Best price on a new VW Transporter

Iceweasel

Henwardian wrote: »

The Transporter I was quoting for has an EU5 engine. It's £2300 more for an EU6 with Adblue, meaning something like 15 years of driving before the savings on fuel made it worthwhile.

High roof is of no benefit because I can't stand straight in any van and its just extra space, weight and air resistance that I don't need.

How tall are you if you can't stand straight in any van?

And watch out for buying a Euro5 engine - you need to be aware that only super-clean engines will be able to gain access to many cities in a few years time.

My old Sprinter can no longer get me everywhere I need to be.

Have a look at the current LEZs and you'll see what I mean.

http://www.urbanaccessregulations.eu/

At the moment even Euro3s are having problems and bans in some German cities and even in some small towns, and it'll become more difficult as time goes by.

Camper vans under 3.t tons have restrictions/bans in ever more places in Germany and Italy while plain goods vans are even more heavily restricted as regards hours etc.

bigjl

Good points from Iceweasel.

At the moment I would have concerns about buying a Euro5 VW.

Let's not forget that it is apparently the Euro5 engines that are part of the big VW Emissions scandal.

Not the AdBlue Euro 6.

Another reason to have a good think.

In 10yrs time Emissions regulations will only get tighter.

They could expand the LEZ further than the M25, maybe every Town or City.

Then halfway through your proposed lifespan you might be forced into retrofitting AdBlue at huge cost, just like van owners in London with vehicles bigger than 3.5T.

The LAS had to retrofit all the mk2 2.7 diesel Sprinters with an approved DPF system, cost was something silly like £6/7k a vehicle.

Purely to meet LEZ regulations.

Most private Ambulance Co's had smaller and cheaper, under 3.5T van conversions rather than a modular body so were largely unaffected.

The funny thing was the older V8 petrol LDV with carbs and no Cat Convertor was exempt, they were plated up as 3.55T so were above the limit.

But petrols were exempt.

Showing the lack of forethought that went into the LEZ.

There was no financial assistance from TFL or the Government the money had to be diverted from patient care.

Unlike the Buses.....

bigjl

Iceweasel wrote: »

How tall are you if you can't stand straight in any van?

And watch out for buying a Euro5 engine - you need to be aware that only super-clean engines will be able to gain access to many cities in a few years time.

My old Sprinter can no longer get me everywhere I need to be.

Have a look at the current LEZs and you'll see what I mean.

http://www.urbanaccessregulations.eu/

At the moment even Euro3s are having problems and bans in some German cities and even in some small towns, and it'll become more difficult as time goes by.

Camper vans under 3.t tons have restrictions/bans in ever more places in Germany and Italy while plain goods vans are even more heavily restricted as regards hours etc.

How much longer do you think the lifespan of your Sprinter will be before it becomes unviable?

As and when it is there will be a home for it in Ghana!

No such thing as the EU there.

Robustness and reliability is the important thing.

Is yours the 2.9?

bigjl

Just had a completely left field idea Henwardian.

Mercedes used to do a CNG Sprnter.

I discussed this with one of my Managers before they bought the newer diesel Sprinters as a better choice for London than diesels duentoninvesting DPF etc.

Not sure if they are still available.

I think they are more common in Europe.

There might be some issues with filling up as the fuel is less available than LPG in the UK.

Though if you have the space you can have a compressor fitted at your home which means you can fill up from your domestic gas supply.

They aren't hugely expensive if I remember correctly, but the cheaper ones might take several hours to top off the tank.

Can't remember if they also run on petrol like LPG vans.

Just an idea of something you might want to research for yourself.

I might have a quick Google to see if Mercedes still do them for the UK market.

I found this.

http://www.autoblog.com/2008/03/13/mercedes-benz-introduces-natural-gas-powered-sprinter-van/

Not sure if they still do them for the UK though but they do run on petrol aswell, 1.8 Supercharged petrol engine according to the article.

Iceweasel

bigjl wrote: »

How much longer do you think the lifespan of your Sprinter will be before it becomes unviable?

As and when it is there will be a home for it in Ghana!

No such thing as the EU there.

Robustness and reliability is the important thing.

Is yours the 2.9?

I'll be hanging on to it for a good few years yet.

And yes it's a 212D with the 2.9 turbo-diesel engine - very robust.

burlington6

bigjl wrote: »

I can only go by the last generation Master.

They were a lot better than some people think.

The 2.0tdi engine is not as robust as some think, oil pump and DPF seem common issues.

Though you will likely do longer runs instead of town running.

You can have DPFs cleaned though as that is what LGVs and Buses have done for years.

I would hope that with the introduction of AdBlue maybe DPFs would be less of an issue though they are a lot better than when they were first introduced.

Perhaps the vehicle choices made by the mainstream converters could give you an insight into what are consider good choices?

The problem you will find is that modern common rail diesel vans are designed to last a reliable 150k miles or so.

I would give them all a good test drive.

And don't forget that Mercedes use a Renault Kangoo for the basis of the Citan.

They wouldn't do that if they thought the van was no good.

I am a little biased as I have always liked Renaults and have had several French cars with few issues.

For long term use simple is usually best.

If the character of the Transporter does it for you then crack on.

Are you going to install a raising roof?

Do they make a high roof Transporter?

French vans are the best vans on the road today. ( Vauxhall Nissan models included)

Henwardian

Very good point about the LEZs and ULEZs. I had no idea that sort of stuff was being rolled out all over the EU, though I knew to avoid London (for many reasons besides their unique, rarely explained and generally incomprehensible rules on everything related to motor vehicles).
Apart from a very tiny area of central London, it doesn't appear that anywhere else in the EU has any plans to require EU 6 for vehicles yet. There are some EU 4 plans/current restrictions and I think I saw one EU 5 restriction.

On balance I feel that EU 6 is not worth going for for several reasons:
1) I am unlikely to be entering an area requiring EU 6 with my van.
2) If I did enter an area with ULEZ standards on a particular day for some reason, I could just pay a small charge to use it with my non-compliant vehicle.
3) EU 6 is no guarantee of future-proofing. I have little doubt that in 4 or 5 years EU 7 will be introduced and UMLEZs (Ultra Mega Low Emissions Zone) will be established in the centre of London, effective 2030 onwards.
4) EU 4 seems to be the predominant cut-off in proactive German and Italian areas. By the time they have stepped up their requirements by two levels to EU 6, it's probably 10 years down the line that is just too far ahead for me to worry about it now. I could have Moved to the other side of the world or sold my car and bought a plane by then.

Gas is a fun idea, I read a couple of pages about it but it is ultimately not a goer! Too many problems - limited range on the gas, difficulty of refueling when abroad, addition of huge gas tanks to a vehicle with little space for them, etc.

I'm not worried about the emissions scandal. The have fully investigated that now and there is no reason to think they would still be manufacturing cheating vehicles (any more than any other car company might be doing the same anyway). Though I have considered the dent in their rep as a lever to lower prices.

I am just over 2m tall.

Edit: Also, I really can't afford to just drop another £2500 into the budget for the upgrade to EU6.

AdrianC

Henwardian wrote: »

2) If I did enter an area with ULEZ standards on a particular day for some reason, I could just pay a small charge to use it with my non-compliant vehicle.

For London, that "small charge" is £100/day if paid immediately, £250/day if paid up to 14 days later, then £500/day.

bigjl

AdrianC wrote: »

For London, that "small charge" is £100/day if paid immediately, £250/day if paid up to 14 days later, then £500/day.

Also the area of coverage for the LEZ is also not tiny.

They made it bigger.

Almost all the way to the M25 near where I live.

I would have to double check but I think it might have been enlarged to cover most of the Metropolitan Police area.

I personally wouldn't bet on Euro 6 not being made a minimum for travel without paying a charge.

I don't trust the EU.

The only reason VW are offering the discount on the Euro5 is because they can't sell them, and as most of their customers are only in it for 3yrs of a lease or contract hire and the purchase may well be being made by a Fleet Manager that would ring a few alarm bells.

Why not go in there and say you want to buy a Euro6 but only if you can get it fornthenprice offered on the Euro5.

Put it on them that you want a Euro6 model due to concerns over the Emissions scandal, explain that you really want to invest in the brand and also how you always service your vans with the dealer you bought them from as it is such a massive investment for you as it is more than just a van, it is a lifestyle choice!

Which you think VW is the right brand.

Any wavering and mention some massive discount you got offered by Renault.

AdrianC

bigjl wrote: »

The area of coverage for the LEZ is also not tiny.

They made it bigger.

Almost all the way to the M25 near where I live.

I would have to double check but I think it might have been enlarged to cover most of the Metropolitan Police area.

It's the same as it's been since introduced in 2008. Pretty much all parts of all London boroughs, with the exception of a handful of motorways, in as far as the first junction and the roundabout needed to turn around and leave again.

Some places, London boroughs stop at the M25. Some, they go past. Some, they're nowhere near.