Don't these vans drive you nuts?

[Ralf85]

So, with carb and fuel pump problems plaguing me over the past few months and sorted them, I felt like problems solved.

I gave the van a thorough clean and polish last weekend. As I cleaned the wheels there staring at me was a shock. The outside of the offside rear trailing arm had cracked open with rust where it is bolted on. So, I've ordered a replacement trailing arm plus new bolts, washers and nylock nuts from Brickwerks, to fix the problem.

Without my own garage and a lack of technical skill the van has cost me about £1300 in parts and labour this Summer so far. I need to take it away for a trip either here or to France next week to enjoy some camping to cheer myself up!

[Swebby]

Having spent a grand on my van since May I understand. However, a lot was due to the fact previous owners hadn't dealt with mechanical issues (thankfully bodywork is good).
Then I have my 2013 CMAX and that cost me nearly £500 at last service and it is 26 years younger!

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[Oldiebut goodie]

Yes! Checking the brakes over before the MoT yesterday - one rear cylinder weeping. Usual can of worms, none of the unions want to come apart. Quick check is turning into major overhaul.
Might as well put new drums on now as one drum had a shoe stick and has distorted slightly.

[weimarbus]

The clutch slave cylinder on ours needed bleeding whilst on holiday because air was getting in, I have just replaced it, and the pedal now vibrates at certain revs ( like Mongolian throat singing) so it looks like a gearbox out job after the next trip. Still at least it will give me something to do.

[Oldiebut goodie]

Doesn't anyone sleep around here?
( Back to bed again in a minute )

[Titus A Duxass]

Usual can of worms, none of the unions want to come apart. Quick check is turning into major overhaul.

I know this one very well, I only had to replace the flexi lines, ended having to renew most of the hard brake lines because the unions would not separate!

[weimarbus]

Doesn't anyone sleep around here?
( Back to bed again in a minute )

just back from walking the dogs, but we do sleep, just go to be bed unreasonably (unsociably) early

[Oldiebut goodie]

Result of cylinder weeping:

[300CE]

They certainly do drive you nuts - I’ve come to the conclusion that one you sort one thing something else needs doing or something crops up that now needs doing immediately.

That’s why we love em’, we’d be bored and better off otherwise

[Sir Brixalot]

Spent over 3k in the last year. More problems today, I'm done with it now. Once it's repaired it's going-definitely! . Had loads of 80s vehicles - this has had the most problems by far. I am sick to the back teeth of emptying the boot

[Smcknighty]

Don’t say that! Mine has spent most of the last four years on the drive whilst I made a bad job of repairing it. I still look forward to using it again though.


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[Sir Brixalot]

I wouldn't mind if I felt I was moving forward but it's the gearbox again. Wish I'd never taken it near Harry Harpics - only went in for a seal. I saw on Facebook that they send their own Gearboxes to Aiden but were happy to "feck" mine up

[ajsimmo]

Aidan doesn't do autos.
Or manuals, at least for a while.

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[ajsimmo]

I reckon there are lemons in every marquee, mostly due to years of PO neglect or abuse.
From my own experience of the several T3 owned and run over the last decade, the answer would definitely be "No, they are wonderfully reliable". You'll always get the odd thing break. Meh. Now I know you'll probably all say "It's alright for you, with your garage full of spares", but the truth is I hardly ever need any! They just work. Eg My pickup is a 2.1 auto on LPG, and my main vehicle. For several years now I turn the key and go. The usual stuff - tyres, battery, oil change, top up gearbox or coolant now and then, maybe pop a different engine in, but that's all. Noddy the camper needed a gearbox once, and the wife's early diesel tintop had a bit of a trailing arm issue, but compared to running a modern car (huge depreciation, no soul) I'll take the 30+ year old T3 any day!

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[Sir Brixalot]

I reckon mine's one of those lemons

Four or five engines
2 automatic gearboxes may need a third as just gone wrong again
Rear trailing arms
every rubber coolant pipe due to pressure problems or leaks
rebuilt carb twice
rebuilt alternator
Rebuilt starter motor
2 Fuel pumps
shocks all round
front wheel bearings
welding rear quarters
a few cv joints
most of the bushes including both trailing arms
snapped accelerator cables twice once overtaking in France and once on M3 briefly shutting it whilst I got towed off by police
calipers
coil
repair blos broken by AA or RAC
lots of ignition switches and other switches and sensors
ignition amplifier
all switches/sensors
LPG problems,
wiring problems
several £100 batteries killed by alternator problems

many random failures to start after switching fuels, always seems to be when I really need to get somewhere.


it's only failed MOT once - for a registration plate bulb but broken down on M1, M2, m3 twice, M4, M11 twice, A2 , A303 twice in France plus many other times up and down the country. Broken down on my son's birthday three times by the time he was nine. Low loaded more times than I can recall. The costs had dropped recently as I was doing as much as possible myself but automatic gearboxes are beyond me.

Thought I'd never give up on it but I/m done now. It had been running really well, almost silent when idling and cruising smoothly and I thought I'd finally be able to do the upholstery but the new gearbox problem is the final straw. Cost me too much and no one seems to know how to repair them properly. Once it's repaired I'm selling and hope the next owner is one of the lucky few to get a properly sorted van.

I still want an 80s/90s vehicle but need to find something more reliable. Doesn't need to be a camper as I carry a tent now. Been looking at old 7 series and varieties of bigger 4x4 cars, Surfs Shoguns Delicas etc