22nd Jun 2013, 08:35

Hi - (original poster of the thread) in my experience, most insurers are very suspect of Tourneos as a family vehicle, and will only insure the 8 seat including driver version after dealing direct with the underwriter. I could not get cover for a 9 seat, which seems to require minibus insurance.

Also note that most breakdown cover is maximum 7 passengers (8 with driver).

The V5c classes it as an M1 passenger carrying vehicle, under 3030kg, which makes it a car, but the V5C states body style as minibus, which is confusing. UK legislation states a minibus is with 9 seats or over.

After much discussion, I did get cover with Aviva - but only after hours of negotiation direct with the underwriting department.

What is also relevant here is the speed limits for the Tourneo: as it is classed as a car, car speed limits apply - I have checked this direct with government after being told mistakenly by a traffic police officer that van limits apply (50 single lane, 60 dual carriageway, 70 motorway).

When looking at big people carriers, bear in mind Kombis with added seats or converted vans have to stick to lower limits - this is a hot topic with VW owners where the same shell and running gear is used for a Caravelle, which is classed as a car, as for the T5/T6 kombi 6 seat van, which is still classed as N1 commercial on the docs, so the lower speed limits apply.

We now use a trade policy for our Tourneo, but keep trying and you will get normal car cover with someone after speaking to their underwriters. I remember that in the end, we had a refund of money on our Aviva policy as it was much cheaper than the car it replaced, which was a Nissan Primera 2.2dci.

22nd Jun 2013, 08:51

Addition:

Just checked the Ford Transit forum, and many say the Mk6 is hard to get normal insurance for, but Dan Cameron at A-Plan insurance seems to be the guy in the know on this - search Tourneo Insurance on there for the contact details.

Hope this helps!

24th Jun 2013, 04:04

Thanks for that. I'm still arguing with companies as they say it is a van not a car, and don't want to hear about the classification of M1. We are foster carers with four birth children and two in placement, so we add up to a family of 8.

Thanks for your help. I will try the company you have suggested.

15th Jul 2013, 15:14

Update:

In 28 degrees heat, started the bus up, loaded my first child and others got in, noticed a strange smell (not the kids this time!). The bus was running with the air-con to max for three minutes whilst we loaded up, and as soon as I reversed off the drive, I noticed a wisp of smoke around the front wing.

I stopped, got everyone out and investigated what was an electrical fire under the bonnet. I emptied the bus's powder fire extinguisher through the radiator grille and this calmed the smoke momentarily, opened the bonnet very slightly, emptied the house powder extinguisher into bonnet area, it calmed it again, but as soon as smoke reappeared, I called 999. With the bonnet open at this stage for access (I have had fire training so only did this after being sure it was OK), I then emptied another powder extinguisher into the engine bay - a huge commercial one off my workshop van this time, and this seemed to put it out. Brigade arrived, we disconnected the battery and let it cool.

After much dismantling and investigation, I traced the fault to the radiator cooling fan shroud and removed the air-con cooling fan motor assembly, which was completely burnt out inside.

Turns out this fan motor is not available on its own, it comes as part of the radiator shroud fan pack at around £600 from Ford; another example of a part only being available as part of a large assembly from Ford.

The motor is marked Ford Gate 9010763, fan blades number 8 and unit is 10" across. I will spend some time tracking one down via breakers or eBay, unless anyone can tell me if the part is shared with another model?

I have spent the day removing the fire powder from the engine bay and have rebuilt the rad pack without the air-con cooling fan (I won't use the air-con until the fan is replaced) and after reconnecting the parts and battery, the bus came back into service in time to tow a car fifteen miles - it did so with no problems.

Lessons learnt from this: always carry the correct extinguisher and know how to use it, don't ignore funny smells or sounds, and don't leave kids in with engine running.

If I had not put this out, the bus would have been lost - I dread to think what would have happened if my wife had used the air-con earlier that day on a run.

Still, no-one was hurt, the fix will be less than £50 as usual with Ford, plus £80 to refill the extinguishers, but not what you want from a family vehicle.

It created a terrific excitement for my five year old son when I put the fire out and then two appliances arrived (18 minutes later..!), then I took it to pieces and showed him the burnt part. "I'm so proud of you Daddy, you're so CLEVER"

So, a dangerous event, half a day lost cleaning up, plus the cost of repairing it again; but damn the thing, I still love it. Especially when it is brought back from the edge of extinction and goes straight out to rescue something else simply with the offending part removed.

It could have been VERY different, though. Hmmm.

17th Jul 2013, 12:35

Update:

Cost to repair fire damage:

1. Air-con fan from salvage £37 inc P&P.

2. Engine bay professional clean £10.

3. 2x 40 amp master fuses (fuses 105 and 109) £6.

4. Refill 3 x extinguishers £40.

A total of £93 plus a few hours of labour and much swearing!

Total cost if no extinguishers: loss of vehicle worth £6000 to replace with same mileage, would have been paid out bottom trade price of £3000, minus £500 excess, so would have lost £3500 - and our beloved bus.

£40 of extinguishers saved the day! All working fine now, easy enough to diagnose and repair on the drive, air-con nice and cold again. It should not have caught fire, but I repaired it easily enough - which would have been impossible on a vehicle with a more crowded engine bay and fussier electronics.

11th Aug 2013, 04:16

Update:

Our bus is now 13 years old and we adore it, but we were curious to see what the new Tourneo Custom was like, so took a visit to the main dealer in Birmingham. This was after trying four other Ford main dealers, who even though the Tourneo is classed as a car and is a good alternative to a Galaxy, are totally uninterested in it and state it is only sold at commercial sites. This was annoying and lets down a great vehicle. After being bothered to look past this and drive a 130 mile round trip to Birmingham, we left our details when no-one on "commercial" was available to help us and asked for a call. Two weeks on, nothing. Considering we turned up in an old Tourneo and explained we had spent weeks trying to view one, this is abysmal salesmanship by Ford - it would put most buyers off. Why advertise so much and then not have dealer who sell them or vehicles available, or staff?

First impressions of the Custom. Wow, it's a big update with 5 star NCAP safety, much more modern styling and design. I'm staggered that aircon is not standard on base, as you need it with 8-9 people in a vehicle. We viewed a Trend, which was very attractive and noted that there was even more knee room in the back two rows, and they have dispensed with the trim panels under the rear seat rows so you can get your feet under the seat - much better. All 8 or 9 seats would be comfy for a 6+ footer across Europe, however the middle row of windows has a smaller internal glass area, which spoils the view. Middle row seats recline on the Trend upwards, which was a complaint on ours, but it still does not fold into a bed like most of the competition. The integral side step is a great addition, and saves having to get out to put a step down if needed, plus access to rear row of seats is much better, although much harder as you have to double fold the middle row seat and it still only gives access to nearside, which is a pain in Europe. Saying that though, the access to the rear is now suitable for a 25 stoner with stiff joints who could never attempt the rear row in a mk6/7.

We would love one, but are nervous of the complexity added to the technical side, such as DMF, DPF etc. What would sell it to us would be the crash rating, cruise control, fuel economy and side step. UK sites are offering a 125PS Trend with aircon and metallic for £22,820, which is stunning value compared to a large MPV considering the high spec, size and versatility of the vehicle.

If only Ford would understand some of the market is for people looking for an alternative to a large MPV at the same price and sell it at their car sites, not just commercial depots. What is going on?

We'll keep on with our early mk6 version until it fails, unless we get a windfall!

It's a wonderful thing, and one of the best things we have ever bought.