Toyota Hiace pickup project

So, a little back story to explain why this truck...
I'm a landscape gardener by trade and a retro/classic car nut by inclination or possibly affliction and have been hankering after something more retro to use as my work vehicle for a while - after all, if I have to drive something slow and roly-poly, it might aswell have some style! And as for reliability, well any vehicle more than 10 years old with some miles on it will need some attention now and again so I might aswell have something I actually like enough to want to work on and lastly, it's a very particular size that no other manufacturer seems to have produced before or since, weirdly. Usefully bigger than my old Hilux but not much wider so fits on the drive nicely, so it's win allround.

I had been smoking around in a mk3 Hilux for a while - a lovely, baggy old 400,000 miler that I grew quite attached to, to the extent that I failed to sell it despite buying a larger and far less satisfactory VW T4 tipper 2 yrs ago but always wanted something more retro an very nearly bought a yellow Hiace pickup but ultimately let it slip away for various reasons but regretted it ever since and had been looking for one ever since when his one popped up on the 'bay just before Christmas.
The price was more than I wanted to spend, but after a chat with the vendor (and then a more difficult chat with the wife!) I decided to put in a bid and won - yes that's right, bought blind like only a pro level ebayer can!

The story of the truck is that it was until just before I bought it, a camper. The P/O had known the vehicle and the restoration work that had previously gone into its bodywork and bought it intending to do up the interior of the camper but found when he tore into it that the whole thing was falling apart rotten so decided to move it on.
So it has what seems to be a very solid body, such as it is, a mint chassis with just a light fuzz of surface rust developing where it has recently become exposed to the elements (now neutralised with some Dinitrol rc900 rust converter) and a reupholstered interior so I'm in the luxurious position of being able to get stuck in to building a truck bed for it without spending aeons punishing myself with rust repairs first (I have a Chevette for that! ;D)

I have a complete alloy sided pickup bed that I'm cannibalising that I picked up for a bargain price middle of last year - well before I bought the Hiace and even a set of period wheels in the correct unusual pcd that I bought well before that - it's all coming together rather nicely... so far, so theoretical.

Oh, and the early series landy side window is my most recent purchase - it will be the rear cab window as there is a big-ole-hole there at the moment.

So, now we're all caught up - onwith the show..

Yup - petrol is for winners! And not that I currently need to think about LEZ compliance but the way things are going...

Thanks.
Not sure yet as I've not had to get anything but hopefully ok on the mechanical side as most parts will be shared with the Hilux.
Bodywork and trim wise though, forget it! Pretty much all unobtanium as far as I an see, which is why I'm pretty chuffed to find this one with all the bodywork and trim sorted!
The only cosmetic concerns on the body/trim side are the front bumper which has some rust coming through, the three rubber bungs on the top of the front quarter panel that are filling holes left by an extended mirror from its camper days, the blackness of the badges and other trim which would look better in chrome or silver and the slight misalignment of the front valance - all pretty minor concerns really!

Anyone got any recommendations for direct to rust/metal chassis paint? Am looking this as it's 'moisture cured' (assume it's urethane based) so ideal for the current dank weather-

www.frost.co.uk/eastwood-rust-encapsulator-platinum-us-quart-946ml/link

I used Rustbuster EM121 on the underbody and chassis of my TR6. Superb stuff!

www.rust.co.uk/product/cat/em-121-epoxy-rust-proofing-chassis-paint-7

Ended up ordering some Rustoleum 'Noxyde Pegarust' as it's useable in low temps and damp conditions and on a range of surfaces and comes in a colour I'm hoping I will like - we shall see. They use it on Landrover chassis, apparently.

Searched high and low for some suitably retro looking mudguards and came up with these, but still not 100% on them.
They have to be that height and the gap looks weird, but then I realised the back end will never sit that high as it's got no weight on it at the moment so should come down to a regular gap all the way around once the pickup bed is on.

Slow on the updates but work has been progressing steadily
Gave the chassis a brush down and a coat of Dinitrol converust RC900 which seems to be good stuff - found it in a stash of rust proofing and undersealing products I bought for my Sprite project aeons ago and have not yet had the chance to use, so on it went!




Also found some paint stripper - a bit past its best...





Decided to use some of the cross pieces of the pickup bed as the bearers for the new bed frame but not long enough so cutty, weldy...








and frame welded up from nice new box section








Meanwhile, I'd been pondering the rear panel conundrum.

Now obviously, I'm not going to find a Hiace one to just pop in there so had been looking for something similar that would look right, looking at trucks being broken and van partitions on ebay but nothing seemed to look like it would work but I do happen to live a stones throw from a commercial vehicle dismantlers so popped in there to have a look-see (with trusty cardboard template tucked under my arm) and ended up coming away with this.

Bonus points if you can identify it! It's too narrow as it stands so would need some surgery but the shape is very close. Will it be useable? Time will tell...

So, last week the T4 daily decides it doesn't need an exhaust any more and  tries to spit it out, requiring precious weekend tinkering time to bodge back together - needs a complete new system really but ain't gonna get one anytime soon.
Then this week I hit a pheasant. A pheasant did this!


Granted, I was doing 60 and it didn't exactly walk away from it but still...
More weekend tinkering time spent glueing bits of indicator back together and straightening the front panel enough to refit it - bah!