Originally Posted by
BillyCasper
I've had a Bongo. The good points are that it is affordable, is a car like drive and had a great electronic lifting roof.
The not so good were that mine was diesel and really slow. I think that they stopped using diesels at some point because Mazda couldn't achieve anymore emissions improvements. In terms of camping, it was great for one person, two or more it became very cramped unless it's just for sleeping or warm weather camping or you have a side tent and very little time is spent in the Bongo. The front driver and passenger seats do not swivel and the engine/transmission is a big lump between the seats so you can't easily get from front to back without getting out of the van. As I said great for one person, but with two, there's a lot of shuffling around of gear from the back in to the front to create a bit of space. If you are looking at camper conversions, there are some very ropey conversions. As delivered as a day-van it's pretty good, can be used as an everyday car/van and there's always camping modules and gear that you can take in and out.
I now have a VW mainly because of space, powerful engine, swivel seats, quality of camper fittings, gas and electrical safety, and rock solid residuals, but in reality German gear is not as good as they think it is or would have us believe.
I thought the Ford Transit Custom looked pretty nice with a comfortable driving position.
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