New Commer

Phew, that is it for now! Only had a brief look over it - the layout makes it a little snug inside.

Things of note:

The middle section of the bed which forms the bulkhead has the fuse box attached so that can't be used as it should be.
No Fridge.
Engine sounds good, but when ticking over I lifted the cover and it was leaking somewhere and the fan was flicking it up - almost looked pink in colour so maybe antifreeze? Will take a vid over the weekend, it was getting dark! There was no smell to the liquid.
There are a few switches on the dash I am unsure of.
There is a switch near the sink, perhaps for a pump but not tried it yet.
Looks to be solid underneath.
12 MONTHS MOT!!
Selecting a gear is a real pig of a job!
It came with about 34 keys, of which three are needed!
The tyres - they look like range rover tyres or something! Definitely chosen to aid it on a campsite in the rain I think!
 
Brilliant, good honest set of photos:) Obviously a few little issues but looks like you've got a pretty solid van. The gear change issues are probably down to worn change rod bushes which are cheap (from Martin Maltas) and at least one end is easy to do. Love the veeeelor covers by the way:cool: And those tyres are more farm tractor than Chelsea tractor I think;)
 
Gluton for punishment! Looks fabulous......hope you knocked him down in price . Welcome back Jon! Look forward to meeting again.
 
Oh the seats Panky, they are a treat. I don't at all shudder every time I look at them! I think it is pretty solid, underneath looks great and its the cleanest looking gearbox I've seen! Price wise Chris, it was discounted from the listed price, but not by much - but I think for a rare York conversion, a one owner van (whose name was also John Holmes!) it sits about right?

There are two gas cannisters by the hook up which I guess feed a heater along with the stove - is it a heater - pic after the speedo? Not sure how that works.

Thanks OnTheRoadAgain - I need to familarise myself back on the forum and learn some names :)
 
Last edited:
Sorry Jon I forgot it was you, that explains the great pics:)
Who told you that a York was rare - there's millions of then, and most have them have been owned by a Jon Holmes;)
 
Great pictures, it looks like a really solid van. There's a little bit of bodywork that will have to have some attention, but doesn't look to bad. Have you checked all f the hoses in the engine bay? It might be worth changing both of the gear bushes, the. Rear one is quite easy to change but the front one is a little more difficult.
 
Hi Andrew, I checked over the hoses yesterday, it looks to be coming from the bottom of the water pump. The engine itself sounds very nice. Theres talk (as always) with Tim about doing an engine swap that would have been a plan with Fonty - Vauxhall Redtop but I am really debating as to going down that route or doing all the mods to the original and the six speed. As with before, not being mechanically minded, I want reliability moreso than anything!
 
they can be good engines with the mods if you start with a good engine...SU, electronic ignition, fuel tank and Overdrive\6 speed will get you to a comfortable speed. Red top amazing engine no doubt about it - I was going to go for that but decided to upgrade the original alloy head engine. I get the the short block back tomorrow from the engineers so hopefully I'll have it built back up and in within a couple of weeks
 
I agree with Jimberlake - I'm working through most of the mods he has described - just finished with the fuel tank - and i do get a comfortable speed (keeping up with HGV on the flat) and that's with the dinky 1.5l engine... my view was that the engine unit itself is strong (and I would think with less than 17k on the clock so is yours)... so sound proof, add a gearbox / OD. The fuel tank is like insurance in my mind - a price to pay for another non mechanically minded to avoid the upset of snakeskins in the fuel pipes (wouldn't know what to do there).. good luck with all your plans - sounds exciting.
 
Thanks for your input both. For the amount of vans that are known about now, so few have gone down the route of a complete engine change, so I agree the old engine is a viable choice. Although my engine sounds good, I am sure it must have been round the clock, he previous owner (who I didn't get to meet) had been around Europe in it a few times, but you never know! A fuel tank is definitely on order from Tim!
 
Was also looking at the Isuzu 1.7TD as found in Vauxhalls also -the proper Isuzu one (and not the crappy later Vauxhall copy) are astounding units - simple, economical, small and run forever.
 
Wow, time flies! No real update in terms of work carried out - we have lots of quotes etc and big plans. However, we have sadly decided to sell .

BUT

It's only because we are buying a second, and we don't need two! The new one is a secret for now until everything is confirmed and its with is. In the meantime, if anyone is interested in this rare York Conversion with only 1 previous registered owner, let me know!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top