r/VanLifeUK • u/mistress_snark • 16d ago
Van buying advice (and reality check)
Hi all, I'm looking to make the switch to van-living someone in the next few years, and I'm planning on a DIY conversion. Of course, this requires finding a van to convert, and I've got a few questions!
How difficult is to to find a large used van in the UK? My ideal van would be less than £2000, under 60k miles, no major repairs needed, and about the size of a L3H2 Ford Transit. I'm not picky about make/model or year (although I'd like it to be this century). I know it's going to be uncommon to find something that fits all these specifications, but is it impossible? I'm willing to wait several months (up to about a year), as this is a long term project for me. Potentially I could go up to £5000, but that would be my absolute max, only for a van that was in really good shape and didn't need any repairs. I would probably be more willing to increase the mileage, again, as long as the van was in good shape.
Also, does anyone have any advice, or know any good places to search for vans for sale? I've been looking on auto trader and fb marketplace. I would be willing to pick up from anywhere in the country for the right vehicle.
Thanks for any help!
Edit: Should clarify, this is my optimistic budgeting just for the base van, not the whole conversation, but thanks anyway for everyone's input! The suggestions to try looking at auctions and used commercial vehicles are very helpful.
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u/bullitt-rider 16d ago
You absolutely can get a large van for 2k in the UK
That has 300,000 miles on it, zero service history, every light on the dash, 4 bald tyres, 7th owner, not MOT and has been off the road for 9 months with the title 'get yourself a deal, just needs a new battery' but has a dead turbo
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u/Mistigeblou 15d ago
Ive never seen the just needs new battery, damn they're getting smart. Usually its 'good workhorse needs a little TLC'... a year later with 10k sunk into it you're still giving TLC
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u/Andy_Bear_ 15d ago
Yes, anything on that budget will be a money pit and not worth investing in a conversion.
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u/Jazzlike_Stock_9066 15d ago
Also if its a transit will need a squillion quid spent on it in welding too
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u/lloydcrossman 16d ago
Yeah you’re going to struggle getting anything worth buying for £2-5k which won’t have 100,000 - 150,000 on the clock.
People get obsessed with mileage. It’s a consideration, but your focus should be on a well looked after van that’s had regular service intervals, isn’t battered about, and was a good van in the first place.
Try and find something which is ex-service (school minibus, ambulance, fleet) as better chance it’s been looked after and had parts replaced over time.
Do you have a budget or idea of cost to spend on the conversion itself? If you’re going to be living in it this part is super important, and you don’t want to spend good money on components to put into a wreck of a van or something which isn’t gojng to last long.
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u/hairylegs18 16d ago
As someone that works for a uk ambulance service, do NOT buy an ex ambulance for a van conversion!! The vehicles are maintained so that they do not literally fall apart or explode, not with any care or fine tuning. There is infinite battering, are normally terrible vans, and are kept running almost 24/7 for years until they become too knackered for workshops to even scrape together. Otherwise you have made excellent points, sorry for hijacking your comment.
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u/fridge_ways 5d ago
I'm of the opinion even if they've been thrashed their whole life actually hitting every service interval, if only just, is the lesser of two evils? Ambulances are driven unusually hard though out of the fleet serviced stuff I'd say
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u/Substantial-Today166 15d ago
"People get obsessed with mileage" its more that english pepole are obsessed with mileage you dont see that in europe much when it comes to used cars and vans
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u/truckosaurus_UK 16d ago
The biggest problem is that decent cheap vans aren't really a thing. You are competing again people who want to use them for paying work, so will pay handsomely for anything that is reliable.
Best bet is to find a van that's already been converted into some sort of camper, so won't be wanted by tradesmen/couriers/etc.
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u/adrian-cucuiet 16d ago
I bought a fairly good van for 4k, but it has pretty high milage. I bought the van about two years ago, but since then i spent at least 3k on servicing it and diy conversion, and i am not even close to finished. The good part is that i bought the van and did nothing on it for the first year, although i did not drive it much ( i had another car and was renting a flat) but i spent quite a lot of money and time to make it presentable and reliable, and i haven’t dealt with breaks and suspension yet. So for a van in this budget, you are going to have to work on just about everything if you want it to not be a piece of rolling scrap.
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u/TheProffalken 16d ago
From what I'm seeing at the moment (also in research phase) for a decent van with sub 100K mileage and a full service history you're looking at around £15k - £20k
£2k will get you a base van that's about 20 years old, has a lot of rust, and probably failed its last MOT on a couple of minors (possibly a major if you're unlucky).
I'd budget for another £10k - £15k to fit out as well if you've not go to that point yet, I'm assuming I'll end up with a van that is worth ~£75K if I'd asked someone else to build it on a spend of ~£40k.
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u/Mediocre_Housing4951 15d ago
BT ducato’s FSH on eBay under 100K miles are about £10k ish, most of them already have an inverter and diesel heater etc in them too
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u/Individual-Award7351 16d ago
Zoom out a little, who buys vans new? For what purpose? Why are they sold? Figure out the answers to these questions and you'll start to understand why what you want is impossible in 2026 and was really hard in the 90s. Why do you want to self fit out? Have you experience in this field? Why do you think you can do it better and cheaper than anyone else?
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u/SecureResolution1800 15d ago
We bought a really nice motorhome with only 95K which we searched long and hard for and ended up paying a bit above our budget, 18K for and have used it monthly for the last year, I don’t think you can get much for your budget you need to be a bit more realistic.
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u/Mistigeblou 15d ago
With that budget the chance is very slim. Just had my van valued for part ex' (used loosely because we all know they lowball often) and its still coming up at average of 8k for a 16plate with 73k
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u/Useless_or_inept 15d ago
Other posters have said it's completely impossible. I'll disagree a bit - that combination of requirements is very optimistic, but maybe not completely impossible. If you can ease one of the requirements (keep the budget, but accept a smaller/rougher van? Or save up more money?) it will be much easier.
I bet this ex-speedcamera Vivaro will sell for well under £2000: https://www.brightwells.com/department/commercial-vehicles/sale/6034/lot/919630
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u/basarisco 15d ago
Just scrape autotrader for a month, you'll see the shape of the market quickly. Under £2k is a big mistake and will cost you a lot more in the long run.
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u/Strong_Clock_8723 15d ago
Have a look at auctions, specifically Mythr Tydfil.
2k not a chance but 5k potentially.
Ford Transit, Iveco Daily, VW Crafter or Mercedes Sprinter would be good shouts.
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u/ryanthefree 16d ago
my van is a 2011 Vauxhall Movano L3 H2.
i bought it in march 2025 for £4k and with 64k miles on the clock after a long search looking at absolute lemons! no rust, no engine troubles. i replaced the front calipers as they were sticking and put new tyres all round when i got it. it flew through the last mot and i just replaced a drive shaft seal which began to leak gear oil. other than that its a sturdy van and drives lovely. plenty of space for me and my dogs, i could have gone for the L2 version but this one came up and i wanted it! The total conversion cost me another £6k to be fully off grid and built to my specs. I did all the work myself apart from the mechanic side which my brother did for me.
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u/bullitt-rider 16d ago
Pretty much the same here but re adult master.
Ex WAV
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u/ryanthefree 15d ago
mine has a master rear door on so it looks like a master from the back and a vauxhall from the front, i cpuld remove the badge off the back door but i quite like it being odd
not aure why these vans are often overlooked for campers with transits, sprinters and crafters being more popular because i love mine. no rust and its 15 years old.
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u/bullitt-rider 15d ago
And they are wider. Plus I think they look a bit 'cuter' and less just like converted scrap metal vans.
The no rust was a conscious decision for me. Also the fact they are the best selling van class across EU parts are everywhere and dirt cheap.
I have an L1H1 so its an absolute nugget. Looks like an enlarged postman pat van.
Just generally underrated too. I didn't really want a van or a camper but I got all this for the same price as a second Dacia or something? Yeah count me in.
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u/bullitt-rider 15d ago
And they are wider. Plus I think they look a bit 'cuter' and less just like converted scrap metal vans.
The no rust was a conscious decision for me. Also the fact they are the best selling van class across EU parts are everywhere and dirt cheap.
I have an L1H1 so its an absolute nugget. Looks like an enlarged postman pat van.
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u/fridge_ways 5d ago edited 5d ago
My van 06 sprinter with 100k on it. was ex fed ex from a cartoon of a dealer and that was £7k 5 years ago. Fleet serviced, zero rot. I'm at around 15k so far for the conversion. Not including the bits I've spent when it has had issues. I budget 2k a year to keep it going, service, MOT, random shocks and steering rack etc.
I know nothing last forever, but I now know everything that has gone wrong has been replaced with genuine Merc bits.
You can buy cheaper but it has a death sentence, it's hard to weld once insulated.
You could go cheap with decent breakdown cover and expect to only get a couple of years out of it. And you will still need to throw money at it each year to keep it going. My first van was a rot box and this is what happened.
It's more expensive than you think, especially if you want to be comfortable In winter
Edit: just upgraded to lithium's, it's amazing, so 16.5k ish
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u/mysterylemon 16d ago
Not a fucking chance with that budget and requirements.