Buying a trident!

Hi I'm so thankful I have found this site!
I have been looking to buy a VW Autosleeper Trident for a couple of years now and finally my time has come - I am so excited to finally be getting what I class as my road to freedom!
I have been today to look at Tridents which I prefer over a Topaz and am eager to find more info on them - ie different engine sizes and what I price I should be paying - I have tried looking in VW mags and on line but to no avail!! Where can I find this info?
I would like one about 10-13 years olds - have round about 10-14k to spend
What should I be expecting?
I've been driving my dad mad - he is off on a cruise in 4 weeks and would love to at least know what I should be looking for!!
Should I buy trade or private? What are the weak spots?
Sorry for all the questions no-one else to ask!!
many thanks Caroline x

Firstly welcome to the forum

Just had a quick look on Ebay to get an idea of prices for Tridents and found this one, 15 years old for £10,500 and not too far from you, in Ellesmere Port
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

and this one at £16,250 and 13 years old
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

so with your budget I think you should find something.

As for private or dealer, that depends on how confident you are at knowing what to look for. I have just noticed that Spinney, your nearest dealer, has this Trident, 13 years old and £16750 which without a part-ex I am sure you could get for £15000 or even less if you are a good haggler.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Good luck with your search.

Caroline,

Welcome to the forum,

I see you are already in Paul's capable hands .... If you see what I mean

Brian (& Chris)

Thank you so much for that Paul-

Strangely enough just been over to Spinneys and test drove that Trident 2.5TDi which is £16,950. - when put foot down a blue smoke came out the back which to me indicates oil - would that be right - we questioned it with dealer who said it was diesel smoke as it had been standing - ??? My dad wondered about seal on piston??? Any ideas?

They came down to £15,600 just from me asking - so sure if I pushed would come down lower - 3 previous owners but a abit shabby interior - would that price be about right for age 1999 84,000 miles?

Can anyone tell me what year 2.5 TDi was introduced as that's what I'm going to go for

Thank you so much for your support - really appreciated hopefully will be able to post a pic of new van soon!!

Hi Caroline,
My son recently bought a Volkswagen T5 from a small converter this was fitted with the 1.9 engine which had been remapped and goes really well there are many people who will remap diesels for extra power this takes about an hour with prices between £200 and £500 in my experience this is a good option rather than considering only the 2.5.
See other recent posts on this forum about remapping sometimes incorectly refered to as rechipping.

Brian2

Hi caroline70

Welcome to the forum

PB

caroline70 wrote:. - when put foot down a blue smoke came out the back which to me indicates oil - would that be right - we questioned it with dealer who said it was diesel smoke as it had been standing - ???
They came down to £15,600 just from me asking - so sure if I pushed would come down lower - would that price be about right for age 1999 84,000 miles?

Diesels that have stood a while will smoke on start-up but this should clear quickly and not be evident once warmed up. That mileage is a tad on the high side for a motorhome but that size is often used as sole vehicle so may be higher than other motorhomes and may account for the shabbiness. We had £1500 knocked off straight away with the ''sign today and we'll knock off £1500'' which I expect is offered any day so I'm sure you could haggle some more off.
Don't know if you've considered anything other than a VW but this Montana (petrol though) has similar spec..
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Another Trident for you in Manchester .. [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

and another but petrol and a bit older but cheaper.. [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

and another, long way away but a dealer with an excellent reputation.... [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Another came on Ebay yesterday, in Oswestry, M reg 96k miles..

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

also a Topaz if you want all mod cons...

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Thank you all so much - some food for thought there, am going to view a couple of those ones listed.
Many thanks x

Good luck with your search. A few thoughts from my own experience:
*Tatty ones are best steered clear of unless super-cheap. Most of these have been well cared for by mature, fastidious owners and should come with piles of history and receipts. Clean older ones are out there.
*Consider petrol if it's not going to be a daily driver. They are cheaper to buy and mechanically simpler. You'll get 25mpg if you don't drive it hard and they pull well.
*Rust crops up around the windscreen and on the arches but is generally pretty straightforward to fix.
*Get the seller to show you everything working. I didn't and ended up paying £200 for a new fresh water tank and a quality leisure battery among other things. A replacement fridge, for example, would cost £££s.
*It's not as much of a seller's market as it was a couple of years back but summer remains the worst time to buy. Hang on until winter and you could save a lot of money. I paid cash two weeks before Christmas and got almost £2k off the (admittedly ambitious) asking price of my 1994 2.0 petrol.
*There are other converters with T4-derived models to consider and also some superb quality aftermarket jobs that are worth a look. This site is brilliant for all Auto-Sleeper related info, but for more general VW-flavoured help you can't beat [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Hi Caroline,

Welcome to the forum!

Other things to consider in my experience based on my van (Trident 2.4 diesel):-

Full service history
Cambelt change - need every 40k miles or 4 years. Mine done for a third time since new, last year.

If a vehicle has done 80-90K see if the fuel pump has been refurbished, it may be coming up. Mine was done last year at 85k miles, cost £750
Check the fridge works on all three way options.
Ditto the heating system
The fiamma awning needs checking that all works OK, these cost £400-£500 if needed to be replaced.
Make sure the battery charger works if it has an on board one.
Ditto the sink water pump & the on board waste & fresh water tanks are OK & the draining cocks open OK.
Check that all the dash board dials work. The temp gauge & fuel gauge can fail, but there is a DIY fix which I did on mine a month ago.

Have fun, Ian.

Mods please delete, double post sorry!

The older 2.4 d is mechanically simple too

Thank you for those pointers what to look for really useful - bought a Morris 1000 some years back and think the experience of that is still weighing heavy on my dads mind!!!!

Hi Caroline, and welcome.

If you are worried about the mechanics of the vehicle you could always get the AA or RAC to have a look at it, there are others who do inspections too.

They cost of course, but its not as much as repairs could be!

Checking the habitation should be fairly simple, just switch it on if it works the chances are it will be Ok, but for the vehicle that is another story.

If you but from a dealer, there should be some sort of warranty ( often not worth the paper it is printed on,) but you should find out what is covered.

Stuart

Thank you - I'm going to see one that was posted above in Manchester tomorrow - I've done a basic dvla mot check as its only done 54,000 miles M reg so wanted to check mileage on mot years looks ok.

My dad thinks as I'm going to have van for everyday use I should really be looking at a tdi for power - this is a 2.5 but not tdi - will I feel much of a difference? Will I find this sluggish?

Many thanks x

Ps - will definitely get someone out to do a check think its a really good idea x

Hi Caroline,

Mine is a petrol Renault, so I do not really know about 2.5 V Tdi, but what I would say is the older the vehicle the more sluggish they are.

I use mine every day instead of a car, and although I enjoy the Camper Van for the facilities it offers me when away from home it is a very different drive to the car. You have to get used to it being slower and allow your self more time for the trip. I have to think before I try and overtake, but in a traffic jam I can make a cup of coffee.

The thing with camper vans is that you are carrying more weight all the time than just the normal van, so logic would also dictate that it would be slower than a like for like van. I suppose the theory is that camper vans are built for enjoyment, normal vans are built for work.

Just a thought does the one you are looking at have powered steering, it does make a big difference when trying to park!

Stuart

Caroline,

Welcome to the AS Forum!

Not sure whether you said whether you were going to be the sole occupant in a Trident? When we entered the world of Autosleepers back in 1995 we were torn between a 2.5d VW Trident and a Boxer Harmony. I loved the five cylinder Diesel in the VW compared with the 2.0 litre petrol in the Boxer and it was a close run thing but we went for the latter, the main issue being that the Harmony was that bit larger and, critically, it had a washroom. Every time I sit in the aforementioned I think how close we came to making a huge mistake: that little room makes all the difference to us. If you want to stick to VW then for us the Topaz would be the absolute minimum, but then you may not have the same priorities as us.

Take your time and don't rush the decision.


Bartfarst

caroline70 wrote:My dad thinks as I'm going to have van for everyday use I should really be looking at a tdi for power - this is a 2.5 but not tdi - will I feel much of a difference? Will I find this sluggish?

Good point from your Dad & a non tdi van compared to a car yes will feel sluggish - but you will get used to it.

As mentioned previously, mine is the 2.4L 84HP diesel engined van, I don't find it a problem the "lack" of power, but quite relaxing to drive.

The road is always clear in front of me & I do not look behind .....

It keeps up with other traffic & it easily does 30 in a 30mph zone, 40 in a 40, 50 in a 50 & yep 70 in a 70.

Going up hill it slows down, but keeps up with HGVs & over taking is a no no, usually.

But I did over take an Aston Martin on the motorway the other day when I was doing 80mph.

Thank you so much to everyone for all your support - I have just purchased a great Trident 2.5 - 1994 - it was immaculate inside and only sight signs of rust around windscreen and wheel arches which is to be expected for age- all Mot and service history - 54,000 miles

Spent 3 hours checking everything over - thank you everyone for the check lists!!!

Am really excited - going to need cam belt and service before I start my adventures and am sure more work will be involved soon but am very happy!

Thank you - will post picture as soon as I'm driving it - will look now for posts on insurance!! X

Congrats Caroline, don't forget to post a few pics for us

we have a section called "Show us your Auto-Sleeper" here [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

CC

Congrats Caroline,
Hope you can enjoy your Trident as much as we enjoy our Lancashire.

Brian2

Thank you - think I have it bad as can't sleep at night planning what will go where etc!!!
Went back yesterday to do more checks and put deposit down...planning to pick up it up on Saturday!

I will certainly be posting photos on line too.....!!

Many thanks xx

Congratulations Caroline!

We've picking our first one up on Friday, a 1992 2.4 Diesel. Can't wait

Jackie (and Simon)