Hello there - new member - lots of questions!

bytor · Apr 24, 2018

Hi there,
New joiner to the forum. Always been a fan of VW - current own a Mk1 Golf GTI (owned for 24 years!) and many years ago had a 1974 Kombi Westfalia in the US.

Currently doing some research - want to buy a VW Camper again - but looking for something fairly specific.

1. Need 4WD - van will do a lot of offroad. You could argue better to get a Land Rover/Land Cruiser - but not trying to climb Ben Nevis - but needs to be able to go offroad - fire tracks/some river crossing/mud/snow/sand possibly.

2. Manual. Not interested in Auto - could be a long trip and I'm old school - thought of an auto box sends me to sleep. Annoyingly seems that the most powerful of the T5 and T5 models only automatic - happy to stand corrected on that one!

3. Suspension. Done some research on the interweb and a company in Germany "MultKamper" seem to offer a more robust suspension setup - anyone used them? Know of them?

4. Any companies in the UK that specialise in fitting out camper for more robust travel - under floor protection/extra fuel/water tanks etc.

5. Reliability. Need something reliable - going to off grid at times miles from garage - what are thoughts on reliability of T4/T5/T6. T6 is newer - but T4 has I would suspect less electrical stuff to go wrong. Any tips would be appreciated!

Oh - one last thing - cant seems to access any of the download items - any thoughts on that?

Thanks again!

Cheers!

Skewif · Apr 25, 2018

1. 4motion + diff lock is great.
2. DSG not the best for extreme off road but sooooo relaxing the other 97% of the time.
3. Seikel suspension the best.
4. Rival skid plates + Sekel rock slider bars = the biz.
5. Newer the better.
6. IMO

Ryemslie · Apr 25, 2018

Have a look at..

https://m.facebook.com/T5upgrades/?ref=content_filter

He owns a t5 upgraded for off-roading. Does seikle etc

Meoncoast · Apr 25, 2018

bytor said:
Oh - one last thing - cant seems to access any of the download items - any thoughts on that?

VIP membership required

Sad · Apr 25, 2018

You appear to have posted the same thread twice?

CarrieCali · Apr 25, 2018

Welcome! I can answer one question, and have a question in return...

Q6 - You'll need to buy a VIP subscription to the forum, which is £12.99pa, in order to access the downloads section (and other perks).

And my question... what on earth are you planning and where?! It sounds a proper adventure!

Velma's Dad · Apr 25, 2018

bytor said:
Annoyingly seems that the most powerful of the T5 and T5 models only automatic - happy to stand corrected on that one!

Not correct. Manual was certainly available on the larger engine, the 180, on the T5 Cali (that's what we have). However you'll find a large proportion of T5s do have 'auto' - it's DSG actually - as it's a very popular option.

Welcome to the forum by the way.