Hi All,
Unexpectedly, a van I’ve had an eye on for a while became available last week so I've done the decent thing and bought it. My driveway is now rather full, so my faithful green T4 has to go!
I’ve owned this van since Dec 2011 when I bought it from a family friend at 187k miles. She had moved over to Belgium at the time and her boyfriend drove it over to the UK in one go for me, a good test of reliability. I’ve since used it daily for two years and done around 10k miles in it, converting it for camping use and fixing / improving things as I’ve gone along. I’ve kept records of every fill up and calculated that the van has averaged 35mpg in general use on my short commute, weekend trips, camping, moving furniture and all the other stuff vans come in handy for. It’s extremely economical, runs really well and will sit at the legal motorway limit all day, though to be fair – it’s a bit noisy compared to a modern car and more like a retro in that respect!
Starts in any weather (glow plugs, battery and starter replaced just before I bought it), warms up quickly and will do 600 miles+ to a tank of diesel. Full set of new Continental van tyres fitted 11 months ago (£££!), done about 4k miles since and they are brilliant in any weather.
I'll take some specific photos, but here's a couple I already have on photo bucket
PLEASE NOTE: I will be removing the interior units, cooker, sink, fridge & rock and roll bed setup for the next van. As such the van will be sold with just flooring, lining and curtains in the back, ready to kit out to your requirements.
AGAIN: Camping interior NOT included in the sale, just in case you can see it in any pics I add later
Spec:
- 2.4L diesel non-turbo
- 5 speed manual
- 197k miles
- Averages 35mpg in general use
- Short wheel base
- Tailgate & two side windows factory fitted
- Remote Central locking
- Power assisted steering
- Stereo with uprated dash speakers (no rear speakers)
- Registered as ‘motor caravan’ on log book (not limited to van speed limits and cheaper insurance)
- Dragon green
- Sun roof
- Black 15in steel wheels with hubcaps
- 4x excellent Continental VanCo 205/65/15 tyres (11 months old)
- Thorough service history, receipts available for all work done
- Captains drivers seat fitted to match double folding passenger bench
- Dubflecta wind deflectors fitted to front windows
- Tow bar
MOT & Tax:
- MOT ‘til 11th June 2014
- Tax ‘til end of June 2014
Servicing & maintenance:
- Last oil, filter and air filter change 29/09/13 @ 196385 miles.
- Fuel filter changed April 2012.
- Gearbox off (££££!) at St Helens VW Centre to change leaking input shaft seal and driveshaft seal July 2013. Clutch inspected and fine (was replaced by previous owner in 2010). Gearbox oil replaced.
- Genuine thermostat and thermostat housing fitted, and coolant changed at St Helens VW Centre July 2013.
- New lower front balljoints at St Helens VW Centre July 2013.
- Full new exhaust system at St Helens VW Centre June 2013.
- Brake fluid changed May 2013.
- Timing belt, aux belt, diesel pump belt and water pump changed May 2012 at Mill Lane Garage, Frodsham.
- TransportersRus undertray fitted Jan 2012.
Bad points:
- Bodywork, basically. When I bought it the van had a fair dent in the sliding door and rear lower quarter which has been poorly touched up by the previous owner. As it also had some surface rust on the sills and wheelarches, I’d planned to get it all sorted in one trip to the bodyshop once I’d finished the mechanical stuff and camping conversion, but haven’t had chance yet. The paintwork is generally good on 90% of the van for the age of it, and it’s certainly structurally sound, but it definitely needs tidying up as it’s heading towards rat-look I suppose at the bottom in some parts! The lower sliding door channel is rough too and has a hole at the far end that needs cleaning up a repair panel.
To be fair, it probably looks better in photos than real life, so I’d encourage any potential buyer to come and have a look in person to assess what’s required. The asking price reflects this I feel. It’s a good looker from 10 feet away but a bit rough up close in places. Hasn't stopped me using it everyday though! I will take some proper detailed photos and post them up if there's any interest
- Heater control was broken when I bought it. Tried to fix it a few times, couldn’t without new parts and as you can operate the heater valve from a cable in the cab, I’ve left it at that. The heater works great, blower works on all speeds, directs air to all vents as it should etc. but the hot/cold knob doesn’t do anything so you need to pull the cable basically to increase the heat
- EDIT: Done at local garage 02/12/13 - Needs one inner CV boot replacing. I have the part and it’s booked into a local garage to be replaced 02/12/12. Van would be available to buy soon after as I’d need to remove camping interior etc. first.
I'm located in Cheshire, about 5 mins from M62 J7. Please drop me a line via PM if you want more info, pics etc.
Found a few more photos on the computer and uploaded them to photo bucket:
Camping in the Lakes
At the beach on a trip to Cornwall
A local one last winter. Filthy, but you can see the side door dent here
Price: £3,200 ono - drop to £2,795 ono
Thanks
Stu
Unexpectedly, a van I’ve had an eye on for a while became available last week so I've done the decent thing and bought it. My driveway is now rather full, so my faithful green T4 has to go!
I’ve owned this van since Dec 2011 when I bought it from a family friend at 187k miles. She had moved over to Belgium at the time and her boyfriend drove it over to the UK in one go for me, a good test of reliability. I’ve since used it daily for two years and done around 10k miles in it, converting it for camping use and fixing / improving things as I’ve gone along. I’ve kept records of every fill up and calculated that the van has averaged 35mpg in general use on my short commute, weekend trips, camping, moving furniture and all the other stuff vans come in handy for. It’s extremely economical, runs really well and will sit at the legal motorway limit all day, though to be fair – it’s a bit noisy compared to a modern car and more like a retro in that respect!
Starts in any weather (glow plugs, battery and starter replaced just before I bought it), warms up quickly and will do 600 miles+ to a tank of diesel. Full set of new Continental van tyres fitted 11 months ago (£££!), done about 4k miles since and they are brilliant in any weather.
I'll take some specific photos, but here's a couple I already have on photo bucket
PLEASE NOTE: I will be removing the interior units, cooker, sink, fridge & rock and roll bed setup for the next van. As such the van will be sold with just flooring, lining and curtains in the back, ready to kit out to your requirements.
AGAIN: Camping interior NOT included in the sale, just in case you can see it in any pics I add later
Spec:
- 2.4L diesel non-turbo
- 5 speed manual
- 197k miles
- Averages 35mpg in general use
- Short wheel base
- Tailgate & two side windows factory fitted
- Remote Central locking
- Power assisted steering
- Stereo with uprated dash speakers (no rear speakers)
- Registered as ‘motor caravan’ on log book (not limited to van speed limits and cheaper insurance)
- Dragon green
- Sun roof
- Black 15in steel wheels with hubcaps
- 4x excellent Continental VanCo 205/65/15 tyres (11 months old)
- Thorough service history, receipts available for all work done
- Captains drivers seat fitted to match double folding passenger bench
- Dubflecta wind deflectors fitted to front windows
- Tow bar
MOT & Tax:
- MOT ‘til 11th June 2014
- Tax ‘til end of June 2014
Servicing & maintenance:
- Last oil, filter and air filter change 29/09/13 @ 196385 miles.
- Fuel filter changed April 2012.
- Gearbox off (££££!) at St Helens VW Centre to change leaking input shaft seal and driveshaft seal July 2013. Clutch inspected and fine (was replaced by previous owner in 2010). Gearbox oil replaced.
- Genuine thermostat and thermostat housing fitted, and coolant changed at St Helens VW Centre July 2013.
- New lower front balljoints at St Helens VW Centre July 2013.
- Full new exhaust system at St Helens VW Centre June 2013.
- Brake fluid changed May 2013.
- Timing belt, aux belt, diesel pump belt and water pump changed May 2012 at Mill Lane Garage, Frodsham.
- TransportersRus undertray fitted Jan 2012.
Bad points:
- Bodywork, basically. When I bought it the van had a fair dent in the sliding door and rear lower quarter which has been poorly touched up by the previous owner. As it also had some surface rust on the sills and wheelarches, I’d planned to get it all sorted in one trip to the bodyshop once I’d finished the mechanical stuff and camping conversion, but haven’t had chance yet. The paintwork is generally good on 90% of the van for the age of it, and it’s certainly structurally sound, but it definitely needs tidying up as it’s heading towards rat-look I suppose at the bottom in some parts! The lower sliding door channel is rough too and has a hole at the far end that needs cleaning up a repair panel.
To be fair, it probably looks better in photos than real life, so I’d encourage any potential buyer to come and have a look in person to assess what’s required. The asking price reflects this I feel. It’s a good looker from 10 feet away but a bit rough up close in places. Hasn't stopped me using it everyday though! I will take some proper detailed photos and post them up if there's any interest
- Heater control was broken when I bought it. Tried to fix it a few times, couldn’t without new parts and as you can operate the heater valve from a cable in the cab, I’ve left it at that. The heater works great, blower works on all speeds, directs air to all vents as it should etc. but the hot/cold knob doesn’t do anything so you need to pull the cable basically to increase the heat
- EDIT: Done at local garage 02/12/13 - Needs one inner CV boot replacing. I have the part and it’s booked into a local garage to be replaced 02/12/12. Van would be available to buy soon after as I’d need to remove camping interior etc. first.
I'm located in Cheshire, about 5 mins from M62 J7. Please drop me a line via PM if you want more info, pics etc.
Found a few more photos on the computer and uploaded them to photo bucket:
Camping in the Lakes
At the beach on a trip to Cornwall
A local one last winter. Filthy, but you can see the side door dent here
Price: £3,200 ono - drop to £2,795 ono
Thanks
Stu
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