Sully the LDV Convoy

Rear door handle n other LDV Stuff

Got lucky today (get yer minds out of the gutter - not THAT kinda lucky!).

I managed to break the rear door handle on Sully a short while back (that's not the lucky bit btw). My vans rear door seems a bit stiff initially & there's no other handle, so I guess it gets overstressed with doing the opening and pulling duties). The hinges n stuff are ok, & the doors close pretty tight and don't leak, so I've not been tempted to mess with them, and didn't think it was a problem till the soddin' handle broke.

Anyway, the lucky bit is that I found out about a relatively local guy (well, local for rural Wales - Crymmych in the Preseli Hills) who breaks Transits and LDV's (well Tranny's really but got into LDV's as well cos of the tranny running gear in lots of em). He reckons he's got pretty much all spares for LDV's and Tranny's :banana:

Anyway, Rik turned out to be a nice guy and seems to know the vans well. Sorted me a door handle, and threw in a bolt-on interior door handle (which I'm thinking of putting on the outside of the door to prevent a repeat of breaking the door handle I've now got to change yet again).

Also pretty much supported what my research had suggested before I bought one of these much-maligned vans. Rik told me that the 'banana' engine, gearbox and axle combo mine has are generally uber-reliable (definitely very good news) and that they suffer from being a bit basic, pedestrian, unrefined and with cruddy trim, poor fitting interiors, badly-fitting doors, rubbish cheapo locks and flimsy door handles (yeah, spotted these ones on me own, but figure these are niggles compared to big expensive stuff that has you looking for your Breakdown Cover). The odd water leaks from windscreen and door seals as well (yup, check - Sikkaflex for the windscreen and gonna get some extra seals and glue em on to sort the door gaps).

Overall though, an assessment I could live with happily for a budget campervan running gear / chassis, so I hope Rik really, really knows his onions!

Other useful stuff is that the Bosch pump on mine is WAY better (as in reliability and robustness) than the Epic (or Epic Fail) pump on the later Duratorque motors (also used in 'Smiley' Transits apparently). Told me that my Bosch injector pump will pretty much stand being run on Custard if you could make it combustible, so if I should decide I wanted to run on veggie or bio-diesel then apparently it'll do so without complaint (didn't go into details of how/what though). Useful info for anyone running the later Epic pump should it fail, then Rik has retro-fitted the older Bosch pump with a slight performance drop but with a trade-off of MUCH better reliability.

Anyway - I'm guessing that at least a couple of people who could be bothered to read my drivel would also have an LDV. If they do and are scratching around for some s/h LDV bits, then (if my experience is typical) you could do worse than give Rik a try. If so,he's on 01239 832077.
 
Repairs

Well, thought I'd fit the rear door outer handle yesterday morning - can't take more than an hour, surely?

Nope. Lower outer door handle screw turns out to be behind the main inner lock assembly. To get that moved meant disconnecting the cable to the upper door catch which had to be removed. Then the outer trim had to come off to reveal another screw, then disconnect the linkages and THEN I could get the old handle off.

Changed the handle and went through the reverse palaver. Testing reveals that the reason for the door sticking is that wear in the linkage means the inner door catch releases, while the outer handle mechanism just catches and needs a yank to release. This of course over-stresses what is a pretty flimsy handle. I found a way to take up the slack/wear in the linkage, and while I was at it fitted a pull handle on the outer door as well, so that the door release handle doesn't need to be used at all to pull the door open (I don't want to replace that *%$$@@@** handle for a while).

Also stuffed some more acoustic material in the dash, and also added a layer under the bonnet with some sound-deadening pads to the bonnet skin first in the pursuit of lower engine noise transmission to the cabin.

Been shopping today for stuff to go inside (cups n stuff) bits n bobs to try and get ready to actually use the van as intended!
 
Found your thread :)

Hi - found your thread, so thought it only fair to have a butchers and reciprocate. It looks very nicely done and very stealthy. Is that a single berth up top on the drivers side rear?
 
Is that a single berth up top on the drivers side rear?
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It was Stepaway - it went across the van though as its only 'deep' enough as a single and you'd have laid across the van (same as the main bed does behind the seats across to the sliding door). The access to the bunk was through the part you can see, via a ladder, while the rest was behind the bulkhead between the cloakroom and the rear stoarge space (which would have been all under the childs bunk).

Thing is, the bunk was small and cramped, not easy to get into and out of and seemend a bit 'coffin-like'. So I decided to just keep the half you see for the extra cushion to make up the bed (which is the bench seat during the day) and the bedding itself tucked out of the way once we were in 'day' mode.

This change allowed me to have the rear corner behind the cloakroom full height - just being able to duck through from the cloakroom interior and then stand upright to get at storage boxes on the shelf or whatever seemed so much better than a bunk space that would bever really be used.

In any case, the van is only a 2-seater (with belts) now I've fitted the captains seats and my Gf's daughter wouldn't want to come with us alone without bringing company, so it wasn't much of a loss to change the arrangement. It'd be far better to carry a tent or add a safari room to the awning if we wanted more than 2 to travel and stay with us was the thinking - I can carry extra tents and gear in the storage space behind the rear doors. That was another reason for sticking with the layout - the idea is that with all the gear stowed and not in nthe living space, then we can stop anywhere and have access to the kitchen and living space without having to shift bags and gear to get at anything. We'll know soon enough how it works out in practice!

I wanted the living area to be better, hence the swivel seats - also makes the area less cramped with the bed out and makes it so much easier in the transition from 'cab' to 'living area' - simply turn the seats about and there you go!

I did keep all the bits intact though - so I could revert it to a small bunk quite easily if I wanted to.
 
GRWXJR said:
I've seen some of your posts and it sounds like you're getting stuck in, so keep at it! I had a head start so cheated, as Sully was pretty much as you see him here but for some tinkering.

I've ordered some acoustic stuff which should be here this week - going to see how well I can improve the firewall/scuttle are and quiet the cab down by applying the stuff behind and under as much of the dash area as I can without having to take the whole dash out. There seems to be quite a lot of void space behind the thin plastics of the dash where some stuffing can be done. I'd like to try and reduce the engine noise of the tranny diesel so its more relaxing to drive on the open road.

Once I've done that I'll use works noise meter and hope its been worth buying the stuff and spending the time to muck about with!
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You'll have to let me know that sound proofing in the cab went :)
 
Noise!

You'll have to let me know that sound proofing in the cab went
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Well... when I first measured it I didn't have the original sponge-backed rubberised floor mat in - and it made a bit of a din (81 to 82dBA at about 55mph) - about the same noise as noisy traffic if you're by the roadside, and at a level where in work they'd have you wearing hearing protection.

I didn't measure it when I had the carpet in alone, but it was loud enough that I couldn't hear the heater fan on 4 at 50mph, and the radio had to be well loud to be heard. The transmitted engine noise was way too loud basically -tolerable when in town and low speed, but on the open road (& I had a 200 mile drive to get it home after purchase) too much and I was doing no more than 50mph as the thing was an unknown quantity.

With what I've done so far (and the plan is to put some underlay and carpet on top of the existing rubberised flooring as well) then the noise level at 55mph (the best compromise cruising speed I find) is around 75dBA. That doesn't sound much, but decibel scale is logarithmic, so every 3dB represents a doubling of sound pressure level, in effect meaning that 81db(A) is 2 times louder than 75db(A) - which is a lot. The (A) means average, across the frequency range the meter reads, so some frequencies are more intrusive than others (generally high freq) while lower freq is less irritating but harder to manage (think of the bass thuds making the car panels buzz in Mr 'Max Power's' Saxo at the lights). It also means that what you hear may not seem much lower or louder even if the meter says it is, so it still comes down to how the noise is perceived and bothers you.

That all said - it is a lot better! While its certainly not quiet, the hard edges of noise seem to have been rounded off, as well as reduced. So while no-one would claim the cab of Sully is refined, its much better to live with. I feel like I could drive it for a longish period and find it comfortable enough, which I don't think I could say before.

GF came out in it last weekend and said she was surprised at how much better it was than the first time she rode in it as well, so overall it must be a noticeable improvement. Overall I'm reasonably happy with what I've got it down to, and have a couple more things to try to knock it down a bit more (better door seals to cut wind noise, and see if I can get a bit of the stuff I have left stuck to the inside firewall/scuttle in the engine bay (but there's not a lot of room).

Your LDV is newer than Sully though and runs the newer Duratorque engine (poss with a turbo). So - your motor may be queiter and higher geared as it has more Hp to pull a a longer gear - and less revs tends to mean quieter. So your Duck might be better to start with than Sully was.
 
Great read, I've a LDV 400 Luton conversion with the Peugeot engine. It has a Lucas pump but luckily not the epic one so I'm running veg oil on a twin tank set up with heated lines, yours would be very easy to use oil basically put in tank and keep a spare fuel filter handy as it'll flush the crap out the tank.
You can go as much as 100% oil but most people will advise to run 30/70 oil diesel mix in winter and up to 80/20 in the summer, I've always run at 100% same on my Merc and had no issues. You can do what I've done and have a twin tank so you warn the engine up on diesel then switch over to oil and visa versa when stopping to help preserve the pump but personally with a Bosch pump I'd just put it in the main tank.
Know what you mean about the noise they make, mine's horrific and even after replacing most of the missing floor is still quite bad but I've plans for some more sound proofing.
 
naughtymessiah said:
Great read, I've a LDV 400 Luton conversion with the Peugeot engine. It has a Lucas pump but luckily not the epic one so I'm running veg oil on a twin tank set up with heated lines, yours would be very easy to use oil basically put in tank and keep a spare fuel filter handy as it'll flush the crap out the tank.
You can go as much as 100% oil but most people will advise to run 30/70 oil diesel mix in winter and up to 80/20 in the summer, I've always run at 100% same on my Merc and had no issues. You can do what I've done and have a twin tank so you warn the engine up on diesel then switch over to oil and visa versa when stopping to help preserve the pump but personally with a Bosch pump I'd just put it in the main tank.
Know what you mean about the noise they make, mine's horrific and even after replacing most of the missing floor is still quite bad but I've plans for some more sound proofing.
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Interesting - thanks for your post NM! I'm interested in the veg oil thing, as I very much doubt that 'Sully' is getting more than 28-30mpg being driven sensibly, so cheaper fuel would help a lot in running costs over a long trip.

But.... I know NOTHING about mixing veg oil, or what oil to use, whether its rapeseed, make, brand, ANYTHING! Do I just march into a supermarket and buy a load of 2L bottles of 'Mazola' ??? and then just pour the stuff into the diesel tank and then stick some pump diesel in with it? Can it be that simple?

I understand what you're saying about needing to have spare fuel filters in case they clog up (as well as know how to change them and bleed the fuel system - which I know how to do in theory but not on this particular machine cos I haven't looked!). I also understand about the veg oil being thicker in viscosity in the cold, hence you running less of it in winter and warming the engine up first (though by the sound of it my Bosch pump is less 'fussy' than your Lucas one?).

I have a couple more questions if you don't mind....

1. Is running veg oil a load of hassle, or in my van should it be straightforward? (There seems little point having say 40% ??? cheaper fuel and then spending loads on having the injector pump repaired for example - you hear some scary stories! I really don't want to wreck an expensive injector pump by doing something wrong)

2. Is the veg oil that much cheaper than regular diesel then as to be worth doing?

3. What about 'shelf life'? As my van is a weekender, how does veggie oil 'keep' in the fuel tank over time? Does it turn into a lump of Goo or something if you don't use it quickly?

4. I have a mate who works at a wholesalers and I think they supply cooking oil in 25L drums for catering. Would that be the way to go perhaps?

5. Will my van smell like the local Chippy when I drive down the road?

6. I assume that running on Veg oil is totally legal, and the ministry can't 'do' me like they would if I ran on Red Diesel or Heating Oil?

Thanks!
 
Veg oil is no hassle, every vehicle that I've run it on that has had Bosch pumps I've never had a failure (a second hand one can be had for about £60 in any case and the money you'd save in fuel far outweighs that cost and there simple to fit).
You've two options SVO (straight vegetable oil) or WVO (waste vegetable oil), SVO is the easiest but the most, I buy catering drums at £18 for 20ltr so 90p a litre saving 50p a litre compared to diesel. WVO can be bought a couple of ways, you can buy it unrefined and refine it yourself (a huge pain in the arse and needs a lot of equipment and for what your doing not worth it) or you can buy it refined at around 70p a litre (eBay is the best place and there's loads of refinery's in UK now, they basically take all the crap and water out of the oil so it can be used for fuel.
There isn't one near me which is why I use new veg oil, you can use rapeseed which has a lower viscosity but is generally a few quid more (I've never noticed the difference myself).

Shelf life is not an issue as it doesn't degrade like diesel or petrol, having said that it doesn't have the oomph of regular fuel not that you should really see any difference TBH but you can add centane additive which is an octane replacement, again it's cheap and I've used it but not seen any noticeable difference.

Smell is an odd one, my Mercedes does smell like a chippy but my van doesn't and I've no idea why. I don't think it smells that bad, WVO tends to smell a lot worse. You can add scented oil if you like I know a few people that do.

Running oil is 100% legal, you can use up to 2500 litres a year before you have to pay any tax (I've 4 members in my family and so that's 10000 not that I count) Me and my family have been pulled several times over the years for tank dipping (red diesel) and that's probably because they have a place at the end of the road where they do it and I live between two VOSA points on the A19 and never had it questioned and I've never known anyone to get in trouble for using too much or not keeping records (I worked for HMRC up to December).
If you use different oil not that's a different matter such as waste engine oil (yes you can run your van on it) you do have to pay tax on it so it isn't worth it in my opinion but very easy and incredibly cheap to get and process.

If you do no mods to the fuel system I would be happy running 50/50 in the winter (it might be a bugger to start on very cold mornings but that's about it for problems) and up to 90% in the summer, so 5 litres of diesel, petrol, white spirit to 45 of oil.

If you want to run higher tolerances you can but a fuel heater which plumbs into the existing heating system and can be bought for around £20, with that system I'd run 70% oil in the winter and 100% say April - October.

If in the winter you want to run again higher tolerances or you want to prevent any possible damage then you'd be looking at a twin tank system.

If it were me with your van, I'd have two spare fuel filters in the glove box, and I'd use 40/60 winter and 90/10 April-October.

You should see an increase in MPG and better emission's which is Ideal for MOT's, as I said the only word of caution is for the fuel pump, but can be bought cheaply enough and can be changed easily enough yourself if your handy with a spanner.
If it we're a more modern engine then I wouldn't bother without a twin tank set up as then you are looking at silly money for repairs and there not as robust.

I'm surprised more poeple with Diesel motorhome's don't do the same as there not known for their great fuel consumption.
 
If you do no mods to the fuel system I would be happy running 50/50 in the winter (it might be a bugger to start on very cold mornings but that's about it for problems) and up to 90% in the summer, so 5 litres of diesel, petrol, white spirit to 45 of oil.
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Just in case I'm being thick, did you mean.....

A mixture of:

5 litres of pump diesel
45 litres of SVO

Gives your 80/20 summer mix?

What I don't get is the mention of petrol, white spirit bit? I get that adding some of either will help thin the oil and maybe boost the octane a bit, but I'm a bit confused as to the quantity of either (or both?) needing to be added to the mixture? I'd heard that adding spirit of any kind was only something needed in the winter? I'm a bit bewildered - interesting stuff though!

Sounds like you get lower emissions, and maybe even more mpg as well as fuel that is cheaper then? Sounds too good to be true!

So, if we assume 30mpg and using Derv/SVO (@ £1.48 / £0.90 per litre respectively, and the conversion rate of Litres to Galls of 4.54609) then:

Regular diesel would cost £6.73 per gallon, £0.224 per mile (so 1000 miles costs £224.00)
50/50 mixture Derv/SVO would cost £5.41 per gallon, £0.180 per mile (so 1000 miles costs £180.00)
20/80 mixture Derv/SVO would cost £4.62 per gallon, £0.153 per mile (so 1000 miles costs £153.00)
0/100 mixture Derv/SVO would cost £4.09 per gallon, £0.136 per mile (so 1000 miles costs £136.00)

To put it another way, the equivalent mpg/cost to diesel only could be represented as:

Regular diesel would give £6.73 per gallon, £0.224 per mile (30mpg)
50/50 mixture Derv/SVO would cost £5.41 per gallon, £0.180 per mile (cost equivalent to 37.4mpg)
20/80 mixture Derv/SVO would cost £4.62 per gallon, £0.153 per mile (cost equivalent to 44.0mpg)
0/100 mixture Derv/SVO would cost £4.09 per gallon, £0.136 per mile (cost equivalent to 49.5mpg)

(above figures disregarding petrol/white spirit additive cos I don't understand that bit :cry:)

Am I making any sense and are my numbers about right?
 
Sorry should have explained, if your running high levels of oil you can use diesel, petrol or spirit to help thin it (there's a few more but can't remember off the top of my head), 80% or above oil I'd use any of those, below that and I'd just use diesel.
MPG wise you might be lucky and get a couple more nothing to dance about but every little helps, oh and you might improve it further my blocking the EGR valve (loads of threads on the LDV-SHERPA forum).
Yes it is 80/20 mix :idea: your quite right but you could go higher if you wanted to try.
Your figures look OK to me, so depending on the time of year you could be saving up to £2.64 a gallon which might not seem much or even worth it but after a few tanks worth it certainly mounts up.
We get some odd looks at the wholesalers emptying 20ltr containers of oil in the tanks :lol-053:
 
Nurse - The Screens!

Using the roll of 'silver screen stuff' (sorta skinny bubble-wrap with tinfoil either side stuff) I've made a full set of heat reflective screens for Sully today.

The roll was 500mm wide/deep by 10,000 - typically my side windows and screen were a bit deeper (screen about 620mm). So I've overlaid 2 parts, then taped together on one side with aluminium adhesive tape, then spray-glued them together, taped the opposite side and then all the edges.

Then I put mini-eyelets through the material and then I fitted the suction cups I bought. The suction cups come with plastic threaded bits that screw into the back of the suction cup - so pop the screw part through the eyelet and into the cup to fit and TA-DAAH!

Only prob was the sliding door caravan-type perspex side window was too awkward to use suction cups on - but self-adhesive backed velcro seems to have done the trick there.

One more job done! :banana:

The overhead storage was left un-insulated - straight to the glassfibre roof so leaches heat like mad - so that's the next thing to do. Just gotta find some nice cheap camping mats next (think I need 4 of). Any ideas for some cheapy bargain camping mats anywhere?

After that.... binned the old CRT Telly and want to convert the overhead space (corner of the over-cab area) into an extra cupboard to keep foodstuffs in.
 
Wow - those screens REALLY work!

I overnighted in Sully for the first time ever on Friday night. It was cold, and I used the Webasto heater from 10 till 12, then it was off (and got a bit chilly unless tucked under a thick duvet) till I put the heater on again at 5am. I found the heater needed to work quite a bit to keep on top of things.

Last night, I left the van outside the gf's last night with my newly made Silver Screens in place. Had to be on the road before 7 this am to get to work.

It was pretty cold (dry so no frost, but around freezing-ish, and similar conditions to Friday night I'd say) when I removed the screens. The van felt a bit warmer (or less cold?) than I would have expected, which was a positive. When removing the screens, I found that the screens were FAR colder on the glass side than the cabin side, and as soon as they were taken down you could feel the temperature inside the van drop with a cold chill immediately.

I hoped that they'd make a useful difference, but WOW! Well worth the hassle of going to to make them.

The most expensive bit was buying the suction cups that I did with the screw-in mounting (though I've used only about 16 of the 50 pack I bought so I've plenty left!).

Allowing for Aluminium Foil Sticky (VERY sticky) Tape to seal the sides and join sections together, the Sellotape Spray Adhesive (£2.99 from The Range, and by FAR the cheapest price I've found anywhere btw) and the eyelets and tool (Cheapy Lidl stuff bought 'in case' years ago), the suction cups used, and the roll of material, I reckon that screens for the side caravan window, the 2 door windows and the windscreen have cost in the region of 30 Quid.

If I insulate the bit of the roof left undone (the over-cab storage area) then I reckon the van will be pretty cosy - I guess over time the saving in diesel for the night heater would cover that anyway.

Overall, a very happy camper(vanner) with the result :banana:
 
Got some Camping Mats!

Millets / Blacks is closing down (depressing) and the local store was having an 'everything must go' discounted sale. The place looked like a plague of locusts had descended over it when my daughter called in there for me - felt like she was picking over a carcass - sign of the times eh?

Anyway - there were some '3 Season' 1800mm x 500mm x 6mm Camping Mats left and I got 4 of them for a total of £14.50 in the clear out.

So I now have the materials for my next job, which is to insulate the over-cab storage section of the glassfibre roof, (which was inexplicably left bare when the rest of the van was done by the builder) :banana:

Hoping that this, along with the heat-reflective screen kit I made last weekend will make Sully nice and cosy to overnight in - we shall see!
 
More Insulation, and more OOMPH!

Stuck the camping mats up on the roof area in the above-cab storage cupboard to help things now - can't really tell yet if it's made much difference as I've not been out in the van, but it must do something.

After looking up how to do it though, what I did this morning made a DEFINITE improvement... I've disabled the EGR Valve, and tweaked the Fuel Injection pump to give the van more low-midrange. Takes only minutes and a bit of care to do, and what a difference!

Sully has always been sluggish with a heavy throttle pedal, and you had to rev him pretty hard if trying to accellerate to go up a gear on even a slight gradient. On the flat you could short-shift up the box ok (if with very gentle acceleration) but otherwise once out of 2nd - forget it (and Wales ain't exactly flat).

Now the above mods are done, Sully is far more responsive on the (much lighter) throttle and pulls noticeably better (relatively speaking - this is still an LDV Convoy, not a 130ps Trafic or whatever). Sully now attacks upslopes with gusto compared to the previous asthmatic performance. All the work is on the top of the Inhection pump and the EGR Valve which are easily accessible (and reversible) just under the bonnet, took less than 20 minutes start to finish, needed no special tools and the cost was NIL too! (apart from 2 small zip ties).

RESULT! :banana::banana::banana::banana:

I don't know what it'll do to fuel consumption, but doubt if it'll be a big negative effect as you had to rev harder, change down more and shove the throttle down harder to try and maintain even slow uphill progress or acceleration before the mods. I guess I'll find out in due course, but right now I'm happy as the changes make Sully SO much nicer to drive.
 
phillybarbour said:
The best van is the one that suits your needs, great van.
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Thanks! Also, I have to think in terms of 'the best van is the one that suits your wallet' too :lol-053:.

I admit I rather fancy an oldish Hymer (odd-looking but with a certain charm, and seem very practical) but I haven't had the chance to really find out whether we really get into campervanning, so this seemed like an affordable way (to buy and to maintain) to dip a toe into the water.

So far 'Sully' is coming together and getting better as the tinkering goes on - tonight I've sound-deadened & insulated the sliding door with SD pad, using a 3-season camping mat cut up, and some of that silver-screen type stuff glued onto the inside of the door card. Earlier today I used the last of the heavier sound-insulation material I'd bought to line the inside the engine bay scuttle in the quest for a better driving experience. Doors now close with more of a thud than a tinny clang (tapping the wing and comparing it to my sound-deadened and insulated bonnet, and its like chalk & cheese!). I've also been aware that the Awning didn't seem right - so earlier I wound out the 3M Fiamma Awning and found the front bracket wasn't lodged under the top lip of the unit to support it, so and loosened the mounting bolts and reseated it, so that's one more little niggle sorted.

I think though that having to roll the sleeves up and get involved with the van has actually started some sort of weird bond with the thing - I'm starting to like the ugly so-&-so! Sully may just be a much-maligned and fugly LDV, but I reckon he'll do just fine. He's so much better already than the vehicle I started with - it was basically all there, just needed a bit put into it. Don't get me wrong, he's still a bit careworn, shabby far from pristine and nicely finished, but then he's not megabucks either. The good news is that I've not spent much money over what I paid to make Sully a much nicer environment to be in - time is the thing.

Can't wait now till we can actually get a weekend away in the van. I know the first time or 2 will show up niggles and things we've forgotten or maybe need tweaking or rethinking, but looking forward to finding out. Rhandirmwyn and Stackpole / Barafundel are 2 nice places not far away that would be good to start with!

I noticed tonight that the Fiamma Roof Vent seems a prime spot for leaching heat, right above the bed. Thinking of making up another 'silver screen' with velcro around the edges to fit over that (vecro will grab onto the roof lining carpet and cover the assembly) when I put up the window screens to improve the insulation at night.

I also need to get some soft door seals and add them to cut draughts and wind noise - lowering the driving noise further and enhancing the warmth of the van. Then I need to worry about the rust spots on the arches, and undersealing the floor and........
 
Whiter smile!

Well, its only a small cosmetic tinkering (but the Sully needs all the help he can get, not exactly being a 'looker' of a van)....

Sully had the usual sort of dirty grey radiator grille that vans of his era (LDV's anyway) have - even though the rest of the van is white, the grille is a grotty grey plastic, a bit like the colour of grey house guttering.

So, to make Sully look a bit less 'builders van' and a bit more 'campervan' I decided to brighetn his smile with a bit of whitening. I'm not too bad with a rattle can, so I took off and cleaned the grille and then painted it gloss white with a 5 quid can of Plasticote.

The paint job turned out to look pretty good, and has certainly made (I feel) a real improvement to Sully's looks. He's still no oil painting, but a little bit of a makeover has helped.
 
Actually used the thing!

Well, Lisa and I have actually spent the weekend and overnighted in the Van - I've spent the night out once before, but a new experience for Lisa.

Only a relatively short trip to see how things went, bit anyway we went to just about the best place to be (given the weather) - Pembrokeshire. It's been cold and blowy, but we've had a dry weekend.

We arrived at Stackpole Quay early on Saturday, and then braved the biting offshore wind to take the coastal path round to Broad Haven Bay, then around the Bosherston Lily Ponds, then back across the Deer Park to Stackpole. Wind chill below freezing, so 'bracing' might be the best way to describe it.

Anyway - we travelled about a bit - sightseeing out of the van a fair bit, as Lisa hasn't spent as much time in the area as I have and it was pretty cold. The onshore wind and the incoming tide made the white-caps, spray and waves at Freshwater West pretty spectacular.

The good news is that everything in the van seems well laid out enough to be able to cook and manage to not trip over each other, and we spent the night in pretty cold temperatures comfortable and warm. We warmed the van up with the Webasto night heater for a bit, and then turned it off when we retired for the night. With my home-made internal foil screens on windows and over the roof vent, and a nice thick duvet saw to it that we were nice and warm all night, though it was pretty cold outside (around freezing and a chill wind). So Sully ought to be warm enough for anything we'll use him for.

I suppose this was a good test, as the cold meant we spent more time inside the van than we would have if the weather was better, more cups of tea and so on.

There's a couple of little things that we might tinker with, but overall we had a good time and found Sully to be a nice place to be. All we need now is some warm, dry weather and the chance to get away a bit more often - maybe actually get to use the wind-out Awning as well!
 
Draughty doors

My LDV (pretty common with them) had gaps and draughts around the f-doors which greater wind noise at speed (well, you know what I mean).

If you looked closely, you could see daylight around the top of the drivers door.

I'd just put it down initially to worn door seals and the fact that LDV's aren't known for jag levels of fit & finish.

However, in the drier weather and a few minutes spare I had a bit of a poke around to see what's what. As expected the slam catch is adjustable so you can get the door to close tighter, so I had a go at that. A closer look also revealed that the top hinges are on moveable plates as well, so you can get move the top of the door in and out as well.

A few minutes tinkering and now its a lot better and quieter. It had probably just had the doors chucked on in assembly (good ole Rover Group / British leyland eh?) when new rather than set properly, and no-one since has ever bothered to look and adjust them.

Still, one more small improvement and no expenditure required!
 
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