Originally Posted by
Scotty
My daily drive is a VW T5 van - I rationalised a few years back from having both a car and a van (a Fiat Ducato that swallowed stuff like a TARDIS but struggled to return more than 28mpg and didn't get used very often) so I went for a T5 that will do the job of both car and Van. Originally a panel van, it had a Kombi conversion with a pair of easily-removable rear seats and crew cab windows fitted to the door and behind the driver's seat. After the capacious Ducato this one takes a bit of thought to load up with all the stuff necessary for a double trackday at Cadwell. The crew cab windows preclude strapping a bike into the corner behind the bulkhead as handlebar ends and windows are not a good match, so a wheel chock is necessary to stand the bike up and as a result the interior space is not as efficiently used. It drives like a big car, the visibility is fine and it's practical for lugging heaps of stuff (or bikes) around - Two off-roaders, Jerry cans, kit bags and stuff for a forthcoming trip to the Spanish Pyrenees were transported with ease on Sunday. I've owned a van since 2004 and I'd be lost without the versatility and convenience to just chuck a load of stuff or a bike in the back for transport somewhere.
Chicky drives a Peugeot 107 that's an ace town car and is super economical, but it has the carrying capacity of a medium-sized handbag and isn't very comfortable on long journeys.
