Any advice on either diesel or petrol welcome please. Looking at 2 berth models.
saxman99,
Feb 25, 2:21am
I've owned both, a 2.0 petrol Ford 1994 and a merc 2.2 diesel 2001.
While the diesel is a bit newer, there is no comparison. The diesel goes better, has more power and bags of torque, uses far less fuel and is cheaper to run by miles. The only downside is the higher rego (soon to drop? ) and those PITA rucs.
tamarillo,
Feb 25, 2:37am
Diesel. Less revs and horsepower, but more torque which is the power to pull weight which is exactly what it needs. Petrol costs lots when asked to pull weight, and you don't tend to want sporty revs and speed in a motor home. Motor home use tends to be longer trips and less short haul stop start, and again that's what diesel does best.
mrfxit,
Feb 25, 5:43am
Agree with both above posters. 1 catch is you NEED to learn where the best torque /rev & gear range combo is on a diesel to get the best performance from it.
john7891,
Feb 25, 7:10am
I have a small 2lt turbo diesel which is excellent around town -like the extra torque you get with diesel. Doubt I'll go back to petrol. Brother in law in Sydney has a diesel Mazda 6 and is of the same opinion.
tintop,
Feb 25, 7:34am
We have a 2001 Merc as well. 2.2 turbo.
Goes well enough, I couldn't imagine a petrol engine relaxing along the highway like the Diesel does.
intrade,
Feb 25, 7:37am
if its large enough that it needs a hubometer you might as well use diesel only below 3.5 ton petrol would be a option.
Definitely Diesel, but just as important is to go for a Common Rail Diesel. Also, nothing Japanese and not a Ford Transit. So generally Fiat/Mercedes/VW/Citroen are the ones to go for.
What's your budget?
midgetmum,
Feb 25, 9:26am
Looking at around $20,000 so that probably only leaves japanese and ford transits. What is the problem with those?
saxman99,
Feb 25, 9:46am
If you can stretch just a little further you can get a Merc Sprinter in your price range. Great van but do your research and due diligence to choose the right one.
jerichord,
Feb 25, 7:13pm
go for a jap, if you have problems with a continental the price of parts will shock you, been there done that
intrade,
Feb 25, 7:20pm
yea like a mazda timing belt tensioner for 200$ huh?
kazbanz,
Feb 25, 7:44pm
IMO if you can get a decent diesel then the positives outweigh the negatives. My mum and dad had a diesel Hiiace camper and were happy plodding along at 90km/h in it. Their new camper does 100km/h easily but uses about 25% more $$$ worth of fuel to get there
tamarillo,
May 28, 9:14am
Why not transit? Mate out in motueka rents them out and buys good second hand ones and swears by transits happily buying them with 2-300,000 km before he even start renting them.
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