Is it all worth it?

P

PeteK80

Member
OK, I'm new to this and it's a bit of a long one so please bear with me.

OK so I'm in my mid-40s, with a wife and two kids. I've wanted a camper for as long as I can remember and we're finally financially comfortable enough for the outlay and I want to get on with it while the kids are still young. Me and my boy love going to race weekends, Im into fishing and we also have whole family camping holidays so it would be well used for 8 months a year. Budget is £25k.

I've now looked at three vans, and with all of them I've uncovered various risks/issues that have led me to walk away. I'm now about to look at a fourth which is LOVELY but its got the 204 engine and that comes with a selection of horror stories.

Now I know these vans are expensive and what I've always been told is that's partly because of reliability, but from what I've seen and read, half of these vans are an accident waiting to happen and in many cases it's impossible to tell if you've bought a dog of a van until you've parted with your money.

£25k is alot of money (although looking through auto trader it hasn't felt like it) and for that kind of outlay I'd hope for something that doesn't have the potential to cost me £5k if the turbo randomly goes bang.

In my head I'm thinking about the kind of car and trailer I could buy for that money (or dare I say it, Transit) and asking if it's really all worth it.

Any opinion at all would be much appreciated as I'm completely at a crossroads.

Thanks in advance....

Pete
 
Personally I wouldn’t buy a BiTDi van. Never owned one but read so many stories on this forum and others about replacement engines. Probably only a small percentage of production.

I also own a 996 911 which also has a penchant for lunching engines, that have 5 figure rebuild costs - its not a daily driver and one of the known issues, the IMS bearing has been changed. No signs of bore scoring (high oil consumption) so I’m comfortable with the risks.
 
Hey Pete, as with buying any second hand vehicle its always going to be gamble. Better of you can buy through a dealer, which i was able to do, to get some form of warranty to go with it and if its under 6 years old you could get the extended warranty if it fits the criteria. Judging by your budget you may be outside of this though.
Its a buyers market out there ,and there are plenty of vans on this forum for sale which have more then likely been cared for and looked after by enthusiasts, which would be more reassuring for a potential buyer.
 
Morning Pete and welcome .
Vdub vans are great ....are they worth it ? ....had ours 10 years now and it still makes me smile (and occasionally swear).
I wouldnt personally buy a bitdi.
 
Is it all worth it? Only you can answer that for yourself.

From my own perspective I would remind you there are no pockets on a shroud. If you can afford it, and if it isn't going to push you into destitution, and you want to do it then you should.

Perish the thought, but life is short and we only get one go at it.

On the plus side of the balance sheet, if you buy sensibly, get a good van without excessive mileage and a decent history, and then look after it well and maintain it properly,myoy will find depreciation to be low. You could have fun for a few years and punt it on and still recover a significant portion of your investment. No car, trailer, or transit within your budget is going to do the same.

But steer clear of the 204. They're expensive enough to buy, run and maintain as it is, so why go looking for potential trouble? If you're used to anything even slightly peppy to drive you'll find none of the engine choices are quick, just different degrees of slowness, so concentrate on the engine options that give better odds of a quiet life.

Bedt of luck.
 
They're is no doubt that vans are expensive - and when you start comparing to what you can get for a car for the same money, it can get a little depressing!

I bought my Caravelle for £45k and just after doing the deal (whilst looking at a new car for my sister) I saw this 911 that was only 5k more than I'd just paid for a posh van...

6dce3c62-2e06-4d59-97e2-a85ccd36b2d8-1_all_1622.jpg

6dce3c62-2e06-4d59-97e2-a85ccd36b2d8-1_all_1624.jpg


But...

I can't do this in a 911.
6dce3c62-2e06-4d59-97e2-a85ccd36b2d8-1_all_310.jpg
6dce3c62-2e06-4d59-97e2-a85ccd36b2d8-1_all_230.jpg
1000004346.jpg

Full details in my signature but in short, 3 weeks in Europe, south western France, Pyrenees, Catalonia and the French Rivera, 2500 miles, and all for £1200.
 
I owned a T5 180 biTDI & now own a 204 T6 BiTDI. Neither van was/has been a problem engine wise. I only became aware of the potential problems with the BiTDI engine after I bought the 204 & subsequently discovered this forum. Otherwise I would have lived in blissful ignorance & be non-the wiser. Both my vans were/are looked after, well serviced, not abused/mapped/ or generally buggered about with. I sold the t5 which was my work van, to a converter and as far as I know it’s still going strong, it’ll be 11yrs old this year. My current 204 T6 is 8 yrs old this year & goes like a good ‘un.
When you start doing research, reading forums etc, you only ever find the horror stories.
 
I had the same thoughts having looked at a lot of rubbish conversions. Decided to buy a van and get it converted by reputable Anglia Camper Conversions in Bury St Edmunds (see my posts). Very please with the result!
 
whodat said:
Would much rather have a van than a porsche.
What are you going to do? Rev it at traffic lights, or pretend you are an aeroplane in 3rd gear at 70?
Click to expand...
Indeed. I've seen a few of those Porsches about, usually disappearing rapidly in the mirrors of my Hayabusa.

Who needs third gear at 70? I don't hit the rev limiter in first until past 110 (on the 'busa, not in the van...and only at Bruntingthorpe.)
 
Is it all worth it in terms of what?

Money/finances? - hell no, it's a horrifically bad financial decision. On paper not worth it at all. Let's all spend tens of thousands of pounds on something that's going to depreciate and inevitably cost us more thousands in maintenance fees. Ye. Great idea.

Good times/memories? - hell yes! We all end up in places we'd never have been to if we didn't have a campervan. Good and bad. It's all part of the journey. It makes me incredibly happy when I turn the key and drive away in something that's been my home for the past few days, or even the past few hours. On to the next place. That is worth it for me.

Like someone has already said above. Second hand vehicles are a lottery, you don't really know what you're going to get. But, you can have an educated guess. Just don't rush into buying one. Wait until you see one that you feel doesn't uncover any risks/issues as you mentioned, and as per all the points people have made above. Don't be surprised when you have to get your wallet out for repairs though.

Then JUST DO IT. **** it! Life's too short.

Or don't.

Again, as per above...only you can really answer your question.
 
Last edited:
Done it, now I'm undecided if I really want to do it again sadly. Knees and back not really up to it....I'm really enjoying the airbnb experience in the UK and have a little bolt-hole in Provence which suits me just fine. I'd love to be driving around in a van, but the EV and little T-Cross is my head ruling my heart.
 
I was in a similar position recently, I’ve always wanted one. I’m late 30s and we have an 18 month old, so I bit the bullet as I want to spend as much time with the family as possible without the faff of hotels and bookings. My plan is to do as many sunny weekends as possible!

I didn’t have your budget so went for a panel van and I’m still slowly converting it, with the hope to use it (in some capacity) later this year. I can’t comment too much yet as we might hate it, worst case I sell it and probably get my money back so far. Either way it has been an enjoyable experience so far and once I got used to driving a ‘van’ everyday, I now love it!

I’m sure you’ll make the right decision. Best of luck.
 
Phil1 said:
I was in a similar position recently, I’ve always wanted one. I’m late 30s and we have an 18 month old, so I bit the bullet as I want to spend as much time with the family as possible without the faff of hotels and bookings. My plan is to do as many sunny weekends as possible!

I didn’t have your budget so went for a panel van and I’m still slowly converting it, with the hope to use it (in some capacity) later this year. I can’t comment too much yet as we might hate it, worst case I sell it and probably get my money back so far. Either way it has been an enjoyable experience so far and once I got used to driving a ‘van’ everyday, I now love it!

I’m sure you’ll make the right decision. Best of luck.
Click to expand...
Probably the best vehicle for babies/kids going
 
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