Dragging this up from the depths for an update.
I realised about 3 weeks after the fact the test on the transit was out thanks to a fb memory. I took it down and it passed no hassle, although I did swap a temperamental rear light (it had filled up with water for some reason) before I did.
No advisories, new tester was impressed with its condition.
A coupe days later I also did the Lupo as it had lapsed ages ago but I wasnt using it so didn’t care. Until I had a blowout on the panda the other week and I had no backup car that is. When you put a space saver on a 100hp panda they’re nigh on undrivable because of the stiff suspension. It doesnt compensate for the different size wheel and is twitchy as f-k. So bad i turned round and came home.
When I replaced the tyre I noticed it had some really odd wear, and there was a bit of a vibration that had developed over time too. Some poking around suggested a tired balljoint on one side and a tired void bush on the other side, not MOT fail levels but obviously not as tight as the other side on each, so I replaced them as lower arms are pretty cheap for these. One lower arm was original (16 years old!) so they’ve not done bad. I think cos the suspension is so stiff it really shows up any inadequacies early compared to other cars. It drives a lot smoother and tighter now, helped by a new pair of Toyos.
And of course I’m still trying to reduce the fleet long term, so the wife has bought this-
A nice small camper 🤣
It’s a xlwb t430 (yes, 4.3 tons) ex riot van.
That was my input into the process.
There is a lot of logic behind the choice of base vehicle. I argued a SWB van can only really be considered a dayvan, she agreed that she wanted a fixed bed. and once the roof height has gone up (although this is actually only mid roof, but I can stand up in it). That effects mpgs significantly more than length does, so you may as well go xlwb. So it was decided to get as big a van as possible without it being a coachbuilt body, as they’re terribly made and easily damaged.
I reasoned a transit would be sensible seeing as I already have one I’ve done more or less everything to, so know them pretty well. Lots of other vans were discounted on their propensity to destroy engines and gearboxes at will, or the weird electrical faults they get and their great expense at repairing them. (Mk7 transits we’re included in that- if you want a reliable transit you buy a mk6). Ivecos were considered but the way they rot makes transits look like rank amateurs in the rust stakes. Sprinters and crafters are no better than a mk7 transit in engine reliabilty or rust terms, and anyone who claims they are is mental.
I’d fairly clearly decided it had to be a rwd mk6 transit base. As long as you get one that’s not too rusty the rest is pretty simple. When it comes to the transit models you can get xlwb single wheel, generally a t350, but twin wheel are a lot more stable. This one happens to also be the 125ps engine, the highest output tddi they did. It is noticeably higher performance than the recovery truck, but that’s enclosed the whole inlet/exhaust system is different. They have bigger injectors and a bigger turbo, as well as totally different manifold designs.
It’s also still got the callsign and roof number stickers on the sunvisors, and plexiglass side windows 🤣
The interior spec is proper odd. It has a passenger airbag (rare) and the fabled passenger side door bin (very rare, only came on single passenger seat walkthrough vans). But keep fit windows, no Rev counter and big bolts on the inside of each door so they can be locked from the inside.
It’s surprisingly clean for a 22 year old commercial, but it has been a camper ever since it was decommissioned, so must have been fairly well looked after most of its life. It has little bits of rust coming though, but it’s on its original steps, wings and arches, which really is quite an achievement. It’s had nearly all new brakes at the last mot two months ago, as well as a minor bit of outrigger welding. That MOT cos the seller a grand all in.
The seller was a guy who races in the XR series, and he used it to camp in and tow his racecar. That explains the only mechanical fault, a whining diff. So I’ve got a job there swapping the axle at some point.
The conversion is really quite good. I’ve looked at a lot of conversions over the last few months, and the layouts of a lot do them are very questionable. This is the second conversion this van has had, it’s mostly been redone over the past few years, starting with all the Perspex caravan style windows being replaced with new bonded glass to update the look.
Inside it has a Standard size double bed over a ‘garage’ space at the back, that also houses 400ah of leisure batteries, solar management system, 320w pf panels on the roof, inverter, hookup with charger that charges all 4 batteries. The controller setup is really outstanding, it totally integrates everything and is dead easy to use.
The kitchen is all new, and has a twin ring hob and an oven, as well as a fridge and microwave. It puts the stove over the sliding door which is a big plus for ventilation.
It’s has a shower cubicle and toilet, the former being a fully fiberglassed in job rather than a flimsy leaky plastic tray. The latter is new and unused. That’s because he’s not finished the water system as he usually stopped on fully equipped racetracks. But he gave me the £500+ of new tanks, pump, filters, accumulator, tankless boiler and all the fittings and pipe to do it that he had bought, so I can finish off and commission that pretty easily and cheaply.
The table is a brand new pivot and slide. They have a fancy name that I can’t remember. They’re a more seating/storage, as well as the cab seats being on swivels. I’m not sure what they’re from but the swivels are fully integrated so must be from something intended as a camper from new. This was a must for me as it wastes so much interior space if they don’t swivel. It’s also got two televisions 🤣
All the lighting is touch lighting except the step under lighter and exterior light. It’s also got a 4m fiamma roll out awning.
I added up what all the stuff would have cost to buy to do the conversion, and the base van ended up being close to free, so even with the whiny diff and I’d scabby bits, it seemed a good deal. There will be some cosmetic works as well as commissioning the water system, then we’ll see how it performs.
I realised about 3 weeks after the fact the test on the transit was out thanks to a fb memory. I took it down and it passed no hassle, although I did swap a temperamental rear light (it had filled up with water for some reason) before I did.
No advisories, new tester was impressed with its condition.
A coupe days later I also did the Lupo as it had lapsed ages ago but I wasnt using it so didn’t care. Until I had a blowout on the panda the other week and I had no backup car that is. When you put a space saver on a 100hp panda they’re nigh on undrivable because of the stiff suspension. It doesnt compensate for the different size wheel and is twitchy as f-k. So bad i turned round and came home.
When I replaced the tyre I noticed it had some really odd wear, and there was a bit of a vibration that had developed over time too. Some poking around suggested a tired balljoint on one side and a tired void bush on the other side, not MOT fail levels but obviously not as tight as the other side on each, so I replaced them as lower arms are pretty cheap for these. One lower arm was original (16 years old!) so they’ve not done bad. I think cos the suspension is so stiff it really shows up any inadequacies early compared to other cars. It drives a lot smoother and tighter now, helped by a new pair of Toyos.
And of course I’m still trying to reduce the fleet long term, so the wife has bought this-
A nice small camper 🤣
It’s a xlwb t430 (yes, 4.3 tons) ex riot van.
That was my input into the process.
There is a lot of logic behind the choice of base vehicle. I argued a SWB van can only really be considered a dayvan, she agreed that she wanted a fixed bed. and once the roof height has gone up (although this is actually only mid roof, but I can stand up in it). That effects mpgs significantly more than length does, so you may as well go xlwb. So it was decided to get as big a van as possible without it being a coachbuilt body, as they’re terribly made and easily damaged.
I reasoned a transit would be sensible seeing as I already have one I’ve done more or less everything to, so know them pretty well. Lots of other vans were discounted on their propensity to destroy engines and gearboxes at will, or the weird electrical faults they get and their great expense at repairing them. (Mk7 transits we’re included in that- if you want a reliable transit you buy a mk6). Ivecos were considered but the way they rot makes transits look like rank amateurs in the rust stakes. Sprinters and crafters are no better than a mk7 transit in engine reliabilty or rust terms, and anyone who claims they are is mental.
I’d fairly clearly decided it had to be a rwd mk6 transit base. As long as you get one that’s not too rusty the rest is pretty simple. When it comes to the transit models you can get xlwb single wheel, generally a t350, but twin wheel are a lot more stable. This one happens to also be the 125ps engine, the highest output tddi they did. It is noticeably higher performance than the recovery truck, but that’s enclosed the whole inlet/exhaust system is different. They have bigger injectors and a bigger turbo, as well as totally different manifold designs.
It’s also still got the callsign and roof number stickers on the sunvisors, and plexiglass side windows 🤣
The interior spec is proper odd. It has a passenger airbag (rare) and the fabled passenger side door bin (very rare, only came on single passenger seat walkthrough vans). But keep fit windows, no Rev counter and big bolts on the inside of each door so they can be locked from the inside.
It’s surprisingly clean for a 22 year old commercial, but it has been a camper ever since it was decommissioned, so must have been fairly well looked after most of its life. It has little bits of rust coming though, but it’s on its original steps, wings and arches, which really is quite an achievement. It’s had nearly all new brakes at the last mot two months ago, as well as a minor bit of outrigger welding. That MOT cos the seller a grand all in.
The seller was a guy who races in the XR series, and he used it to camp in and tow his racecar. That explains the only mechanical fault, a whining diff. So I’ve got a job there swapping the axle at some point.
The conversion is really quite good. I’ve looked at a lot of conversions over the last few months, and the layouts of a lot do them are very questionable. This is the second conversion this van has had, it’s mostly been redone over the past few years, starting with all the Perspex caravan style windows being replaced with new bonded glass to update the look.
Inside it has a Standard size double bed over a ‘garage’ space at the back, that also houses 400ah of leisure batteries, solar management system, 320w pf panels on the roof, inverter, hookup with charger that charges all 4 batteries. The controller setup is really outstanding, it totally integrates everything and is dead easy to use.
The kitchen is all new, and has a twin ring hob and an oven, as well as a fridge and microwave. It puts the stove over the sliding door which is a big plus for ventilation.
It’s has a shower cubicle and toilet, the former being a fully fiberglassed in job rather than a flimsy leaky plastic tray. The latter is new and unused. That’s because he’s not finished the water system as he usually stopped on fully equipped racetracks. But he gave me the £500+ of new tanks, pump, filters, accumulator, tankless boiler and all the fittings and pipe to do it that he had bought, so I can finish off and commission that pretty easily and cheaply.
The table is a brand new pivot and slide. They have a fancy name that I can’t remember. They’re a more seating/storage, as well as the cab seats being on swivels. I’m not sure what they’re from but the swivels are fully integrated so must be from something intended as a camper from new. This was a must for me as it wastes so much interior space if they don’t swivel. It’s also got two televisions 🤣
All the lighting is touch lighting except the step under lighter and exterior light. It’s also got a 4m fiamma roll out awning.
I added up what all the stuff would have cost to buy to do the conversion, and the base van ended up being close to free, so even with the whiny diff and I’d scabby bits, it seemed a good deal. There will be some cosmetic works as well as commissioning the water system, then we’ll see how it performs.
