Considering a campervan
Discussion
OP
Have a look at the Toyota Regius/Hiace/Granvia variations.
They are imports available with diesel or petrol engines, most likely automatics with overdrive. I have had 2 and they are excellent.
The other possibility may be a Mazda Bongo, they have a good following, but watch for rust and overheating problems £6k should buy you a good example.
Without getting into the whole VW argument, I would suggest that your budget may be better suited to a T4 rather than a T5 if you want a T5 you are going to need a bigger budget. The T4 is an old van now, and is a bit agricultural so you may find it a bit tiresome for day to day living.
Having said that my son has one and happily drives it from Plymouth to Scotland.
Im not sure where you live but also keep an eye on your local cities future emissions policy, a £6k budget is going to be an old van that is very unlikely to pass any future limits
Have a look at the Toyota Regius/Hiace/Granvia variations.
They are imports available with diesel or petrol engines, most likely automatics with overdrive. I have had 2 and they are excellent.
The other possibility may be a Mazda Bongo, they have a good following, but watch for rust and overheating problems £6k should buy you a good example.
Without getting into the whole VW argument, I would suggest that your budget may be better suited to a T4 rather than a T5 if you want a T5 you are going to need a bigger budget. The T4 is an old van now, and is a bit agricultural so you may find it a bit tiresome for day to day living.
Having said that my son has one and happily drives it from Plymouth to Scotland.
Im not sure where you live but also keep an eye on your local cities future emissions policy, a £6k budget is going to be an old van that is very unlikely to pass any future limits
bristolracer said:
OP
Have a look at the Toyota Regius/Hiace/Granvia variations.
They are imports available with diesel or petrol engines, most likely automatics with overdrive. I have had 2 and they are excellent.
The other possibility may be a Mazda Bongo, they have a good following, but watch for rust and overheating problems £6k should buy you a good example.
Without getting into the whole VW argument, I would suggest that your budget may be better suited to a T4 rather than a T5 if you want a T5 you are going to need a bigger budget. The T4 is an old van now, and is a bit agricultural so you may find it a bit tiresome for day to day living.
Having said that my son has one and happily drives it from Plymouth to Scotland.
Im not sure where you live but also keep an eye on your local cities future emissions policy, a £6k budget is going to be an old van that is very unlikely to pass any future limits
Thanks, yes I've seen the various imports and Hiace around, not sure what the conversion kit availability is like. Don't really fancy a T4. Started off looking at Bongo/Freda range a couple of year ago and wa sput off by rust on the older models, the V6 was the only engine with any power but was fragile IIRC and the actual size is smaller than a T5 and I doubt it would remove a rice pudding skin never mind tow a trailer...Have a look at the Toyota Regius/Hiace/Granvia variations.
They are imports available with diesel or petrol engines, most likely automatics with overdrive. I have had 2 and they are excellent.
The other possibility may be a Mazda Bongo, they have a good following, but watch for rust and overheating problems £6k should buy you a good example.
Without getting into the whole VW argument, I would suggest that your budget may be better suited to a T4 rather than a T5 if you want a T5 you are going to need a bigger budget. The T4 is an old van now, and is a bit agricultural so you may find it a bit tiresome for day to day living.
Having said that my son has one and happily drives it from Plymouth to Scotland.
Im not sure where you live but also keep an eye on your local cities future emissions policy, a £6k budget is going to be an old van that is very unlikely to pass any future limits
My advice would be to get a mid noughties T5 in the best condition/with the lowest miles possible, just about on budget. If it's for occasional overnights then I'd go down the day van route first. Windows for about £500, insulated and carpet lined around £1k. Curtains £50. Fully usable with standard camping kit.
Then convert at your leisure. Electrics £1.5k, pop top £2k, bed, side conversion etc. As far as you want to go.
With a good base van then the investment is fairly secure, it's the route we took. All in our van has cost about £20k, and is still worth around that, but we had a fully functioning van for a year or two for half that figure.
Then convert at your leisure. Electrics £1.5k, pop top £2k, bed, side conversion etc. As far as you want to go.
With a good base van then the investment is fairly secure, it's the route we took. All in our van has cost about £20k, and is still worth around that, but we had a fully functioning van for a year or two for half that figure.
Back in 2015 I had a similar urge for a camper, T5 models were on my radar.
This was to house my wife, two young daughters and I to adventure with. We had a budget of up to £12k and other vehicles in the household so it didn't need to be a daily.
Having looked at specs, interior sizes, miles, practicality of moving the van when away to go anywhere for the day etc the VW camper I wanted became a pre-owned Swift six berth caravan by the time it arrived. Couple of years old, lots of space, even now the young daughters are not so young and all the features we'd ever need.
It may be worth looking at what the Volvo could tow and sticking with that dragging your budget behind. You've have something more practical as a daily and more space/facilities when you're away.
This was to house my wife, two young daughters and I to adventure with. We had a budget of up to £12k and other vehicles in the household so it didn't need to be a daily.
Having looked at specs, interior sizes, miles, practicality of moving the van when away to go anywhere for the day etc the VW camper I wanted became a pre-owned Swift six berth caravan by the time it arrived. Couple of years old, lots of space, even now the young daughters are not so young and all the features we'd ever need.
It may be worth looking at what the Volvo could tow and sticking with that dragging your budget behind. You've have something more practical as a daily and more space/facilities when you're away.
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