Hello! Owner of a Bongo and enjoying driving it with the wife and 2 kids.
Picked it up in great condition (2000 plate, Black, pop-top, 2.5 2Wd Petrol) and has been really looked after thought it's life, which is great to see. The seller (nice couple) threw in a telly, radio, Awning tent (SunnCamp Lodge 200 Motor Drive Away Awning), stuff for the kitchen, 2 gas bottles and other stuff.
We have also brought a few things to make life easier, like a small Porta Potti 335 Portable Toilet which fits great in one of the cupboard. Thinking of getting a rug/carpet for the awing but first seeing if it's all big enough for the family..If not, then maybe a bigger tent? Do you peeps recommend any?
Now we have figured out most of the bits and bobs which i forgot to ask at point of sale, like 1) what kinda battery i have (Split to alternator i found out) 2) Where the sink pipe leads too and that kinda stuff. But i have 4 questions i wish to ask:
1) What tyre pressures are you rolling with peeps? They came with all round 215/65 R15 100H Constancy tyres and after checked them, noticed they are currently at 44 PSI..Would you say that's about right? Max PSI on the tyre is 50 PSI but with the converted weight and being Heavy duty ones, they can manage fine?
2) What do you use for the waste pipe to catch it all? Foldable bucket? Or do you have one inside the van next to the water one under the sink?
3) WHEN they tyres need changing and we fancy some new alloys
is there any you recommend? Black Gloss would look sweet. But as i guess the Bongo is heavy as it is, the lighter the better. Also we currently have 15 inch, apart from looking better which is subjective i know, is there much benefit in getting say 17 inch ones? 4) Is an air suspension upgrade the way forward? It does feel the bumps in our British road, well a lot more than our 4x4 Ford kuga does anyway
On the whole van, there are only 2 signs of rust and i have purchased some Mazda black paint and primer to sort that out. One on the wheel arch and one near the divers window (very small but...Lol). The underside has been dipped and i plan to get it done again when required.
It's great to drive and love it's charm. I knew the VW T4-T5 just want for us, and IMHO not worth the price at all.
Already seen some other Bongos and hand waves are plenty. Looking forward to chatting to some of you peeps later.
Mr and Mrs Lewis of Leicester
t. How does the weight vs strength of the thin plastic lid on the loo hold up? But that would save us using a very small fold up chair we have in the back and free up space. Humm....