Mobile Man Cave

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Liquid Knight

Original Poster:

15,754 posts

182 months

Saturday 25th June 2016
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So I was supposed to be having new tyres fitted to my Bravo and the dreaded MOT test but this...





...happened. hehe

For an undisclosed sum more than the weighbridge less than how much I can get for the engine it was probably the most bizarre transaction so far. The MOT ran out midnight last night so it was either a rush job getting three buses (Bleaugh!) and four trains so I can walk the last three miles or wait until the MOT ran out and get my mates rig over there. The owners dad had a better idea...

"I'm not up to much these days I can bring it over if you give me a lift home".

...okay that worked.

So Dad arrived just after late lunch and it was four-ish hours each way so we took the van. This chap has just driven four hours to be a passenger for it turned out four and a half hours. A little before eight I was headed back. Two issues here.

1/ I only had four hours of MOT left.
2/ I only had the £30 I had put in the tank and £12.20 in my wallet.

I got as far as Derby before the fuel light beckoned. So £12.20 in the tank and seventy nine miles to go. I worked out I needed to average thirty eight to the Gallon. Gulp!!!

I made it home with twenty minutes MOT to spare and quarter of a tank. Turns out I was making fifty three-ish miles per Gallon. Result. biggrin

So a couple of years ago I made a not exactly sober bid on a MkII Punto in Boston and it was what I called "Project Wet Dog" as the owner had let his dog basically live in the car and I had to completely strip the interior, pressure wash, foam shampoo three times and leave to dry in a greenhouse. I basically cleaned it and sold it for a massive £25 profit. woohoo

This vans now previous owner was a Flyball enthusiast. This is nowhere near as odd as it sounds. Basically playing catch with your dog is now a competitive sport. As such my Fiorino was full of dog hair, but this dog or dogs were trained so no wet at all. smile

When I had my Fiorino van a while ago I wanted a disability access one to make into a camper. I'll put a tow bar on it and use it to go to or tow to track days. wink

There are a few very minor issues to work out as you would expect. The engine has an annoying habit of racing up a thousand or so rpm I'm guessing it could a fuel pressure regulator or an air leak somewhere. I know about as much about Diesel engines as Joey Essex knows about particle physics.

So back to work. First I noticed the winch wasn't working. The fuse had gone and...



...the plastic clip that holds the bush in the motor was missing. Fixed with a cable tie and the winch worked perfectly. I told my brother in law about it and that's now sold for him you use on his bike trailer. wink

Next I repaired the back bumper corner...



...removed the brackets, glued them back on and bolted it back in place. When messing about with ABS plastic use a very hot glue gun so it melts the plastic a little making a very strong bond.

Next to go were the back seats. I was shocked to see how shoddily they had been installed. No welded mounts and high tensile steel bolts. Just washers, soft steel bolts and spacers made from rough cuts of mild steel box section.



The seats are pretty good self contained units with their own seat belts. With nothing but cheap bolts and rough cuts stopping them from ripping a hole in the floor if anyone were to be sat in the back in a frontal collision they would crush whoever was in the front; probably killing everyone.

Nine hours later...



...paint...



...carpet where there was fur...



...and an interior where there was dust and more fluff. biggrin

So here we go, camper/man cave hybrid that can tow my car to track days and cope with day to day stuff.

Vitorio

4,296 posts

142 months

Sunday 26th June 2016
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How deep is the back LK? deep enough to put a one person mattress in, or will you be curled up sleeping?

227bhp

10,203 posts

127 months

Sunday 26th June 2016
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What car are you going to tow with that?

Liquid Knight

Original Poster:

15,754 posts

182 months

Sunday 26th June 2016
quotequote all
Vitorio said:
How deep is the back LK? deep enough to put a one person mattress in, or will you be curled up sleeping?
Due to the amount of dog hair I haven't tired it for size as yet. The floor is 162cm long and I'm 186cm tall so there will be some shuffling.

227bhp said:
What car are you going to tow with that?
I'm not sure as yet. The new Fiorinos only have a 600kg towing capacity so that counts out a trailer and car so it may be an Uno/Cinquecento/Seicento on an A-frame if those aren't outlawed. wink


Liquid Knight

Original Poster:

15,754 posts

182 months

Sunday 26th June 2016
quotequote all
I've done a world wide search for the top glass and can't find a replacement anywhere. I may have replace it with sheet metal but I'll add a coupe of recesses for lights and stuff. I'm planning to put a shelf across the cabin section and mount speakers there for the back and down so closing it off and making it a box appeals to me in a 1990's 6x9's innit way. wink

I've had the tape measure out and it's actually a reasonable space. I was thinking about a pop top but it'll add a lot of (structural) work, cost and weight. If I can find a twin sunroof Panda being broken for spares I could cut the roof off that and weld it to the Fiorino but the chances of that are very slim. I think I'll just retrim the roof lining and add a few LED lights. smile

Layout wise I'll see what is about but I have been offered a cooker and bits from a caravan that's being stripped out ready to banger race so this may not cost as much as I suspected.

Vitorio

4,296 posts

142 months

Sunday 26th June 2016
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Liquid Knight said:
I'm not sure as yet. The new Fiorinos only have a 600kg towing capacity so that counts out a trailer and car so it may be an Uno/Cinquecento/Seicento on an A-frame if those aren't outlawed. wink
A cinq (sporting) is 735kg IIRC, stripping out the interior except the front seats saves you roughly 35kg, and there isnt much fat to trim from one of those little things.. dont think you will get one under 600kg

A first gen panda gets in at roughly 670 from what i can find, although again, doubt there is much fat to trim

Another downside to non-trailered towing is you cant have the towed car on non road legal slicks etc..

Maybe a small trailer and a (shifter?) go kart for track duties?

Liquid Knight

Original Poster:

15,754 posts

182 months

Sunday 26th June 2016
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I have history.







I'll probably have to sell my Bravo and Coupe 16V Turbo to make way for something more focused. wink

Vitorio

4,296 posts

142 months

Sunday 26th June 2016
quotequote all
Liquid Knight said:
I have history.







I'll probably have to sell my Bravo and Coupe 16V Turbo to make way for something more focused. wink
Ah yes i know, you hang out around the fiatforum as well dont you? Spent quite a bit of time over there when i had a cinq project.

Would any of those be OK towed behind the newly acquired mini-camp-mobile?

Liquid Knight

Original Poster:

15,754 posts

182 months

Sunday 26th June 2016
quotequote all
According to Fiat it has a 1,300Kg towing capacity. woohoo

So that's an Uno stage rally car and trailer or my Coupe on an A frame. wink

That's way down the line I need to get an MOT first.

227bhp

10,203 posts

127 months

Sunday 26th June 2016
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Coupe is 1320kg std + your towing equipment, fuel, tools etc.

Vitorio

4,296 posts

142 months

Monday 27th June 2016
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Liquid Knight said:
According to Fiat it has a 1,300Kg towing capacity. woohoo

So that's an Uno stage rally car and trailer or my Coupe on an A frame. wink

That's way down the line I need to get an MOT first.
Excellent!

Id go trailer with Uno and spare gear/kit, having to skimp on tools/gear on a track outing will suck.

Liquid Knight

Original Poster:

15,754 posts

182 months

Monday 27th June 2016
quotequote all
Vitorio said:
Excellent!

Id go trailer with Uno and spare gear/kit, having to skimp on tools/gear on a track outing will suck.
Just need to sell the Coupe now. wink

Liquid Knight

Original Poster:

15,754 posts

182 months

Thursday 30th June 2016
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Okay with my last Fiorino project I covered a Punto GT brake conversion and other bits and bobs.

One concern I have for this Camper is the additional weight making trouble for the N/A 1.7 engine. Now a Punto 1.7td is a straight swap and the 1.9 as used in the Tempra and MkII Punto should be doable (if you can fine one) but how about a 1.9 JTD? I'm fairly sure it's the same block as the Tempa MkII Punto engine but a sixteen valve head and other improvements would be advantageous. The biggest issue is and will be the factory Fiorino immobiliser and the JTD loom, ecu and other crap.

Liquid Knight

Original Poster:

15,754 posts

182 months

Thursday 30th June 2016
quotequote all
I have consulted my MOT guru and slightly spannered my plan. If I were to replace the rear valance with box section to support a towing rig it would be enough of a difference for the van to possibly need an IVA. rolleyes

All I can do is repair the original floor and fit an after market towbar.

battered

4,088 posts

146 months

Thursday 30th June 2016
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Hi LK, are those photos St Bernard's Av area? I saw the Burton's thing, then looked at the houses and went "hang on...".

Liquid Knight

Original Poster:

15,754 posts

182 months

Thursday 30th June 2016
quotequote all
battered said:
Hi LK, are those photos St Bernard's Av area? I saw the Burton's thing, then looked at the houses and went "hang on...".
Rural Norfolk but with all the Starbucking of architecture in the 50's and 60's it could be anywhere. hehe

battered

4,088 posts

146 months

Thursday 30th June 2016
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Ah. Wasn't there a standard for social housing at that time? Parker Norris or something? Basically it was so many power points, so many opening windows, means of heating, and so on. It was a worthy aim, intended to ensure that housing was of reasonable quality and to get rid of the Rachmans letting slums for huge sums. It did rather backfire after people realised that it meant that low-cost housing all started to look the same. Heigh-ho though, I've never heard anyone say that 60s build redbrick LA houses are nasty places in which to live. They all work.

Liquid Knight

Original Poster:

15,754 posts

182 months

Sunday 3rd July 2016
quotequote all
I've de-ramped the van today...



...and here's why. Whoever did the conversion did no rust proofing and it now needs repairing. I doing without the ramp because I don't need it, the bloody thing rattles like Bez on speed when you drive along and it gets in the way of the rear view mirror.

Sadly this...





...was as far as I got when I ran out of welding wire. rolleyes

So time for some woodwork. wink



It wouldn't be a man cave without a checker plate box. wink

Liquid Knight

Original Poster:

15,754 posts

182 months

Wednesday 13th July 2016
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Today I spot welded a couple of repair plates on the floor of the Fiorino after taking far too long to cut and grind rusty bolts out where the wheelchair was anchored.

I also finished the sides of my box.





I left a deliberate gap for cables and gas lines to go through and wanted to make sure it was big enough to get my welder in there. wink

Liquid Knight

Original Poster:

15,754 posts

182 months

Saturday 30th July 2016
quotequote all
All the welding done. A slap of Hammerite...



...trimmed the original seal and cut a piece from a scrap yard...



...I used a hot glue gun to stick it in place as I don't have any silicone. wink