Aftab

Hi Jpiech I personally have a 2008 20 series on a 2.4 coupled with a Cvt gearbox and find this has adequate power. I brought this last year and we drove it fully loaded through Cornwall/Devon and then the lake district for a couple of weeks with no issues at all. We are planning our Wales trip this summer 😀. I have had some powerful cars before but I wasn't looking for speed when I brought the Alphard. They are so comfortable to drive and I would recommend any one of them. I think it depends on what you're used to power wise. The 3.5 will definitely give you better acceleration. On the flip side the hybrid would give you better mileage. However you have to factor in the state of the batteries of an 11 year old hybrid and possible costs associated with it. This may make the 3.5 more viable. Good luck 👍🏼 Aftab

Hey thanks for the info 👍🏼 My 2.4 20 series (Cvt trans) had the 'TC' Auto oil. This was indicated by the stamp on the oil filler nut. I think there is also an FE oil. I purchased mine from opie oils at a decent price. They may be a good shout if anyone has trouble finding hard to find oils.

Hi Martin Just letting you know that I took one of the 3rd row seats out now. I've orderd the Vangear mini pod with a couple of extras. The fixing you will need will be the 'J clip'. I'll post a picture of it once I receive it in 2-3 weeks.

Thanks for the info Phil 👍🏼

You're welcome Chris. I was a bit stuck for parts too when I purchased my Alphard. The dealer I brought mine from was a great help. He recommended the site https://partsouq.com This site recognised my vin number and gave me some part numbers which I could cross reference with other sites. These cars are brilliant and Bullet proof. I would advise keeping them happy with regular services. Good luck 👍🏼

Hi Chris I was in the same predicament when I brought my Alphard last year. Halfords and euro carparts kept sending me the wrong wipers. The only place I could get the right ones were from Opie Oils. I brought oil, filters and gearbox oil from them too. https://www.opieoils.co.uk As for the rear wiper. I just switched the wipper on and then switched the engine off when it got to the bottom. It returns back to its original position when you switch the engine back on. I have seen someone pull it down manually too but I wouldn't recommend that. Hope this helps 👍🏼

Welcome Martin I was looking at buying the micro pod from van gear in a few weeks time. I have the 8 seater so I was thinking about removing one of the rear seats so that the pod fits more snuggly against the side window. If you decide to keep the seat up then the pod will sit more to the middle of the floor. They do have quite a few fixing and what I gather is that you will definitely find one that will fit into the Alphard's rails. Alphards are great vehicles. Good luck and please post a picture up if you get the pod soon 👍🏼

Welcome to the forum Jakey. Let us all know how the conversion goes 👍🏼

I would have thought that the service would have included the spark plugs especially if it includes the brake oil change. The rest seems expensive apart from the gearbox oil change. I agree with Rojie that a lot of dealers are hesitant to service imports for some reason. You can guarantee that they will pull up other things on the Alphard to make more money. The gearbox oil change sounds very cheap as I purchased the oil for around £60 discounted. I did all my own work when I brought my Alphard as I wanted to make sure everything was done right. The dealer I brought it from had the brakes/discs and the infamous rear bushes changed before I picked it up.

Hi do you mean like a camper conversation type with more desk space? I've been looking to convert mine to have a mini kitchen in the rear in the view of keeping as many seats as possible. I've realised it is better to enlist a good carpenter to get exactly what you want rather than buy an off the shelf pod system.

Hi Babu Have you tried Admiral? I found them less than half the price of Adrian Flux. I had the same issue of the insurer not finding the 2008 Alphard over the vellfire. Apparently it did come up as a Alphard as soon as the registration was typed in. I hope it helps