Discussion
HI all,
I've been looking at T25's and need some general advice as opinions from other forums more deicated to these seems to either be very blinkered or "Theyre great but they need lots of tlc but thats ok because we love them" Whats the reality? Ones ive looked at have been mostly rusty pieces of s
t (even those that werent cheap), and from what ive been told even good one will be a rusty peice of st in the blink of an eye (especially the seams) if you don't empty your wallet every ten minutes on them!
For some context I am well used to running classic vehicles, I had an MGBGT for 14 yrs ( a daily driver for 10) and a MIdget for 26 yrs that for some periods was a daily. So im used to the kind of care/money you need to put in to keep them in good shape (in fairness neither cost me a fortune to keep nice (although I am able to do lot of maintaince and work myself), definatly not the kind of money that people suggest for a T25) But what im being told about T25's (and other VW campers) seems to me to be a level above that.(1.5-2k per yr) Is this true?
I was looking at budgeting 10k with spending 7-9 leaving something left over for inevitable repairs, but if they are as unreliable as the impression im being given (not to mention the rot) is this realistic?
T25 or even a T4 appeals as they are a usable size and you can get them easily in a parking space, I don't want something that only gets used 2-3 times a year at best.
I'm not loooking to do it on the cheap but I also don't want to buy somthing and it be a total money pit (which it looks like they might be). If i keep looking I want to have my eyes open.
All opinions appreciatted!
I've been looking at T25's and need some general advice as opinions from other forums more deicated to these seems to either be very blinkered or "Theyre great but they need lots of tlc but thats ok because we love them" Whats the reality? Ones ive looked at have been mostly rusty pieces of s
t (even those that werent cheap), and from what ive been told even good one will be a rusty peice of st in the blink of an eye (especially the seams) if you don't empty your wallet every ten minutes on them!For some context I am well used to running classic vehicles, I had an MGBGT for 14 yrs ( a daily driver for 10) and a MIdget for 26 yrs that for some periods was a daily. So im used to the kind of care/money you need to put in to keep them in good shape (in fairness neither cost me a fortune to keep nice (although I am able to do lot of maintaince and work myself), definatly not the kind of money that people suggest for a T25) But what im being told about T25's (and other VW campers) seems to me to be a level above that.(1.5-2k per yr) Is this true?
I was looking at budgeting 10k with spending 7-9 leaving something left over for inevitable repairs, but if they are as unreliable as the impression im being given (not to mention the rot) is this realistic?
T25 or even a T4 appeals as they are a usable size and you can get them easily in a parking space, I don't want something that only gets used 2-3 times a year at best.
I'm not loooking to do it on the cheap but I also don't want to buy somthing and it be a total money pit (which it looks like they might be). If i keep looking I want to have my eyes open.
All opinions appreciatted!
Motivation is to use it as a van. I like the size aspect to the VW vans, it would make it much more versatile compared to a converted transit or something like that.
The classic car/athestic aspect clearly apeals but its not everything. I'd like a camper that can be used for weekend trips etc. I'm not interested at parking up at a camp site and staying there 2 weeks, it would see a lot of use as a day van too where a much bigger van isn't practical for that.
Im not worried about the 'cool' aspect but it hasn't evaded my attention that if i don't get on with it then selling a VW might be easier than selling a converted transit.
Like I said, if I keep looking I want to have my eyes open. Maybe my budget for a T25 isn't realistc?
The classic car/athestic aspect clearly apeals but its not everything. I'd like a camper that can be used for weekend trips etc. I'm not interested at parking up at a camp site and staying there 2 weeks, it would see a lot of use as a day van too where a much bigger van isn't practical for that.
Im not worried about the 'cool' aspect but it hasn't evaded my attention that if i don't get on with it then selling a VW might be easier than selling a converted transit.
Like I said, if I keep looking I want to have my eyes open. Maybe my budget for a T25 isn't realistc?
As the driver of a T5 LWB, don't let newer bigger put you off just because of parking.
Ours fits in most parking places, just, and only occasionally do we find we park away from a shop or similar because of tight parking.
Having driven T3 and T4 prior (and a huuuuuuuge number of LDV and, Customs Transits), my issue with a T3 now is how slow and noisy they are. A good T4 with better/bigger engine is OK. But any T3 or less powerful T4 I have driven need all the gears to get up even modest hills. A loaded / converted one particularly.
I get the small van - my lad had a 'Maxi' Doblo (aka LWB Doblo) with weird higher roof and it was perfect for a single bed, storage, awning, stove and a seat. He also got a full DH bike in the back as well.
Ours fits in most parking places, just, and only occasionally do we find we park away from a shop or similar because of tight parking.
Having driven T3 and T4 prior (and a huuuuuuuge number of LDV and, Customs Transits), my issue with a T3 now is how slow and noisy they are. A good T4 with better/bigger engine is OK. But any T3 or less powerful T4 I have driven need all the gears to get up even modest hills. A loaded / converted one particularly.
I get the small van - my lad had a 'Maxi' Doblo (aka LWB Doblo) with weird higher roof and it was perfect for a single bed, storage, awning, stove and a seat. He also got a full DH bike in the back as well.
neilr - I've had a T25 for nearly 20 years. Was bought after using a T25 hi-top a couple of times for France trips when the kids were very young, which had belonged to my grandparents. It proved to be the ideal size, large enough to camp and tour in but compact enough to drive / park easily around the smaller UK and French roads and villages. The T25 is a great packaging design giving maximum interior space vs footprint. Bigger inside than the T4, although there is not much crash protection in front of the driver's feet!
Mine is an '88 water cooled 1.9. However it quickly proved to be a bit underpowered when loaded with family, tent, bikes etc. Thus in 2010 I did a Subaru Legacy 2.5 conversion, which was a revelation. Even the late 2.1 VW engine ones are underpowered and all suffer from fragile engines when asked to motor at motorway speeds for long periods. (I live in the SW and there is always a steady supply of broken down T2 and T25 vans on the M5 / A303 in the summer months!).
However they are cheap to run and insure. Mechanically very simple I do all my own spannering, all parts are available and pretty cheap although the quality of some parts can be patchy. Nowhere near £1.5-2k / year. Chassis is pretty robust too. Bodywork is the big one. They were never really designed to last 40 years and corrosion inhibiting was of its time, not up to modern standards. All will need or will have had bodywork. All panels are available but bodywork takes time and thus money. Mechanicals are quick and simple.
£10k will get you a nice one, I'm selling mine (just doesn't get used any more as kids grown up and other priorities sadly) and with a bit of seam rust I'm hoping for £7k ish. However loads out there and maybe best to find a cheaper useable honest one as some have just been tarted up with shiny paint covering all sorts of sins. And then work through it yourself.
But they need to be viewed in the same way as a '80s classic car. Do lots yourself, relatively cheap to run and pain free. Outsource to a specialist for all work and expect to pay hansomly. Good luck, we love / loved ours and they are a much more practical / useable than a T2 Bay window, if not so iconic.
Mine is an '88 water cooled 1.9. However it quickly proved to be a bit underpowered when loaded with family, tent, bikes etc. Thus in 2010 I did a Subaru Legacy 2.5 conversion, which was a revelation. Even the late 2.1 VW engine ones are underpowered and all suffer from fragile engines when asked to motor at motorway speeds for long periods. (I live in the SW and there is always a steady supply of broken down T2 and T25 vans on the M5 / A303 in the summer months!).
However they are cheap to run and insure. Mechanically very simple I do all my own spannering, all parts are available and pretty cheap although the quality of some parts can be patchy. Nowhere near £1.5-2k / year. Chassis is pretty robust too. Bodywork is the big one. They were never really designed to last 40 years and corrosion inhibiting was of its time, not up to modern standards. All will need or will have had bodywork. All panels are available but bodywork takes time and thus money. Mechanicals are quick and simple.
£10k will get you a nice one, I'm selling mine (just doesn't get used any more as kids grown up and other priorities sadly) and with a bit of seam rust I'm hoping for £7k ish. However loads out there and maybe best to find a cheaper useable honest one as some have just been tarted up with shiny paint covering all sorts of sins. And then work through it yourself.
But they need to be viewed in the same way as a '80s classic car. Do lots yourself, relatively cheap to run and pain free. Outsource to a specialist for all work and expect to pay hansomly. Good luck, we love / loved ours and they are a much more practical / useable than a T2 Bay window, if not so iconic.
Hi,
We have owned out T25 (2.0L air-cooled) for just over 14 years. In summary we love it and have used it with our kids for many holidays (daughter is now 16). We have taken it down into France and then the more obvious Devon, Cornwall and Dorset. We also use it for day trips to the beach (we live on the Isle of wight).
Ours is now a historic vehicle, so saves on the MOT and road tax each year. I just get it checked annually by a local guy.
Ours has always been for us to be 'used', so cosmetically is not fantastic but certainly solid where it needs to be. Ours is roller painted but looks fine a few paces away.
In terms of running costs. In 14 years the major costs have been new twin Weber carbs (£650 fitted), new gearbox ( from memory about £1500 all in), new windscreen for rust repair (approx £400), new exhaust (cannot remember), various garage visits for impromptu breakdowns/ MOT repairs (approx £1500). Plus servicing/ consumables which I generally do myself. A lot of easy fixes I do myself (cleaning earth crowns when electrics go funny), new compressor fridge and leisure battery set up, sound insulation (next to no difference).
I tinker with the bodywork to repair surface rust etc ....and actually repainted it myself a few years ago. Seam rash is very common and chatting to others who have worked out for professional resprays only for the rash to return within a few years prompted me to do it myself.....
It is slow ( happy cruising at about 55-60mph), noisy as hell on the motorway (wife and myself usually have sore throats after a three hour drive shouting at each other), but generally reliable. Only left us stranded once, other than a blowout on a french autoroute! I actually like the driving experience as it is so different to anything modern.
Anything I have missed out give me a shout.....
Mike
We have owned out T25 (2.0L air-cooled) for just over 14 years. In summary we love it and have used it with our kids for many holidays (daughter is now 16). We have taken it down into France and then the more obvious Devon, Cornwall and Dorset. We also use it for day trips to the beach (we live on the Isle of wight).
Ours is now a historic vehicle, so saves on the MOT and road tax each year. I just get it checked annually by a local guy.
Ours has always been for us to be 'used', so cosmetically is not fantastic but certainly solid where it needs to be. Ours is roller painted but looks fine a few paces away.
In terms of running costs. In 14 years the major costs have been new twin Weber carbs (£650 fitted), new gearbox ( from memory about £1500 all in), new windscreen for rust repair (approx £400), new exhaust (cannot remember), various garage visits for impromptu breakdowns/ MOT repairs (approx £1500). Plus servicing/ consumables which I generally do myself. A lot of easy fixes I do myself (cleaning earth crowns when electrics go funny), new compressor fridge and leisure battery set up, sound insulation (next to no difference).
I tinker with the bodywork to repair surface rust etc ....and actually repainted it myself a few years ago. Seam rash is very common and chatting to others who have worked out for professional resprays only for the rash to return within a few years prompted me to do it myself.....
It is slow ( happy cruising at about 55-60mph), noisy as hell on the motorway (wife and myself usually have sore throats after a three hour drive shouting at each other), but generally reliable. Only left us stranded once, other than a blowout on a french autoroute! I actually like the driving experience as it is so different to anything modern.
Anything I have missed out give me a shout.....
Mike
And a picture.... this was a few months after I last painted it. Plenty of online guides on how to get a good finish..... My wife does the external graphics and the curtains, upholstery etc....
Edited by mike9009 on Wednesday 28th May 21:17
Edited by mike9009 on Wednesday 28th May 21:20
I’ve been looking at these recently, but the rust issues is a major turn off. I’ve had classics before including 2 bay windows, so I know rust is always a factor in the uk. I saw one the other day, it sounded like it was a decent van, had had loads of work done at local vw specialist, substantial welding etc. including a full respray in 2019, with what looks like a very large bill. Reason for selling, mot advisory for structural corrosion and seam and wheels arch rust.
I’m happy doing ongoing maintenance and understand welding and body repairs are always going to be on the cards, but I’m not sure I would want to be looking at a respray every 5-7 years.
I’m happy doing ongoing maintenance and understand welding and body repairs are always going to be on the cards, but I’m not sure I would want to be looking at a respray every 5-7 years.
xstian said:
I ve been looking at these recently, but the rust issues is a major turn off. I ve had classics before including 2 bay windows, so I know rust is always a factor in the uk. I saw one the other day, it sounded like it was a decent van, had had loads of work done at local vw specialist, substantial welding etc. including a full respray in 2019, with what looks like a very large bill. Reason for selling, mot advisory for structural corrosion and seam and wheels arch rust.
I m happy doing ongoing maintenance and understand welding and body repairs are always going to be on the cards, but I m not sure I would want to be looking at a respray every 5-7 years.
A bit rough getting an advisory for seam rust...... unless it was through going - which I doubt. I also doubt you would ever win a concourse event with a T25, unless it had been painted the week before.....I m happy doing ongoing maintenance and understand welding and body repairs are always going to be on the cards, but I m not sure I would want to be looking at a respray every 5-7 years.
mike9009 said:
xstian said:
I ve been looking at these recently, but the rust issues is a major turn off. I ve had classics before including 2 bay windows, so I know rust is always a factor in the uk. I saw one the other day, it sounded like it was a decent van, had had loads of work done at local vw specialist, substantial welding etc. including a full respray in 2019, with what looks like a very large bill. Reason for selling, mot advisory for structural corrosion and seam and wheels arch rust.
I m happy doing ongoing maintenance and understand welding and body repairs are always going to be on the cards, but I m not sure I would want to be looking at a respray every 5-7 years.
A bit rough getting an advisory for seam rust...... unless it was through going - which I doubt. I also doubt you would ever win a concourse event with a T25, unless it had been painted the week before.....I m happy doing ongoing maintenance and understand welding and body repairs are always going to be on the cards, but I m not sure I would want to be looking at a respray every 5-7 years.
Looking at the receipts, it had had 144 hours of labour put into it in 2019 on paint and welding and it looks like it needs a fair bit of that again. In fairness the seller did say they used it all year round as a 2nd car. I hear the t4 isn’t much better either.
It’s a shame, I really think they’re a great litter van and older vehicles don’t bother me, but I know from past experience, I soon lose enthusiasm for rusty vehicles.
Just to add to the thread again. (As I was quite 'glowing' about my van!!)
Mine now needs a new distributor. Which I thought would be an easy 'off-the-shelf' fix, but with my setup the distributor I have is no longer made.
Seems like every other distributor is freely available. My has a dual vacuum advance....
So, now, once again, I am stuck and waiting for my trusted mechanic to suggest something to get it running again.....
Mine now needs a new distributor. Which I thought would be an easy 'off-the-shelf' fix, but with my setup the distributor I have is no longer made.
Seems like every other distributor is freely available. My has a dual vacuum advance....So, now, once again, I am stuck and waiting for my trusted mechanic to suggest something to get it running again.....
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