Vecky the Shambolic

[richykitchy]

I still think that's well wide of the mark, but it appears to have stuck in my head like some sort of irritating pop song.

So, yeah: A 1996 Iveco Daily 35.8, acquired from @wuvvum of this very parish some weeks ago, in exchange for a much newer, much more powerful and much faster Fiat Ducato 2.8JTD. I know - I'm not sure, either.

Actually, yeah, I am sure. I always wanted one of these! The journey home from somewhere near Cambridge was hard work, partly because of the relative lack of anything relating to performance, and partly because it broke down on the fella on the way to meet me at Birchanger services! Why didn't I turn around and keep the Ducato? Well, that was playing up too (a sticky gearshift mechanism and a worn clutch). Fun times.

I love it, so much so that in my newfound hobby of attempting to make YouTube videos, I've starting blogging about it there, too: 

It's a project I fancied, and so far, am enjoying. Got some interesting (you'll be the judge of that) things planned for it, though thankfully no more SM collections.

Well....maybe....no, no more!

[Matty]

For some reason I've had shit loads of ivecos in my working life. Starting with the same as yours, currently on a 19 plate pickup with the "big" 3 litre lump. Loved  em all. As vans get increasingly car like, a good iveco will still require 4 gear changes in the first 100 yards and rattle your fillings loose. So there @Cavcraft, I like em 😛

[GrumpiusMaximus]

What an absolutely appalling pile.  I love it.

[wuvvum]

I watched the YouTube video last night.  Was unsurprised to see that the old crate is almost exactly as slow with a trailer on the back as without...

[somewhatfoolish]

What a terrible pile of shit; it's like an LDV Convoy made in Naples. Well bought! The ride will get a bit better with some weight in the back, but not much.

[eddyramrod]

I used to drive a fleet of these (randomly, as the first-choice fill-in whenever the regular blokes weren't in) and apart from the stereo being down by my left ankle, I liked them.  Our vans had plenty of power (bigger engine maybe?) and when empty, were alarmingly easy to break the tail away.  Ask me how I know!  Good luck with it! :)

[BlankFrank]

Is it possible to turn the injection pump up on these? If so, that might help the slugishness a little bit.

Can't help but hope that you got a handfull of cash along with the '96 after parting with the '06 one though.😄

[eddyramrod]

When you're ready to Roffle this I'd like numbers 4and 16 please

[eddyramrod]

1 hour ago, eddyramrod said:

I used to drive a fleet of these (randomly, as the first-choice fill-in whenever the regular blokes weren't in) and apart from the stereo being down by my left ankle, I liked them.  Our vans had plenty of power (bigger engine maybe?) and when empty, were alarmingly easy to break the tail away.  Ask me how I know!  Good luck with it!

I've just re-read the original thread and seen it's a 35-8.  I think the vans I used to drive were the 35-10, which IIRC were 2.8 with a turbo.  Does this one have a tachograph fitted?

[Barry Cade]

19 hours ago, Matty said:

For some reason I've had shit loads of ivecos in my working life. Starting with the same as yours, currently on a 19 plate pickup with the "big" 3 litre lump. Loved  em all. As vans get increasingly car like, a good iveco will still require 4 gear changes in the first 100 yards and rattle your fillings loose. So there @Cavcraft, I like em 😛

The suspension is actually reasonably refined, with a Range Rover on the back..

I like 'em too.. brand new one being delivered soon 🤗

[wuvvum]

3 hours ago, eddyramrod said:

I used to drive a fleet of these (randomly, as the first-choice fill-in whenever the regular blokes weren't in) and apart from the stereo being down by my left ankle, I liked them. 

There's no stereo in that one, but the handbrake is down by your left ankle.

[richykitchy]

5 hours ago, BlankFrank said:

Is it possible to turn the injection pump up on these? If so, that might help the slugishness a little bit.

Can't help but hope that you got a handfull of cash along with the '96 after parting with the '06 one though.😄

I might look into that. Cash was offered, but declined as the '06 Ducato, although dependable, was very tatty, and had a worn out clutch. You could only get about two or three gears by the time I got to the Iveco, too, as the gear linkage was drier than a camel's arse.

4 hours ago, eddyramrod said:

I've just re-read the original thread and seen it's a 35-8.  I think the vans I used to drive were the 35-10, which IIRC were 2.8 with a turbo.  Does this one have a tachograph fitted?

It is (I keep seeing 35-8 and 35.8 used - seemingly completely at random!) I guess the 8 denotes 80bhp? And the 10: 100bhp? Maybe? Or maybe not! No tachograph fitted, it's just a regular 3500kg van.

2 hours ago, Barry Cade said:

The suspension is actually reasonably refined, with a Range Rover on the back..

I like 'em too.. brand new one being delivered soon 🤗

I think it might be once the shocks are replaced. It rides minor imperfections fairly well.

[wuvvum]

1 hour ago, richykitchy said:

It is (I keep seeing 35-8 and 35.8 used - seemingly completely at random!) I guess the 8 denotes 80bhp? And the 10: 100bhp? Maybe? Or maybe not! 

Yep, that's pretty much it.  They also did a 35.12 with 120-ish BHP (essentially a non-common-rail version of the engine in the Ducato) - get one of those with a high ratio diff and you can thunder along in the outside lane with the Sprinters.  The Turbo Dailies do seem to hold their money rather well mind.

1 hour ago, richykitchy said:

I think it might be once the shocks are replaced. It rides minor imperfections fairly well.

I did wonder about the shocks but every Daily I've had has got rather bouncy over bumpy surfaces so it's never going to be brilliant - but then I suppose that's the trade-off for having nice squishy torsion bars instead of cart springs...  Maybe a set of shocks from a heavier duty van would help.

[Barry Cade]

Uh oh...

"Connectivity is all the rage in commercial vehicles, and the updated 2021 Iveco Daily has been given a mid-life refresh that introduces Amazon Alexa voice control to the cab. "

I'm gonna get into all sorts of trouble if I get cut up by an LS430 on the city bypass.  

[Talbot]

"A Talbot Express Motorhome....  I bet it's faster".

Unlikely.  They also have glacial performance.

[Mrcento]

I really like these. They're pretty high up on my list of shit vans i'd like to get a hold of.

You don't see any decent ones up this way though. All fucked/rotten.

Apart from the odd bus version. Which always had the 49.12 version. So 5 ton. No use for my licence. Can't even downplate and run empty, the fuckers weigh 3.8 ton stripped out into a rolling shell!

[Barry Cade]

 

 

2 hours ago, Mrcento said:

I really like these. They're pretty high up on my list of shit vans i'd like to get a hold of.

You don't see any decent ones up this way though. All fucked/rotten.

Apart from the odd bus version. Which always had the 49.12 version. So 5 ton. No use for my licence. Can't even downplate and run empty, the fuckers weigh 3.8 ton stripped out into a rolling shell!

I believe they downrate themselves after a few years...

[richykitchy]

What's the etiquette on multiple car threads? I've got (far too many) more cars, but I notice a lot of folk seem to run one thread as a general 'cover-all' affair. Is that the better way to do it?

[Talbot]

I think a thread-per-car is fine.  A thread-per-member can get a little cluttered.  What isn't OK is when people have 4 threads for the same vehicle, or start a new thread for every single fault they find.