Which engine is better for motorhome

Fiat use their own engines ,but the Peugot is fitted with a Ford built engine,

My immediate answer to the title is -- A Merc engine. 

But since the OP asked between what in effect is a Fiat engine versus a Ford engine, the old maxim --- FIAT-- ( Fix It Again Tony)   might be a bit of a clue. 

Cheers ............... K

I think all makes will have some issues at some point but there must be a reason the majority of MH are based on Fiat's.  They are a robust commercial engine designed to do lots of miles and the Fiats have a bit more oomph than the Ford units I believe.  Mercedes are more expensive and may or may not be better depending what forum you look at...

Perhaps worth thinking about is the fact that motorhomes, of any variety, take up a tiny proportion of the van types used as the base vehicles from Fiat/Peugeot/Renault/Mercedes/VW. If any of them were that problematic delivery firms, builders would not buy them and yet they are all seen in their thousands. From my reading of forums over the years apart from a few specific problems you don't read that many posts about problem engines. More often or not its what is behind the engine that comes infor some stick!!! As a first step, if setting out to buy a motorhome, decide what you want from the motorhome and think about the engine second. Obviously if you are buying secondhand you want a full service history. If you buy new you will have the makers warranty. One think that might limit choice is if you want an automatic gearbox. If that is the case its limited to Fiat and Mercedes as far as I know. Many manufacturers only use one base engine and certainly at the less expensive end of the market that usually means a Peugeot base but not always.

David

Do not be put off by what you hear about Fiat vehicles. The old adage "Fix it again Tomorrow" is years out of date. They are great vehicles and very robust. If you worry about the base vehicle then it will dictate your choice of motorhome. Fiat base vehicle equals more choice. When choosing a motorhome the right layout is the most important consideration.
Fiat motorhomes handle really well but some people find them a bit harsh, the Mercedes gives a softer ride at the expense of handling and the Transit is somewhere in between.

Having bought two Mercedes and two Fiat motorhomes I'd say that both have advantages. Yes, I did love the auto Mercedes but it was in truth just a white van. The Fiats for me are more like driving a car and my latest, in my opinion, is excellent being designed specifically for the motorhome market. It's a manual too and It copes very well with little if any excessive gear changes at all being required in every day driving conditions. Very good in reverse too now!

Definitely the Merc. On the Sprinter chassis it handles well, the ride is good and, to my mind, is superior to the Sevel products.

It is more car like that the Fiat/Peugeot in my opinion and the auto is a seamless drive. The Sprinter base is the original chassis without the bolt on Alko extension which gives a wider rear track which can present problems when searching for an MOT/servicing garage. The wider track can mean ramps and pits are too narrow to accommodate the Alko chassis.

Sorry, Micky. Each to their own preference

Our Autosleeper is a Fiat based van conversion. no problems whatsoever in our first year and 7500 miles.. 100% happy. Not sure what these fair share of problems are that the OP mentions.

Hi All, We are hoping to buy a motorhome in the near future, but at first we are learning about them, weight/layout/make of model, Do note that the Fiat Ducato have their fair share of problem, is the Peugeot model any better? We do like the Auto Trail and Auto Sleeper model, Thanks Elsa

Our van is on a Fiat 150bhp base and is superb to drive, with oodles of torque.  I can get out after a four hour drive without an ache, which is more than can be said for the 5 Series company car that I have just parted with!    We haven't owned it long enough to coment on reliability, but there are a lot of them on the front end of motorhomes.   I understand that one benefit is that they do a good MH chassis, so there is no chopping and changing.  They also seem to be a popular base for ambulances and small buses, which must say something about their reliability. 

I had a roofer do some work on our house earlier in the year and he ran three Sprinters, which he was looking forward to replacing with Transits, but motorhomes don't tend to encounter the problems and expenses associated with 150000 plus miles.

As somebody said to me recently, there aren't really any bad vehicles now, it just down to preference!

Fiat use their own engines ,but the Peugot is fitted with a Ford built engine,

Write your comments here...Collaboration between manufacturers concerning components, even components as large as engines is not unusual in the motor industry because it allows the high cost of design development and ultimately production to be shared/offset by higher production runs. Although it is my understanding that the 2.2 litre Peugeot engine (Puma engine) and its Citroen sibling is indeed Ford derived I am not sure of the derivation of the new 2 litre Peugeot/Citroen Euro 6 engine. However if I have read the limited information out there correctly this may be pure PSA not Ford.