vito van

anthonyos

im looking at getting a vito 2005 2006 model 6 speed i like the look of them and seem to be the best of a bad bunch ..wat are they like on juice and reliability wise my other option is a trafic vivaro primastar but they have gear box issues. i need low running costs thanks

darragh o meara

From a post I posted on a few months back. Good van and a lot better than the primastar/traffic variety by a long shot.

Vito advice, the earlier pre cdi ones were a great van but gave problems from time with cv joints which for years weren't available separately. Only a full drive could be got which was very expensive. You can now get a spurious cv joint for a couple of quid from a motorfactors. If I was to buy an older Vito of tgis shape the pre cdi would be my choice

The 00-04 (anything cdi). A great powerful van which had a few niggly electrical problems. They suffered a bit from the costsaving that went on in Merc during the early noughties and the electronics suffered a bit, sensors like air intake temp would throw a fault and put the van into limp home mode at the most awkward of times!! Keys can loose their coding too at times. The semi automatic is one to stay away from, as is the viano with air suspension in the back. The cv joints tended to be better but still not abuse proof.

In the garage I worked in we had a Vito 108d and a 110 cdi both of which were driven within an inch of their life's and we actually got rid of the cdi.

The new shape 04 on suffered from a few things like

Front anti roll bar bushings wore out very quick

Window regulators were common failures

Elec window switches would break very easily on the passenger side although this was due to there being no auto up click and people would give it a good tug. There was a modified item brought out.

Wheel speed sensors would give a bit of bother

Air intake temp sensors again gave problems

Tracking was a big issue but I'm sure it been sorted now, the setting provided by merc would cause undue tyre wear on Irish s hit ty roads.

The engines were good but some electrical gremlins can appear at times. There is a massive amount if electrics in these vans and with the new merc type fob key they can give problems ( I never thought them keys were suitable for commercials anyway ) if I was getting one I'd go for the 120 cdi a pure animal on the road !!

anthonyos

what are the 2.2 like on juice carrying a little load

colm_mcm

Consider a Hyundai h1 as well, Irish spec is 180hp as standard and they're a nice solid van.

anthonyos

fella i no has one and had trouble with it over heard someone advising legal action over the problems but not sure what they were..i think a vito is the van just wondering what they like on juice

colm_mcm

I know a fella with an 05 vito and it's covered in rust.

I realise this doesn't answer your question

anthonyos

ye i heard rust can be an issue with them how common i dont know

kildare.17hmr

If your looking at 06 you should decide what model to go for to suit your driving. All city driving a 109 will do but if your gonna be travelli g the country a 111 or 115 will be better. I sold an 06 109 lwb to a man early this year and he was in during the week for servicing and said he gets between 650-700 km to a tank driving mostly in dublin and surrounding counties. He carries a decent load of up to about 700kg.

Agree with above poster tho 120 is a beast!

Pdfile

bigger the engine the better, their an absolute flyer... though my ex's father had the 109... 06-07 afair and it had more rust then most trannys... ran like a clock though.

also obviously if you can afford the bigger engine... go for it...

anthonyos

what engine sizes are there most seem to be 2.2 what they like

kildare.17hmr

Yeah 2.2. Good engine and good power in the higher power models. How much have you to spend?

anthonyos

kildare.17hmr wrote: »

Yeah 2.2. Good engine and good power in the higher power models. How much have you to spend?

i have to sell my 2007 focus commercial 1.6 tdci so what ever i get for that and might have some money of my own ..what is the market like for a focus commercial ???was hoping for a 05 06 07 one ????

kildare.17hmr

The focus id reckon €5000 would be pretty much tops at a push. I sold a 2006 109 lwb vito which was very clean for €5900 recently fully serviced with new doe and warranty, it had 190km. If the focus is clean

anthonyos

focus has 160 km its a bit untidy at the minute but a valet and a wash would sort it out might tackle it tomoro ...what are the dif between the 109 111 115 etc lwb would suit me as a plumber but dont want a big long van like some iv seen

colm_mcm

anthonyos wrote: »

focus has 160 km its a bit untidy at the minute but a valet and a wash would sort it out might tackle it tomoro ...what are the dif between the 109 111 115 etc lwb would suit me as a plumber but dont want a big long van like some iv seen

The 109 is a 1 ton van with 90hp
111 is 110hp
115 is 150hp
120 is 200 hp etc

This badging system is used across Mercedes vans and trucks for decades

anthonyos

OK that's handy to know fuel consumption wise what they like or is there much of a difference between them .????i need something economical

kildare.17hmr

It depends in the type of driving your doing lad, 109 for city driving but will be bit heavy on juice running dublin to cork at 140km hr and ya wint be overtaking anything fast, 111 is good for it all and will be better for overtaking, 115 ya will never be stuck for power and will use more fuel druving round the city. They are decent on juice tho in fairness. I get 800-850 km to a 75l tank in my 116 lwb

anthonyos

i do mostly city driving trips on the m1 m50 that sort of thing the 111 sounds right for me. what the things to look out for when buying second hand...thanks lads

kildare.17hmr

06 on they are a very decent van, if you notice a banging from the front its most likely anti roll bushings, regular thing that goes and not pricey even tho it might sound like it would be. Any play really and i get them replaced during servicing before they go out.

They are hard on front tyres because of the camber on the front wheels which gives the tight turning circle so check them.

They are rear wheel drive so check for noises out of the back, the diff doesnt usually give trouble in them but worth checking.

Window regulators were not great and went in some, grinding noise when using the windows is a good indication of wear.

Drivers window switch can break on the front making it hard to get up the window, easy fix with glue, iv never replaced one.

The have alot of electrics so check every light is working on ignition.

Always good to get a van with a recent doe test and get it checked by a mechanic

anthonyos

how big of a problem is rust

kasper

owned a 06 111 lwb medium loads 42 mpg , owned it for nearly 2 years biggest mistake was trading it for a ford transit

keltoms

Hi folks,

Just found this thread today. Am buying a van off my old boss for work, its a 04 merc vito, 1.9 engine with 120,000 miles on it and DOE til next march. It has been lying up for a while so went to look at it this morning, theres a good few specs of rust on the bonnet and bigger rust patches on the side door and on the side of the wheel arch. The engine and that is fine but am just wondering how big a problem would the rust be?? should i just stay clear of it? thanks in advance for your replies!