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On The Verge of Buying

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  • 05-09-2008 10:01pm
    #1
    ShirleyH
    Closed Accounts Posts: 28 ✭


    OK guys,

    we spotted a van on the pink pages here in Cork last week, great price so we went to see it, thinking it would be too good to be true. Its a 1985 transit motorhome, running like a dream, interior needs gutting, but mechanically sound. Body work is a little rusty but can be worked on and done. I was hoping for something more current and hubby wanted a conversion, so maybe a renovation is a good compromise!

    Its a 4-6 berth, exactly what we were looking for, but I am afraid to get excited. We are having a mechanic go and take a look at it before we buy, and even though hubby would be fairly spot on and looked under neath and everything. I'm afraid the mechanic will tell us its a turkey:(

    Fingers crossed!!!


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    #2
    aerosol
    Registered Users Posts: 471 ✭✭aerosol


    Hi Shirleyh, take a step back and think. Is the first van you've looked at? If this is so,don't get to caught up in the excitment,theres loads of campers out there,more so than than ever with the presesnt emonomical situation.Its a buyers market,go look at the van again,then check some more out,don't rush:)


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    #3
    ShirleyH
    Closed Accounts Posts: 28 ✭ShirleyH


    We've looked at 5 or 6, but some were way out of the budget, others were one step away from the scrap heap.
    I'm being very cautious, but my husband would have handed over the cash there and then:rolleyes:
    I want someone unbiased and mechanically minded to see it casue I don't want to buy it and find out its a turkey in 6 months time. Also I want to be sure we'll be able to get parts and accessories for it etc.

    Thanks Aerosol:D


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    #4
    aerosol
    Registered Users Posts: 471 ✭✭aerosol


    Hi Shirleyh, That impulsive thing is a male thing!! I did well over a years research and looking before I bought my van.The right layout was our main stumbling point,i.e. very few vans within our budget that had the layout/seatbelts for the kids we neeeded:mad:

    As for unbiased advice and mechanical knowledge,both the AA and RAC will do a comprehensive check for you(at a price! but its small fry compared to shelin out a few grand to have problems....)Only thing with using either of these is,they will only check the mechanical and chassis side of things,not the habitation area.

    It costs you more,but buying from a reputable dealer gives you some piece of mind/poss. warranty(we bought our 10yr old van from a uk dealer and got a full years warranty)

    If your going to buy private,a damp meter is a must,look and check in every nook and cranny(witha torch) and check for smell/signs of damp/water stains.

    Try http://www.motorhomefacts.com/modules.php?name=Beginners_Guide

    http://www.motorhomefacts.com/modules.php?name=MReviews
    A great way of finding out about a van your interested in is to post questions on the van your looking at to try and get replies from someone with same van or who has owned one in the past.


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    #5
    blue42
    Closed Accounts Posts: 99 ✭✭blue42


    at 23 years old you would need to be getting it very cheap!!


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    #6
    chrisblack
    Closed Accounts Posts: 161 ✭✭chrisblack


    Hi Shirely

    I'd be cautious too... I got our van last year after spending a few months trawling the internet and travelling up and down the country until I found something (and after all the travel, I bought a van down here in West Cork)...

    It also sounds like a lot of work if the interior needs gutting and rust needs cleaning up...

    My advice is take your time.. the right van will eventually turn up.

    Chris


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    #7
    ShirleyH
    Closed Accounts Posts: 28 ✭ShirleyH


    Interior work would not bother us as my husband is a carpenter, and father in law is an electrician. Also my dad is a mechanic and my brother is an auto electrician so most of the work will be done for free.
    There are 74250 km on the clock, whether this is accurate I don't know. And any of the rust is surface only.

    As a matter of interest what price would you put on a van of that year with that amount of work needed???


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    #8
    Uncle Chenzo
    Registered Users Posts: 67 ✭✭Uncle Chenzo


    Hi Shirley,

    I'm about to embark on a project myself, but the one you're looking at is 23 years old.

    It may look "cool" etc, but the first thing i would do is to imagine it without any panels.

    If there is surface rust on the paint work, there will be some sort of rust on the chassis.

    Was the van stored anywhere near the coast?

    Garaged or out in the open?

    As for what i would pay for what you have described, at 23 years old and you have to gut it - absolutely nothing. Think about trying to get parts for that vehicle.

    I'm looking to get a T350 Ford Transit Long Wheel base, High top from the uk. I can purchase one, a 2001/ 2002 for in or around 2,650 stg

    And then go about kitting it out. Parts available for the vehicle all over the shop.

    23 years old, seriously. It would want to be some hum dinger. What are they looking for it?


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