Farewell faithful VW

Honest John Back Room » Motoring discussion
What is life like with your car? Let us know and win £500 in John Lewis vouchers | No thanks
View Threaded
Fri 13 Apr 2007 18:23
Farewell faithful VW - legacylad
After 9 years ownership, I have today sold my '97 P reg 2.4D Transporter. a LWB High Roof variant. I bought it at one year old from a main dealer as an ex demo/parts delivery van and not once in all these years has it let me down! Admittedly I only covered 105,000 miles in it, mainly commuting to my shop where it was used as a 'mobile warehouse' and I changed the oil every 6k miles, but it was as reliable as my old Westie.
It has now gone to a good home and I am left with my recently acquired 12 year old Defender 90. With a spare set of wheels and Vredestein M & S tyres we had some real adventures over the years, and at yesterdays MOT it only needed new pads and brake pipes. On a long test drive today ...it ran smooth as silk, incorporating furniture removal for a friend...no point in wasting diesel, and over the years returned a consistent 30/35 mpg with absolutely no oil needed between changes.
I sold it for a very reasonable £1850 (inc new front tryes& exhaust) and what on earth can replace such reliable motoring for that sort of money?
Bet the Defender doesn't last that long trouble free....
Blimey, I never thought I would feel sad about selling a van....
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 13 Apr 2007 20:48
Farewell faithful VW - boxsterboy
I know how you feel.

A few years back I bought an N-reg 2.4 lwb T4 (low roof), ex-Anglian windows with 130,000 on the clock but a complete breakdown of every last penny ever spent on it (as well as a fair bit of mastic residue in the back). I seem to recall I paid £1,500 for it. The one unexpected expense was suspension rubbers, but otherwise it ran as smooth as silk up and down to the coast for 2 years, ladden with windsurfing kit. It's the one vehicle I sold on at a profit, to a fellow windsurfer who liked the way I had racked out the rear for board storage. Those 5-cylinder engines certainly take some beating.

We have recently taken delivery of a shiny new lwb T5 174 bhp, which I hope serves us as well, but having read some of the stories about them on other forums, I have my doubts (still, the stories are nowhere near as bad as the Vito stories you see!).
Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Our honest used car pricing is a little bit different to all the others. You can get to our values through make or model - you don’t have to follow a prescribed route. Plus, it’s live, which means we can react to changes in the market quicker than any printed price guide.

Honest Used Car Prices

From which small car to buy at which price point to the best UK-built cars, our Top 10s have the lot. Click now for your shortlist.

Unsure of what to buy? Our Top 10s are here to help you....