My camper does not like MOTs

[mike9009]

My 1982 VW T25 camper has just successfully passed its second MOT in my ownership with no issues.

I had the autochoke looked at the same time as I was having some warm start problems. As I drive away its only firing on two cylinders at higher revs and so has stayed at the garage for investigation.

Last year it passed MOT without an issue (well fuse for the horn needed replacing). Once I got it back, it startedd back firing and loosing power. Eventually diagnosed as a loose brake servo hose.

So, why does my camper throw a hissy fit everytime it comes to its MOT?

Yours frustrated


Mike

[bionicjim]

Hi mike
We are looking at getting a t25
What they like
Ie drive / mpg / and so on
Probley be a 1900/2100 water cooled
Is there a thread on ph for them
Cheats Jim

[mike9009]

bionicjim said:

Hi mike
We are looking at getting a t25
What they like
Ie drive / mpg / and so on
Probley be a 1900/2100 water cooled
Is there a thread on ph for them
Cheats Jim

Hi Jim,

Driving them is fine. The dimensions are similar to a van and the whole experience is van-like. I haven't really measured mpg but suspect somewhere around 20mpg.
I have a 2.0 litre aircooled which when new gave 78 bhp. When running well, it is slow but fine. I can cruise at 70mph without too much stress, little slower when gettin up hills. The four speed box gets some getting used to as I always seem to be in too high a gear.

I bought one because we weren't sure how much we would use it and didn't want something too expensive or lose in depreciation. We have used it four times for local camping trips, but surprisingly use it a lot for day trips ( probably every other weekend, even through the winter). So gets a fair amount of use and will definitely be keeping for a while. We have a high top which our daughter loves sleeping in. Now have a three month old son, who we take out in it too.

There is no dedicated thread for them on PH. The best website I have found so far is club80-90.co.uk.

If you want some more advice, if I can help, I will.

Mike

[Stuartggray]

Give it a damn good service 2 months before the MOT is due.

[onomatopoeia]

bionicjim said:

What they like
Ie drive / mpg / and so on
Probley be a 1900/2100 water cooled

I have a 1900 water cooled syncro. It's slow and uses a lot of petrol, I get 23mpg tops on a run. It won't reliably reach 70mph, the top speed depends very much on wind direction . With over a foot of ground clearance to the sills, roadholding is not very good, but it's not really a vehicle for hooning around the lanes. It also has fantastic traction in snow, without needing snow tyres.

What it will do is keep going all day without complaint. I collected a rather large racecar transporter trailer from around Doncaster last year (300 miles each way for me) in a single day and it didn't complain at all, although with the increased aero drag and 900kg of extra weight, the top speed was even further reduced. I'd imagine the 2wd versions will use less fuel and go a bit quicker.

[MarshPhantom]

bionicjim said:

Hi mike
We are looking at getting a t25
What they like
Ie drive / mpg / and so on
Probley be a 1900/2100 water cooled
Is there a thread on ph for them
Cheats Jim

Do you want hightop or poptop? Hightops are more practical but the roof will make it slower and more thirsty. There are loads of different types of poptop conversions, some much better than others.

www.brick-yard.co.uk is full of useful info.

[smegmore]

Get a Bongo.

More power (Rated at 134 bhp when new, 2.5 td)

More mpg (28 mpg at a steady 65mph, auto box)

Will cruise at 85 mph.

Runs on veg oil (86p per litre)

Better quality build than a T25.

Done and dusted.

[egor110]

smegmore said:

Get a Bongo.

More power (Rated at 134 bhp when new, 2.5 td)

More mpg (28 mpg at a steady 65mph, auto box)

Will cruise at 85 mph.

Runs on veg oil (86p per litre)

Better quality build than a T25.

Done and dusted.

Have you got bongo?

85mph isn't cruising the steering is skittish at that speed due to the height and narrow wheelbase.

They are great value though compared to a vw

[mike9009]

Well, just to close this thread.

Our beloved T25 has now been returned to us. The garage has replaced the HT leads and 'played' a lot with the carbs to get it running better. It has twin Solex carbs and one of them has an issue which they cannot fully diagnose (some valve on the side which should be screwed in tightly but it will only run with it loose???!!??)

So I will probably take to a carb specialist for them to have a look.

For the time being she is running better than I remember - so happy days for the rest of the summer....

Mike