what is the best courier van please nearly new

[Yomper]

I have been a courier for way to many yrs. if i had to buy my own van which had to be under 4 yrs old i probaably wouldnt bother working there unless the money was guaranteed to be very very good ( i always buy 5 yr old vehicles and run them into the ground). I can understand needing new cars for passenger carrying but a good clean van 4 or 5 urs old would be more easy on the pocket. failing that hiring or looking at lease with a high mileage limit would be my choice. I worked for a lot of courier companys and there all pretty flexible on the age of vehicles so may be worth asking would they accept a slightly older van.
after paying for the cost of buying your van insurance and then your own diesel then tax insurance them pay checks sure dwindle down in size. so will you earn enough to make it viable?

[thunderider]

i agree with yomper,ive been doing courieing for many years,i dont sub,but when i did if they wanted a3 year old van id ask them if they would gaurentee me at least £35k..if they dithered then its a no!ive got a 9yr old 430k transit,i wouldnt buy a brand new van,when i bought my van at 3 yrs old,the second day i had it i had the sld was took off by a flt drive at landrover,i was annoyed,id been even more so if it was brand new,its covered in scars from fork lift damage.

[Wilky]

All very helpful so far
The ford warranty, reading it means I could get a nearly 1 yr old van less than 20k on the clock pay the extra £850.00 for warranty and be covered till renew van time (4yr old van)
A Ford Transit nearly 1 yr old must be a lot cheaper than a Pre reg van and the cost of the warrenty combined?
I WILL be getting a transit I do favor buying as I then have something to sell part ex when time comes, lease would have to be cheap as I hate the thought of paying a smiler amount with nothing to show for it at the end of the day
As for earning potential that is a hard one however it should be no less than 33k, not alot of jobs out there and for the last 12months I have been getting by on £300 a MONTH as was fired off with the rescission building trade, good job the wife as a decent job
Please keep the comments and views coming as they are very helpful

[Yomper]

As for earning potential that is a hard one however it should be no less than 33k

is it a normal courier firm you will be working for? as they always adverise the words huge earning potential on there job adds. Don't get me wrong i spent the last 20 yrs as a courier 12 of them on a bike and once upon a time 5 yrs ago and before it was a good earning job providing you put in the hours but the bad weeks wages are now outnumbering the good weeks
I am just trying to save you a few quid as paying out for a 1 yr old van only to run it into the ground and not earning top money is an expensive way to find out.
If they wont budge on the age of the van (i have yet to work for one who wont accomadate a clean older van) unless they give you a weekly guarnatee then think about it
Is there any other courier firms you could start with who will be ok with a tidy 5 or 6 yr old van?
if so then they may be a better choice as you could always join a courier exchange and get a few jobs on the side or on the longer journeys.

[angeleye]

think hes goin to work local multidrop

[belly]

I'm not a courier but a mate of mine is well sort off! he delivers the papers at night then does a bit of the odd express pallets the morning after, started off with a merc 311cdi sprinter 51 plate cheap he put the facelift lights on and a private plate no one ever checked! took the piss out of me running fords although hes had injector/viscous fan/balljoint probs with it! last year he changed to a new shape sprinter 311 put his plate on it! but hes had nothing but trouble with that one also, he also admits it low geared very revvy and gutless plus to rub salt in the wounds its suffering from some rust on some panel joins seams

[Wilky]

hi
Yes it is local multi drop
it is a UK Mail company I am hoping to start with.

[Wilky]

Any more information would be appreciated as spending 13-15k is a hard decision