T6.1 Beach Prices

[andyinluton]

It’s got nothing to do with number of owners, just 5 years after the first year. If it was based on owners , you could end up paying extra for up to 10 years depending when you buy it.

This came up previously, it is 5 years of the luxury car tax after the initial first years registration tax.

So buy a brand new van - you pay reg tax in first year & pay the supplement for the following 5 years.

Buy a pre registered van at say 3 months, the dealer has payed the 1st year registration tax, when you come to tax it you pay the supplement for 5 years from that date.

If van first changes owners after it’s a year old you don’t get the shortened period.

If you are really penny pinching you could buy a new van, pay first years tax, SORN it the next day, Tax it again a day later & you will make your supplement run out 362 days early but the important thing is you will still pay 5 years of the supplement.

 

[Kayleigh]

I hadn't realised that about the second owner!

@stoobthealien I have updated my comment above to clarify. If the second owner acquires the vehicle before the end of year 1, that is when the 5 year clock starts, otherwise it starts at the end of year 1.

It’s got nothing to do with number of owners, just 5 years after the first year. If it was based on owners , you could end up paying extra for up to 10 years depending when you buy it.

@scottk If the second owner acquires the vehicle during the first year of registration that is when the 5 years start, so yes the second owner is a factor.

 

[Sam-peter82]

FYI, we bought a 2024 (July registered) Beach Camper with only 9k on the clock from a VW dealership in June 2025 for £53k. It’s pretty base spec (fine for us) and not a 2-tone.
In terms of ‘value’ now there are no 6.1s being produced it depends on the supply/demand to dictate price. Interesting to see what these are actually selling for.

 

[mat_richardson]

I wouldn’t trust the pricing from WBAC or similar for your purchase. They are always low vs retail/private but I would never pay more privately than a dealer (especially VW) as you have zero protection.

Beach 6.1 is a better daily vehicle, more flexibility, better load capacity. If you want the tour also consider no hookup available which might limit your camping but is easy to plan around.

 

[pjm-84]

Agree.....trade price is just that. Its not a private or retail sale price.

 

[Rems23]

That’s the downside to WBAC in a nutshell! People use their price as a benchmark and assume anyone asking more privately is a scam artist trying to be greedy.

 

[Ch1pbutty]

Beach 6.1 is a better daily vehicle, more flexibility, better load capacity. If you want the tour also consider no hookup available which might limit your camping but is easy to plan around.

Roof mounted solar panels will cure that, and keeps the outside side panel nice and clear - no need for an ugly bit of plastic!.

 

[Wannabecamperman]

I was quite surprised to see a brand new beach listed for £56k this morning. A sign that the new beach is not as popular, and that 6.1s should hold their value. But if VW is matching the price of 3 year old second hand beaches with brand new ones… that makes the decision harder… any thoughts?

Auto Trader UK - New and Used Cars For Sale

Find your next car with Auto Trader UK, the official #1 site to buy and sell new and used cars. Over 400,000 cars online. Simple, easy, quick!

www.autotrader.co.uk

Now that is surprising. Personally, The more refined (car like) drive, plus the 5 + promise mean that I'd seriously consider having that. The only nagging doubt would be the substantial difference in length and parking spaces if used as a daily drive, as the new one's engine bay is FAR longer than the T6.1, with an overall length of 5,173mm - that's 3173mm longer than the usual 4.8m parking bay.

Depends on your usage case I guess, but brand new and 5+ warranty / services / MOTs, etc make it a serious consideration in my view.

 

[Wannabecamperman]

*317.3 mm longer - doh!

 

[Kayleigh]

*317.3 mm longer - doh!

So just over a foot. Not that much, but the Cali was already longer than the regular parking bay.

 

[Agnes_Cali]

Now that is surprising. Personally, The more refined (car like) drive, plus the 5 + promise mean that I'd seriously consider having that. The only nagging doubt would be the substantial difference in length and parking spaces if used as a daily drive, as the new one's engine bay is FAR longer than the T6.1, with an overall length of 5,173mm - that's 3173mm longer than the usual 4.8m parking bay.

Depends on your usage case I guess, but brand new and 5+ warranty / services / MOTs, etc make it a serious consideration in my view.

T6.1 fits perfectly in most parking bays if you don't have tow bar or bike carrier. T7 will stick out from some of them. I park frequently at Tesco near airport and can see all the Airport Taxi vans there and how much space they take.

But, when I went to Sainsbury's in Crystal Palace, I had a problem finding outside space, where I could drive in, because of tight space between parking rows and I couldn't drive into covered car park, because there was no height information. I imagine, T7 would be even worse in similar situation.

I use mine as daily, so I experienced a lot of different parking situations.

Last year models of T6.1 had 5y warranty, 5 services free, etc. So getting one from 2024 is not a bad deal.

 

[Sad]

Last year models of T6.1 had 5y warranty, 5 services free, etc. So getting one from 2024 is not a bad deal.

This is exactly what we did

 

[stoobthealien]

Now that is surprising. Personally, The more refined (car like) drive, plus the 5 + promise mean that I'd seriously consider having that. The only nagging doubt would be the substantial difference in length and parking spaces if used as a daily drive, as the new one's engine bay is FAR longer than the T6.1, with an overall length of 5,173mm - that's 3173mm longer than the usual 4.8m parking bay.

Depends on your usage case I guess, but brand new and 5+ warranty / services / MOTs, etc make it a serious consideration in my view.

It's stuck with 5 seats and you have to bring the slide out kitchen with you everywhere you go - that's the downside for our use case - the upsides are as you list them!

 

[WelshGas]

It's stuck with 5 seats and you have to bring the slide out kitchen with you everywhere you go - that's the downside for our use case - the upsides are as you list them!

Without the kitchen DVLA probably would not allow it to be designated a Motor Caravan only MPV and liable for Luxury Car Tax.

 

[stoobthealien]

Without the kitchen DVLA probably would not allow it to be designated a Motor Caravan only MPV and liable for Luxury Car Tax.

Almost certainly - but if you're sinking 50+grand on a car paying a few hundred extra a year in tax isn't a massive consideration...most new "mid market" 7 seater cars such as the newer Skoda Kodiaq are north of £40k now anyway in a middle of the road spec