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Hi, I’m doing doing initial research to buy an alphard or Elgrand for general mountain biking duties, transport 3 adults plus three bikes. And, on occasion be able to sleep 2 people on ground mats.
i know I should buy a van but looking into the Japanese import as lower cost leftfield option. Would the alphard/ elgrand ibdeed be suitable for this or are they too small? I would add a towbar for a bicycle rack (not towing) but would be nice to get one or two bikes in (max front wheel off, maybe a pedal too) Budget is £12K or less hence not looking at panel or combi vans. Thanks
+1
Friends of ours have one (can't remember which) for ferrying kids around. It looks pretty big. No idea how it'd be for bikes, mind.
I’ve got a Toyota Regius which is the model before the Alphard but pretty similar. They’re slightly smaller than a t5/6 but still a decent load capacity with the seats forward (they’re on sliders) - you should be fine to get two or three bikes in with the front wheels off, though it won’t leave masses of legroom for the person in the back. Great vehicles - build quality and reliability is excellent. Thirsty mind!
I have a massive softspot for these having lived in Japan for a bit.
A pal of mine has an Alphard which he uses for triathlon racing and family duties and it's lovely. Less convenient than a van for throwing dirty stuff in/being a big empty space (obviously), but a much nicer place to be.
I know he's used it to transport three TT bikes and three blokes.
One drawback is roof rack rails end up quote close together, not a huge problem with bikes but it might be with long kayak or canoes.
Couple of friends of friends have had Elgrands, one was struggling to get parts, after a dash fire, and eventually found it was rotten, 2nd guy has automatic curtains on his! He's managed to remove one of the seat to make it easy to fit a full bike, no idea how easy/heavy it was do. Have you also looked at the Hyundi I800?
A pal of mine has an Alphard which he uses for triathlon racing
Must be a nighmare in and out of transition!!
😀
It's crap in the swim as well
My neighbour had one.
It was smaller, thirstier and more expensive than my Transit. A lot quieter inside though, comfier and didn't rust as much. If they've got any sort of 'kitchen' in them then the remaining space is tiny
They're nice but with that budget you should be able to get a decent van.
I had an Elgrand for a few years, it was bonkers ugly and did low teens to the gallon but loved it. Way nicer place to be than any van (and most cars) I've been in.
Drove the Alphard, wasn't a fan and to me looks the wrong sort of ugly ... if that makes sense. It's also fwd/awd whereas the Elgrand is rwd/awd.
Spent ages looking for the right one and found a low mileage, recently imported Highway Star with the 3.5 v6, selectable awd, twin electric doors, dark interior and proper leather seats (rare). Fairly standard apart from coil overs and some 19in JDM Work wheels (winter wheels fitted in photos)
With the right seating options you can get a sliding middle row centre seat that you can move right the front and fit a bike with wheels on down the middle no problem. I also fitted a fork mounted rack so with front wheels off you'd fit 2 securely with bags of room.
Happy to advise what to look out for, they're mega if you can justify the mpg/don't do a lot of miles.
with that budget you should be able to get a decent van
+1
Shop carefully and consider brands other than VW and Ford, and you should get a decent Euro 6 van for £12k.
Just fixing broken images...
@jamesfts - Got any pics of inside the boot? I've already got a van but am curious...
They are very much 'big mpv' rather than van like inside - they tend to angle inwards more, have more trim, and most of the 7 seat versions use a complex folding arrangement which means the rear seats still take up a LOT of room when folded.
They are definitely nicer for transporting <5 people about, but I'm less convinced about them for transporting 2 or 3 people plus 2 or 3 bikes maybe.
And they seem to be more pricey than vans anyway, for a given year?
Yeah, deffo big, posh mpv rather than an actual van.
2 captains chairs up front then 2x rows of 3 behind making it a proper 8 seater. The middle row is 3 separate seats, that recline with leg/foot rests, they swivel to face the rear seats and are on rails to move front/back. The middle centre seat can fold and become a centre table/arm rest for the front row. The rear row splits in half and fold up out of the way - mine lived like this most of the time. You can also fold everything flat to make a good sized double bed.
I'd be tempted to remove the rear seats if you don't need them as it'd make bikes fit way easier but for the odd kids party/school run there were handy to have.
If the seats fold then there will be more than enough room for what you describe.
I've got a Honda Stepwagon (which is smaller, the same as a Nissan Serena) and that easily fits 3ppl, 3 bikes (front wheels off) and loads of kit in.
The Stepwagon RK series onwards have 3rd row seats that fold into the floor creating a completely flat load base and giving plenty of height
Also poor fuel economy, but probably not quite Elgrand bad. Parts availability isn't the best, even though most of the engine is the same as fundic Honda's there are odd differences like the starter motor. Plenty of them now that a few online places stock common bits though.
All round it's great.
Surely the correct answer is a Nissan Prairie?
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I've got a Honda Stepwgn but have looked at these before. You get quite a bit of variety in seat layouts even in the same models. For Alphards the older (ANH10 - or 2002-2008) model has some more flexibility as the middle row will turn and fold or make up into a flat-ish bed.
The later Alphards tend to have a middle row that can move forward, with the bases tipped up for a bit more room - or some have the two separate luxury chairs that gives even less room for bikes.
E51 Elgrands tend to have that middle seat/armrest thing that is on its own rails and can slide right out of the way so you can get a bike in easily in between.
My Stepwgn can get a full-size bike in diagonally with one of the rear seats tumbled forwards, then can get a couple more in with front wheels out and we pack the other stuff in between. I unbolted my rearmost seats (two bolts each side) and they live under the stairs unless we need to carry more people. Mine is smaller (class below Elgrand/Alphard) but there's a good 2m between rear of front seats and tailgate, when I get round to it I'll be building a bootjump-style platform that can go over the folded middle seat for camping in.
And they seem to be more pricey than vans anyway, for a given year?
A 15 year old petrol import will be ULEZ/CAZ compliant, be quicker, comfier and in much better shape than the typical van. Plus in VW terms, far more like a Caravelle than a basic Kombi or Shuttle.
This video gives a better idea of space and how the Elgrand can work for bikes and sleeping:
A 15 year old petrol import will be ULEZ/CAZ compliant, be quicker, comfier and in much better shape than the typical van.
It'll cost way more to run and the purchase price seems similar to a ULEZ compliant van about half its age.
You'd have to really want those comfy seats.
It’ll cost way more to run...
Not necessarily, I bought mine at the same time a mate bought a much newer Caddy. He spent thousands fixing that thing and lost a bunch when he came to sell it.
The Elgrand was super reliable, didn't cost a penny other than servicing and petrol (admittedly a lot of petrol) and sold it for over £2k more than I paid. A good, recently imported one will be immaculate inside and out. Insurance was sensible and tax is a flat rate regardless of engine size due to being an import.
Not necessarily, I bought mine at the same time a mate bought a much newer Caddy. He spent thousands fixing that thing and lost a bunch when he came to sell it.
1.6 Caddy? My pal had a 'mare with hers as well.
And I think the OP needs a medium-sized van instead.
25mpg in (cheaper) petrol vs the 35-40mpg most vans seem to get. Not a lot if you're not running it as an everyday car.
Any ULEZ compliant diesel van will have loads of pollution control stuff (EGR, DPFs, adblue, etc) and a problem with any of those can wipe out any fuel saving.
Been pondering a bigger van to convert to a camper but we live in the ULEZ zone and anything euro6 compliant seems bonkers money for high mileage shagged out vans plus all the problems people seem to have with them. Our Honda has a K20 which is about as reliable as engines get so I think we'll be keeping it at least until ULEZ rules tighten further.
1.6 Caddy? My pal had a ‘mare with hers as well.
No, 2.0 so wasn't the usually injector issue of the 1.6.
I'd say you're probably right, if you're looking for a van alternative the Elgrand isn't it. If you want a big luxury mpv with loads of quirky JDM goodness, a great engine and a drinking problem... then maybe.
Mercedes Vito 116. End of.
“ 1.6 Caddy? My pal had a ‘mare with hers as well”
I’ve had 3 Caddies for work, granted they were the older 1.9 ones (2004-2010 ish) but they were some of the least reliable vans I’ve used.
Even less reliable than an early nineties Ford Escort.