With the meticulous research and successful implementation of Baldrick's cunning plans, I am once again seeking the advice of my esteemed FCCUK colleagues as I look for another vehicle.

The brief:

I've just been offered a job involving a 25-mile country B-road round trip daily commute. The coupé would be ideal, apart from being a) expensive to run, b) possibly not top of the reliability league (though no complaints so far - apart from the master cylinder. Oh, and the relays, etc...) and c) I've already done almost half of my precious 7,500 miles for this year after 3 months.

So, I need a reliable, inexpensive, small, diesel hatchback, right?

Wrong!

I need a vehicle that can

- carry at least 4 full-grown adults in reasonable comfort
- take enough camping equipment/food/wine/spare clothes for said occupants to go to, say Goodwood, for a 4-day trip
- when required, sleep 2 adults in the back and, finally,
- serve as a van big enough to haul around a sofa or shed-loads of MrsC's art.

NB: I'm 6'1" and I can't sleep unless I'm pretty much lying flat, so that gives an idea of the size I'm after (Zafiras need not apply).

Obviously, it also needs to be relatively reliable and not ruinously expensive to run (by which I mean it'll probably be diesel, rather than petrol).

The fun part? Well, the budget, naturally.

£2,000 tops.

My favourite contenders are:

Chrysler Grand Voyager Limited (or Limited XS) 4th generation
With Stow & Go seats. LPG could be a curveball. Struggling to get much within my budget that hasn't been to the moon and back several times.
I know these are seen as Beelzebub on wheels, but they tick many boxes, even if they are either guzzling fuel or broken down.

Fiat Ulysse 2.2JTD Prestigio or Eleganza (with leather)
Not as cavernous as the Chrysler (I can't find a figure for load-bay length, but I bet it's under my height) and without the trick foldaway seats, but cheaper to buy, cheaper to run, probably more reliable and a bit nicer than its Citroen/Peugeot stablemates. I believe bezzer might have something to say on this one?

Kia Sedona 2.9 CRDi (Whatever, with leather and gizmos)
To our amazement and (obviously) shame, we loved our Sedona; it hated us. The high-pressure fuel pump/injector issue that killed ours is still a risk (and, at a cost of at least £490 plus fitting for just the pump, I'd want to know it had been done before I took a risk on another). Pity, because otherwise, it's exactly the combination of cheap and practical I'm looking for.

Outsiders:

- Mazda Bongo: always wanted one, but not in price range and questionable reliability at the cheap end of the scale)
- Nissan Elgrand: how can you NOT want an MPV with the engine from the 350Z? Too expensive and possibly a tad heavy on the juice. See also: Chevy Astro, etc.
- Ford/VW/Seat Galashambra: Plentiful, but not as big or cheap to buy as the Ulysse
- Mitsubishi Delica: I like a bit of banter, but I'm not completely insane


What does the panel think?

Views on the contenders, or suggestions for other vehicles, if you please...

Renault Espace ....

It would be the Grand Espace if any; I've heard good and bad - but not many around for the ludicrously low amount I have to spend...

You'd be better of heading on down to a BCA auction with that money Jim and hope something nice comes through. After all, it's what most dealers do for the forecourt cars....

My friend had a GEspace. It was really good, roomy, comfortable, nice driving diesel and was reliable too. He sold it with 110,000 on it and all was okay

Not a bad plan, Patch. I used to buy quite a few cars at auction in France.

FTFY, Jim - one of the words was in the wrong place

Are you at risk of doing what I nearly did when considering the Merc R Class - letting the occasional need way override the daily need?

What about a Mondeo Estate? And sleep in a tent. Or borrow the E Class.

Even more left-field - Merc A Class LWB - stupidly big load-carrying capacity with all but the driver's seat removed but a great day-to-day vehicle. I bet you could even sleep on the totally flat passenger side with the passenger seat stacked on the driver's seat or outside.

I hired a A Class in Kos last year. It was pretty fun to drive actually!

With all of the seats taken out, it's not bad. My outlaws had our old one for years and, apart from suspension bushes (front ARB mostly) it has been very reliable. At least until someone crashed into it and the fire brigade cut the roof off to get MIL out.

Dunno if the B Class is similar but bigger

Good points, although I should draw the panel's attention to an awesome Mondeo estate I bought from an auction in France!

But I really do need 4 (and admittedly very occasionally up to) proper big seats and load-carrying.

More leg room in the back of an A Class than an E Class

I must say Jim, your OP choice list is sh*te ahahahaha

Here's the figures for the van it's derived from Jim.

I had a turbo diesel one in the late 90's and it was totally reliable from new to 90odd thousand miles when it's contract was up. Never broke down once.

Bongo bongo bongo bongo bongo.

So there. Yes, I am biased.

It was designed to be slept in. Is an 8 seater. They are very comfy.

Reliability wise, they are good. The main concern is overheating, due to a failed coolant pipe, but that can be easily prevented. Huge support (and parts) network via the bongo forums. East to work on too.

The only downside I can see, is that they are expensive to run. Diesel up to 30mpg on a run. Petrols about the same, but you can convert the petrols to lpg.

If you got it properly converted to a camper, you could actually make a profit from selling it on.

Presumably, then, you've seen the brief and the budget? What do you suggest instead?

Gripped - we've talked Bongos before and I'm a fan. But I can't find much for my budget...

Surely worth finding an additional £500 for such a beautiful machine...

http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/331792198222

The ad has ended, but I have reason to believe it's still for sale elsewhere.

Yeah, I know sorry Jim. You can pick them up for under £2k, but you might be better spending a little more for better nick.

I'm not sure I can think of another vehicle which meets your brief for under £2k unless you accept it might be a bit rough round the edges. With Bongos, they ALWAYS go first at the rear wheel arches, but many have them replaced such is the love of the vehicle. I've been patching ours up, and she's still going strong.

Off to Northumberland in the summer ! Oh, and we tow with it, it has a tow bar bike rack too. Takes lots of logs for the wood burner. And I commute to work in it. The pop up roof is awesome too.

OR

A wildcard, how about a large estate car? They are long enough to kip in. Volvo..... Old Audi A6 Avant....

They also have the bonus of having low drag and frugal engines, so are cheaper to run than house brick shaped MPVs.

Loads for the budget:

Volvo V70 D5
Saab Vector / sportwagon
Audi A6 Avant

Then sleep in a tent........... or tow a caravan...

Jim, I'm only messing mate. I'd definitely go auction hunting, you'll find more for the money there...

My apologies, Patch - I was aiming for deadpan, but I think I achieved snappy. Not my intention.

Auctions appeal, but the problem is getting to the right auction at the right time. There only seem to be 2 or 3 vehicles I might be interested in on the entire BCA site...

gripped - I really do like the Bongo (less so the Pontiac - I'd go Elgrand all the way for muscle MPV!), but I just think I'd be looking at such a tired example, it might sour the experience.

Estate cars are definitely a Plan B option, but I really am looking for the van-like format. In fact, if I could get a decent 4-seater Vivaro-sized van for my budget, I'd be very tempted. Vans, perhaps surprisingly, seem more expensive for similar age/condition.

VW Sharan Diesels are around for that money. petrol ones can be had much cheaper There's a lovely 2.8 one with full leather for not much cash
.http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201603232267504?price-to=2000&radius=1500&page=1&searchcontext=default&sort=pricedesc&onesearchad=used%2Cnearlynew%2Cnew&make=volkswagen&model=sharan&postcode=S10%204FL&search-target=usedcars&price-from=500&logcode=p

Jim, as you know we had a Ulysee a few years a go. It was a great MPV for the money. Ours was an ex Addison Lee 'Taxi' that'd had been well used but also well maintained (Serviced every 10k miles).

It was a 2 litre Diesel Eleganza. I believe the diesel engines were PSA ones. It was extremely roomy with the rear seat out and cavernous with the middle row out. Removing the seats was fairly easy but they are blooming heavy.

I bought ours with 80k miles on the clock and eventually sold it 4 years later at 139k. Only costs incurred were tyres (every 15k on the front!) and servicing.

For the money you're looking to spend I'm sure you'd be able to pick up one just above the shitty mark

However, a quick search on AT came up with this one and this one.

Don't forget the Pug 805 and the Citroen C8 are basically the same as the Fiat.

Good luck!

P.S. Congratulations on the new job.

What about a VW transporter. You will certainly get one for your money, although likely to be a higher mileage 1.9tdi rather than the 2.5tdi.

I have Alfa 147 seats in mine. The rear bench seat I fixed to a VW seat base which was a lovely mod for very little money.

I used mine as a daily for 3 years and was absolutely spot on. Drives like a car, feels like an MPV.

I would say come and have a look at mine at goodwood, but that would be too late

Thanks chaps.

n3dsd - that link is to a diesel car, which is also Cat D...!

bezzer - I read your views on your Ulysse - as well as PeteP's; they contributed to it being on my list. From my research, they appear to be better kitted and screwed together than the Pug and Citroen versions as well as a bit cheaper. The review I saw said that the engines were Fiat, but I guess there are several versions. Both the cars you linked to are very much on my radar. Especially liking the blue one...

I'll take a look at Merc A-Class, MRS, but I'm guessing that the old quandary of seats OR load space could be a problem. Also, sleeping on the passenger side would be great for MrsC, but where do I go?!

The idea is not that we would always want to sleep in it - we will generally be loading up with camping gear and kip in the tent. However, there have been more than a few occasions when in a cold, wet and windy paddock at a race weekend when it would be preferable to just stretch out in the back of a dry vehicle!

The job doesn't start until July, so I can keep looking and listening to ideas for a while yet!

sorry ...but there are lots of others...

Absolutely - my main quibble with the (no doubt decent) Galaxy/Sharan/Alhambra is that it isn't quite as big as the Ulysse/Eurovan models. If I'm going to go large, I'd rather go reyt large (as they say in Sheff).

Just sold my 57 plate Merc Vito dualiner for £1500. Mind you, I suspect that was a bargain tbh.

Seats 5, carry everything you need and the rear seats come out for a nice flat load/sleeping deck.

145000 on the clock and still going strong.

I've had 2 and are a fan but, I didn't pay for them or the upkeep.

Not sure you'd find one like that in your budget though.

Damn. That would be exactly what I'd want! I've been eyeing them up on the road, but don't think they are in my budget...