VW T3 for overlanding

[dtour]

Hi folks,

I am after a bit of advice. I want to upgrade from my VW Caddy mini-camper to something a bit roomier. Budget is around 10k euro. I live in southern Spain, very close to Morocco, so that's at the top of my overlanding bucket list. I would love to head to central Asia in 2-3 years time if the stars align. It has to be a van, truck + rooftop tent is not an option. I have considered VW T3 and T4 Syncro but they seem very pricy and unreliable, which is something I'd like to avoid as I am not particularly mechanically inclined (happy to learn, just haven't had the chance to fiddle with engines all that much in the past). With all of that in mind I am starting to lean towards a 2wd T3s diesel - I understand the rear wheel drive makes them quite capable off-road and they can be improved with a few relatively simple mods. What do you guys think? Does my logic work? On a slightly separate note - should I stick with diesel or consider a gasoline > lpg conversion?

Also, if anyone here is based around Malaga I would love to catch up, have a and talk travels!

Many thanks,

Andrea

[boro1]

Why do you want T3? If you are not a mechanic or you don't have any special feelings for that car, just don't. It's not for everyone. It's an old car, even when it was new it was not considered exactly super good car. Of course it depends on piece from piece. Main problems - rust everywhere, engine cylinder bolts, cooling, leaking oil, petrol etc.
I wouldn't buy it even though I'm able to do the repairs.
What about Sprinter? They do more than you think they can do and more than you will probably want to do. They are a good balance on having a mobile campsite with practically no setup time, and being able to get to remote places. It's not a jeep, it won't crawl up the faces of boulders, but there are usually other routes you can take to get to the same place.
Mercedes, Ford, and RAM vans are the main options for good vans to live in. Nissan offers one too, but it is not as popular.