Introduce your self...

thanks for that, I have been thinking that 1.3 is probably the way to go as the engine is under less strain and people say that you get a better mpg.

Any ideas on van longevity, is 80,000 a high mileage for these little vans or will it still chug along for another 50,000 miles still?

stevelav wrote:Any ideas on van longevity, is 80,000 a high mileage for these little vans or will it still chug along for another 50,000 miles still?

Ours is showing 107900 & still going strong.
The rest of the van is a bit shabby though.

Also, be aware many 1.3's are not cheap to tax, post 2001 they are £210 for the year(though some, not all, lpg ones are £130) Great wee vans though

I think milage is a bit of an odd one... I've seen 40,000 mile vehicles in worse condition than 180,000 mile vehicles.

I would also say that the engine (except overheating ones) is possibly the best bit of the van.

Where they fail (bits to inspect to name a few):-

Rot under the front arches where the bonded seam is
Rot below the bottom seatbelt point (flip the seats up, down in the corner at the back of the front arch)
Rot under the sliding door running strips,
Rot round the aerial fixing point,
Rot in the corners of the rear wheel arches
sunroofs leak,
sliding door handles snap off,
window winders break,
back door latch goes dodgy and makes the door rattle and not unlock properly.
Burn oil/smokey if ragged
And the coolant systems (overheating)

My overheating and possible headgasket fault test - first flip the passenger seat up and check for brown coffee like staining under the passenger seat and over the overflow bottle, make sure the overflow/expansion bottle is filled to the correct-ish level, then open the metal coolant water cap and it should be pretty much 100% brimmed, warm her up, go for a test drive round stop start traffic, then leave it running for 20 minutes - all along watch the temp gauge. If they wont let you keep it running they are probably hiding something!!! Also if the water is very brown and sludgy it might have rad seal stuff in it. Then if the temp gauge has sat OK or whatever, go and have a look at the coolant header tank bottle and see it it contains pretty much the same amount of fluid. Once its all cooled back down take the metal rad cap off and see it its just as full as before. (might be a long test, but much cheaper than getting landed with a dodgy one)


In reply to Logi:- Think it depends if its an MPV (with windows and seats) or a van. I would guess that any commercial hijet (pickup/van/tipper) between 1st march 2001 and 1st march 2003 will fall into the higher banding. After is cool, before is cool. 1.3 MPV's I'm pretty sure after 1st March 2001 are in Band G being 12 months £165.00 or 6 months £90.75 - and I have no idea of the 1.0 litre MPV banding (or if they even made one??) Anyone?

Thats great, quite a bit of information for me to think about.

I guess that buying a 2nd hand van there is no 100% sure way of knowing its ok.

I appreciate the pointers on spotting a blown head gasket and excessive overheating, I think I can fix a bit of overheating as it seems to me to be like a central heating system that can sludge up, so if you flush it through with mains pressure and then use chemicals to desludge it that can be easily sorted whereas replacing a head gasket i would be meddling with things I don't understand!

And then look out for rusty body work especially in wheel arches. And I suppose if it drives ok, the engine does not sound rough and produce a lot of smoke and overheat too easily then it probably is ok. Seems like sometimes the odometers don't always work properly so the mileage can be wrong as well. So all in all quite a few things to watch out for.

I did not realise that the road tax goes down again after 2004 and i think after 2001 it is £210 which is a significant jump from £130. And it does seem strange that I have seen some pretty old ones from pre 2000 that look in better condition than many newer ones!

Well I shall take my time and see what I can get for my money!

I'm not so sure post '04 ones are cheaper? Here's a Piaggio?


The enquiry is complete

The vehicle details for MX08 KKY are:

Date of Liability 01 06 2011
Date of First Registration 04 04 2008
Year of Manufacture 2008
Cylinder Capacity (cc) 1300CC
CO2 Emissions 0g/Km
Fuel Type Petrol
Export Marker Not Applicable
Vehicle Status Unlicensed
Vehicle Colour WHITE
Vehicle Type Approval N1
This vehicle can be licensed at a DVLA Local Office without the V5C Registration Certificate

Vehicle Excise Duty Rate for vehicle
6 Months Rate £115.50
12 Months Rate £210.00

I can't find a late Hijet to compare just now but i'd check before buying to be sure.

I'm under the impression, that when the dealership registered the car, depending on how they filled out the form makes it a bit of a lottery.

Over heating wise, they'll either run fine and never go just past the middle of the temp gauge or its got problems. Depending on how long its been run incorrectly will detemine if its done the head gasket and/or cracked the head. Same as any car really.

I bought my first one clueless about hijets, and it was perfect. Paint work was messy but otherwise a peach. So don't be overly confused or worried, but a smart buyer knows what to look for - and where the dog bits are possibly covered up.


Logi:- out of interest was that reg check on a van or pickup or MPV? The price makes it Band I if its an MPV and that makes the CO2 emissions 176-185 g/km but that search comes up blank. OR looking at the direct.gov.uk tax bands I've noticed another "gap"

Light goods vehicles (TC39)
Registered on or after 1 March 2001 (not over 3,500kg revenue weight).
Vehicle
12 months rate
6 months rate
Light goods vehicle
£210.00
£115.50

Euro 4 light goods vehicles (TC36)
Registered between 1 March 2003 and 31 December 2006 only (not over 3,500kg revenue weight).
Vehicle
12 months rate
6 months rate
Euro 4 light goods vehicles
£130.00
£71.50

Euro 5 light goods vehicles (TC36)
Registered between 1 January 2009 and 31 December 2010 only (not over 3,500kg revenue weight).
Vehicle
12 months rate
6 months rate
Euro 5 light goods vehicles
£130.00
£71.50

Commercials between 31st December 2006 and 1st January 2009 fall out of the early class TC36 and later class TC36 - making it fall into the TC39 class.
THIS IS SUCH A TYPICAL FRICKING DVLA BALLS UP MESS!!!!!!

You can own exacly the same vehicle but with a different plate but get charged totally different prices - Discrimination or what?

I haven't got a van yet but I'm thinking of getting one when I can find one at a reasonable price, I need something to drive our four dogs around in. I have a Citroen C15 at the moment but this has failed it's MOT big style and getting a new van is cheaper than working on that.
I have been trying to work out the pros and cons on getting another box van against a micro van and whether the cheaper tax and insurance will pay for the extra cost in spares
What are they like on fuel, i have been getting around 45 MPG, I presume these will match that easily?
Surprisingly enough there seams to be more space in the back of a micro van than in a small box van. I've not measured the entire area but worked out how easy the dogs cages will fit in
All being well I'm off to view one this afternoon



Paul

Hello, good luck with the viewing

Just be sure it doesn't overheat

Finally got one

meet Toby

That looks pretty tidy, you'll love it

I've not been far in it yet, want to start off with short journeys until I get to know it, the accelerator pedal is quite stiff so that will take some getting used to, and slowing down enough for the corners

And slowing down for speed humps or you'll see sky, road, sky, road for long enough to make your head spin, keep your eyes peeled if you head off over the hills as the other side you might find Ernie.

pasiro wrote:I've not been far in it yet, want to start off with short journeys until I get to know it, the accelerator pedal is quite stiff so that will take some getting used to, and slowing down enough for the corners

The accelerator pedal is stiff in our van too.
I took it apart to lube the cable, but it was still stiff when reassembled.
It's the way it's routed around the pedal.
You get used to it.

Aye'

And corners will feel less intimidating as the weeks go on.

She does look like a minter, very nice example.

Helooooo from Cardiff.
Joined here a couple of weeks ago but not got me a van yet.
Must get my arse into gear and start looking.

Welcome aboard Shouldn't take to long to find oned they seem to crop up fairly often.

Hello everyone! I tend to gravitate towards the quirky in life (both people and things) and therefore find myself drawn to these little beauties, loving the idea that they are so UNcool and make people laugh

I am in no way mechanically minded so I'm hoping to get some advice from the friendly folk here before I make my purchase.
Thanks in advance.

Hello & welcome.

Welcome your in the right place i think between us we cover every angle have a look through old post you will see all the common problems covered at least twice.

Hello. Looks like I should have started here but I've already been in another section asking for help! I bought a 1.3 EFI Hijet last week and had it in for MOT yesterday. Passed but with advisories, hence seeking some help. I've already had a reply so I think I'll be happy here

I'm hoping to use my little van for getting my garden waste out and some building materials in. I'm renovating a terrace house. I'm hoping to sling a mattress and sleeping bag in the back in the summer so I can spend weekends on campsites with nice walks nearby. Does anyone else go camping in their Hijet? What sort of leveling chocs are needed for the little wheels?!!?

EvaInNorfolk wrote:Hello. Looks like I should have started here but I've already been in another section asking for help! I bought a 1.3 EFI Hijet last week and had it in for MOT yesterday. Passed but with advisories, hence seeking some help. I've already had a reply so I think I'll be happy here

I'm hoping to use my little van for getting my garden waste out and some building materials in. I'm renovating a terrace house. I'm hoping to sling a mattress and sleeping bag in the back in the summer so I can spend weekends on campsites with nice walks nearby. Does anyone else go camping in their Hijet? What sort of leveling chocs are needed for the little wheels?!!?

Welcome, i'm in Norwich so prob not far away. Use mine for camping in the summer, they're really pretty comfy once you've got something in so you can get yout mattress above the wheel arches. Got a drive away awning which fits really well and makes the little van really quite practical for a few days away.

I'm in Wymondham. Love camping on north Norfolk coast, and walking around the cliffs there is wonderful. I've found an awning that I should be able to put up by myself and with a bit of clever sewing should be able to just park under a small "porch". Really looking forward to the longer days and nicer weather to test it all out!

Hi all,

My Names Matt and I'm based at RAF Fairford.
I've been the happy owner of a 1.2 diesel Hijet for 2 weeks now, few little issues with the dreaded overheating but apart from that she's a solid little van.
Hoping to do a few little jobs to get her gleaming and get use to her quirky little ways!

Cheers

Matt

welcome to the forum Matt, you will have great fun with thew van.

Waz

Cheers Waz,

I've been driving old Series Land rovers for last few years so the van is a big step up, heater, radio and water tight! I'm being really spoilt!

Yep, big upgrade in the noise, dryness and warmth.... bet it's a whole new experience being able to hear your radio at 60mph

Welcome to the forum and good luck with your jet, and hope you can get the coolant system sorted.

Your derv is a pretty rare model, not many of them about and I'm not sure but I think there aren't any other derv owners here. Not active members anyway.

Anyhow, pleased to meet you, and all the best,

Matt

My sister and brother in law are at Fairford! I'll keep a look out for you and your 'jet!

Hi, welcome to Hijetting, hopefully you wont get to use the naughty words ( head gasket ) but they are loads of fun stuffing unimaginably large things in them. The deisel is the thing for economy, a wee bit oil in the Jet A1 and yer laughing ,

Well looks like I might be using the Hijet swearword soon!

Hmmmm bit of Jet A1 with bit of OM15 mixed in? I have no idea of what you could be talking about!! The FSII helps keep gladis out of the tank too!

If you see a little white Hijet trundling around Fairford Village then give me a wave!

Well the Mrs has always said I'm special, seems like my Jet is too! Well never been one to blend in and follow the standard track!

Cheers

Matt