I want a Vaaannn.

[Uncle Jimmy]

I've been considering buying a panel van for my business for a while. Sensible though they may be I can't allow myself to be seen in a VW as I am developing a fear of VAG.

Naturally various elderly turds such as H vans spring to mind but they're all bring scene taxed to fuck now. Am I destined to spend the rest of my working life in a Bedford midi?? Suggestions please.

[Junkman]

LDV Pilot.

[oman5]

If you can find one still in one piece, a smiley front transit. They are reliable, economical, surprisingly good to drive, if a little sluggish by modern standards.

They don't have any DMF bollocks and really are basically engineered. I love them-the only thing to fault them for is the rampant rust issues.

[Cavcraft]

/\

What Oman said. There is no better van than a Transit Di.

[castros_bro]

Renault Trafic 2.1D T900 Prima Panel Van

[barefoot]

/\

What Oman said. There is no better van than a Transit Di.

 

Aren't these the type reviewed by Rod Ker in Jalopy 17* - where he reckoned they were designed to last for just three years?

 

 

 

 

 

 

*possibly, or another issue.

[dugong]

Make sure the gear knob is crafted from wood. So long as this is taken care off, most vans are alike in terms of abilities and carrying capacity. 

[Junkman]

Be a real man and buy a Iveco Daily Lord Voldemort.

[Asimo]

Pilot, Cub or Maxus for shite cred, Smiley for max van-ness plus max weldage.

 

PS I do like my Connect even though the DMF rattles.

[Junkman]

And why actually not the obvious?

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1990-DODGE-DAY-VAN-V8-MOT-NOVEMBER-2015-/321600954317?

[PiperCub]

People will sneer and take the piss but from a couple of folk who've owned them, the LDV Pilot etc. stuff is way better than you might think (tarted-up-Sherpa), simple and above all because of that, cheap. Plus, aren't the engines Pug XUD's???

[Cavcraft]

If you get an early enough one and strike gold, you get the Perkins Prima 2.0.  

[Junkman]

People will sneer and take the piss but from a couple of folk who've owned them, the LDV Pilot etc. stuff is way better than you might think (tarted-up-Sherpa), simple and above all because of that, cheap. Plus, aren't the engines Pug XUD's???

 

+1

 

Had a Pilot and it was ace.

Insurance premium wasn't, though.

[Uncle Jimmy]

Hadn't considered the LDV. I used to drive an F reg one. Whilst it was simple and a good load lugger it was murder doing long distance drives in it, terribly noisy and tiring. Something with a Perkins or XUD would be good to be able to splash a bit of veg in.

The older Transits do seem to rust,esp round the rear doors. As did the older Benzes with the sloped doors. Renner traffic is kinda rakish for a van!

[Uncle Jimmy]

Shame the Japanese don't export more of their weird and wonderful creations over here.

[Asimo]

There is the Toyota (Liteace -?), a plumber was telling me how wonderful they are, RWD too. Not very weird though.

[Felly Magic]

For comedy, what about a Shedford Rascal/Suzuki Supercarry?

[Lacquer Peel]

I like my Nissan Vanette, it drives quite well for a van, very manouevrable, easy to work on, chomps the veg oil, small footprint (fits in a normal parking space easily), but plenty of space inside and they're cheap to buy. People say they're slow, but the performance* is on a par with equivalent vans.

[oman5]

I haven't driven a pilot, but I had the older Perkins engined version. No. Just no. Not if you value your sanity and use a motorway regularly. Around town, fine...but on longer trips a cruising speed of about 63 and still having to change down going uphill gets tiring. It was just about capable of 70 mph if you thrashed it mercilessly on a downhill stretch, at which speed the steering wheel became pretty much redundant. Seriously it was that bad. Being overtaken by artics going up hills was a regular thing.

They will tolerate veg properly thinned down, otherwise the pump struggles to pick it up.

Verdict? Only for the seriously masochistic shiter on a budget.

[Cavcraft]

You could always get a Mercedes Benz Vito. You could also by some primer and play dot-to-dot on the bodywork every 43 minutes. 

 

 

*Edit: my experience of the Perkins engine LDVs was different to the above. They absolutely flew along, I was honestly holding the bastards back on my favourite route home. VERY impressed with the poke out of them, and they were n/a diesels too.

[Uncle Jimmy]

Couldn't care less about performance. The Bedford Rascale would be amusing but too small. I'm either going to save up and get a Hyundai iLoad or go older and see if I can find a Traffic in saveable condition. An Espace might be another option? Were they always petrol?

[scruff]

Shame that cos I always thought the Vito was a great van. Never see older ones around anymore. My old man had a Y reg one and it was fucked, body wise, by 2004.

 

You can't really beat a Di Transit really but other alternatives may be a Mazda E2000, Merc TN/T1 or a LDV convoy which had a Ford Di engine and box after a certain date. 

[Cavcraft]

An Espace might be another option? Were they always petrol?

 

 

No, but they were always shit.

[Lacquer Peel]

I quite like the idea of a mk3 Espace with the 2.2 indirect injection turbo diesel, they seem fairly reliable.

[doobietoo]

You could look at pannelling a Galaxy/Alhambra/Sharon its big inside quite comfy has a 1.9 vag dizzle but without the t series scene tax.Some are quite highly specced too and all are cheap...  

[catsinthewelder]

I've got a mk1 Merc Vito in the workshop at the moment and I would far rather own an LDV,  the Vito is beyond dismal.

 

The Gaffer's got a Vivaro on the fleet and it's suprisingly nice to drive for a Vauxhall,  must be a rebadged Renault rather than a joint effort,  it's not as nice as the Transits though.

 

What would I buy?  Probably a SWB Convoy or a late mk1 Traffic.

[AnthonyG]

You still see the odd Rascal about, but a Midi is a very rare beast. My mate Rob owned a G plate one from 2005 to 2011 and it was the last roadworthy one in the county when he retired it due to excessive rust. There was one in a field, one in his mate's driveway he took bits off, and that was it. It eventually went to a dealer who either scrapped or exported it.

 

Rob was gutted as he loved that van, but he had just spent the best part of 7 years completely rebuilding a Viva HC, and was sold a 740 estate with 9 months MoT by a mate for £130 so the Midi bit the dust. If he'd had somewhere dry to keep it, he'd be welding it up now that the Viva is finished.

 

The SVM will be pleased to hear he still has the Ovlov.

[cms206]

LDV Convoy with a Transit Di, ideally as early as you can get as they don't rot as badly. We've got a Ford 2.5TDi powered low roof Convoy on an R-reg which does the wrong side of 90mph, though conversation is strained above about 45-50. Our best one was a P-reg hightop with the Peugeot engine (and Serck pressed plates!), it did 90-odd mph as well.

[AnthonyG]

I have seen a circa 2000 Hyundai or Kia that looks a lot like a Midi, don't what they are called. Mitsubishi also sold their Midi-like van for a long time and the later ones had a massive bumper and a sort of extended snout - think they did them up to about R reg. Toyota Hiace POWERVAN* also worth a look?

 

Trouble with all old simple Jap vans is duelling to death with exporters to actually get hold of the things. Values of Vanettes, being Spainish built and therefore exempt from African love, are not troubled by this though.

[madwelshman]

If you got a late LDV Pilot with a Pug XUD, there's always the option of finding a scrap Pug 306 XUD9T and put that lump in. 90 bhp instead of 70. Not sure how the suspension and steering would cope with 90 galloping horses though.