Hi all,
Thinking about buying a second vehicle. Im pretty certain that i will get a Van to carry all the windsurfing gear around.
Ive got my eye on an older 95ish VW transporter SWB or Toyota Hiace.
My question is, does anyone know if a 240cm board will fit flat in the back of a VW short wheel base van? The current model van has specs that says the cargo dimension of 2335mm. Is this the same for the older models?
Thanks
David
As suggested to me - take your gear down to the place where you are buying the van. If they are serious about selling it, they will let you put the gear inside for a few minutes.
i hear the 2.4L hiaces are pretty much the go with best bang for buck.
i'm also thinking of getting one to so more info would be nice.
I have a toyota hiace LWB and love it. The only comment I will make is that the wheel hubs popping up inside the back waste space. if you can get a 5 door.
If I had endless amounts of money though I would have bought a VW carravelle. Best van ever!!!!!!
I recently bought a SWB 96 Mitsubishi Delica for $10K.
My 245 cm board fits in the back but the nose sticks between the front two seats. I think the LWB model is around 30 cms longer in the back. However I live in the city and it would be much more of a pain parking the longer van.
Delicas are nice vans. Very comfortable inside with lots of mod cons. Having a proper 4WD system gives them a bit of flexibility on camping trips.
A great thing about mine is the window tint. Its a white car with reflective tint. Its very difficult to see inside, even at night. Inside you have great visibility all around.
I am uncertain of VW reliability. I would not say often, but I sometimes see broken down VW vans on the side of the row, two in the last month. I hear VW parts are expensive and difficult to obtain too.
Easy choice for mine, get a Toyota.
I know a few guys that swear by the VW's, but I also know a few people that had the older ones (95 to 98ish) and they got to a certain age and died. And as someone else said they are harder and more expensive to get parts for.
Hiace vans just never stop.
I have a Toyota Hiace long wheel base diesel,and regularly carry 3.1metre (10ft) surfboard in back, have carried 11ft but that needs to lay up on front seat one end.Reliability is fantastic ,spares are easily obtained and there are lots around in wreckers for bits and pieces.I owned several older Kombis over the last 20 years(one was my only vehicle for 18 years) ,they too were very reliable, but parts and people who can carry out VW repairs are less plentiful ,and you don't have the access to vehicles in wreckers with VW that you do with Toyota .The diesel engine is very economical but when a major repair is necessary can be very expensive ,I think best scenario Toyota petrol ,VW only if you have the real desire for a less common van and the extra cash to afford to be different.
I have a 97 VW Transporter SWB and comfortably carry 278 & 281 boards diagonally, but without protruding through to the front seat. Handles really well for a van, but did have some quirky issues that were a bit tricky (although not expensive) to sort out. I have a friend who had similar quirky issues with I think a 95 model. All fixed now though. Certainly quiet and comfortable, quite manoeuvrable for a van, enough stick to get going, tows quite comfortably as well.
I'm currently wondering if I can justify 2 vehicles for one person and am thinking of offloading it and downgrading. Back to the land of roof racks. Big mistake??? Am I sacrificing the windsurfing dream for economy and practicality???
Toyota Hiace SWB can take up to 2.7 m long.
Lower it about 40mm for good stability.
It'll cruise easily up to 140kph (bit thirsty tho)
Chek out ex Telstra at auctions comes with good roof and ladder racks,
(I used ladder racks for making bed frame, board racks, awning etc.
lotsa shelving etc (which I sold for $500)
With false floor over wheel arches gives heaps of storage space also.
hiace 100%, cheap, run for ever even if there out of tune, mine has stopped once, but it was floating down the main road at the time in the newcastle floods, started first go the next day.. and they are everywhere so parts are easy to find..
Want to make sure you get to water before wind dies?
Get one of these vans...http://videos.streetfire.net/video/53a3e56a-adef-4122-b822-99b300d95d08.htm
Trouble and strife didn't want to be seen in a van but allowed the purse strings to be opened for a wagon. I took my board around to dealers and no one blinked when I said "I've just got to see if this fits" Mits. Lancer, Mazda 6, Subaru Outback/Liberty/Forester all fit a 273sm board. I settled on the Outback, just fold down the seats and you're in business. But I still suss out the vans as I drive past them and think how much more gear I could whack in 
Oh the joys of acquiring and fitting out a van, I had and old Bedford with a V8 on straight gas, it was sweet, quick and economical. Suggest a LWB van, heaps of room for trips away.
Vans don't have to be slow either.......Slowboat has/had? an L300 I think but not as fast as one of these...
L300 with stock like wheels and hubcaps 10.83 sec 122mph 1/4mile
Matt Mingay (from the dougnut king/capa burnout crew) used to have a Hiace with a 304 EFI V8 motor out of a VS Commodore in it for burnout comps...that was quick.
And at one stage Robbie Bolger had a rocket powered Hiace, I think it would get pretty hot in that one though, and not a great deal of room left for gear after the rocket was fitted.
The rumour mill said that he's since gotten the engine tuned by some air force guys and it performs a lot better now...
hmm its a tough one, as i live in the uk haha, vw quality is very very good if you can get get a caravelle with a vr6 engine in it your laughing, lwb will get your gear in no problem, the lwb transporter t4 is best really for your gear and the 2.5tdi has enough poke aswell, on the other hand hiace will go and go, drive into the sea unload your gear when the sea goes back out drive it away, blow it up and it will carry on, whatever you decide lwb is the best idea,
hope i helped, any other questions feel free to ask (i know my vans)
matt
i have an ex taxi 97 hiace LWB duel fuel 4 seater, 3 boards,6 sails,masts&accessories+ a queen size mattress, had it for 2 years maintanence free, so keep your eye out youll get it cheep under $1000,there useually in good nic,they have to be inspected every 6 months & the goverment wont let them on the road any longer than 10 years,you will have to have the gas tank checked at a cost of $150 and dont worry about the klms mine has 970,000
i own a little mid wheel base 1998 hiace. i swear by it!! my 240 board fits length ways perfect! has heaps of grunt and pick up... and its true!! vans do awsome burnouts! no weight in back means less friction! have just installed a split level floor. i will post some pics but its definatly the way to go!
all the best, chris
Is that typical of the age and style of cars that are still on the road in New Zealand????????
I love this van.
4x4 pajero underneath on LWB L400 starwagon van.
All the fruit. 2 air cons, electric windows, cruise control, great seats with arm rests.
and you can fit all this in!
You know you want one
BEWARE OF IMPORTS
I work in the spare parts department at a Toyota dealership.Although these imports (mitsi's,nissans and toyota's) look great and have "all the fruit".I would strongly advise against buying one.If you require parts other than an oil or air filter you could have a nice garden ornament for up to 6 months plus a massive repair/parts bill.Also there aren't many mechanics willing to work on them , parts are expensive and hard to source and your resale value is sh1te!!!
BEWARE OF IMPORTS
EDIT.. Toyota WA do sell import parts and the dealer i work for are one of the only ones that sell them... The rest don't bother/refuse to sell parts for them.I can tell you they are(imports) a damn pain in the perverbial..
There are plenty of Delica's on the road now (here in WA) and I have a good mechanic that has not had a problem so far.
Plenty of add on bits too.
Parts
delicaparts.com.au/
Parts and Bling
www.delicashop.com/
www.delicashopwa.com/
More info
www.delicaclub.com/
In regards to Delicas there is a good website clubdelica.com. Its sponsored by delicaparts.
I have a Delica just like the one pictured above. So far no parts needed besides oil filters. From talking to people who own them, they advise there is no problem with parts. At least one Mitsubishi dealer in Sydney deals with Delica parts and is happy to do so. I read on the Delica club site about one Mitsubishi dealer in SA that didn't want to know about Delicas. They were reported to Mitsubishi Motors Australia and repremanded.
I like my Deli, can fit a fair bit of stuff in the back plus have room for two passengers.
