Mercedes 814 horsebox

debsflo

debsflo

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Pls tell me about them good and bad.
There is one for sale local to me H regarding so old but reported to be well maintained with good safe floor and reliable .
Has new tyres radiator and taco.
They are asking £2300.
I am meant to be waiting until next summer when I'm in a position to buy a newer lorry and hiring one in the interim but not sure if I should ho and look as near by.
Looks to be in good nick for age and would get it checked by someone mechanically.
Husband not over keen but would love my own lorry
Any one have one ?
 
I've got an old one . Had Malc the merc just under 18months. He's a little trooper . When I took him for his MoT , the engineer commented what a cracking lorry , and how he was a fab buy. Better than some newer boxes he has seen. Down to the fact they have few gadgets and therefore not as much to go wrong .

Had the same feedback from the chap who services him too.

So only good things to report from me.
 
Snap there hands off, if its as good as it sounds its a bargain! They go forever, my friend has a c reg that when plated they always comment how good it is, and much better than lots of newer lorries. I was looking for one recently, had a look at a couple but rust had taken its toll and they werent cheap for their age. I have had one a few years ago and the mechanic said they are bulletproof, the only thing is they do take some getting used to, driving wise, the gearbox is upside down, as in 1st is down, 2nd up etc, and the brakes are mega keen, so lots of prctising without the horses in first. They do roll a bit as apparantly the suspension is soft but you do get used to that.
 
We have a K reg. I like it a lot. Partly because ours is a nice compact little lorry.

My thoughts -
It does seem to roll quite a bit, but having travelled in the living once (no windows) it wasn't nearly as bad as I expected.

Agree the brakes can seem sharp compared to a car. We used to keep it at a separate place to the horses which was handy to get used to the brakes each time! Gear ration seems a bit odd, as there seems to be a big gap between (I think) 3rd & 4th, compared to 2-3 and 4-5. There can be an issue with the gearbox. Ours occasionally jumps out of gear if the engine is not under load (eg running down hill) which is a bit disconcerting. Apparently it is known to happen in some older ones and I think is generally a repairable fault (as opposed to needing a new gearbox).

I am advised (hubby is a commercial vehicle mechanic) that one known MOT fault is the hangers for the front spring-eye bushes, the rivets come loose over time. There is a conversion kit to replace the rivets with bolts.
Also the exhaust downpipe (non-turbo models) can get holes high up under the cab floor, which can be difficult to find but the testers know to look for this, it's a risk of fumes into the cab so could be a failure.

But overall a really bombproof bit of kit that can go on for ever, high praise compared to what he often says about horse boxes :)

Like previous posters said, easier to maintain than newer more complicated trucks.

Does sound like it might be a bargain ,depending on how much rust there is.
 
I have one-its an L reg-agree with the gears and brakes as described above. mine was well looked after and I had a FSH, minimal rust. It always starts, it always gets me where I want to go (slowly mind!) and both travel well in it. Maud the Merc is a great box and everyone tells me to hang onto her-got through plating relatively cheaply last year and they told me its the best older box they've seen by far and better than many newer ones. I only really do local trips with her and she has way more living than I want or need but its all done out very nicely.
 
Thank you does sound worth looking at then although the gear stick sounds weird I presume you get used to it.
Are they generally wood floors with rubber.?
This one comes with 5 months mot and tax and offers 're price as want to sellng has more living than I need as will only be local .
Do you all find your horses travel well herringbone and generally in the lorry.
My mare s 6 and has only been in a trailer and small rear facing 3.5
 
both of mine travel well-one had only been in a trailer and an ancient Bedford (once). The other did come over from Portugal but hadn't travelled apart form that. The ramp on mine is steepish (but not as bad as some) so we did some shaping for loading but they both self load now. mine has a tack locker which I wouldn't choose for myself but its not been an issue.the ramp is also quite difficult for me by myself but doable.

driving wise I drove it a fair bit empty before travelling a horse in it-OH drives it mostly-we have quite a tricky drive (steep from yard and tight gateway at the top) which took me some getting used to.

wood floor with rubber. personally think its worth getting someone who knows their stuff to check it out-the RAC will do it for a price but a local lorry mechanic might too?
 
I have one and absolutely love it. It's and E reg and I've had it 18months. It always starts first time, even when I haven't used it for a while. My mechanic loves it and it's been really easy to look after so far.
 
Ours is wooden floor with rubber over, don't know if that is typical or not, it is an all wooden body. We aren't going to win any style prizes (or driving ones with me at the wheel :)) but it does always start first time. If not turbo charged, doesn't get up hills very fast, but does get there eventually.

Yes, the ramp is a bit steep. Ours is arranged herringbone, with them facing forwards to the middle of the road. It seemed odd to me when we first got it, had only every seen trailers (straight on, or sideways arrangements). But I wonder if that helps to counteract the rolling a bit. Anyway, horse has always seemed to travel fine in it, and could be a bit iffy with some of our previous borrowed transports.
 
I sold my J Reg Mercedes 709D for about £4000. I think my friends is an 814 nod they've had it about 10 years. Mercedes are very reliable, go on forever and seem pretty easy to fix and get parts for, I loved mine but horse now 22 and not getting enough use. Need also to see how well the build of the Horsebox itself is mine was a McNeills with a wooden floor but it was in good condition save for rust around the frames of the doors which lowered its price.
 
debsflo said:
Thank you does sound worth looking at then although the gear stick sounds weird I presume you get used to it.
Are they generally wood floors with rubber.?
This one comes with 5 months mot and tax and offers 're price as want to sellng has more living than I need as will only be local .
Do you all find your horses travel well herringbone and generally in the lorry.
My mare s 6 and has only been in a trailer and small rear facing 3.5
Click to expand...

My friends hubby (who has the c reg) did me a sticker with the gears on, that we stuck on the dash near the gears as I did keep getting in a pickle at first whist I was getting used to it! This really helped. I was fine going up the gears, it was when you came to say a roundabout and had to go down from say 5th to 3rd or 2nd, my head just couldnt process the fact they were not the same as my car lol. You do get used to it. They seem to rust near the window wipers which if not too bad is fine but I viewed a couple with bad rust near the cab door hinges. We arent very DIY minded and I just saw ££££ signs for getting it repaired. As for wood floors, I think unless someone has had a newer Ali floor put in then most older horseboxes will be wood. I dont see this as a problem as long as its in good condition. Get underneath it and have a good prod about at the floor, you will also be able to see if theres any oil leaks etc. Good Luck, its very exciting!
 
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