I Don't want a van, would a 4x4 be ok?

[dartmoorcf]

When attending food fairs and chilli shows we currently use a Peugeot 406 estate. However its an HDI and isn't the most reliable of vehicles (suffers from electrical problems).
We should buy a van but i don't really want a sluggish vehicle and things like Transporters are out of our price range.
We've been looking at Peugeot Partner 1.9, Berlingo 1.9, Dispatch/Expert and possibly a Combo or a LDV. The ldv i think will be just too slow. My budget is about £2500-£3000.

I got speaking to a chap today who said he thinks a 4x4 is just as good. He said you can load them right up and they still do reasonable mpg. That would suit us as we live in the middle of nowhere and the 4wd would be handy.

Does anyone know what the payload of say a Honda CR-V 2.0 is? Also any ideas in 4x4's if you can take out the rear seats. Are there any such vehicles which are 2wd and then switch to 4wd if the going gets slippy.

Any other suggestions would be appreciated. I fancy a Honda now. Must be getting old!

Thanks very much

Phil : )

[chrisispringles]

IIRC you can remove the seats in a Mercedes ML, although for your budget you'd only get a shabby 3.2 petrol and they aren't built very well. They are huge though. Something worth a look might be an old E class estate. With the rear seats folded the boot is enormous and that budget could get you an E300TD or a shabby E320 CDi. As with the ML they are not well built and they rust very badly, particularly on the wings.

The CR-V would be a decent bet, although the load area is quite short and narrow. If the size was a problem you could have a look at a Vauxhall Frontera or a Land Rover Discovery. They're both huge and fall into your budget nicely.

[Matt UK]

I'd consider an Audi A6 / BMW 5 series

[dartmoorcf]

Thanks for the replies.
Thinking about a Forester now.
I need to find how the payloads compare with something like a Citroen Berlingo.
My wife wants a multispace!! Help

[martin mrt]

Dunno why you don't buy a van as it's what you need, a 4x4 will just be a compromise in space IMO

You can pick up a very good FWD Transit with the 100 or 125bhp engine Or a T4 Transporter 2.5 for that money both of which ain't too sluggish

[vit4]

For what it's worth, a mate had a Frontera as his first car. 2.3 diesel, pretty bulletproof if slightly rough. Not quick, but the 2.5 & 2.8 diesels are quicker.

Regarding space, it was ridiculously huge On the way back from a gig we got three of us, a drum kit, guitar cab, two bass cabs and a PA in it.

[Dave 500]

If you need a van don't get a 4x4 it will be a pain in the butt.

http://vans.autotrader.co.uk/makemodel/make/ford/p...

This will be just as fast as any 4x4 at that price.

[chrisispringles]

/\/\ If you get a van, get one of them. My dad hired one a few years back for a weekend away because the hire company didn't have the car we'd booked and it was a riot, although it did only have 2 MTBs, some tools and a lot of energy drink in it. IIRC the seats were ruddy good too, but it was rather noisy.

[kambites]

A 4x4 wont have as much space as a van and the higher floor will make getting things in and out harder. A people carrier with the seats taken out would probably be better than a 4x4, but I'd just buy a van.

[Manks]

dartmoorcf said:

When attending food fairs and chilli shows we currently use a Peugeot 406 estate. However its an HDI and isn't the most reliable of vehicles (suffers from electrical problems).
We should buy a van but i don't really want a sluggish vehicle and things like Transporters are out of our price range.
We've been looking at Peugeot Partner 1.9, Berlingo 1.9, Dispatch/Expert and possibly a Combo or a LDV. The ldv i think will be just too slow. My budget is about £2500-£3000.

I got speaking to a chap today who said he thinks a 4x4 is just as good. He said you can load them right up and they still do reasonable mpg. That would suit us as we live in the middle of nowhere and the 4wd would be handy.

Does anyone know what the payload of say a Honda CR-V 2.0 is? Also any ideas in 4x4's if you can take out the rear seats. Are there any such vehicles which are 2wd and then switch to 4wd if the going gets slippy.

Any other suggestions would be appreciated. I fancy a Honda now. Must be getting old!

Thanks very much

Phil : )

Worth checking the tax position too IIRC if you are limited and using it for personal miles.

[Fane]

chrisispringles said:

2 MTBs

Motor Torpedo Boats?!?

[sjg]

Fiat Doblo is a good bet if you want a van-with-windows-car. Previous shape 1.9 diesels are a fair bit quicker than the equivalent Berling/Partner and similar, offered either 105 or 120bhp versions, pretty refined engine too. More space as well - 750 litres under the load cover with the seats up, huge with the seats folded forward.

My dad has had a couple of CR-Vs, both 2.0 petrols. Good cars, boot is OK but it's a high floor and the arches intrude a lot so not ideal if you're stacking boxes in there. Overall space is easily beaten by most estates. About 25mpg tops too, despite being in 2WD mode almost all the time.

If you're carrying enough to justify a van though, I'd just get a van. The smaller "car derived" type have the advantage of using car speed limits on A-roads and dual carriageways, not the 10mph lower ones.

[HellDiver]

A Shogun Sport has slightly less room in the back as a Focus Estate.

A Discovery 2 has less space in the back as a Mk4 Astra.

4x4 are generally st for carrying stuff unless you go for the commercial versions with no rear seats.

[chrisispringles]

Fane said:

chrisispringles said:

2 MTBs

Motor Torpedo Boats?!?

Yes, me and my dad are government agents with access to a vast arsenal of super secret machines






I meant mountain bikes

[Johnnytheboy]

Modern vans really aren't bad, I love my VW Caddy (104 bhp) and Transit (137 bhp) at work.

Once tried to move some plant pots in the boss's X5 and couldn't believe how little load space there was.

[amirzed]

I borrow my mate's Berlingo HDi whenever i need to move stuff, it's actually pretty nippy and not at all a bad drive...

[sim16v]

I run a Jeep Grand Cherokee as a tow car and its tiny inside!

I'd suggest that if you don't want a van, a large people carrier such as a Sharan/Galaxy, or Espace would be ideal.

The seats lift out completely and its then just like a van inside!

[frosted]

If he can go by in peugeot estate than a 4x4 will be plenty . The crv is good , I'm running one now as van . I can get a washing machine , built in fridge freezer and dishwasher in one go . Or a double bed with mattress ( two halfs ) or 10 paintings and 6 bags of linen or 6dogs and two passengers .

Or 1000,000,0000,000 grams of sand

[Chris_w666]

As has been said most 4x4's are ste for carrying stuff. Even stuff like a 110 Defender or a Discovery isn't as spacious inside as you think it should be and doesn't make up for the extra thirst. Some of the smaller vans can be great fun to drive and are almost without exception comfortable places to spend long days driving, even the multispace, Partner combi, Doblo family are reasonable and mega practical.

If you really don't want a small van and can't strecth to a Vito,Transporter or newish transit then big estates are a good move an E class estate is cavernous as are the Volvo V70's and both came with very good diesel engines (but MB did throw in quite a bit of metal worm with the E classes around your budget). The subaru legacy, and Honda accord are also very cavernous estates and worth a look too.

[chrisispringles]

Don't bother with a legacy if you need huge amounts of space, looked at one earlier this year and it was very, very narrow and I don't think the rear seats folded flat - I may be mistaken though.