I viewed a riot van converted into a camper based on a sprinter 2003 413cdi mwb (with dual wheels at the back). It’s a pretty decent conversion, and ticks all the boxes for a cheap family camper, 86k miles on the clock which is dead low compared to most camper vans.
The trouble is it’s got a fair bit of rust, mainly cosmetic like the bottoms of most of the doors especially the sliding door and the passenger door. But aren’t these vans bullet proof mechanically?

We had Sprinters of that age at work and while the rust on the doors is easy to sort, they all died when the chassis were found to be in a worse state! Very poor rust protection at that age so get it thoroughly checked out.

I had a good look underneath with a torch and it looks solid, where in particular should I look?

No.

I bought a transit camper in similar condition. Despite my best efforts, the rust spread quickly and now I’m looking at a bill of £2500 to get the welding done to get it through its mot.

Now looking at different vans to swap the conversion over.

Nearly all the Sprinters that I see on the roads have rust of some form or another. I’d avoid and try to find a Transit or VW equivalent.

Funnily enough I passed a Sprinter today, & it was full of rust patches & I thought to myself, it’s funny how rust seems to effect sprinters more than other vans… so based on that true & exciting story I would avoid.

I drove a 2013 long wheelbase high top for two years from new. Rust appeared in the middle of the side and door panels . I still have no idea how it can appear there where there are no seams etc. They handle well but the seats kill after a while. I’d avoid.

You’d struggle to buy a sprinter without rust tbh! I wouldn’t but people seem to keep buying them.

The front suspension mounts and rear chassis rails were the worst bits on them. Very hard to see from just lying underneath. Every panel seemed to rust from behind by which time it was too late to patch up, it was new panel time.

It’s a shame because the van has potential and I like the shape.
Oh well. The alternatives are all sevil (citroen relay, fiat ducato or pug)
vans, they don’t seem to rust too badly, any opinions on these vans sort of 2003 to 2004 vintage?

Mercedes in general had real problems when they switched to water based paints due to health and safety legislation. Early Mercs last really well I think post 2004 Mercs had real problems.

Sevel vans are fully galvanised so don’t rust. They are the most popular base vans for large motorhome/ camper conversions. As always with these things, how they’ve been looked after is key and the quality of the conversion. There’s quality conversions that haven’t been looked after and also plenty of quality vans with very ropey fit outs.

I would say (with no particular experience with vans) that if it genuinely is only replaceable bits like doors that have rust, just replace them. If anything else is rusting, you’ll never really keep on top of it tbh.

I wouldn’t… With a camper, you need to strip out internal fixings if the floor ever needs welding, also you invest a lot of time into converting it, so it’s not as if you can just go out and buy another after it fails it’s MOT

Also check the cylinder head for injector seal leakage.

Personally for an older privately owned van especially a camper I’d go French as they don’t rust and to me fixing mechanical stuff is less hassle than rust/bodywork related problems. But saying that I bought a Transit which is the worst of both worlds-crap mechanically and also rusting!

i bought an iveco yesterday – i was shocked how clean it was underneath(and on top) for a 12 year old van.

We also went to look at a 12 year old transit for me mate a few miles up the road and it was a rotter.

difference being is that you will always know your in a van with an iveco , the position , the dash , the ride they were always a few steps behind as they were workhorses rather than nice places to be.

As above Mercedes vans of a certain age are rust buckets and to be steered well clear of and Transits are not much better. Like trail rat has said if you are not to worried about the badge on the front of the grill then Iveco is the way forward. You will probably die before it does.

It’s flipping hard buying a used converted large camper.
There are tons of ‘turd in glitter’ vw’s, which are a bit on the small side, and usually overpriced.
Autosleepers usually tick the right boxes, but 11k for a 1995 smiley face transit with 90bhp? or 15k for a 2001 citroen?
It’s as tricky as buying a house, at least there are no schools to worry about.

We used to have Citroen Relays across the fleet. They never went wrong and didn’t rust. Most reliable vans we have had.

I was going to buy a near new pug/Citroen base van and do my own install. As like you say finding middling motors converted is hard most folk keep em till either they are **** or sell them at a couple years old.

Middle of the road campers are few and far between.

That’s why I jumped on the big red battle bus I bought (see my camper thread) as it provides a cheapish way to see if It really was what we need and not just something that would become a noose which if I wasn’t getting use of a van I’d sunk 20k into I’d be loathe to sell it as I’d probably not get the cash back.

A mwb Iveco, well they are like rocking horse sh1t, the lwb is too large. That’s the other thing… there are loads of lwb sprinters and ivecos converted for mx with a massive garage and you name it, but they are too large for the drive.
I’ll check out your camper thread trail_rat. I do not underestimate the amount of work involved in kitting one out myself, any reccomendations of a company who could do it for me on a reasonable budget?
We’ve had a caravan, just sold my BMW and folding camper, so on the look for the next expedition vehicle.
I’ve noticed LDV’s MAxxus are quite popular, the badge does not bother me one bit, so long as the van is up to the job.

Trail_rat ; do you know James Ochterloony? He was something todo with the angus bike chain, haven’t seen or heard of him for ages.

Random but aye. Lives out in Tenerife on one of the islands.

Still racing over there and still doing well last I heard.

If it’s a riot van as in ex police has gear box or clutch ever been changed they tend to go very fast in very low gears.

There is a 4 year old Sprinter at my work which is full of rust- not what you’d expect from a van of that age.

short answer no. i wouldn’t buy anything with rust. it screams to me somebody who does not give a damn about care and maintenance. it will only spread and get worse. the more you look the more you’d find.

There is a 4 year old Sprinter at my work which is full of rust- not what you’d expect from a van of that age.

Unless it’s a Sprinter, then it’s exactly as I’d expect!

I wasn’t going to wade in until I saw LDV Maxxus. DON’T DO IT!

We had two new ones at the bike shop I worked in, high spec and we did about 8000 miles a year in them. Bits just fell off them, gearsticks, doors off rails, all sorts. Within two years they were wrecks. I’ve never seen a worse made vehicle.

Thought about a Renault Master?

I looked at lots of options and finally went for a pre registered Ducato l2h2 from a well known car supermarket for a great price. The Ducatos are all gone but there are still some good options:

https://www.motorpoint.co.uk/vehicleadvert/vauxhall/movano/685671

any opinions on these vans sort of 2003 to 2004 vintage

I’ve got one (a 53 reg Peugeot Boxer) and it’s pretty good. Actually, although there is little to wax romantic about, it has been rock solid since I bought it almost four years ago: no body issues; no mechanical problems whatsoever.

The problems it has had have all be electrical and fairly minor.

Otherwise, there isn’t much to say about it. It just works, and has carried my whole family through all of France, Western Germany, Switzerland, and now to Belgium on a fairly frequent basis.

I have a Renault trafic galvanised and actually well made. Ok they have their faults but easy to rectify. looked at the german contingent vans and looked at the forums and also saw the problems my brother in law had with a nearly new California and decided err no!!! My honest opinion is the German manufacturers are surviving on brand perception…

Well I went and bought it anyway, knocked the seller down to 4.5k .. it sailed through an MOT with no real advisories apart form brake discs,and the electrics are good, starts on the button, has rust. Fingers crossed. It looks cool (possibly to me only), and the interior is not ‘old man caravan’ style.

Pics ! I like the looks of the Sprinters, and there’s a place not far from home that always has them for sale but this thread is a bit worrying.

Would you buy a Sprinter with rust?

Depends, is it brand new or pre-registered?

I had a Y reg mwb sprinter campervan for 8 years. I sold it last year because it was a bit too big for what i wanted and it was starting to rust heavily from the inside out. I had quotes to deal with the rust, but it wasnt worth it. My advice is to address the rust as soon as it appears!

Here are some pics of him or it (more like)

https://goo.gl/photos/MVwzJwU2QPx3nSNN8

It’s got an eberspacher airtronic diesel heater that is pretty cool but needs a service…

If it’s struggling to ignite and blows smoke a few times before locking out – There’s a gauze in the Eber that will probably be clogged, I cut a slot with a grinder in a deep reach 13mm (IIRC) socket to remove the glow plug and change the gauze.
Worked fine ever since.
Consider installing the inlet and exhaust silencers as they noisy when running full chat.

Wear glasses when cutting a slot in a socket….I tried it once and the socket exploded….

You can get sensor sockets that will do it.

Anyway. Is that a gaslow or some other heath Robinson refilling of gas canister ?

Yeah those tiny brown marks on the door and the corner of the sills are it rusting from the inside out. Tell tale signs, it will be worse on the inside. Get it sorted quickly, and dont sneeze whilst in the van before you do. 😀

Friend bought a new Sprinter for his business 18 months ago. Already signs of rust…. A few flecks on the coming through on the spot welds on the sides and on the wheel arches.

Another friend had just bought a 2004 Jumper. Body work is solid. Needs a new exhaust, but nothing major.