vauxhall vivaro van - 1.9 tdi 2004

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Wed 9 May 2012 13:09
vauxhall vivaro van - 1.9 tdi 2004 - spring

Assume I'm a bit dopey - last time I saw inside an engine and understood it was a 1952 197cc 2 strke Ambassador. So I'm depending on you bright lads. Have bought 2004 van for daughter for camping after much study of web sites. Looks good in respect of usage (95K) condition, service history, ownership (1) . Why didn't I leave it at that. I read the car by car breakdown and now expect the water pump to sieze, ripping up the cambelt (replaced as part of purchase) and destroying the engine. Am I being unduly pessimistic, are there warning signs and what preventative action should we take.

(PS as an aside I hope it's pessimism - after all I drive a 2004 Peugeot 1.6 - I can here you hissing- and it's been as good as gold for 7 years Cheers and thankz in advance for any warming words. Colin S

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Wed 9 May 2012 16:25
vauxhall vivaro van - 1.9 tdi 2004 - Peter.N.

As long as the cam belt has been changed at the correct mileage and the oil has been changed regularly, preferably at less mileage than recommended you will have done all you can, you then just take your chances like the rest of us.

I wouldn't rubbish Peugeots, they make the best diesel engines of the lot, I have been running Citroen's, which give the best ride, and Peugeots which don't but are more reliable, for 25 years.

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Thu 10 May 2012 19:17
vauxhall vivaro van - 1.9 tdi 2004 - hardway

Mostly I find these beasts eat their wiring harness,they rub on engine parts and wear through to short out,usually giving very odd fault code combinantions.

Aside from that I litke them!

Open the door and I can throw my big ass right in,pretty good for someone with a shot back!!

Gone are the days of lusting after exotics,If I can get into them usually I can't get out!

Give me big doors every time.

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Wed 6 Jun 2012 19:27
vauxhall vivaro van - 1.9 tdi 2004 - JP.C

Would be really interested to hear (as a vivaro/van novice in the same situation right now!) what tips you've got when looking over these vans as I'm also looking for a sub 100k model for about £3k but fearful of the gearbox horror stories I've read so far! Not sure what to expect from an engine that's done close to 100k even if it has been well serviced. James

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