VW T5 Shuttle Bus to Wild Bus Conversion

[wildebus]

Great write up. Surely can't be more you can do to it?

Thanks
Certainly on the home stretch :dance:

Got the foam for the seating arriving in a few days - getting some dual-density reflex foam for the seats and a mattress topper - so that is a key task to upholster

Want to make up some Midge screens so can safely leave the windows cracked open overnight :sleep-027: (plan on a NC500 trip very soon, so this will be fairly urgent!)
Have also made an addition to to help in that ventilation area ...

Not a great fan of wind deflectors TBH, but they are a neccessary evil for camping to allow ventilation in the rain. The ones I fitted are actually the least obtrusive I have seen and I am pretty happy with them

As you can see from the picture above, they blend in very well.

And the very last change to date is on the windows again ...
With windows all round, the Camper is a bit of a greenhouse both in terms of people being able to see in and also heat (was 38C inside last week even with blinds up). So I've had the windows tinted (and just realised this is the first thing I haven't done myself!).

Went for a dark tint to blend in with the existing window glass surround and to give maximum effect (you can see the difference by comparing the above photo with the top one in this post). Had a similar level of tint built into the windows I had fitted to the T4 and that both worked and looked great.
A most useful thing is that you can't see the curtains anymore from the outside unless you look closely, so for stealth camping, this will be really handy

This is now giving the same sort of shade level as the pull-up blinds, so they can stay down generally unless I want more privacy. Tint + Blind + Curtain = Total blackout I reckon :ninja:
Something planned in time for the cooler months will be some thermal blinds. I think I should be able to make them to fit the windows exactly and keep in place perfectly with the pull up blinds which will work better than those suction cups that always pull out.

My end goal was to make this T5 into an affordable (seen the prices of VW conversions?!), multipurpose vehicle, suitable for camping and outdoor activities for two just about anywhere and in luxury (within the limitations of a VW Campervan) for both the Stay AND the Journey.
I think I have managed that :heart:

If anyone wants more info on any aspects of this build, please feel free to ask. Happy to help where I can

 

[phillybarbour]

Van looking great, and a superb base vehicle to start with.

 

[wildebus]

Made a few tweaks to my T5 conversion over the last few weeks ...

TV.
Orginally I fitted the support to the drivers headrest post, but I was finding that was a bit in the way of getting in and out of the sliding door as I tend to have the seat back reclined a lot when driving due to having orangutan-like arms!
Tried it on the passenger seat, but that would mess up with the seat swivel, so decided to mount on the B pillar.

Took off the existing grab handle, and using the original wall mount part and a extension piece fitted to allow bolting to the standard positions so very secure.

Meters
Added some different meters for the Solar Harvesting.

So I have a battery monitor for the Leisure Battery bank which allows me to monitor usage on the Leisure Battery side, and it also allows me to check the voltages on the Starter Battery as well (as it is wired up via the Sargent EC155), but to the left of that are monitors for each of the Solar Panels which lets me see what the panels are up to and also how much energy is being harvested.


Camping Weekend away in the Camper this weekend (so with all Awnings deployed... front is a Sun Canopy from Khyam, rear is a Driveaway Type, a Khyam Motordome Sleeper and the white jobby is a 4.5x3M gazebo)

Fridge running all the time, couple of hours of TV on (actually watching a DVD) and some lights, plus 240V inverter on for laptop and printer for a few hours Sat & Sun, and the Leisure Battery ended the weekend more charged then the start! (hooray for Solar )

 

[Moocher]

Silicone kitchen gear

Hi, Great conversion, love the van, could you tell me where you got you silicone kitchen gear from please , i've been looking but I can't find the same gear you have.

 

[wildebus]

Hi, Great conversion, love the van, could you tell me where you got you silicone kitchen gear from please , i've been looking but I can't find the same gear you have.

The Bucket and the Bowl I got from Amazon:

Yellowstone Folding Bucket

Outwell Bowl - Large Blue
The price of these shifts all the time (it is currently £2 less then I paid in May) and also varies depending on colour, so if you see what you like and the price looks good - like that blue one right now - then worth getting rather then waiting possibly! (I might get another as handy to have)


The Kettle I think I bought from a local shop and is this - Kampa Kettle
It works well enough but I find I have to use the smallest gas ring and also not have it on too high so maybe a larger base would be better?

HTH

 

[trevskoda]

Made a few tweaks to my T5 conversion over the last few weeks ...

TV.
Orginally I fitted the support to the drivers headrest post, but I was finding that was a bit in the way of getting in and out of the sliding door as I tend to have the seat back reclined a lot when driving due to having orangutan-like arms!
Tried it on the passenger seat, but that would mess up with the seat swivel, so decided to mount on the B pillar.

Took off the existing grab handle, and using the original wall mount part and a extension piece fitted to allow bolting to the standard positions so very secure.

Meters
Added some different meters for the Solar Harvesting.

So I have a battery monitor for the Leisure Battery bank which allows me to monitor usage on the Leisure Battery side, and it also allows me to check the voltages on the Starter Battery as well (as it is wired up via the Sargent EC155), but to the left of that are monitors for each of the Solar Panels which lets me see what the panels are up to and also how much energy is being harvested.


Camping Weekend away in the Camper this weekend (so with all Awnings deployed... front is a Sun Canopy from Khyam, rear is a Driveaway Type, a Khyam Motordome Sleeper and the white jobby is a 4.5x3M gazebo)

Fridge running all the time, couple of hours of TV on (actually watching a DVD) and some lights, plus 240V inverter on for laptop and printer for a few hours Sat & Sun, and the Leisure Battery ended the weekend more charged then the start! (hooray for Solar )

There is a little unit that plugs into cigy socket and steps volts up to 19v for laptop,thing there about £19 ebay and uses much less power than a inverter,love the job you have done health to wear.

 

[wildebus]

There is a little unit that plugs into cigy socket and steps volts up to 19v for laptop,thing there about £19 ebay and uses much less power than a inverter,love the job you have done health to wear.

Sorry, but really going to to have to disagree with this common statement about inverter inefficiency ... My inverter is nothing special (500W MSW Streetwize brand from Towsure) and the actual power draw from the batteries compared to power draw from device is in fact very similar (difference being the waste of course) - I did some extensive calculations with meters and monitors on the household AC, and Camper DC and inverted AC side to check, and with various different devices (including Halogen heaters and an Oil filled Radiator.
So many people think inverters are bad and wasteful and they are really honestly are not! I have had one person says he bought an inverter 3 years ago and never used it as it is too wasteful. Well, yes, that is wasteful as he shouldn't have bought it as he clearly didn't need it

Ref adapters .. if just one specific device it can be worthwhile possibly, but I want to run my notebook, sometimes my laptop, got a printer I want to be able to use, battery rechargers for cordless power tools (Dremel and Ryobi One+ 18V batteries), electric blanket plus a long mains LED Rope Light. Obviously not all the same time but at various times.
It really is not worth trying to eliminate 240v AC in this situation with loads of different DC-DC adapters and/or DC products when a single Inverter lets me use what I have already at no extra cost.

Just my findings and opinions

 

[Obanboy666]

Sorry, but really going to to have to disagree with this common statement about inverter inefficiency ... My inverter is nothing special (500W MSW Streetwize brand from Towsure) and the actual power draw from the batteries compared to power draw from device is in fact very similar (difference being the waste of course) - I did some extensive calculations with meters and monitors on the household AC, and Camper DC and inverted AC side to check, and with various different devices (including Halogen heaters and an Oil filled Radiator.
So many people think inverters are bad and wasteful and they are really honestly are not! I have had one person says he bought an inverter 3 years ago and never used it as it is too wasteful. Well, yes, that is wasteful as he shouldn't have bought it as he clearly didn't need it

Ref adapters .. if just one specific device it can be worthwhile possibly, but I want to run my notebook, sometimes my laptop, got a printer I want to be able to use, battery rechargers for cordless power tools (Dremel and Ryobi One+ 18V batteries), electric blanket plus a long mains LED Rope Light. Obviously not all the same time but at various times.
It really is not worth trying to eliminate 240v AC in this situation with loads of different DC-DC adapters and/or DC products when a single Inverter lets me use what I have already at no extra cost.

Just my findings and opinions

You take your printer with you when out in your van ? Strange unless you are fulltiming.

 

[wildebus]

You take your printer with you when out in your van ? Strange unless you are fulltiming.

Depends on the printer
It is a mains label/barcoding printer and I go to festivals and have a trade stand, so want to be able to print off smart looking information labels

 

[campervanannie]

love the conversion i am a great fan of VWs if i did not need my mobility trike i would go back to a T4/5.

 

[wildebus]

love the conversion i am a great fan of VWs if i did not need my mobility trike i would go back to a T4/5.

Thanks Annie
A couple of years ago I helped out a couple when one had a trip in our pop-up shop (not our fault hasten to add!) and drove them around the doctor, pharmacy & back home that day, and got chatting about their mobility scooter.... Very smart folding jobby that packed away in the boot of their Prius.

Still fine-tuning the storage and how best to use it, but pretty happy with it :dance:

 

[campervanannie]

This is my T4 that I just loved.

 

[Obanboy666]

Depends on the printer
It is a mains label/barcoding printer and I go to festivals and have a trade stand, so want to be able to print off smart looking information labels

That explains things !
Got to say your van looks awesome and puts the VW California next door to me to shame.

 

[wildebus]

Thought I would post a couple of pictures of my setup all out ....

So I use the Campervan as a base when trading at festivals - typically VW ones - and load up the trailer, plus fill the inside of the camper to the gunnels with all the stuff we are selling (really need a bigger trailer I think TBH!)

This is us at "Dubtoberfest" in Worcestershire a couple of weeks ago ...

Got the Marquee up, driveaway awning at the back, suncanopy at the front

And the weekend just gone we were at "VW Festival" at Harewood House, Leeds.

This was a bit of a challenge fitting everything into a 5M frontage x 10M depth plot, and had to angle the guy ropes to not encroach too much, but they needed to still be effective as damn windy (A few cheap pop-up gazebos bit the dust when their poles just snapped!)

Both events (in fact, all our events) are off-grid for power, and these typically run from either the Thursday or the Friday to Sunday, so very much rely on the Solar to keep the leisure battery bank healthy, and happy to say it is so far working well
Took a snap of the Monitors connected to the Panels (one per panel as they are connected independantly to the Power Integrator) at around Lunchtime on Friday....

I was actually seeing an occasional peak of 95W for each panel, which is pretty good for 100W solar panels I think The figures were bouncing around a fair bit as it was a pretty cloudy day, and the high winds keeping them moving so it was sun-in, sun-out constantly.

 

[Sky]

A most impressive conversion - well done. You should be very proud. :bow:

I've just bought a Renault Master disability bus with tail lift (for my scooter). It's too old to spend much money on, but I intend to fit a toilet, kitchen, curtains and solar. You've given me some ideas to play around with - thanks. :idea:

 

[wildebus]

A most impressive conversion - well done. You should be very proud. :bow:

I've just bought a Renault Master disability bus with tail lift (for my scooter). It's too old to spend much money on, but I intend to fit a toilet, kitchen, curtains and solar. You've given me some ideas to play around with - thanks. :idea:

Thanks you very much for your kind words
If there is any specific thing I have done that you would like more information on, just ask. I'd be happy to try and help.

My first conversion was actually a VW T4 W Plate which started life as a mobility conversion. It had the wheelchair lift/hoist already removed from it at the time I bought it, but I reckon I must have removed another 200kg of excess weight when I stripped it out, including massive steel plates that single seats were fixed to inside, and complimentary steel frames under the floorpan that they were then bolted through to.

 

[Sky]

If there is any specific thing I have done that you would like more information on, just ask. I'd be happy to try and help.

Thanks, I appreciate that.