What's the best second-hand long wheelbase van?
I want to buy a second-hand long wheelbase van such as a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter or Renault Master and want advice as to the best make for reliability, servicing, road tax and insurance with a budget of £7k. I would like as low mileage as possible - what should I be looking for and how many owners? It's for getting our mobile bars, tables chairs, gazebos, glassware and everything a bar requires, to and from events and festivals.
Asked on 18 June 2018 by Deborah Tripolitaki
Answered by
Dan Powell
When buying a used van, you want the newest and best conditioned vehicle you can afford. A four-year-old van with 100,000 miles is a far better buy than a 10-year-old van with 50,000 miles. This is because these are working vehicles, designed for regular usage over long distances. They’re not designed to sit up for long periods or just cover short drop mileages. The latter will provide all manner of mechanical problems with the DPF: vans.honestjohn.co.uk/van-news/comment/van-drivers.../
Servicing and history are key: the seller should have the actual paper bills for all the work on the van. The owner should also present a computer print-out of its service history. Ideally, a van should be serviced annually, with an oil change every 10,000 miles. If it has been 'underserviced' with gaps of more than a year, avoid it altogether.
All vans are taxed at a flat rate of £250, which applies to all makes, models and sizes of commercial vehicle. However, when it comes to durability, MoT records suggest that the Fiat Ducato and Mercedes-Benz Sprinter are best: vans.honestjohn.co.uk/mot-results/the-mot-files-10.../
For all of our used van buying advice, see: vans.honestjohn.co.uk/how-to-buy-and-sell/top-10-t.../
For advice on getting cheap van insurance, see: vans.honestjohn.co.uk/cheap-van-insurance/
Servicing and history are key: the seller should have the actual paper bills for all the work on the van. The owner should also present a computer print-out of its service history. Ideally, a van should be serviced annually, with an oil change every 10,000 miles. If it has been 'underserviced' with gaps of more than a year, avoid it altogether.
All vans are taxed at a flat rate of £250, which applies to all makes, models and sizes of commercial vehicle. However, when it comes to durability, MoT records suggest that the Fiat Ducato and Mercedes-Benz Sprinter are best: vans.honestjohn.co.uk/mot-results/the-mot-files-10.../
For all of our used van buying advice, see: vans.honestjohn.co.uk/how-to-buy-and-sell/top-10-t.../
For advice on getting cheap van insurance, see: vans.honestjohn.co.uk/cheap-van-insurance/
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