My Conversion (Work in Progress)

[Wez]

My Vanette Conversion (now sold)

Hi folks,
Heres my 2.3d Nissan Vanette Cargo, faultless other than some rust, great little thing...

I set about converting it a few hours per night - not looking for a full time camper, just something to get away in for the weekends.

Its a work in progress still - but here goes for now, any questions - please ask

Going to have to split the posts as theres a 10 picture limit per reply.

Here is the van as i got it - 2.3 Diesel, non turbo, so not the most powerful at pulling up hills, but will hapilly plod along at 70 on the flat without breaking sweat:

Extra seats & seatbelts in the back - nicked from Stagecoach me-thinks!
Going to be removed, if any one wants them they can have them for free, just PM me

3x big sheets of 9mm ply, and 1 sheet of 3mm ply for the ceiling (easier to bend) also got 3 big rolls of 200mm thick loft insulation.

Cut the side panels to shape, drivers side sliding door is now blocked off (and central locking disconnected so i can only open it with a key - just incase anyone tries to jump in, they'll get covered with wires and loft insulation!)
Put loft insulation along behind the all of the panelling, to keep it warm and also deaden noise.
Was tricky to push the board to squish the insultaion behind it whilst drilling/screwing to side of van, but all done.

Also insulated roof too - with same stuff, and covered it with 3mm ply wood, sort of shaped to the roof.

Wiring
Once all done and screwed in securely, i started the wiring before installing the floor.
There is about 40metres of various wire installed, some i know what i'll use them for, others are 'spares' incase i want to install something at a later date so i dont have to rip the van apart.

The secondary battery is going to be underneath where the settee/bed is going to be.

there are 3 live feeds to near the rear doors, for water pump for sink and other stuff like if i want to add a fridge.
1 live feed to the passenger side wall, along with 4x cables for audio, composite and svideo - and a spare.
This wall is where the 14"tft is going to be mounted. the cables will connect to digi TV tuner, dvd player etc all hidden under the seating.
also i have ran speaker wires to each corner of the van in the rear - there will be a seperate head unit for the rear of the van, this will obviously do radio and cd/mp3 but also the sound for the tv/dvd.
i have also ran the wires for the ceiling lighting.

the secondary battery will be charged by the vans alternator when the engine is running, all of the electrics in the 'living quarters' will run off the second battery, so i can always start the van and not worry about that one going flat.

how it looked after a few hours work, with wiring in, and floor screwed down.

ready to start making the settee/folding bed frame along the drivers side wall.

 

[Wez]

part 2

After a few hours shopping, getting screw on legs for the fold out part of the bed, some halogen 'flush mount' ceiling light fittings, some LED replacement halogen bulbs for them, and some laminate flooring look floor tiles.

Got home and stuck the fluffy grey fur on the ceiling, looks a bit 'pimp', i love it, so fluffy you can draw pictures in the fuzz. Whilst not the best material for a camper - it gives the van a sense of humour
The glue was drying on the brush in the heat - so had to be done quick!

Here are the lights i've went with. I was hoping for a bit of soft mood lighting rather than have it like blackpool illuminations. I got some household halogen flush mount ceiling fittings.
They are supposed to be 240volt AC house bulbs, these are no good for inside the van but I found these halogen replacement LED bulbs in maplin - quite expensive at £10 each, but its exactly what i was after, hardly use any power and no heat at all, plus will last forever (10,000hrs)

So a quick tweak of the wiring to accept them, new connectors, holes cut - and bobs your uncle:

I really like them a lot!

Next was the laminate 'waterproof' flooring tiles.
I will be carpeting the van floor (or rugs or something), but just to give the wood base a water protective covering, i got some floor tiles and stuck them on. Also if its rainy or muddy while i'm using the van, i can just lift the carpet so it doesnt get filthy, then just wipe the floor tiles clean.

Heres how the lights look in the dark - EXACTLY what i wanted, not to bright, just 'nice':

 

[Wez]

Went and bought some grey 'cord' carpet - cheap and not very heavy so shouldnt make the van any slower than it already is!
We used evostick grab adhesive to stick it on with - very strong stuff, a bit over kill but thought i might as well do it properly first time round!

busy sticking it on:

once stuck on and cut to size:

Recovered the original panel for the side loading door with the carpet too, and put some insulation in the door bottom - carpet on the bottom half is just a temporary measure, but i've not decided what i'm putting on the back of the door yet, may panel it over completely - or might try and get a window cut in it?

got a length of shaped wood just to run along the join between the carpet and fur on the roof - finishes the van off well i think, just needs a few more screws in it to straighten it out:

bought foam matress from ikea, need to cut it to size though - building bed from scratch...

my dad helping out:

front frame built, rear support screwed to wall:

the seat is about 16" high, 6ft long and 2 ft wide, but it will have a fold out lid, so bed will open up to 4ft wide - plenty comfy for me :good:

Got to cut my big foam matress up i bought from ikea, then get my mam to make some covers for it

 

[Wez]

part 3

Another few hours play one evening after work:

All supports for bed/settee now in, and wood effect panneling on front & sides:

12mm plywood for the lid & fold out part to make bed:

putting rear hinges on lid so it can all be lifted to get to storage/electrics underneath:

Both pieces of 12mm plywood attached using 'piano' hinges - folds out to just over 4ft wide, and just over 6ft long so i can get full stretch

storage access:

the 12mm ply is quite heavy, but doesnt flex when tested with 6 people sitting on it folded out, which is just what the doctor ordered

gotta sort out the detachable legs for the fold out bed bit and a few other bits, then its onto cutting the foam for the seat and covering them.
then after thats done - electrics are going in.

 

[Wez]

part 4

Legs simply screw in the lid:

Then lid folds down (full length 'piano hinge' running down fold):

Mother making the covers for seat/matresses and cushions:

Double Ikea foam matress cut to size, and protective covers made:

Seat (covers still to go on):

Bed:

MP3/DVD headunit & powered & fused distribution panel, with tab lighter and battery check gauge:

Wiring in, TV/DVD up and running fine, still need to tidy it up and bolt the 660cca battery down propery:

Alloys on, just to make the outside look a bit better:

more to come...

 

[888dee]

very cool Wez and you seem to be enjoying building as well... got me thinking you have

 

[Wez]

yip i love tinkering, normally with Retro Ford cars, but i've been bitten by this vanning bug now. I've used it a few times now (had my first wild camp at the weekend), and apart from no propper sink or hob yet (just using camping stove for now) I cant fault the van. I cant belive i've been missing out on it for so long!

Hoping to get away almost every weekend now, even into europe in a few months.

 

[simong]

nice job so far wez, those led down light are brighter than I thought, was thinking about them in my van at some point, just got 4 fluorescents in, but found a shop on the east coast(skeg vagas) that are doing 12v led lights fairly cheap( will post up pics once I have some), with the head unit I'm running the vans main one off the second batter, mainly for the same reasons as yourself, so the vans starter battery only has to start the van an nothing else, plus I like listening to radio 2 while building and didn't want to run the starter battery down lol
looking forward to future post of the build(just to see if theres anything I've forgot in my build LOL)

 

[Wez]

nice job so far wez, those led down light are brighter than I thought, was thinking about them in my van at some point, just got 4 fluorescents in, but found a shop on the east coast(skeg vagas) that are doing 12v led lights fairly cheap( will post up pics once I have some), with the head unit I'm running the vans main one off the second batter, mainly for the same reasons as yourself, so the vans starter battery only has to start the van an nothing else, plus I like listening to radio 2 while building and didn't want to run the starter battery down lol
looking forward to future post of the build(just to see if theres anything I've forgot in my build LOL)

The down lighters are great, they're not overly bright but can still see what you're doing fine, nice and 'moody' if you know what i mean.
I still have standard head unit in the front connected to the two standard speakers in the front doors for driving, but wanted a head unit in the back as its also a DVD player, and didnt want to climb into the cab area to put a film on or adjust volume - means i can also turn it all on or off whilst still lying in bed

I'm thinking of putting a sink and maybe a hob in the back along the rear doors, however with it being a small van that space is handy for storage, dont know how i'd get on with it used up, we'll see.

I've got a few more pics to put up - TFT installed on adjustble arm, seats covered, curtains up etc.

Not sure wether to attempt to put a window in the sliding door or not?

 

[wildweekend]

Ideal van Wes, your conversion looks great. I wouldn’t bother with windows ( better to wild camp incognito). You could park up in the town centre if you wanted and no one would know. I would put sunroofs in for daylight where no one can see them.
I had a Fiat Amigo camper van as a 18yr old lad and me and my mates had great fun in it. Good for you, have a blast.

 

[Sean128]

Access to engine?

Hi,

Nice work! I've got the same van! I built a false floor to sleep on and partially insulated it when I first got it, but I'm not 100% happy with it, so thinking about changing it to a setup similar to yours but have one question, Can you still fold back your seats to get to the engine? or do you have to move a lot of stuff first?

Thanks,
Sean

 

[matttransitconnect]

looking good....very similar design to mine.....although it looks like your vans a bit longer than mine which is cool. good work!!

 

[zeezee16]

The down lighters are great, they're not overly bright but can still see what you're doing fine, nice and 'moody' if you know what i mean.
I still have standard head unit in the front connected to the two standard speakers in the front doors for driving, but wanted a head unit in the back as its also a DVD player, and didnt want to climb into the cab area to put a film on or adjust volume - means i can also turn it all on or off whilst still lying in bed

I'm thinking of putting a sink and maybe a hob in the back along the rear doors, however with it being a small van that space is handy for storage, dont know how i'd get on with it used up, we'll see.

I've got a few more pics to put up - TFT installed on adjustble arm, seats covered, curtains up etc.

Not sure wether to attempt to put a window in the sliding door or not?

If you fancy showing it to a few members, there's always the Croft Rock & Roll weekend, we will mark it out of 10, if you get 9 or more, Maingate will buy you a pint.
Cheers, Pete

 

[Wez]

hi people,

sorry i havent been on here for a few months now. been very busy with family stuff/christmas/moving house etc...

i have answered all the unread PMs i had re: my conversion.

The van is now finished and was used a LOT over last few months of 2009.

Its ideal for what i want it for, only downside is a lack of storage cubby holes, so thats something to work on for this year, along with a respray.

But it's MOT time in a few weeks (could of swore it had full mot whwn i bought it!!?), so time to dust the old girl off after winter hibernation and give it the once over, i think it may need brakes and a touch of welding.

Yes i can still get to engine, that was actually one thing i DIDNT take into the equation, realised my error first time i tried to check the oil etc.
Luckily if i slide te seat all the way forward on its runners, then put the backrest all the way forward too (so the backrest is folded almost flat against the base) then remove the cushions from the seat/bed - i can still flip the seat back and get full access to the engine

Thanks for the comments...

i'll try get updated pics asap

Happy camping

 

[GDog]

Hey there Wes that's a source of some very good ideas for my own conversion that's currently underway. Just wondering, where did you get the screw on legs from?

Keep up the good work!

GDog

 

[degzie]

i pm'd same question on the legs for my conversion.

 

[Wez]

They were from ikea, table legs... cost about £4 each with all fittings
bargain

here a few qucik snaps of inside as promised.

Was carpeted properly over the wood effect floor, but got scruffy way to quickly, so just threw a rung down and if its a bit muddy where i am, i just lift the rug, the floor wipes clean after that.
The radio in the rear also doubles as a CD/mp3 player and DVD player - connected to the 15" lcd on a swivel mount arm, also got freeview box connected up.
Power distribution panel also has a ciggy lighter on it, mega handy for charging/powering things.

Thanks for looking... still plenty work to do.

Gonna paint the exterior this summer too.

 

[cipro]

Keep it up pal, you will soon be out and about

 

[lewisdragon]

Looking fab, it will be great for the coming summer

 

[Wez]

already used it loads last year, few things to do, then tax and MOT for this years sunshine

cheers