind noise is load in the Trafic, how do you find it?

Fine no worries at all, its very easy to live with. The newer twin turbo model is even more refined than the old one and the old one was very good.

How about this bobby dazzler? Only £50k
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201603031593533

😯

5 seat T5 kombi, best thing ever for carting family and stuff about. Wouldn’t go back now.

This +1

Standard STW issue T5 kombi in lwb 2.5 spec.

3 or 4 bikes nothing removed, all camping and holiday kit for a family of 4 including young un and all that entails.

I like the new transit customs, a lwb one of those may well be the replacement for the T5 at some point in the future.

Caravelle T5.1 for family duties here. Wanted one for years and finally bit the bullet last summer. Best thing I ever bought. Absolutely no downsides for me. Buy one, you won’t regret it

T5 Owners, what are your experiences with reliability?

I found a tidy t5 t32 130ps 2.5tdi that is for sale locally but having done quite a bit of online reading it seems some t5 owners have been blighted with reliability issues.

We had a mwb Sprinter for the last 4 years as our only vehicle for a family of 4. All good and no desire to have a cramped impractical car.
Now got a Ducato Maxi XLWB and started to convert it. It’s huge but does 34 mpg.

A MWB Sprinter – that’s pretty big as an everyday vehicle ! Surely that was a hassle sometimes ? Internet says it’s nearly 6m long.

My daily is an xlwb viano. It’s 5.2m long and it is a bit sticking out of both ends of a parking spot. If you are one of these must park as close as possible to the supermarket door types then a long van probably isn’t for you

Oh, I know, I’ve got a LWB T4 which is 5.1m, which doesn’t quite fit in normal parking bays but it’s manageable. Another three feet *would* make life tricky !

T5 Owners, what are your experiences with reliability?

Like anything, if you look it up online you get a skewed view of reliability as people only tend to go onto forums etc if they have a problem, not if things are working well.

From my experience, my T5 has been reliable while I’ve owned it and similarly my Caddy was 100% reliable.
I’ve had to do some work on mine, namely a clutch and DMF, driveshaft and steering pump but i was aware of these problems when I bought it.
From what I’m led to believe the 2.5 isn’t as reliable as the 1.9 but I’ve got a 1.9 so can’t really say that with any certainty.
If you’re buying a van, it’s well worth sound deadening and possibly insulating the back of it, it makes a huge difference when you’re out and about in it. It’s not a difficult job and can be done for a couple of hundred pounds or so.

2.5 130 LWB T5 here….

bought it with ~95k miles, now with 123k miles. original clutch, water pump etc… only things that hve been replaced are the front discs (by previous owner) and the rears by me.

supposedly the 2.5ltr needs a little more looking after/regular servicing than the 1.9, but if servicing is done at regular intervals then there shouldn’t be a problem. before you buy it get it checked and looked at properly.

the low down grunt of the 2.5 over the 1.9 is nice, particularily if you live somewhere that isn’t flat and the sixth gear is good for motorway cruising (well, any cruising, tbh). fuel economy is about the same for both engines. my bus hs returned a steady 7.2l/100km over the last 3500km with a mix of autobahn/A-roads and a little town (40/50/10% roughly). i don’t work the engine hard (other when picking up speed on the sliproad) and am rather a sedate driver (top speed generally 65mph-ish when on the Autobahn). consumption will drop off dramatically when cruising at 90+mph, but in the UK that shouldn’t be a problem.

turning circle of the LWB really isn’t a problem. have been up many mountain passes and through italian hilltop villages without any mishaps. although i remember in Final Ligure we had to do a five point turn to get around the hairpin. normal cars could do it in four.

[/url]DSCN3452_edited.jpg kontrapunch by sod_the_taxman[/url], on Flickr[/img]

A MWB Sprinter – that’s pretty big as an everyday vehicle ! Surely that was a hassle sometimes ? Internet says it’s nearly 6m long.

It’s not that big an issue tbh. I had a man relay, once you can parrell park it is fine even in London. Car parks were never an issue but I am not a park as close to the store as possible person. The only issue is mutli storey car parks. Going up to a lwb or elwb would be more Hassel as it would overhand too much and when parrell park ing such a large space is needed.

How about this bobby dazzler? Only £50k
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201603031593533

That broke the goppometer that one. I have seen one in the flesh and they are truly awful.

^^ already lots of them on the roads here in De.
The plain black, white, blue, red, whatever are more subtle. The two-tones less so.
However there is a baby blue and white two-tone which has grown on me.

The big van thing is not a problem for me. My wife is a good driver and is confident driving it.

The Sprinter was easier on little lanes than the Ducato but this is more to do with it being wider than longer. My 2002 Sprinter was agricultural, and while I can’t comment on a new one my 2011 Ducato drives like a car.

I fitted a Chinese eBay camera and screen for reversing for £20 that makes things much easier.

That is lovely Alpin.

New van is large

I looked at a Trafic crew cab yesterday and although it was a nice van, there was very little leg room in the back. I then made the mistake of going to the vw dealership and the transporter kombis seem to be perfect! It is just a shame about the price.