Some may recall that a little while ago I started a quest to find a suitable replacement for Mrs B's Sharan. The replacement also needed to seat 8.
Well, after much deliberation we decided that it either had to be a Transporter Shuttle or the i800
So..............we have just picked up a Viano :-)
The Viano was off the list on the basis that they were a little expensive, but we came across one locally that ticked all the box's and was a lot less than we planned to spend.
Original budget was circa 20K but we've ended up only spending 6K on a 2005 model. Its an Ambiente so has leather, aircon, sat nav, alloys etc and is in black with sandstone interior and the seller has chucked in the dateless private plate (single digit so may be worth a couple of quid) Price reflects the high mileage, but the condition is fantastic and it drive's faultlessly (the 5 speed auto is silky smooth) so I suspect its led a fairly easy life doing long private hire type work.
The only little issue is that it only came with one key, and its one of those funny merc ones with no blade. Anyone know how easy it is to get a second at a reasonable price, and what is a reasonable price for one?
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I think you can only get them from Merc, and they have to be coded etc. £150-ish I would guess.
My Shuttle arrived last week. I would have considered a Viano/Vito but wanted 3 seats up front and the Merc cab seems a little smaller.
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Shuttle was our choice, but all the ones we saw were fairly basic, although I'm told it drives better than the viano.
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Key for one of these is the best part of £200.get a genuine part from MB,and at least you know it will work.It comes pre programmed to vin number.If you didn't,already know,the metal emergency key blade slides out the side of the plastic body.hth
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>>best part of £200...
Eeek !
The other week, having failed to cleanly hop over what seemed to be an innocuous wee stream on my bike and having discovered that the water depth was sufficient to reach my personal exhaust pipe, I then remembered to my chagrin that the key to my MB was in the knee level side pocket of my cargo breeks. Fully immersed in the not terribly ambient water for a few seconds while pride and bike were recovered.
Delighted to say it worked ok on return to the car and has thus far continued to do so.
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>> >>best part of £200...
>>
>> Eeek !
>>
I then remembered to my chagrin that the key to my MB was in the knee level side pocket of my cargo breeks. Fully immersed in the not terribly ambient water>>
>> Delighted to say it worked ok on return to the car and has thus far continued to do so.
It it fails... £227.00 please!
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>> Shuttle was our choice, but all the ones we saw were fairly basic, although I'm
>> told it drives better than the viano.
>>
Yes, the Vianos are certainly plusher. Hope the body on yours is OK - some of them seem to rust badly.
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>> >> Shuttle was our choice, but all the ones we saw were fairly basic, although
>> I'm
>> >> told it drives better than the viano.
>> >>
>>
>> Yes, the Vianos are certainly plusher. Hope the body on yours is OK - some
>> of them seem to rust badly.
>>
Yes I did read that they do have a tendency to suffer from rust, but this one is immaculate so fingers crossed it stays that way, although I am a little concerned about Mrs B's "confidence" in driving something quite a bit bigger. I was surprised when she told me she had been up and down some of the narrower roads by us and it was "no problem"
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In size terms the Viano is probably no bigger than a Mondeo, at least in plan view, and its certainly no wider than the average car.
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Since you're 14k in hand, does a couple of hundred quid for a key really matter? Must be worth it for the peace of mind of having a genuine one.
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Agreed, Tel. We always take both keys with us on a long trip, reasoning that it'll be much easier to go to a dealer for a replacement key if we still have the other one and can drive ourselves there.
Travelled in a few Vianos, mostly overseas as airport taxis. Much nicer than the dreadful Galaxy/Sharan/Alhambra I've asked my local firm not to send any more. There's a niche for a version with more luggage space; perhaps they could call it the Grand Viano.
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The new people shifter has arrived - Boxsterboy
