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So I've had the notion to make a trailer from a Van for awhile now, something along these lines.  1. Something along the lines of what I've been thinking of building. This photo has been shamelessly stolen from google. Any of the trailers I've seen on google have looked a bit rushed when it comes to sealing up the front of the trailer (this photo is one of the better jobs I've seen at finishing off the front). This is something I would like spend a bit of time at and hopefully make it look like a well finshed factory made effort. I've been thinking on using a VW Caddy (99-03 shape) and I've one due to come on for breaking soon but I then remembered I had this lying about, a 1995 Vauxhall Astra 1.7TD van. Bought as a badly rotten non runner, It set me back a full €25. I had tried advertising the van for parts, as a whole and even contacted some astra collectors in Ireland but I had recieved no interest in the van whatsoever so its fate was sealed.  2. The donor van. A 1995 Vauxhall Astra 1.7TD. It looks allright in the photos but its very rotten. Even though its being cut into pieces to make a trailer there is still going to be plenty of rust to repair. The windscreen and wing mirrors had a hard time of it in the previous owners 'care'.  3. This is a very rough MS paint edit of what I hope the finished product to look like. It will probably get repainted a lighter color of blue but this gives an idea of the overall shape/design I'm going for.  4. Wheeled into the shed (on four wheels) for the final time.  5. Remove all unnecessary bits of Vauxhall. The rust was that bad the seat rail for the passenger seat broke into a few pieces because of the rot.  6. Some grinder and hacksaw action later resulted in this. The front was taken away and is in the process of getting broke for parts.  7. Get it lifted up on stands and then every unnecessary part can be removed. Fuel tank, straps, filler neck, fuel door, seat belts remaining interior trim, etc. After this the floorpan was trimmed back.  8. The floorpan trimmed back to a crossmember that is located just under the front of the load bed. This crossmember will be incorporated into the draw bar. Luckily a lot of rot got cut out as well during this process.  9. Another pile of unnecessary Vauxhall.  10. In an effort to make it easier to clean up the mounting points for the drawbar and to notch the crossmember so the drawbar can pass through it, I figured I would roll the trailer over on its side using some square bales to cushion it. I was happy with how this worked out, square bales are soft and there is no big weight in whats left of this van so no chance of damage. (Note to self : Remove square bales before welding commences). That is as far as I am at the moment. Hope to have this towable with a finished drawbar and hitch by the end of this week. |
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1951 Ferguson TED 20 / 1988 Ford Sierra Sapphire 2.0
1990 Isuzu Bighorn 2.8 Irmscher R / 1991 Pajero 2.5 SWB
1991 Vauxhall Carlton GSI3000 / 1991 Toyota Corolla van 2.2TD
1992 Toyota Corolla 1.6 GTI / 93 Ford Granada Scorpio Cosworth
1994 Toyota Corolla GXI / 1995 Toyota Corolla 1.6 Si
1995 Nissan Vanette / 1997 Toyota Starlet 1.5td Glanza
1997 Toyota Carina E saloon / 1998 Toyota Carina 2.0 Exeuctive
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MiataMark
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 2,961
Club RR Member Number: 29
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The proportions of this look good, will you keep the tow-bar on it so you could make a 'train' of trailers.
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1990 Mazda MX-52012 BMW 118i (170bhp) - white appliance 2011 Land Rover Freelander 2 TD4 2003 Land Rover Discovery II TD52007 Alfa Romeo 159 Sportwagon JTDm
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Morning.
If you search in the General section, there used to be a great thread with multiple entries on converted cars to trailers.
One of the more important things to get right it the closing up and blending of the front end, some look lovely, but many people run out of skill, material or enthusiasm before they get there and it just ends up looking gash.
I agree that this would make a handsome trailer.
And if you could locate another tailgate to fit to the front, possibly with the glass blanked out by a section of the roof you are not using, in order to get the right curves, and then add a small rectangular glass, or caravan side window to make it look more custom, but also fo the occasional extra 18 inches that needs to push through........
The hood may work too as a shut panel.
Will be watching this.
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Last Edit: Oct 5, 2018 7:14:21 GMT by grizz
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I haven't seen one of these made in a while.
I'll be following also.
Would a shaped bow high and too the front look well?? Ah La Luton van.
The front of this again could be hinged to carry long things also.
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This looks like an interesting thread to follow. Love your "ghetto" axle stands too  |
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agree on a second tailgate to close the front up , it'll make a tidy job of it. i had one yeeears ago based on a supercarry that had suffered a front ender but it was a VERY rough and ready conversion. doubt i still have any pics but a handy beast all the same!
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'80 s1 924 turbo..hibernating
'80 golf gli cabriolet...doing impression of a skip
'97 pug 106 commuter...continuing cheapness making me smile!
firm believer in the k.i.s.s and f.i.s.h principles.
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The proportions of this look good, will you keep the tow-bar on it so you could make a 'train' of trailers. Yea the axle is in a good location, should be fairly close to the 60/40 trailer ratio. I plan on leaving the towbar on as its handy being the lowest point at the rear of the trailer. The towbar hits the ground before the back bumper or anything else. In relation to having a road train, It's perfectly legal providing you don't get caught Morning. If you search in the General section, there used to be a great thread with multiple entries on converted cars to trailers. One of the more important things to get right it the closing up and blending of the front end, some look lovely, but many people run out of skill, material or enthusiasm before they get there and it just ends up looking gash. I agree that this would make a handsome trailer. And if you could locate another tailgate to fit to the front, possibly with the glass blanked out by a section of the roof you are not using, in order to get the right curves, and then add a small rectangular glass, or caravan side window to make it look more custom, but also fo the occasional extra 18 inches that needs to push through........ The hood may work too as a shut panel. Will be watching this. Thanks for the reminder on the thread, I've tripped across it before but forgot completely about it. I'm not putting any glass in the front. I agree that the factory tailgate would be ideal to close up the front of the trailer and I'm currently trying to locate a Mk3 astra estate or van tailgate locally but they are thin on the ground. I have a few berlingo and caddy back doors that I can use for cuts and I also have the front bonnet from an 2002 Saab 9-5 that looks ideal for cuts. I should be fit to make something out of all the bits I've lying around. I haven't seen one of these made in a while. I'll be following also. Would a shaped bow high and too the front look well?? Ah La Luton van. The front of this again could be hinged to carry long things also. I thought about the windbreaker aswell (Frequently seen on certain Ifor Williams cattle trailers) but this trailer is low enough that it should not be needed. I will be towing it behind my daily which is a Mk1 focus and I think it will be a similar height as the focus.  11. This is the end of the drivers sill. Perhaps I should say it was once the drivers sill. The arch and arch tub are mostly filler. The bottom of the passenger side arch tub was once a bean tin which has been flattened and is now held in place by filler. A fair few botches were done to keep this van on the road over the years. I've spotted at least 1 other bean tin and also some mesh in other areas of the van. I hope to have a quick weldathon on all of these spots prior to bodywork and paint but after I seal up the front of the van.  12. I am making the drawbar in a V-shape. The drawbar will start at the rear axle mounting point and cross through 2 different cross members before forming the point where the hitch will be bolted to. I decided to plate the rear axle mounting point on both sides which would leave me welding the drawbar to the plate (similiar to how a roll cage would be welded to the shell of a car.) In this photo you can see one of the plates (the passenger side) welded in place.  13. After welding both plates in, both parts of the drawbar (40mm x 80mm x 3mm box iron) were cut to length, cut to the correct angles front and back and then were clamped in place. Some measuring later to ensure they were in the correct place I then tacked them in place. Thats todays progress, tomorrow I will put the trailer back on its wheels and check the drawbar is at the correct height and check a few more measurements prior to fully welding the drawbar in place. After that I will fit the hitch and install a cross member made from the same 40x80 box iron that the drawbar has been made from. |
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Last Edit: Oct 6, 2018 0:18:43 GMT by sa1clover
1951 Ferguson TED 20 / 1988 Ford Sierra Sapphire 2.0
1990 Isuzu Bighorn 2.8 Irmscher R / 1991 Pajero 2.5 SWB
1991 Vauxhall Carlton GSI3000 / 1991 Toyota Corolla van 2.2TD
1992 Toyota Corolla 1.6 GTI / 93 Ford Granada Scorpio Cosworth
1994 Toyota Corolla GXI / 1995 Toyota Corolla 1.6 Si
1995 Nissan Vanette / 1997 Toyota Starlet 1.5td Glanza
1997 Toyota Carina E saloon / 1998 Toyota Carina 2.0 Exeuctive
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I made one a few years ago from the back of an A class Merc
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It will come in handy even if you never use it
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 14. So I had to make a fair few modifications to the front of the draw bar to get it the way I wanted. A notch was cut out on the bottom so the drawbar angles upwards on the bottom side.  15. And tacked in place.  16. The front of the draw bar welded together. There are 2 pieces of pipe welded on the inside where the bolts that holds the hitch go through the drawbar to prevent the draw bar getting crushed or bending when the bolts are tightened.  17. With some of the welds ground back.  18. Welding the drawbar to the cross member that is underneath the bed. Not exactly pretty but functional. This will get revisited and strengthened.  19. Hitch bolted on and ready for a short and slow test drive. Given the front of the trailer is still open turning the trailer into a massive wind catcher, test drives at 90 to 100 MPH are out of the question at the moment.  20. Side view.  21. A short spin later. It seems to tow well. I'm happy with the overall height but if a set of Astra F van/estate rear lowering springs pops up I would consider fitting them as it would make loading the trailer easier, not that its bad as it is. I think I have a tailgate located so closing up the front of the trailer should begin soon. Thats all for now, I hope to make some progress during the week fitting the front crossmember but aside from that I doubt much will happen until I get this tailgate. |
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1951 Ferguson TED 20 / 1988 Ford Sierra Sapphire 2.0
1990 Isuzu Bighorn 2.8 Irmscher R / 1991 Pajero 2.5 SWB
1991 Vauxhall Carlton GSI3000 / 1991 Toyota Corolla van 2.2TD
1992 Toyota Corolla 1.6 GTI / 93 Ford Granada Scorpio Cosworth
1994 Toyota Corolla GXI / 1995 Toyota Corolla 1.6 Si
1995 Nissan Vanette / 1997 Toyota Starlet 1.5td Glanza
1997 Toyota Carina E saloon / 1998 Toyota Carina 2.0 Exeuctive
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Top Astra tip - using standard mk3 hatch rear springs in an estate drops the back around 50mm, like this:-   Cracking job, something I've wanted to do for ages with a mk3 |
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