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2016 Ford Transit Connect Camper Van buildout w/ 15,000 miles @ $20K Good Price?

Started by nomad11, August 29, 2018, 05:23:09 AM

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nomad11

Greetings everyone,

I found a 2016 Ford Transit Connect Camper Van w/ 15,000 miles & still under warranty, asking price is $20,000 (private seller). It's pretty much built out w/ 100w Solar panel to charge a separate 12v battery, wood bed frame, small wood cabinetry, carpeted floor, ceiling vent & interior LED lights.

I would just need to insulate/panel the walls plus buy a cooler, a compost toilet & a mini sink if it will fit.

I'm just not sure if I should buy a cheaper van (possibly bigger), a bit older w/ more mileage (under 60K) & do some of the build myself & hire out the rest such as electrical & carpentry.


Is $20,500 for a 2016 Ford Transit Connect Camper Van w/ 15K miles mostly builtout w/ solar a good price?

As mentioned I would need to insulate & panel the walls plus buy a cooler, compost toilet & sink. Plus I have two small dogs & need room for inner bike storage.

Camper_Dan

Greetings & Welcome!

Newer isn't always better.  I prefer pre-computerized and fully depreciated myself...

I've got under $1500 total in mine, and I wouldn't trade it for a newer one. 

Cheers!
Smiles are extremely contagious,
Pass them on!!!

Silver

No straight answer on this one unfortunately.

It kind of depends on what you want. Camper_Dan and many on here prefer older vehicles as they are much easier to fix (provided you can find the parts or find a way to make the spares if they aren't available), but depends on how you intend to use it I reckon.

I have just spent a massive chunk of money on a new van, and getting that van kitted out by my good friend Joe who is a cracking Conversion artist having now refurbished two old boats. It wouldn't be everyones way of doing it but everyones different. My story is that I work away, a month at work and then a month off. I've been living for the last two years in a pretty derelict old LDV convoy called Barabara, I loved her to bits, but she used to be a minibus and was a pain to keep warm and dry, and because I have limited time available for the maintetance and repair it made sense that with the money I have saved living in Babs to get something newer which doesn't require as much work to start with.

Its been a tricky road though. before I bought the new one (and what led me to it), was I bought a camper off ebay, which looked amazing.

But the guy who sold me it was a lying toerag, and despite promises of mechanical soundness, the van broke down woth a blown engine before I could even get it back to my brothers in Leeds having bought the van in Manchester (not a huge journey by any stretch). I am now having to take the guy to court for lying about the state of the van he sold me, not a way I want to be spending my time quite frankly as time is a precious resource for me.

So what I would advise is if you're not mechanically minded, take along someone with you who is, as its a lot of money to lash out.

And don't rush into it or let yourself feel pressured. Inspect the conversion, do you like it? Could you live in it? Is it as close to perfect as it could be without you starting from scratch? Does everything work properly? Is the guy whose selling it a van liver or someone trying to make some money? Why is he getting rid of it, ask him these questions and if anything he says doesn't sound right and doesn't give you the good feels, stay away.


And like Dan says maybe go for something older and cheaper and lived in, especially if this is your first foray into Van living. That way you'l have money left over to travel with, and possibly save towards something that is exactly perfect in every way.

I'll end up with my perfect van, but damn I went round the long hard way.

Don't be like me, be like Dan  ;)




Camper_Dan

Greetings!

Awww, shucks, thank you Silver!

After reading your story about the failed camper, it brought something else to mind that maay or may not be relevant...

15k miles seems low for 2+ years old.  Makes me wonder if it's a lemon that's spent a lot of time in the shop.

It's also awfully new, and somebody is losing quite a bit of money on it.  There might be good and innocent reasons, but somebody could be looking for a sucker to dump a problem child on too.

If the van was stock, would  it be worth the $20k?  If not, I think I'd likely pass.

It also seems like it might be pretty cramped with a bike and couple of dogs inside, because the TC's aren't very big to begin with.

Cheers!
Smiles are extremely contagious,
Pass them on!!!