Van Recommendations for Fishing

Hi All,

Looking to get new transport – thinking something along the lines of a berlingo / seat inca / VW Caddy type small van.

Can anyone recommend any of these on the following:

Fuel efficiency
Reliability
Room in the fish hold etc....

Thks,
Alby

have a friend that has a berlingo very good van loads of room and good on jucie hope this helps alby

have an 08 berlingo for 3 years and cant fault it
grand on the fuel
never broke down
plenty of room for the rods along the centre just to the left of gear stick - no need for hanging contraptions off roof

will give a good account of itself on rough terrain but wouldnt be flying over dunes with it

plenty of space in back for other gear - and a kip if you need it

hope i havent jinxed meself!

ive an opel combo, 01, had it for 8 years now, v good fuel economy, very reliable and the bulkhead over the cab means full rodbag, beachbuddy etc fits in nicely , nothing sticking out at the front, cant fault it tbh, good luck with the search

Well Alby,
Iv had a berlingo, caddy and ford courier in the last couple of years for fishing
The caddy was the best I found, easy enough on fuel and never had much problems with it even driving it on beaches through saltwater for 3 or 4 years.
the berlingo has a good bit more room in it but the one I have is a animal on deisel, altho i heard the turbo ones are not like that, there allways seems to be something going on it, bushings, belts, drives. maybe its just the one I have.
im getting one of the newer Astra vans next. there long enough for rods and tripods and boat engines but not as high as the others.

have my eye on a 07 berlingo 1.6hdi for fishing myself brother has had many of vans and hes a mechanic an told me they are a good little van and like most things no problems once kept well maintained

inca seat all the way alby.

Hi Alby

Have an 11 berlingo, can't fault it, fits loads of fishing gear and camping gear, have the 3 front seat so loads of room up front as well

anything you can fit a double matress into and a small quad

Would you consider getting a camper?
I've a camper van, a cheap aul yoke but the rods and tackle have been in there since Electric Picnic hahaha
Great comfort, cooker, coffee, radio, tv, toilet etc etc
€90 tax 350 insurance and all for the same price you'll pay for a small combo van listed here.

anything you can fit a double matress into and a small quad

I've a merc Vito. Short wheel base . It has the floor area of 4.2ft by 8.6 ft. I've converted the floor area into compartments for work and my beach casters go up the middle of the floor so the mattress goes on top and the rods under Neath . As for the quad if the floor was left open ( with out compartments ) a small quad would fit. But where would you sleep. .

Had a caddy for a good few years, never gave me any bother...
Now I've a transporter, love it even more, rods bungeed up on side, fits camp bed, gas cookers, cooler box, guitar and more! and the rear door opens up so provides a perfect shelter!

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Serenading the fish onto the hooks!
Is that clewbay its looking well

If you're buying a berlingo with a 1.6 hdi just make sure that it was serviced regularly and the correct oil was used. great little engine if maintained but can give turbo troubles if not and thats $$$$.. Also the heat shield around the cat vibrates loose and can cut into the oil cooler and lead to water leaks.. Cant fault the VW caddys to be honest. the newer ones especially are brilliant. If the mileage is high tho make sure the clutch pedal isn't vibrating/pulsing when pushed as they have a duel mass flywheel which can be a costly fix. Personally I drive an Audi A4 estate and fits all I need for my fishing excursions and a few buddies also.. Hope this helps. Good luck whatever you buy.

Serenading the fish onto the hooks!
Is that clewbay its looking well

tis down past Carrigaholt, college road I think it's called.. the fish weren't music lovers that day

Caddy!

Sent from my ST18i using Tapatalk 2

If your taxing it privately you would be better with a van with a smaller engine as road tax could be a killer,have to agree I have thought about the camper van route,and considered its for fishing it could be a godsend for long distance work

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i think in relation to the camper ask yourself do you really need it - i have a camper aswell for 2 years and i only slept over in it twice fishing - you might have great notions of cooking up a storm and getting a great nights sleep - but the tides dictate otherwise and its always easier to nip in to the hot deli counter!

Got my Transit Connect Long Wheel Base 3 yrs ago,,very economical on fuel ,,plenty of room for the rods,,great driving position and visibility,,,no problems with it since,,,,,got the LWB version as it would be handy for sleeping in ,,,,havent slept in it once ,,,,,Got it taxed private as i'm regularly stopped on the N11 at night,,,,,,,asked a Guard did he notice it was taxed private and he says "Once it's taxed, I didn't notice" . Have thought of converting to mini camper but it's not that simple. Tax is quite expensive as it's a 1.8. Some of the other vans mentioned are quite light on the road so you have to put that into the mix when deciding. As much as I like the van I think I would be going for a smaller engine size for the cheaper tax

I have the fiat doblo.1.3mjtd version...never regretted buying it..shes a miser to run.the engine is bullet proof.oil(5 ltrs) and the filter cost 38 euro.she takes 3-3,1/2 litres of oil only as its a smaller sump...a new air and fuel filter the other day which I bought cost me 36 euro which I threw into here in 5 minutes.she has a bulk head to stop the noise coming through from the back aswell as objects.the longest section I can get in is 7 and half foot...oh and the van has a timing chain.not a belt so just keep the oil well changed.i do mine every 10,000-12,000kms.easy to insure and tax due to only being a 1.3 diesel,,,all I can say is what a van..i know what I will be buying next...fiat forever