Trophy owners opinion

Hi

There is a A/S Trophy nearby where I live .    Are there any Trophy owners on the Forum who could comment on this model.


Andy

I'm not an owner, but I've looked at a couple of Trophies with interest - I think that for the size it is a fantastic compact van. Bilbos in South Godstone had an immaculate one in stock when I was last there and I was actually tempted by it...

Obviously there's a lot packed into a small space so you're not going to have a lot of free space to move about in, but that's to be expected. You also have a slightly more involved bed-putting-down process than the rock'n'roll setup that I eventually went for, but there are pros and cons with that.

If you get as far as having one inspected with a view to purchase, get them to take a close look at the understructure for the "pod" at the back - IIRC we have had a report here of someone finding excessive corrosion there, and I guess that would be very expensive to fix if it had gone too far...

[Edit: Apologies, I'm getting model confusion - the van I looked at in Bilbos was a Topaz - more recent than the Trophy and slightly smaller, but the layout is almost exactly the same.]

When we bought the Symphony, we also looked at a Topaz and Andrew Cooper at Spinney told us that if we bought the Topaz we would be back within 6 months to change it as the beds were narrower than the Symphony (the whole van is narrower) and looking at my racing-snake physique he knew I wouldn't like it. So a lot depends on your figure Andy.

Trophy owner since last April. I have a 1994 2.4 Diesel. I think bang for buck it is a great Van. I have and do use it as a daily driver, fits in normal parking spaces, which is fantastic when away in Europe as there is practically nowhere you cannot go. Drives and Handles very well almost car like. MPG is really good, it is cheap to maintain and there is not much you cannot fix or replace yourself. I think the 2.4D is the engine to go for, slow's down a bit going uphill's though, can see why they added a turbo in later models, plenty of torque though. Making the bed is not that bad, you get use to it. You are a bit limited for storage in the van especially if you want to bring a awning and camping chairs, however due to the size of the van the practicality makes up for that I think. Check that the fridge works as it is about 500-600 quid for a new one, something I am about to fork out for.

I had seriously contemplated buying a bigger camper as I wanted more storage, in the end I could not find anything for the same price that was as feature rich whilst having not much more of a footprint than an estate car.

I recently drove from Saint Malo to the Netherlands, down to Tuscany and back up to Saint Malo via France. About 2000+ miles, it never let me down, cost me very little in fuel, very happy with it.

Things that I complain about are
You cannot fit a roof rack or use the roof to mount storage as it was not intended to be weight bearing.
On the SWB T4 Trophy you cannot fit a standard T4 tow bar you have to get one made.
At motorway speeds the cabin is pretty noisy compared to newer vans.

I often wild camp and as standard setup I can last about 4 - 5 Days before running out of water and battery power. That is being conservative with the water as well. The shower is surprisingly good actually, the water gets very hot and you have enough to get a decent wash.  

Upgrades the Van is going to be having that I feel are needed;
Another Domestic battery and fit a solar panel - After charging smart phones and laptops the standard domestic battery will run low quickly and then you wont be able to run the fridge or light the hot water tank, found that out the hard way.
Custom made tow bar and rear luggage box
The standard headlights are not great, going to see what I can do to improve that.

Happy to answer any questions you may have.

Hi Gents

Thank you for your comments.

The criteria I was looking for 1.  VW chassis  2.   Toilet  3.     Single beds for access to toilet at night. (age thing) 4.  Diesel 5.  Good condition and servicing proof.  


The one I'm going to view tomorow is fairly high mileage 90k and a 1994 model.  I understand they only made this model for about a year.  Not many extras, and asking £9000

So we shall see.


Andy 

The first van I looked at was a 1995 Trophy, rusty as anything, would have cost £1000`s even if it could be done and that was the rust I could see, so my advice is check very thoroughly otherwise could be costly, Topaz are great vans, like Trophy`s beds aren`t comfortable and narrow, loo area great .

I changed mine for a Clubman, still used in place of a car, and fits in car parking places.

Good luck with what ever you decide.

andygump wrote:The criteria I was looking for 1.  VW chassis  2.   Toilet  3.     Single beds for access to toilet at night. (age thing) 4.  Diesel 5.  Good condition and servicing proof. 

I see you are in the SE so I will throw a precaution in here. Don't forget the London LEZ area is a lot larger than the congestion charge zone. I live on the A22 (within the M25) and the close opposite us where I might have to turn the van is within the LEZ zone. Which could get me a heffty fine had I not gone for a 2003 diesel (Transit) van.

Obviously if you never go inside the M25 you are safe but just in case......

We owned a very early Trophy based on the short wheelbase T4. At that time there was no long wheelbase Transporter and, in order to get sufficient length for beds and a washroom, AS developed the rear extension. An additional advantage was in keeping the very good turning circle. At that time it was the only vehicle with full habitation facilities on the VW Transporter. It worked well for two occupants.
The major disadvantage was the lack of storage as the framework for the pod occupies a great deal of space in the upper lockers. They also put the habitation battery in the middle of the cupboard below the cooker (which I moved to the engine compartment).
The Topaz is the later development of the Trophy layout which occurred as soon as the long wheelbase was available. We never had cause for concern with the automatic  VW T4. It served us well for four years.

I have owned my Betty for just over two years.  Yes, storage is a bit tight but this encourages less clutter!  I changed the Campingaz to red gas as I found the campingaz expensive and used up quickly.  

You are looking at an older van with possible age related issues so give it a good check over for ease of mind.  I had to get wheel arches sorted and where the roof joins the van for rust but MOT-wise, no real problems.

Betty is a 2.4 diesel with good fuel economy and car-like dimensions meant that getting rid of my 20mpg petrol car was a no brainer (but slight curse on the height restriction in a few car parks).

Bed a bit more fiddly than a rock and roll and a bit narrow as single beds but when I camp alone I cheat and save myself a lot of work!

I like to describe Betty as having everything except space :) I very content and am not looking for anything bigger or newer.