Back in action!

[Manfridas]

Ha ha. Too happy with my van to go for such a big spend to get that magic red ‘I’. It’s a remap at some point for me. I’ve read the right map can give 150 performance til around 3000rpm. After that your modified injectors, intercooler and turbo come into play.


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Hi,My previous van was VW Caravelle year 2000 with red i and I remapped it,felt different,more torque,fuel consumption stayed the same,full tank could do 1000km. Sold my Caravelle becouse it had no air con and I wanted at the time a multivan so you can turn the seats in to bed and that was wow to me,and finaly bought T5 multivan,been out canming a few times,been to trip Lithuania-Nice,France-London-Germany-Lithuania. Seat bed was not comfortable so I did some mods to make it as comfortable as possible,added a little kitchen unit with a fridge and few drawers,sink,tap.etc. But now I dream about California. Lithuanians are not into Californias,so I started from the bottom and trying everything,from transporter,caravelle to multivan. Can you tell me why your choice was T4 not T5?

 

[bxl_lad]

I can share our reasons for T4 v T5...
Firstly it was budget, when we were looking, a late T4 (in good condition, low mileage etc) was in the region of 20-25k €, the cheapest T5s circa 2005 were 25k+. So initially we didn't even consider T5, but along the way we did see some of these early T5 models and quite honestly they were falling apart (we only looked at 3 examples and there was always something broken/missing... One was in such a sorry state we came to the conclusion it could only have been stolen/recovered - you couldn't imagine anyone would mistreat their own vehicle like that!)
Secondly (having seen those examples of T5) we considered the T4s to be more robust - ok maybe not as 'stylish' (and of course beauty is in the eye of the beholder!), but they're bulletproof (don't take that literally!) - also we figured a late T4 (that's been through model changes/improvements) will stand the test of time better than a first generation T5...
Thirdly, we simply preferred the look and feel of the T4, just a little more 'retro' than a T5, more reliable than anything older from the VW family - in all honesty I'd love an old T3 or even T2, but I don't have the time to spend or worry about will it breakdown on the next trip. The T4, if maintained well and looked after, should run easily 400-500k (there are many examples of this), the 2.5tdi is a workhorse and probably one of the best engines (before all the electronics were introduced), it'll easily cruise at 110-120kmph and the fuel economy is not that bad...
Other than our very brief experience of T5s I can't comment further on them...
So i guess it comes down to personal taste and budget primarily. I'm not knocking the T5, we just felt for our budget we got more of what we were looking for in the the T4...

 

[Manfridas]

I can share our reasons for T4 v T5...
Firstly it was budget, when we were looking, a late T4 (in good condition, low mileage etc) was in the region of 20-25k €, the cheapest T5s circa 2005 were 25k+. So initially we didn't even consider T5, but along the way we did see some of these early T5 models and quite honestly they were falling apart (we only looked at 3 examples and there was always something broken/missing... One was in such a sorry state we came to the conclusion it could only have been stolen/recovered - you couldn't imagine anyone would mistreat their own vehicle like that!)
Secondly (having seen those examples of T5) we considered the T4s to be more robust - ok maybe not as 'stylish' (and of course beauty is in the eye of the beholder!), but they're bulletproof (don't take that literally!) - also we figured a late T4 (that's been through model changes/improvements) will stand the test of time better than a first generation T5...
Thirdly, we simply preferred the look and feel of the T4, just a little more 'retro' than a T5, more reliable than anything older from the VW family - in all honesty I'd love an old T3 or even T2, but I don't have the time to spend or worry about will it breakdown on the next trip. The T4, if maintained well and looked after, should run easily 400-500k (there are many examples of this), the 2.5tdi is a workhorse and probably one of the best engines (before all the electronics were introduced), it'll easily cruise at 110-120kmph and the fuel economy is not that bad...
Other than our very brief experience of T5s I can't comment further on them...
So i guess it comes down to personal taste and budget primarily. I'm not knocking the T5, we just felt for our budget we got more of what we were looking for in the the T4...

Can I ask you when did you buy it and where from? And what milage was your T4 when bought it? And got to say I totally agree with you,latest models are best to buy as they went through all the problems in early years.

And how about the emotion,did you come across that you can’t go in some cities because you don’t reach at least euro 4?

 

[bxl_lad]

Can I ask you when did you buy it and where from? And what milage was your T4 when bought it? And got to say I totally agree with you,latest models are best to buy as they went through all the problems in early years.

And how about the emotion,did you come across that you can’t go in some cities because you don’t reach at least euro 4?

We bought ours in Germany (we live in Belgium), much more choice there... Had 169km when we got it.

Ours has a DPF fitted and so is eligible for a 'green' badge in Germany (that allows it into major cities with controls), but here in Belgium new rules will mean that a Euro 3 (which a 2001 Diesel is classed) will be excluded from major cities from 2020 - luckily though camper-vans can apply for exemption from this (as they're not usually used as much). I can't tell you what other countries do...

 

[sidepod]

Well said. A great account of the 4.

I’m not sure we ever looked at 5s? We’re well aware of them. Friends have one, my sister has one. I much prefer the style of the 5.

The 5 just feels so flimsy. I have mechanical sympathy in bucket loads so I’d never break a 5 but the 4 just feels solid.

For a similar age, 2003 (T4) versus 2004 (T5) the price delta was just too great for little benefit. Sure it’s a commitment in the UK as LHD isn’t everyone’s cuppa but it felt right.
We found a peach and snapped it up.
If my sister offered me her T5 180 Cali tomorrow I’m not sure how I’d vote?