Which van for a poor travellin' man?

[BeagleBox]

Alright fellas,

Currently down in Queenstown and gonna be around for the winter season and am looking to tour NZ in a van with the missus for about 6 months come the better weather. I'm just after a bit of advice on what van to go for, seen an old thread on here titled "Hiace vs Bongo/Vannette" and there was some helpful stuff on there but wanted some advice on the pitfalls of vans at the more "budget' end of the market (i.e $3k max - would love to spend more but can't stretch I'm afraid).

From looking at the old thread I could see most people were gunning for the hiace with a smaller but equally passionate few standing by the Nissan Caravan/Homy. Would these be my best bets?

So, of the vans I've seen advertised around here most are late 80's Toyota Liteace Petrols with 250k on the clock, how do they stand up to the ravages of time and traveller neglect?

Also seen a few late 80's Nissan Caravan and Vanette Diesels in my price range too, are they any good? I've heard people bang on about the bonus of no cambelt changes and decent engines, is this the case?

Are the vanette and liteace just a smaller wheelbase versions of the caravan and hiace?

So, sorry about the million questions but basically if you could offer any help or advice that could stop me buying a dog of a van I'd be massively grateful!!!!

Cheers guys

Beaglebox

[Motu]

The Hi Ace's will be overpriced compared to anything else of the same condition....if buying a name gives you comfort then it's worth it to you.Late '80's are prone to rust,the old 3 and 4Y engines are tough,can blow headgaskets and get soft heads....and hard to get parts for.Caravan diesel is overlooked and one of the best engines,body same size as the Hi Ace,and not as prone to rust.Vannete is a smaller van,best of all the vans I think,but won't have power steering.It has a cambelt and will smash the head if it breaks,same as Toyota diesels.I wouldn't even think about a Townace.

[BeagleBox]

Nice one, cheers for the advice mate, good to be able to broaden my search options with the Nissans. Also, iIs the Homy just a continuation of the Caravan?

[Edbear]

Steer well clear of Bongo's especially diesels, though the petrol motors seem to last well. I had a Nissan Caravan GT 2.7 turbo-diesel and it was fantastic for touring! No cambelt. The van I crashed last month was a Toyota Estima turbo-diesel and while it's the best cruiser around, did crack the head, costing me all up $2500 including the reconditioned head, cambelt change and service. Ran beautifully since then and I was going to keep it forever, but sadly, it is now a pile of scrap and I see my surgeon tomorrow about a probable spinal op.

[Edbear]

Nice one, cheers for the advice mate, good to be able to broaden my search options with the Nissans. Also, iIs the Homy just a continuation of the Caravan?

Yup, Homy is a version of the Caravan.