Not very PH but I need van advice pls

[Kentish]

I'm thinking about a vivaro, these are the same as a few other offerings are they not?

From the likes of Renault, Peugeot, Nissan etc?

Are there any differences at all between the shared platforms - engines etc are they the same?

Which would be the best to go for?

Anything else I should consider of the same size?

Gracious

[Super Slo Mo]

Renault, Vauxhall (or Opel, depending where in Europe you're buying), Nissan. Not Peugeot/Citroen/Fiat.

All based on the same vehicle (Renault), so buy whichever is the best deal.

[Kentish]

Sorry, forgot to say that the budget is upto £7k

[Kentish]

Super Slo Mo said:

Renault, Vauxhall (or Opel, depending where in Europe you're buying), Nissan. Not Peugeot/Citroen/Fiat.

All based on the same vehicle (Renault), so buy whichever is the best deal.

Ok thanks.

Looks like there is a 1.9, 2.2 or 2.7 diesel to chose from.

Is one engine much better than any other?

Are there any weaknesses?

[skeggysteve]

A very good mate runs a garage and I asked him a while ago what van to buy.
He said a Transit.
He reckons whatever you budget, in the long run, you won't go wrong with at Transit.

[Kentish]

skeggysteve said:

A very good mate runs a garage and I asked him a while ago what van to buy.
He said a Transit.
He reckons whatever you budget, in the long run, you won't go wrong with at Transit.

Thanks, yes I have them on the list too

[jayfish]

What load are you carrying?
We regularly lug a large amount of beer and wine on pallets, the Transit LWB will take 2 large and 1 euro, the Sprinter we had on loan whilst the Transit was in to shop could take 3 full pallets and was rated for a higher weight overall, and importantly for a tall bugger like me had longer seat squabs, going back to the transit felt uncomfortable.
I'd compare engines and high load pull but I don't think the ones we had were fair to compare.

[bignathy]

Look for the best payload. Most vans are rated at 3.5t so the bigger the van the smaller the payload. LWB Sprinter 313 payload is around 1 tonne where a Transporter is 1.5t.

Vito's are rubbish loads of problems. Transporters are ok-ish but look quite funky and have good residuals. Sprinters and transits are the industry standards. Have you considered the Renault Master? We inherited one after an aquisition and despite the abuse and the general lack of love it seems pretty indestructable. Its front wheel drive as well so the rear load height is nice and low. Its got a bus sized steering wheel but once you get used to it its not a bad motor.

Also stay away from main dealers they are rubbish. Find a good independant to do your servicing.

[Arthur Jackson]

Kentish said:

Ok thanks.

Looks like there is a 1.9, 2.2 or 2.7 diesel to chose from.

Is one engine much better than any other?

Are there any weaknesses?

Terrible problems with the 6 speeders, get a 5 speed.

[Kentish]

Thanks folks, great info here.

I have noticed adverts for the Vivaro saying "6 speed box ok" etc & this made alarm bells ring.
Thanks for the confirmation.

[Super Slo Mo]

jayfish said:

What load are you carrying?
We regularly lug a large amount of beer and wine on pallets, the Transit LWB will take 2 large and 1 euro, the Sprinter we had on loan whilst the Transit was in to shop could take 3 full pallets and was rated for a higher weight overall, and importantly for a tall bugger like me had longer seat squabs, going back to the transit felt uncomfortable.
I'd compare engines and high load pull but I don't think the ones we had were fair to compare.

Out of interest, how heavy are your pallets? And what weight is your van rated to? If they're 3.3 or 3.5 tonnes, I'd be concerned that you're a good bit overweight, as a single full-sized pallet should weigh in at around a tonne, which is pretty close to your payload on a Transit/Sprinter.

Back to the OP, is it a Trafic/Vivaro sized van you're after? The Sprinter (even in SWB format) is a good bit larger, which may or may not suit you. Having said that, their engines are supposed to be very strong, reportedly good for an easy 300,000 miles (A van dealer friend of mine used to tell tales of Mercedes quietly replacing engines that failed below this mileage, other than for abuse of course. Might be a tall tale).

The standard Trafic sized van has a 1.0 or a 1.2 tonne payload (gross 2.7 to 2.9 tonnes), depending on model. They're very car like to drive, more so than an equivalent transit, although the newer ones aren't bad at all. The bigger engined models shift quite well, although I took an 80bhp 1.9 model to Valencia and back in 3 days without much issue. It was a bit sluggish trying to change speed on the motorway, but would sit at a decent speed all day long.

[Arthur Jackson]

Kentish said:

Thanks folks, great info here.

I have noticed adverts for the Vivaro saying "6 speed box ok" etc & this made alarm bells ring.
Thanks for the confirmation.

A mate showed me a picture of one in which 6th gear had meshed with the crownwheel if I remember rightly. With the shaft costing £900 alone even secondhand units are at a premium. My mate's brother-in-law has an eye out for 6-speed Lagunas which are now appearing in scrapyards as a way of getting hold of the things for his commercial van repair business.

[jeebus]

I had a vivaro from new on a 05 plate until last year, it had the 1.9 turbo diesel engine in it and did about 32mpg, also I did about 70 thousand miles in it and didn't suffer any gearbox problems, All in it was a good van and never let me down once. I personally dont think that transits are as good as they used to be and seem to be a lot more expensive compared to other makes.

[grumpy]

We have 4 Transits including a 03 Connect, a 52 Transit and two other Transits under two years old. All have given first class service.

One of them was involved in a shunt and while it was being repaired they gave us a Vivaro, I must admit it was a very nice van. The gearbox packed up 250 after miles, not sure if it was a six speed though.

Talking about it to a friend who works in a comercial garage and he said they have "loads" of Vivaro's and their like in with gearbox problems.

You could get a good one though, there must be a lot that don't have problems.

[_Batty_]

My very brief experience.
Vivaro etc, lovely to drive. Crap build, will break.
Sprinter. Less nice to drive, better build, will rust
Powervan/Toyota. Parts hard to find, nice to drive
Transit. Less nice to drive, parts easy to come by, won't break.
After having most of the above, I'd leave having another sprinter and have a transit. But only if it's not motorway work. Sprinter otherwise.
Matt

[Kentish]

I really like the Vivaro but I can't be doing with the reliability issues and I HATE poor build quality.

Looks like it will be a Transit or a Transporter

Neither of which I particularly like for looks or interior layout and comfort but it'll be a work tool so I shouldn't worry too much about these things.

Thanks all for the advice and feedback so far, keep it coming as all comments are helpful.

[Kentish]

I have been wondering about an L300 as I could just about get away with using one of those but I think they don't appear as professional as arriving in a bona fide van.

Thoughts?

[Arthur Jackson]

Kentish said:

I really like the Vivaro but I can't be doing with the reliability issues and I HATE poor build quality.

Looks like it will be a Transit or a Transporter

Neither of which I particularly like for looks or interior layout and comfort but it'll be a work tool so I shouldn't worry too much about these things.

Thanks all for the advice and feedback so far, keep it coming as all comments are helpful.

The commercial vehicle mechanic I know has this to say...

Sprinter - Don't often go wrong, but they do. When they do, you'd better be prepared for a serious bill.
Vito - Fragile.
Vivaro etc - Good van APART from the 6-speed. Oh, and one of the engines, but I can't remember which.. LOL
Transit - A couple of issues, but cheap to fix if it DOES break. He actually runs one himself.
Transporter - (Now this is interesting) He tells me that he doesn't know much about the current Transporter's issues because they don't come into his garage much.....
Perhaps they just don't break down...!

[Kentish]

Transits appear to be quite expensive!

An average price for an average 6-7 year old one is around £5 to 6k

[bignathy]

Kentish said:

Transits appear to be quite expensive!

An average price for an average 6-7 year old one is around £5 to 6k

At that age a £1000 service bill is a reality so you are paying a premium for reliability