Opinions on this van.......

[T6ChrisO]

Looking for a T6.1 to convert and this has really caught my eye as its in my favourite colour of Bayleaf Green

Pardon our interruption...

What do people think of it? Spec seems good with electric sliders, LED lights, swivel captain seats etc. I've never converted a Kombi, only a panel van so im not sure what difficulties or challenges I would face (if any)??
I'm not sure if £48k inc VAT is a bit steep for it but maybe thats the going rate

Also, maybe a daft question but what are the boxed areas above the wheel arches? Some sort of power/motor for the elec sliders??

Thanks all

 

[TallPaul_S]

Yeah they're the motors for the sliding doors. It's got sliding windows so they're probably leaking so factor in fixing or replacing them for some safari windows if you don't want the headache later down the line!

That colour is spectacular.

 

[cgtmiles]

It’s a nice looking van with pretty low mileage. Double electric sliders which wouldn’t be my preference for a camper but if that works for your plans than great. With regards to it being a Kombi I don’t think that makes much difference, I think it makes more of a difference that LV have got their hands it on and done stuff which you are paying a premium for which you may well rip out/redo for the conversion

 

[Belly]

Great looking van but you would be undoing a lot of nice work to covert to a camper... But if you do I'll buy the seats

 

[T6ChrisO]

Yeah they're the motors for the sliding doors. It's got sliding windows so they're probably leaking so factor in fixing or replacing them for some safari windows if you don't want the headache later down the line!

That colour is spectacular.

Yes Safari windows have caught my eye

It’s a nice looking van with pretty low mileage. Double electric sliders which wouldn’t be my preference for a camper but if that works for your plans than great. With regards to it being a Kombi I don’t think that makes much difference, I think it makes more of a difference that LV have got their hands it on and done stuff which you are paying a premium for which you may well rip out/redo for the conversion

Yeah thats my worry. Am I getting caught up in the colour and ignoring the fact im over paying for a base vehicle which like you said, I may end up ripping parts out of.

Great looking van but you would be undoing a lot of nice work to covert to a camper... But if you do I'll buy the seats

Noted regarding seats

 

[cgtmiles]

It is a nice colour!

Do you know how LV sound deepen/insulate etc? Is that sufficient for your needs as a camper? If not then I guess you will need to rip it all out, if so then it might be a good base with some of the basic jobs done for you.

 

[roadtripper]

Double electric sliders which wouldn’t be my preference for a camper but if that works for your plans than great.

The electric ones aren't too bad to live with - if you turn the electric close off on the dash then you can still shove them manually and the soft close section is still powered so you are not slamming them. They're a bit stiffer and I tend to shove them from the back rather than pull on the handle - but I've not lived with manual ones to compare that with.

I think also having a slider both sides can work with camper style interiors - if you are doing a pod style kitchen so you can cook outside as well - I've also seen conversion folks around here have done all the electrics on the "back" of the kitchen where it can be easily maintained - also water carrier access...

I'm with you on the colour though - looks mint (though not that shade of green!)

 

[T6ChrisO]

The electric ones aren't too bad to live with - if you turn the electric close off on the dash then you can still shove them manually and the soft close section is still powered so you are not slamming them. They're a bit stiffer and I tend to shove them from the back rather than pull on the handle - but I've not lived with manual ones to compare that with.

I think also having a slider both sides can work with camper style interiors - if you are doing a pod style kitchen so you can cook outside as well - I've also seen conversion folks around here have done all the electrics on the "back" of the kitchen where it can be easily maintained - also water carrier access...

I'm with you on the colour though - looks mint (though not that shade of green!)

Why would you close the electric close off? Is it a pain?

I completely agree with a camper layout working with twin sliders. Id probably go down the U-shape again so access to the main pod area would be ideal

 

[T6ChrisO]

It is a nice colour!

Do you know how LV sound deepen/insulate etc? Is that sufficient for your needs as a camper? If not then I guess you will need to rip it all out, if so then it might be a good base with some of the basic jobs done for you.

Yeah 100% worth a phone call to them if I decide to take it any further. Good idea

 

[TallPaul_S]

The electric ones aren't too bad to live with - if you turn the electric close off on the dash then you can still shove them manually and the soft close section is still powered so you are not slamming them. They're a bit stiffer and I tend to shove them from the back rather than pull on the handle - but I've not lived with manual ones to compare that with.

I think also having a slider both sides can work with camper style interiors - if you are doing a pod style kitchen so you can cook outside as well - I've also seen conversion folks around here have done all the electrics on the "back" of the kitchen where it can be easily maintained - also water carrier access...

I'm with you on the colour though - looks mint (though not that shade of green!)

Yeah the dual slider thing definitely can work. Makes accessing stuff far easier, you could even mount all your electric stuff there.


The new California is dual slider!

 

[TallPaul_S]

Why would you close the electric close off? Is it a pain?

I completely agree with a camper layout working with twin sliders. Id probably go down the U-shape again so access to the main pod area would be ideal

If you wanted the door partially open, or if you wanted to silence the beeps when it closes, or just don't want to be running down the starter battery opening and closing the doors.

It is nice to be able to open and close the doors either from the driver's seat, or from 30ft away with the remote!

 

[T6ChrisO]

If you wanted the door partially open, or if you wanted to silence the beeps when it closes, or just don't want to be running down the starter battery opening and closing the doors.

It is nice to be able to open and close the doors either from the driver's seat, or from 30ft away with the remote!

Ahh gotcha! Thank you Paul

 

[roadtripper]

I don't find the door close beep on my 6.1 too noisy - the tailgate one on the pressure sensitive close is much louder. It's quite short and the rumbling noise of the door is the same powered by humans or motor. I do it more to save the battery if the van is sitting for a while and I've not plugged the 12v EHU into the trailer socket.

There's no way of stopping it in software (that anyone's found to my knowledge) but you can open the door controllers and desolder the buzzer. Looking at a recent thread if you did that I'd also take the opportunity to waterproof the heck out of the controller.

 

[oldiebut goodie]

I wish that I had specified twin slider when I had mine built, with the lwb you have room for the shower room/toilet also:

 

[T6ChrisO]

Speaking of toilet/shower area, this conversion somewhat caught my eye! Different to anything I'd seen before

Galley Kitchen Camper Conversion - The Mountain Tourer

Galley Kitchen! Our most Versatile Camper - The Mountain Tourer Awarded for Innovation. This is fast becoming one of our most popular conversions. Conversion Package Mountain Tourer 2-Berth Conversion From£26,7304-Berth Conversion from £35,330With Pop Top.This conversion is priced for a LWB (...

knightscustomconversions.co.uk

 

[roadtripper]

Not being funny but the budget approval I could unlock if it enabled MrsRT to have a Room With A Loo would be huge...

 

[TallPaul_S]

That's interesting, using the 2x front seats as part of the bed saves a huge amount of space.

*Brain starts going into overdrive on how to fit bikes in as well...

 

[cgtmiles]

Yeah the dual slider thing definitely can work. Makes accessing stuff far easier, you could even mount all your electric stuff there.

View attachment 240776
The new California is dual slider!

I didn’t say a camper conversation couldn’t work with a duel slider, only that his plans would need to align with it.

What you have done here btw is a proper work of art, high quality looking and could I reckon be a commercial success if you start taking orders. Access to the utilities from the back is genius. Someone else has done it with all the electrics accessible too. Very clever stuff.

The new California is more of a camper car imho than a camper van hence no single slider model to base it on

 

[cgtmiles]

Not being funny but the budget approval I could unlock if it enabled MrsRT to have a Room With A Loo would be huge...

En-suite loft conversion in the poptop?

 

[TallPaul_S]

I didn’t say a camper conversation couldn’t work with a duel slider, only that his plans would need to align with it.

What you have done here btw is a proper work of art, high quality looking and could I reckon be a commercial success if you start taking orders. Access to the utilities from the back is genius. Someone else has done it with all the electrics accessible too. Very clever stuff.

The new California is more of a camper car imho than a camper van hence no single slider model to base it on

Yeah you just need to alter your design a bit for the dual doors. I think it does open up more options though.

And thanks! Tbh with the amount of work I put into this one I'd struggle making any profit! But if I had access to CNC machining it would make things a lot more precise and quicker. Ultimately though, the amount of people who want to store 2x bikes in a SWB van, AND sleep in it, AND have a full kitchen... Must be pretty low!

If I ever changed vans it'd be for a LWB in some form or another, it's only 40cm extra but it makes all the difference!