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Lusting after a nice 2001 T4, with 140k on the clocks.
It's clearly been looked after, and has been customised a bit (I can just take the bits I don't like off and it'll be sweet IMO). It's lined, insulated and carpeted too, so an easy project to convert into a day van.
I like the idea, especially being able to sleep in it at races and weekends away, but I'm not sure its worth the 5/6k it'll cost to buy/insure/tax, when I've got a little cheap car that works fine and fits my bike in no problem... and a tent would be a few hundred quid at most...
Any advice on high mileage T4s?
Mine's well over that.
Get on the VW T4 forum and check out the guides.
Look for regular servicing, esp timing belts and water pump.
I agree with other Jeff.
If well looked after these engines (5 cylinder 2.5 Diesel) should be good for 400,000 miles
if its been looked after, no problem. you see plenty with stellar mileage on them.
if it hasn't could be a moneypit.
As long as it's been looked after then it will be fine, a mate of mine has a t5 with 200k+ on it, still runs like a dream
My 1999 T4 2.5 TDi has 145K on it and is still running great with the application of cash every year. But I wouldn't pay £4-5K on it, even though it's got a full camper conversion. I bought it as a day van in 2005 for £4.5K with >70K miles on it! Price of VWs is just insane.
mine had about 165k on it when i bought it, now has 210k on it. i have put a clutch and dmf and cambelts and FEAD on it, one halfshaft, wheel bearings (my fault i drove through a really deep ford) some tyres and the usual oil changes. Oh and all the front ball joints too. The motor still feels as solid as when i got it and i have no reason to believe it wont last forever.
tip - dont fit non standard wheels. keep the stock steels and run premium tyres - i bought contis for 50 quid each. so much better than the cheap brand tutt. also, change the brake fluid for ATE superblue. makes the brakes feel much better and the boiling point is much higher than the cheap stuff. not expensive.
mine has been to the alps fully loaded, towed a caravan to oulton and back to the SE and used as a daily with no dramas at all.
i fix stuff as soon as it needs it, regardless of cost. if you worry about the costs a bit you might be in for a shock come dmf time
I sold mine ( 88bhp 2.5 diesel) at 133000, three years ago. I'd had it for the previous 95000 miles and it had always been serviced / maintained properly.
It had a new clutch fitted at 118000 and apart from serviceable things, including cambelt and brake parts, it only needed steering ball joints and new shocks, again at just over 100000. It still drove like it had at 40 odd thousand.
If it's been well maintained, I'd go for it. Fixing niggles as soon as you spot them helps hugely, long term.
Having a van totally changed how I do things and made for great weekends away and for holiday use.
Daily drive, 300 mile weekends and big European jaunts, took it all in its stride.
I only sold it because I ws offered a 2010 t5 at a price I couldn't refuse. The only time it ever let me down roadside was when the factory fitted battery gave up the ghost at about 70000.
The guy who bought my van, who I still keep in touch with, has however, had to have work done on the gearbox, in which a shaft failed at about 155000, just one of those things which no one could have foreseen I guess.
Edit... Beware of rust. Particularly on white ones ( more aluminium oxide in the paint) or coastal dwelling ones, cills and front arches are prone to it and if they are bad the b pillars can suffer around seatbelt lower mounts. Poorly fitted replacement windscreens can lead to leaks and again rust round the window aperture.
Astonishing how expensive t4's are now. Apparently mine is worth substantially more today than when i bought it 40k and 4 years ago. Especially in the south west. (Where there seems to be a style tax on all things vw 😆 )
140k is not high mileage on the tdi, not sure about the normal deisel or petrol. A friend works in a vw van dealership, they had a customer a few years back who looked after his 88bhp 2.5tdi properly and had 500k on it last time it came in for (main dealer) service. I wonder if it's still going now?
But yes with regards to price, if it was 5 years ago and your 140k t4 was going for £3-4k then i'd have said proceed with usual mechanical caution. But blimey, £6k buys you a lot of not very old not-a-vw these days.
With regard to prices. Yes, on balance they hold their money, but then, on a decent one , you are hardly likely to lose your shirt when you come to part with it. In fact, I made almost £2k on mine in 7 years, servicing costs apart.
Cakefacesmallblock, even with everything i have spent on it bar the fuel, were i to try and sell it tomorrow, i am theoretically still about a grand up on mine. 😀
^^ ha ha ! Well done !
The approx 16 grand I spent on fuel wouldn't be covered in my calculations !
Oh ! And Grenosteve ! If you do go ahead , try not to fall in love with it, you'll end up with a whole new hobby, you might not need !
Not falling for that one with my new van !
156,000 on mine still going strong.
I bought a '99 T4 2.5 with 148K on the clock in '03 for £4000, sold it 5 years later with 190k on the clock for £5000! never a moments trouble.
Bought a T5 for £10.5k when I sold it, have put 60,000 mile on that and looking at current prices it's now worth about 2 grand more than I paid for it. Bizarre
Mines on 160,000 and I am keeping it indefinitely.
What's the attraction ?
Why not a Renault or Vauxhall etc...
Is the VW more civilised ?
.....niche......?
Not as fashionable.
Builders use the others..... Cant possibly have young tarquin traveling in something builders may travel in.
mine is exactly the same year and model as this apart from mine has tailgate which they tell me is a good thing - LEZ compliant, mine has geniune vw second row of seat with the proper fixings and geniune seatbelts and mounts etc. same mileage too
i paid £2250 for mine, about 5 years ago
Don't you realise that you could have a Berlingo, for a fraction of the Berlingo? And my Berlingo can Berlingo anything that your Berlingo can Berlingo for half the Berlingo?
They're not fashionable but you can Berlingo a Berlingo and have enough left to Berlingo your Berlingo.
i had a 2,5 T4 soldit with 160k on it, people went mad for it
bought a nice transit, it blows the T4 away, better in every way (140bhp, carries 1.5 ton, aircon, crusie control, heated seats, quick clear screen etc etc)
now selling it to get a newer one
on ebay now here
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/161605208916?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649
I want a T4 with 140k on it.
And a few years ago I had one. But it's done loads more since then, and it's still a minter 🙂
Its the whole badge/vw thing, much better transits and mercs out there. Isn't as much choice to convert but it's all out there.
Don't get me wrong I'd love a T4 surf bus they look awesome but on a budget I'd probably go the transit root myself.
Niche?
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Reliable, and can do a high mileage, 4wd, and a bit different.
Delica is a cool thing, and quite handy off road as long as you're aware of the centre of gravity, have done a fair bit of green landing in a couple of mate's.
A fair bit smaller on the inside than the t4 though.
One of the bonuses of the VW vans is the sheer amount of specific kit for them, be it seating, cupboards, whatever. You can quite happily convert any van, but if you are after the end product more than the process of 'converting' it, it is so much easier with a VW.
You don't tend to lose too much money on what you've spent on the, either, people being happier to spend top money on a vw means you may pay more but you'll get more when/if you sell.
I'm a T5 owner myself, 1.9 84hp (Pendle'd up to 140ish) with 175k on the clock. You'd never guess the mileage from the condition of the van or the way it drives. I looked at lots of different vans when we were buying 2 years ago, the main reason we went for the T5 was simply that we could afford a decent one, had I been spending 3-5k not 10-12k I'd have been looking at Vivaro or Transit.
You could afford this cheap Prototype Doubleback Campervan. That is if you didn't mind loosing half your home onto the Autoroute.
Frankly. It doesn't matter a jot, what van you want or have. If they can take you and your kit, to do what you want to do and be big, secure, comfy and economical enough.
There are lots of options out there, although, yes , as said above , there is the ease of " converting" the vws because of the amount of specific kit available.
My g/F 's Berlingo happily carries a couple of bikes for a day out, so does my Skoda. I like my t5, but I doubt I'm the bloke with the biggest grin. Run what you brung folks !
I have a couple of mates with T4's and both had the engine go at around that mileage. Both look after them very well and keep up with maintenance.
One just payed out to get if sorted and it's been fine since doing big miles. His is pretty stock except for a few tarty bits.
The other is an ex-mechanic so bought an old scrap Golf and pinched the better engine out of it. He loves his van and has just had it re-sprayed. He's done loads of work to make it flash but if he didn't know what he was doing it would have been a money pit.
I can't see why they go for so much tbh. From what I've seen they're no more reliable or well built then many others that cost a fraction of the price. Same reason most blokes seem to have beards + sleeve tats I guess.
How do Mercedes Vitos compare? Hear good things about them and seeing a lot more of them at the beaches these days, hoping they are a little cheaper..
Vitos rust. VWs silly money.
Connect LWB/Tourneo with windows in 🙂
Vitos rust
Really? I was basing longevity hopes on the estates which seem to go on till people are bored of looking at them though.
Vitos rust.
Heard that too and also that they are not as reliable or well built as you'd expect. A real shame as the late 90's version was a real looker.
Vito's are rear wheel drive or my mates is. Not much fun on steep hills or sketchy ground. Depends were you go.
My mate had a brand new Vito about 10 years ago and it rotted so fast it was beyond belief. I had an unrestored 1986 Ford Capri at the time and it rapidly overtook my car in shabbyness.
I was reminded of it the other day at Hamsterley when there was an 05 plate Vito in the car park that was comically rotten. Huge gaping holes in all 4 arches covered with gaffer tape and thick orange scabs around every edge and shut line. It looked like it had been dragged out of a river.
The previous owner of my T5 has covered some of the stone chips in what looks like Tippex and there's still no visible rust anywhere. And judging by what low mileage T30's are being advertised for I could probably put mine up for sale for the price I paid three years ago. If you've got the money just get involved!
Mine's for sale if anyone's interested - 08 T5 Factory Kombi
140K for a T4 is not high mileage, 500K is high mileage.
Mines 230K, bought at 175K 2 years ago -its great 🙂