mra Posted March 2, 2010 Share Posted March 2, 2010 I'm new to motor homes and I’m thinking of getting a mazda bongo as I can use it daily and they are in my price range. I have seen adverts for the Imperial Car Company and was wondering if anyone has had any experience with them and if they would recommend this company. Many thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted March 2, 2010 Share Posted March 2, 2010 Hi mra and welcome to the nut house! :-D I believe the Ford Freda is also the same vehicle in a different guise. You might also want to consider other variants as I heard that the Bongos are more scarce than they use to but and as they have quite a following, they are asking higher prices but there are other similar vehicles now being imported. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mra Posted March 4, 2010 Author Share Posted March 4, 2010 thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordonaldson Posted March 4, 2010 Share Posted March 4, 2010 Here's an interesting little check for you. Check out the bongo on the internet and you'll find there's a following or club for it. If I remember I think they say it runs happily on cooking oil. Frying tonight !!!!!! Gordy... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert123 Posted March 4, 2010 Share Posted March 4, 2010 mra - 2010-03-02 11:54 AM I'm new to motor homes and I’m thinking of getting a mazda bongo as I can use it daily and they are in my price range. I have seen adverts for the Imperial Car Company and was wondering if anyone has had any experience with them and if they would recommend this company. Many thanks The Mazda Bongo is a good reliable vehicle still cheaper and better than the widely used VW variants. My ex partner and I used to bring them in from Japan with other vehicles so know them well. Spares are easy to obtain from specialist outlets, it was never officially imported into the UK in its Mazda or Ford guise. They come in many variants best is, of course, diesel but also buy one with the electric lifting roof and four wheel drive. My ex partner still has one and uses it together with a drive away awning for trips away. Do not know where you live but their is still an auction house that specialises in Jap imports on the south coast, used to be one in Liverpool but this has now gone. You can buy fairly cheaply at auction but will have to sort out the registration process, pretty easy as they a lot of the work. Do not know the converters personally but they have a good name, if you want any more details about the vehicle or import process pm me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Camperdude Posted March 5, 2010 Share Posted March 5, 2010 I visited the Imperial Car Company as it's on the way to Poole and the ferry to France and I was thinking of buying one to update the old Renault camper I had. The staff seemed friendly and the conversions well executed although I thought the furniture was too low and the aperture in the roof a bit small. I saw an 8 year old one which they were selling for £18k - this was about 3-4 years ago. I decided that they were too expensive and paid an extra £2k for a brand new Leisuredrive conversion based on the Mk2 Citroen Relay which I drive every day. Leisuredrive have been converting vans for over 40 years and I think are the best value basic campers on the market. They seem to be concentrating on converting mainly VWs now, but can source a van to your budget and convert it to your specification. Might be worth checking out their website - they list used campers on their site too: http://www.leisuredrive.co.uk/ The Bongo site mentioned is probably this one: http://www.bongofury.co.uk/ Hope this helps. Regards John PS I've no connection with Leisuredrive other than as a happy customer! B-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy T Posted March 5, 2010 Share Posted March 5, 2010 Hi, We had a Bongo for about four years. 2.5 litre diesel (mostly) or larger V6 petrol (thirsty). Mostly autos with a rare manual here and there. Beautiful auto box but sometimes difficult to find someone who knows what they're talking about if it goes wrong - loads of theories offered, involving large amounts of cash - but not necessarily a fix! We had problems with the manual gear selection feature and a massive judder when taking off on a hill with a full load. Took ages to find a fix. Ours had climate control which was wonderful. Quiet, comfortable and quick. Four wheel drive and brilliant in snow and mud. Fuel consumption never better than 28mpg. Small inside and cramped even with the electric lifting roof. Nowhere to stand up to get dressed! If it was two foot longer and a foot wider with swivel front seats, or I was still in my forties, we'd still have ours. I miss it! Loads on the market, take care what you buy, do lots of research. Regards, Andy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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