LFGSS Camper Van owners?

I've just discovered there are proposals to extend the ULEZ to London-wide in 2023. Despite consultation I would assume this is a formality? Looks to have scuppered my plans of buying an early 2000s VW Transporter :(

Rented a T5 for the weekend for a birthday camping trip, family fallen in love with the idea of getting one.

Sadly don't have £40k spare! is there anything sensible to buy in the £10 to 15k range currently? Would need to be able to sleep 4 (2 x adults, 2 x young kids). Was looking at early nineties high top autosleepers, but seems crazy to spend £15k on something 30 years old, with 100k miles on the clock, but maybe that is the only option.

I don't have time to do a conversion myself, and also seem to be a real shortage of suitable vans to do so anyway.

Not to put anyone off buying nice things, I’m regularly checking in on this thread and dreaming of my own camper, but when you boil it down, how often would you use one? And when you factor in maintenance, tax, insurance etc, would it be cheaper to rent as needed?

Well living in Devon, I reckon I could use it plenty! but it would probably have to have an aspect of dual purpose, I work from home, so rarely use a car, so it would end up being my main car as well.

What I would really like is a demountable to go on the back of a double cab pickup, but they are really rare over here.

Much like you, I wfh and barely drive,and we only have 1 family car, so I’m also selling it as a second vehicle, but the cost of entry is the major hurdle.

Was really hoping prices would come down once people started taking holidays abroad again, but just doesn't seemed to have happened.

Sods law if I do buy one for what feels like an inflated price, then prices will then crash through the floor!

Mine sits outside Monday-Friday, then gets used Saturday and Sunday, week in/week out to take us mountain biking/me racing.

We're driving it to Morzine for a weeks holiday next week, and a week we've booked in August, and I'll be using it as a base to race the Ard-Rock Enduro late in July, and a few of the further away Southern Enduro races.

I also use it to get the shopping - I think they work well as a family car (not that I have a family).

My BIL got a vw and sold his Volvo and uses VW as only car.
He does have a classic BMW for high days though.

Same for me; I'd love one, but (like my comment above), the incoming ULEZ in London is just the icing on the cake of what seems like a number of cost hurdles to make it even a fairly efficient purchase

Go for a Renault Trafic or Vauxhall vivaro; can get something fully build with poptop and all the fancy bits for £15k.

Unless you want something bigger

We are in a similar boat, I feel they will be cheaper later in the year, fuel is expensive and when out of season there will be a lot less demand and I expect more will be off loaded and subsequently more affordable. (I hope) These things were a fair bit cheaper a few years back from what I recall so the prices are quite inflated (imo).

The most worrying thing I’m finding about these things is the amount of £10k+ campers I have seen for sale that I’ve been interested in have had awful MOT histories, every year they seem to fail on long lists of issues. Can’t help thinking I would be buying a money pit rather than a cheap bit of fun.

Yeah, not sold on VW, so would happily go Renault or Vauxhall, just can't find any!

Yep, feels like there is a lot of panic buying still! I have one friend who spend £30k on one without even seeing it! and then had to spend another couple of grand t orepair some fairly major flaws in the conversion.

Keep looking! Easy enough to get an ex builder van and convert it.

We went from Trafic to a sprinter, do miss the Trafic some daysb

I will actually have to sell mine this time, in August to October. So someone can have a bargain Ducato.

Yeah, i'm not in a mad rush, and I guess with a conversion I can spec my own layout to some degree. Would love bunk beds for the kids, but not sure how that would work with getting a rock n roll bed in too.

Could just use something like these for kids for a good few years

Could be interested depending on timing, did try and find your old gumtree link, but it has died.

might not work for you as only 3 seats and a lwb. you'd need to alter the bed and add a seat.

ah yes, well if I keep struggling I may be willing to make alterations!

Appreciate this isn’t really a camper related question but thought I’d ask here as it involves a van….

I’ve recently bought an old yellow T4 twin slider panel van and I’ve got the chance of a caravelle rear interior.

I’m in Edinburgh and the interior is on south coast…. My problem starting to become apparent?

Just wondering if anyone has used and/or can recommend a courier that’ll uplift lose furniture sized stuff and deliver? For reference there is a single, a double and a triple seat plus a box of belts and fixings.

Where is it?

A place called Battle?

Let me guess: it's gonna cost £1066?

Boom Boom, but yeh, given the current price of fuel that may be an accurate prediction…..

Ah but too Far East for us to help!

There is a company, just can’t think of the name