Bongo Fury

Hi,

this is my first post! We bought a Bongo in January and are generally very happy with it, but on looking underneath with the view to getting a tow bar fitted I noticed rust starting to show through the waxoil. We paid £8500 for the van which hurt a little at the time but we thought we were getting a good van that would last. What I wanted to ask is, is it reasonable for me to expect there to have been no rust on this van for this price? Some details:

Manual!
Turbo Diesel
45K
4WD
AFT
Unconverted

In very good condition otherwise and drives very well. I guess rust is not the end of the world, but will cost me money in the end. Like I said I am thinking of contacting the dealer I bought it from, but just wanted to get a reality check first so any advice or opinions would be welcome.

Regards, Pete

There is myth that every Japanese motor is rust free .. mainly because they do not use salt on the roads just forms of grit ..

Japan get short .. but very harsh winters .. to the extent that a lot of there houses in rural parts are built on stilts as the bottom gets snow bound .. they live on the upper level .. have you noticed even some normal family cars are 4WD ..

Generally UK dealers will source good grade rust free models .. but not all are ethical in what they hide ..!!

This picture (NOT mine) was of a Bongo bought and converted by the importer / dealer .. it was only when the owner needed to lift up the plywood floor that he found ............

If your Bongo came from the north part of Japan where the weather is pretty cold/snow/damp you can expect it to be rusty in places, rear arches,sills etc.
If it came from the sunny south of Japan it should be pretty rust free...there are of course exceptions to this rule but generally in my experience these rules apply.
You can tell if it is a North Japan Bongo by having 2 x starter batteries under the bonnet and a exhaust recirculating valve switch down by your right knee ( it will have a sort of engine symbol on it ) if you have this switch don't use it as the valve can jam closed through lack of use.

Whether it came from the North or South is not as much of a problem as if it was kept near the Sea. I saw a 1999 vehicle that spent all of its life in the south of Japan and it looked like that funny Cheese.(forget what you call it)

I did say there were exceptions...but I stand by the general rule as stated.
I have looked closely at many Bongos and with a few exceptions the above is true.

What age is the van & when was it imported? Just wondering if its had several years of running around on Uk roads before you got it. One issue with Waxoyl is you can spray a nice shiny black coat over any rusty bit of till & it will look lovely for a while until the rust breaks thru. Sometimes it can be helpful to find vehicle is it 'raw' state and then have rustproofing done yourself which avoids changes of any nasties being hidden before you get it.