Bob's Camper Conversion

[T6Bob32]

My T6 camper is pretty much finished now (assuming it ever ends). Still a couple of bits to do but nothing major. I thought I'd try and consolidate all the pictures and memories in one place. It's been quite an adventure!

After a good few trips camping in the caddy, we decided we needed to upgrade and avoid the below. A ram jam packed up van of wet gear. There's a dog in there somewhere too!

I turned the caddy into a day van. Basic 12V system and carpets insulation etc etc. So I was confident I could do the majority of a camper conversion too. How hard could it be?! Time to find out.

 

[T6Bob32]

So, the van. After searching and searching I decided on a panel van I'd convert myself from scratch.

The van belonged to a coffee delivery company. It has spent a lot of time on motorways. 2017 T32 LWB start line, (business pack, AC, reverse sensors etc.) with 130K on the clock so she's been used. Looked in pretty good condition with a service history that I couldn't fault, apart from one item that was sorted before sale. Game on

The plan was to keep the conversion basic and not spend a great deal of money on it. And then I found the T6 Forum!

 

[Bav]

My T6 camper is pretty much finished now...

Err... does not compute.

 

[T6Bob32]

The H4 headlights were terrible! First job was to swap them out for some H7s with some decent bulbs. Picked some H7s up second hand. Gave the radiator a clean too.

 

[T6Bob32]

Next was getting rid of the old plastic steering wheel and adding a flat bottom leather wheel with cruise control. It's difficult to sum this up in a few words. This wasn't easy. Got there in the end, thanks to the info, guides and shared experience on this forum.

 

[T6Bob32]

The pop top! I was lucky with a couple of things on the van. Some products had not long since been released just as I was thinking about aspects of the conversion.

The pop top was one of them. The Skyline Skylow LWB version. This wasn't something I wanted to take on myself.

 

[Georgeo]

The pop top! I was lucky with a couple of things on the van. Some products had not long since been released just as I was thinking about aspects of the conversion.

The pop top was one of them. The Skyline Skylow LWB version. This wasn't something I wanted to take on myself.

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I like how the “fig leaf” covers your number plate’s modesty in the last picture. Very artistic.

 

[JumpShip]

That's a BIG hole , I wouldn't wanna be cutting that myself (on the driveway ....probably with a big black cloud looming) .
Roof looks cracking though I reckon

 

[T6Bob32]

Some of the strip out and clean up took place before the pop top ^^




This is where things got awkward. We wanted to be able to use the van ASAP, but I didn't have a lot of money left over, and obviously could only work the van when off shift.

This meant designing the van in a way that I was going to able to take access panels off and continue with the mods and conversion as we went along.

So cracked on with sound deadening, insulating and carpets.

 

[T6Bob32]

I told the pop top installer that I'd do all the trim and carpet of the pop top myself, seen as i'd ordered loads of carpet already. This was a huge mistake. I was so sick of carpeting by the end of this! And it probably didn't save me much by the time I'd spent all the hours, days, WEEKS doing it. Lessons were learned

Looks good though, was fairly happy with it in the end. Albeit with a couple of bits of adhesive overspray.

 

[T6Bob32]

Sometime around here we changed and engine at work. Nothing wrong with the engine, just scheduled time for overhaul. Got a cool picture with an ominous looking cloud in th background.

 

[TeeCeeJay]

Nice write up. A good finish on your carpeting.
You're right though, it's never finished and the threads on here certainly help to empty your wallet inspire you.

 

[T6Bob32]

Then the floor went down. This took longer than anticipated. Mainly due to the surface corrosion I found under the load mat. The load mat was soaked with moisture. I was glad to get rid of it.

Got rid of the corrosion. Then primed, painted and protected with some 'aircraft grade' corrosion preventative I had geographically relocated from work. Given that the floor was about to be stuck down with adhesive, I wanted to be sure the metal work underneath was going to last.



Folks might think with all the dog photos that I was getting him to 'sit' for a pic. I wasn't. He would not leave me alone whilst working on the van. Classic needy Lab. Nice though, looking back.





Man it was heavy...








Managed to keep an eye on where the tie down points were under the floor. Down the left side I've bolted them back in for dogs/bikes/stuff.

Also got new trim for the rear door and side step. Finished it off nicely.



The floor is probably the thing I'm most proud of on the van. I guess people don't really look at the floor. A fair bit of graft went into it and it is solid!

 

[T6Bob32]

Vamoose awning rail went on, I think it's just a rip off of the Reimo rail? To be used with the Debus awning.

Fairly straightforward needed a hand lifting and holding in place. Made sure to follow the instructions on screw positions and lengths and amounts of sealant.

Driving away from the awning is great. Getting the van re-attached, in the dark, in the rain, on a campsite in the Lake District... That wasn't fun.