Second hand van - multidrop tell tale signs...

[WarrenB]

Looking for a new-to-me van, ideally wanting one that's been looked after by it's previous owner. Used to be a lot simpler a few years back as it only tended to be base spec vans that were used for heavy/hard work. More recently it seems to be high spec vans used by hire companies and smashed around by multidrop drivers with zero mechanical sympathy.

I've noticed a load of decent spec three year old silver Transit Customs on the market, all registered in Hampshire with similar mileage so I'm guessing they're ex-Enterprise vehicles. They all look tidy to be fair and I don't think I'd be opposed to buying an ex-rental, but it's the ones that have spent three years doing multi-drop deliveries I want to avoid. They don't seem to have the same sort of damage excess payments as the rental ones and I always think they'll have taken more of a beating mechanically.

Is there any way of telling of a potential hard multi-drop life? I'd like to think I've got a good eye for this sort of thing, but is there anything that would stand out more than a worn out seat bolster or floor coverings...?

[cliffords]

I looked at a van of about 3 years old will 100k on it and it looked pretty good. I then noticed the hinge pins on the driver's door were so worn it was effecting the movement of the door and the close .

I think it had been opened a lot , like every day 100 times for example

[Swoxy]

Filler.

[Venisonpie]

If I was going to buy a used van I'd contact an SME rental company and seek to source direct. Near me is Zoo Cars who look after their fleet meticulously who run Sprinters as an example. They don't really get involved in long term hire and have very strict return conditions (I've hired cars from them and it really is tight) which would give confidence buying used from them.

[A500leroy]

Mileage tends to be lower.

[WarrenB]

Good point about the door hinge pins, didn't think of that. Worth looking out for. Suppose the side door will take a battering too.

I did think mileage would be a giveaway, though it seems that a lot of the ex lease/hire vehicles tend to be disposed of with similar mileage.

[Simon_GH]

Drivers tend to switch off the engine and lock the van so I’d expect the remote locking buttons to be worn as well as the driver’s seat bolster. Perhaps more signs of wheels / tyres being curbed.

[Banfield]

I do multidrop & still use a Crafter (65) plate, on 275k.
A lot of the independent guys or girls like me who own our vans will probably look after them better than a fleet or hire company, i recently drove a 22 reg Sprinter & it felt shagged, it was on about 180k, but had not been looked after.
I wouldn't have any hesitation buying an ex multi drop van off a one man band person if they had bills, history etc of previous repairs.

[WarrenB]

Good advice, thanks. Went to have a poke around a two year old Custom at the weekend. Looks clean from 10 feet, but paint on the rear corner was a slightly different shade of silver, it had carpets but underneath the rubber flooring was worn through to the metal and despite having a very new looking key and as per Cliffords post, the drivers door dropped slightly when opened and the handle had a bit of play in it. Only 25k miles too and 'hasn't been serviced yet because it's 30k intervals'...

Banfield said:

I do multidrop & still use a Crafter (65) plate, on 275k.
A lot of the independent guys or girls like me who own our vans will probably look after them better than a fleet or hire company, i recently drove a 22 reg Sprinter & it felt shagged, it was on about 180k, but had not been looked after.
I wouldn't have any hesitation buying an ex multi drop van off a one man band person if they had bills, history etc of previous repairs.

Place I used to do some work for had a go-to courier, self employed and always turned up in a spotless Sprinter on a private plate. I thought it was new but was pretty shocked when he told me it had 200k on the clock and was just over three years old at the time. As it's his livelihood he can't afford for it to go wrong so he won't let anyone else drive it.

[reddiesel]

If you have the money then you want one direct from Mercedes . Normally these Sprinters will be ex leasing agreement which effectively means never out of the care of the Dealership network .