I buy some sh*te

[David Stuart]

So I’ve been thinking for a while about getting a Campervan. I liked the idea of a T5/6 VW that I could drive everyday but then also use to take the family away (me the wife and two girls) and use for hillclimb and sprint weekends as well (you see where I’m going with this).

Anyway. At £35k+ it’s not a cheap or easy decision and I don’t even know if I like them or how practical they are with 4 camping. They I had an epiphany while helping my mate do a kangoo 182 conversion. It’s just a bloody box on wheels. And if I buy a cheap van I could do something cool.

That ultimately ended in my buying an older T4 with 206k miles on the clock. It was local and on eBay for starting bids of £900. I went to View before bidding and absolutely loved it and the owner was a very nice guy. So here it is.

What’s it got going for it?

It’s had a load of good welding work carried out properly.
Mechanically it’s excellent.
It’s a LWB so perfect for a camper
And that’s it.

What’s the plan
First of all get it looking better so I’m not embarrassed to be in it. I’ve got a tailgate and some side windows for it so they will go in the next few weeks.

Then the plan is to paint it RB actually. I have the paint and it will match the clio then. (Gringe I know).
Lower it a bit. Maybe some black banded steel wheels.
Insulate and line the rear.

And that will do for now. Then I’ll do the rock and roll bed and full side kitchen next year.

Will keep you all updated on progress.

Oh and I’ll have to get my towing licence now.


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[Crybert]

Don’t lower it. Don’t do steel wheels. If it’s for you and the family make it timeless, not some low rider that drives shittly

 

[Djw John]

You're responsible for any lowering of house prices around your bit now 🤣

 

[David Stuart]

Don’t lower it. Don’t do steel wheels. If it’s for you and the family make it timeless, not some low rider that drives shittly

Good points and a well trodden path slamming them to the deck. I’m not looking for that. I might go with painting the standard wheels but it definitely needs to be lower. I’m not talking scraping over speed bumps. Maybe 40mm lower at the back. The fronts are Torsion bar and can be adjusted easily for free [emoji106]

Hopefully you see my point.

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[David Stuart]

You're responsible for any lowering of house prices around your bit now [emoji1787]

I’ve been called a gypsy more than once [emoji23]


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[Cookson]

I love the idea of a day van, and there's a wealth of people who have converted T4s before you, so should be a lot of info/ideas out there. Are you looking to put a table and stuff inside for daytimes, of convert it purely to sleep in?

 

[David Stuart]

I love the idea of a day van, and there's a wealth of people who have converted T4s before you, so should be a lot of info/ideas out there. Are you looking to put a table and stuff inside for daytimes, of convert it purely to sleep in?

Probably done in phases

Make it cool.

Make it so it can be slept in (3/4 rock and roll)

Full camper. Going with a side kitchen fridge, hob and sink.

The one thing I haven’t settled on it the style / materials? Just looking at plenty of examples as I go along to get an idea of what to do.


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[Djw Dave]

Nice one. A friends doing a LWB Sprinter into a day van atm.

I’ll send a couple of pics across to give you some ideas.

 

[Alex H]

So the new DVLA camper conversion guidelines hit the other day - the community is in uproar over it appearing to suggest that you can no longer convert a van to a camper unless it has a hi-top roof.

Converting a vehicle into a motor caravan (motor home)

www.gov.uk

 

[Starlet_gt]

I loved my T4. Was an ex AA van that I carpeted and had a rocknroll bed fitted. There are loads of T4 groups on Facebook.

 

[Stevej172]

I had the below van for a short while before I sold it. Had cooker, sink, bed etc

Would say that it was on coilovers and 20" wheels, by no means as uncomfortable as a clio on coilovers, but probably a bit crashy for a family van.

 

[Cookson]

I do love a good day van

 

[David Stuart]

I had the below van for a short while before I sold it. Had cooker, sink, bed etc

Would say that it was on coilovers and 20" wheels, by no means as uncomfortable as a clio on coilovers, but probably a bit crashy for a family van.

View attachment 1439148View attachment 1439149

Very nice. I would love a T5 or a T6 even. But I’m just not £30k plus and getting rid of the BMW yet. Might do it a few years down the line if i fall in love with van life.




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[David Stuart]

So the new DVLA camper conversion guidelines hit the other day - the community is in uproar over it appearing to suggest that you can no longer convert a van to a camper unless it has a hi-top roof.

Converting a vehicle into a motor caravan (motor home)

www.gov.uk

There is indeed uproar. But to be honest it’s a mountain out of a molehill. It’s not that you can’t convert a van into a camper. It’s that without the high top etc they won’t change the v5. You can still do the conversion. There aren’t many draw backs. The main one is you can only do 50mph on single line and 60mph on dual carriage ways with national speed limits as it’s still registered as a commercial vehicle. And that’s if traffic cops actually know it’s a van or a camper.


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[David Stuart]

I loved my T4. Was an ex AA van that I carpeted and had a rocknroll bed fitted. There are loads of T4 groups on Facebook.

Any pictures. On loads of the T4 groups and already got myself side windows, tailgate conversion and a tow bar for much cheapness locally from a guy on Facebook.


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[Starlet_gt]

Any pictures. On loads of the T4 groups and already got myself side windows, tailgate conversion and a tow bar for much cheapness locally from a guy on Facebook.


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Can't find any interior pics atm. I've got a T5.1 now that's fully carpeted with electric Rocknroll bed and leisure battery. I'd love the full conversion but I need the room when it comes to bike trackdays.

 

[Stevej172]

Very nice. I would love a T5 or a T6 even. But I’m just not £30k plus and getting rid of the BMW yet. Might do it a few years down the line if i fall in love with van life.




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Only cost me £26.50!!!!

 

[Djw Dave]

Nice one. A friends doing a LWB Sprinter into a day van atm.

I’ll send a couple of pics across to give you some ideas.

Here’s a couple of up to date pictures of friends said LWB Sprinter.

 

[David Stuart]

Very nice Dave. Love all the self build camper stuff on Facebook.

I need to be able to take the kids and wife and sleep us all so need the rock and roll bed setup.


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[Stay Puft]

Only cost me £26.50!!!!

Did you win it??

 

[Stevej172]

Did you win it??

Yeah I won it on a Facebook competition!!

 

[Akay]

Love these. Converted one with my Dad a few years ago. The rear passenger fog light housing is empty, and removes easily, you can use this to route a commando socket into for power hookup without an ugly socket on the side somewhere.

 

[David Stuart]

First mods complete last night.

Before and after pick.

Makes a huge difference to how the van looks. Could prob go a bit lower but I’m going to get from front shock relocation plates (Shane’s scarface lowrider plates) and shorten the ARB links before going any lower at the front.
The rear is just running some cut lowering sprints and lowered shocks as well. I’ll be getting some 5” Faulkner’s on there in a bit.

Next though is to get the side windows fitted and the tailgate on. Then it’s time to paint it. It’s so cheap and so poor on paint just now I’m going to have a go myself. I don’t the FG boot and bonnet myself on the clio. They aren’t the best but I learned a lot so should get a better finish on the van.


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[imprezaworks]

Cut lowering springs?

Not heard that sentence for a while.

 

[David Stuart]

Cut lowering springs?

Not heard that sentence for a while.

I bought them second hand. They were lower but no where near enough so I just cut them up to see how it sat. They will get replaced with these.

T4 FAULKNER SPRINGS | The VDUB Monkeys

D Faulkner Springs are one of the largest suppliers of suspension springs in the UK and throughout the world. Lowering guide:8"lowers 25mm,7" lowers 50mm,6" lowers 75mm,5" lowers 100mm,4.5" lowers 112mm,4" lowers 125mm.Please note these are a aproximate ride height drops. Supporting products...

www.thevdubmonkeys.co.uk

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[DrR]

Haha I bought one to in December last year. Good for moving stuff about, slowly.

 

[Starlet_gt]

I loved my ex AA t4. Sold it beginning of last year.

 

[David Stuart]

View attachment 1476067View attachment 1476071

Haha I bought one to in December last year. Good for moving stuff about, slowly.

Yeah they aren’t quick. I actually quite enjoy driving it though. I actually think I’ll always have a van now. So handy for getting big stuff moved about.


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[David Stuart]

Tailgate fitted today. Quite a big job but I do like a bit of metal work and welding.

Next I need to cut the windows in and then it’s time to prep it and paint it.


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[Pep]

How come you’ve fitted a tailgate?

 

[David Stuart]

How come you’ve fitted a tailgate?

There are a few reasons people do this.

First one is they are generally regarded as better looking. More of a person car and less of and less of a builders van.

They also give some shelter / extra outdoor space. Some people fit a “rear kitchen” and you can cook outside with the tailgate covering you in poorer weather.

Also my doors were a bit rusty and had tape stopping water coming in where one of the window seals was missing.


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[R3k1355]

It's the go-to mod if you wanna consider it a 'real' camper, the upside is a real camper is worth really decent money.

 

[Starlet_gt]

It's the go-to mod if you wanna consider it a 'real' camper, the upside is a real camper is worth really decent money.

I'm not a fan of the tailgate. You can't open it if anything is parked a bit close to you and I prefer the barn door look.

 

[David Stuart]

I'm not a fan of the tailgate. You can't open it if anything is parked a bit close to you and I prefer the barn door look.

But looking over the black cullens on the isle of sky from the top of Applecross just ain’t cool with barn doors. Sitting on your bumper tailgate 6 for above however. [emoji106]


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[David Stuart]

It's the go-to mod if you wanna consider it a 'real' camper, the upside is a real camper is worth really decent money.

Pretty much. I won’t be putting a pop top on that’s too much money. But this was quite cheap and as I said the barn doors were crusty. If they were in good nick I might have kept them.


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[David Stuart]

Bit of an update coming on this. I’ve been working on some of the body work but it’s been slow going.

But while I’m plugging away I’ve come across an opportunity for a bit of an upgrade.

No I won’t be selling the van. I’ll be swapping the engine for a modern diesel. PD from a fabia VRS. I’ll get some photos and document the work when it happens.

It will add a few things to the van.

More power. 180-190bhp instead of 60-70bhp

Economy. I think. The fabia says it’s doing 30mpg but I’m sure it can do better if not driven like a tit.

Cruise. I’ll add the cruise indicator stalk to make it easier on the long journeys.

Opportunity to be an idiot and buy more unnecessary cars.

Should be fun. Should learn a lot. Hopefully end up with a really nice van at the end that’s a bit more usable and fun.


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[davo172]

I had the below van for a short while before I sold it. Had cooker, sink, bed etc

Would say that it was on coilovers and 20" wheels, by no means as uncomfortable as a clio on coilovers, but probably a bit crashy for a family van.

View attachment 1439148View attachment 1439149

Epic looking van!!

 

[David Stuart]

Rust repair on the front wheel arch. I could have just patched this up. But if a jobs worth doing and all that.

And here is the donor car for the engine upgrade.

I’ll get the body work all finished first. Get the van back on the road then carry out the conversion once the Skoda is stripped.


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[Bluebeard]

What a waste of a lovely Fabia VRS.

 

[Pep]

What a waste of a lovely Fabia VRS.

Said no one, ever.