Bedford CF Van

Nov 1969–1986 · the Vauxhall Slant Four · and the plastic grille that is not a CF2

A CF Series 1 has drums all round. Front discs arrive with the CF2 in 1984 — not with the 1980 facelift, whatever anyone calls it.

Find Bedford CF Van parts by category

All CF Van PartsEverything we list for this model, in one place

Window SealsWindscreen · Rear screen · Quarterlight Door SealsDoor rubbers · Pinchweld · Bailey channel Body & TrimPanel rubber · Mouldings · Bumper fittings Brakes & ClutchCylinders · Kits · Hoses · Pedal pads Suspension & SteeringBushes · Ball joints · King pins · Idlers Engine & GasketsGasket sets · Mounts · Seals · Bearings CoolingHoses · Thermostats · Caps · Senders Ignition & ElectricalPoints · Caps · Rotors · Coils · Leads Fuel & FiltersPumps · Hose · Filters · Exhaust mounts Lighting & MirrorsLamps · Lenses · Bulbs · Mirrors Axle & GearboxSeals · Mounts · Bearings · Universals

Not listed? Plenty of parts suit several marques and never get the model name in the title — ask us and we will check the books for you.

About the Bedford CF Van

The CF launched in November 1969 on the Vauxhall Slant Four — the belt-driven overhead-cam engine introduced for the Victor FD in October 1967, and one of Britain’s first mass-produced belt-cam units — at 1,599cc and 1,975cc. In 1972 it moved to the Victor FE pair, 1,759cc and 2,279cc. Diesels were Perkins at 1,760 and 2,523cc from launch, replaced by the Opel 2,064cc overhead-cam in 1976 or 1977 depending on the source, and then an Opel 2,260cc from 1981. Suspension is independent at the front on double wishbones with coil springs and telescopic dampers, and a live axle on long single-leaf springs at the rear — the same basic design as the Victor, calibrated for load. Note the words: the same design, which is not the same as interchangeable, and no source claims the parts cross.

Now the thing that costs people money. In 1980 the CF got a new plastic-grilled front end, and a great many owners call that van a CF2. It is not. The real CF2 is 1984, and it is a mechanical change, not a cosmetic one: a single 1,979cc Opel CIH petrol engine — note, an Opel, not a Slant Four, so a CF2 and a CF Series 1 do not share a petrol engine — a 2.3 GM diesel, and front disc brakes. On the CF2/230 to CF2/280 that means front discs with self-adjusting rear drums; the CF2/350 has self-adjusting drums all round; and a load-sensing valve is standard on all of them. Everything before 1984 — the whole Series 1, fifteen years of it — is drums all round. In New Zealand the CF was assembled at Petone and the last one went down the line in 1984. In Australia GM-H built it with Holden 2.85 and 3.3 litre sixes instead.

Bedford CF Van — specification & changes within the model

Brakes — the whole answer: CF Series 1, 1969–1983: drums all round. No front discs, ever. CF2, 1984 on: front discs with self-adjusting rear drums (CF2/230 to CF2/280), or self-adjusting drums all round (CF2/350), with a load-sensing valve standard.
The 1980 facelift is NOT a CF2: 1980 = a plastic-grilled front end. 1984 = the CF2. The CF club says in its own words that owners call the 1980 van a CF2 constantly and are wrong. It matters because the front discs come with the real CF2, not the grille. Ask for the year.
Petrol engines: Launch, Nov 1969: Vauxhall Slant Four, 1,599 and 1,975cc — from the Victor FD. 1972: 1,759 and 2,279cc — the Victor FE pair. 1984 CF2: a single 1,979cc Opel CIH. One source gives the launch pair as 1,598 and 1,759; the FD figures are better supported and match the Victor exactly. All sources agree 1972 is the capacity change.
Diesels — never Vauxhall: Perkins 1,760 and 2,523cc from launch · Opel 2,064cc OHC replacing them in 1976/77 · Opel 2,260cc from 1981 · a 2.3 GM diesel in the CF2.
Suspension: Front independent — double wishbones, coil springs, telescopic dampers. Rear — live axle on long single-leaf springs. Same basic design as the Vauxhall Victor, calibrated for heavier loads. That is a statement about layout, not interchangeability.
Gearboxes: Three- and four-speed manual, Vauxhall and Bedford · ZF four- and five-speed · GM automatic · Laycock overdrive on later models.
New Zealand and Australia: Assembled at Petone by General Motors New Zealand — the last CF in 1984, which was also the end of the plant. In Australia GM-H fitted Holden 2.85 and 3.3 litre sixes. An Australian CF may have no Vauxhall engine in it at all.
Dormobile: The CF conversions were the Freeway, Calypso, Landcruiser and Deauville III, plus a Romany that was rare and not a success on this van. Our caravan and camper rubber covers a lot of these.