A nissan van to camper
Discussion
RSVR101 said:
Looks great. Very tidy conversion. Have you considered some taller off-road tyres? Might Fill the arches better and be handy if you park up on grass.
How about some graphics?
I did ponder the chunky off-road tyres, but it's my daily driver and 99.5% of the time the road noise and compromise would annoy me!How about some graphics?
And as a child of the 70s I don't mind the small wheel toy car look.
RSVR101 said:
And I think the previous are you short comment may have been a question of can you stand up in the van? It’s not a high top is it?
Nope, it's the low roof, but still high enough to just about stand up inside, that's why it has the thin foam insulation then carpeted over, to keep the height.Saves on any carpark barrier type problems, and I prefer the look.
JB99 said:
Obison said:
It's 4 way stretch carpet, and glued on with high temp trim fix spray adhesive, amazing stuff that material, it takes some getting used to but will pretty much mould to any shape with a bit of practice.
Will this retain heat and prevent condensation?We camped out last weekend in 3°c temp overnight and it was still warm enough with no heating on during the night.
smn159 said:
I like it - very tidy conversion and something a bit different.
Enough space to put the bed across with width of the van then?
Yes, putting the bed at half height let's me use the upholstered Cross members as a bed extension, so it's 6ft 3" by 4ft 6 wide, a standard double bed size.Enough space to put the bed across with width of the van then?
One of the reasons I chose the van, a permanent bed is brilliant.
And the space underneath has the fridge to the front, and water tanks, diesel heater, batteries etc at the back, with storage for a suitcase that drops down from under the bed, still lots of room to spare!
cliffords said:
How do you cover those walls with the flock material so neatly
It takes a bit of practice, and strong fingers, but it's surprising how much you can force / stretch it around shapes.You can do one side of a van with one piece, the ceiling was one piece, that was the hardest part.
What an interesting build, the L1 is just over 5m long, so will park anywhere.
The Vivaro is a good choice too, but I agree, this is better, I was not aware of the NV400 before. Even the L4 might be short enough to park too.
Everyone does VW, personally I love the style of the VW, and the following and parts, but not the price, I recall at campervan shows builders would refer to the 'VW tax' of £6-7k extra. Since the 'pandemic' supply lines have been messed up, so I'm not even sure what van is the best (cheapest, available etc.) these days.
I like the stealth, the UK seems very 'sleep in your vehicle hostile' these days, such a shame as there's lots of land, but all closed off for various reasons.
Bed install is very smart. The big VW Crafters and Merc sprinters have the same issue - narrow at the back, but you managed to get an impressive bed length with careful insulation and planning. Lateral beds save huge amounts of space.
If it were mine I'd add a sticker for 'Foul Drain Clearing' for ultimate stealth and security LOL, and go for an L2 with a part time tambour door bathroom, but your L1 does look ridiculously cute, and I suspect more fun to drive.
If you get the 1000W Renogy you can run a low power (700W) toaster from it, might be useful to know.
Did you add a grey waste tank? Some people fit them under the bed, which keeps them away from frost and keeps it fairly simple.
The Vivaro is a good choice too, but I agree, this is better, I was not aware of the NV400 before. Even the L4 might be short enough to park too.
Everyone does VW, personally I love the style of the VW, and the following and parts, but not the price, I recall at campervan shows builders would refer to the 'VW tax' of £6-7k extra. Since the 'pandemic' supply lines have been messed up, so I'm not even sure what van is the best (cheapest, available etc.) these days.
I like the stealth, the UK seems very 'sleep in your vehicle hostile' these days, such a shame as there's lots of land, but all closed off for various reasons.
Bed install is very smart. The big VW Crafters and Merc sprinters have the same issue - narrow at the back, but you managed to get an impressive bed length with careful insulation and planning. Lateral beds save huge amounts of space.
If it were mine I'd add a sticker for 'Foul Drain Clearing' for ultimate stealth and security LOL, and go for an L2 with a part time tambour door bathroom, but your L1 does look ridiculously cute, and I suspect more fun to drive.
If you get the 1000W Renogy you can run a low power (700W) toaster from it, might be useful to know.
Did you add a grey waste tank? Some people fit them under the bed, which keeps them away from frost and keeps it fairly simple.
Globs said:
What an interesting build, the L1 is just over 5m long, so will park anywhere.
The Vivaro is a good choice too, but I agree, this is better, I was not aware of the NV400 before. Even the L4 might be short enough to park too.
Everyone does VW, personally I love the style of the VW, and the following and parts, but not the price, I recall at campervan shows builders would refer to the 'VW tax' of £6-7k extra. Since the 'pandemic' supply lines have been messed up, so I'm not even sure what van is the best (cheapest, available etc.) these days.
I like the stealth, the UK seems very 'sleep in your vehicle hostile' these days, such a shame as there's lots of land, but all closed off for various reasons.
Bed install is very smart. The big VW Crafters and Merc sprinters have the same issue - narrow at the back, but you managed to get an impressive bed length with careful insulation and planning. Lateral beds save huge amounts of space.
If it were mine I'd add a sticker for 'Foul Drain Clearing' for ultimate stealth and security LOL, and go for an L2 with a part time tambour door bathroom, but your L1 does look ridiculously cute, and I suspect more fun to drive.
If you get the 1000W Renogy you can run a low power (700W) toaster from it, might be useful to know.
Did you add a grey waste tank? Some people fit them under the bed, which keeps them away from frost and keeps it fairly simple.
Thanks Globs! The Vivaro is a good choice too, but I agree, this is better, I was not aware of the NV400 before. Even the L4 might be short enough to park too.
Everyone does VW, personally I love the style of the VW, and the following and parts, but not the price, I recall at campervan shows builders would refer to the 'VW tax' of £6-7k extra. Since the 'pandemic' supply lines have been messed up, so I'm not even sure what van is the best (cheapest, available etc.) these days.
I like the stealth, the UK seems very 'sleep in your vehicle hostile' these days, such a shame as there's lots of land, but all closed off for various reasons.
Bed install is very smart. The big VW Crafters and Merc sprinters have the same issue - narrow at the back, but you managed to get an impressive bed length with careful insulation and planning. Lateral beds save huge amounts of space.
If it were mine I'd add a sticker for 'Foul Drain Clearing' for ultimate stealth and security LOL, and go for an L2 with a part time tambour door bathroom, but your L1 does look ridiculously cute, and I suspect more fun to drive.
If you get the 1000W Renogy you can run a low power (700W) toaster from it, might be useful to know.
Did you add a grey waste tank? Some people fit them under the bed, which keeps them away from frost and keeps it fairly simple.
To be honest I could probably have got away with a MWB as since I fitted a reversing camera it's been a doddle to park without rear windows, maybe next time, then as you say an indoor shower is possible, but for now we have an outdoor one in a stand up shower tent.
No grey waste tank as such, just a 10ltr one under the sink, but I have pondered fitting a bigger one under the van, and insulate it.
I'll see how we go this year, I might change a few things.
Cheers for the feedback fella.
MonkeyBusiness said:
I was having a look at these whilst my Navara was getting serviced today.
Too many vans have really long 'noses' and cabs which take up half the vehicle.
Looks very good.
I know what you mean, the bonnet is short but tall, but under the bonnet has loads of room to work on stuff, unlike my vivaro which was a nightmare to do anything engine wise.Too many vans have really long 'noses' and cabs which take up half the vehicle.
Looks very good.
Cheers!
This is one of my favourite source of ideas for layout, the channel yes, but this video in particular.
Sadly the details on the slideout at the back are very brief, but the design is interesting, especially the shower drain (bilge pump!) and general utility, if one day you do decide to mod or do another
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3YG4PY4AfA
There are also various heating options, not sure if you need but with a shower it's useful, blown air from 2kW diesel heaters also have options for hot water via heat exchangers on the exhaust or the blown air outlet. In my experience these do require careful planning, but can work well.
This is one of my favourite source of ideas for layout, the channel yes, but this video in particular.
Sadly the details on the slideout at the back are very brief, but the design is interesting, especially the shower drain (bilge pump!) and general utility, if one day you do decide to mod or do another
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3YG4PY4AfA
There are also various heating options, not sure if you need but with a shower it's useful, blown air from 2kW diesel heaters also have options for hot water via heat exchangers on the exhaust or the blown air outlet. In my experience these do require careful planning, but can work well
. 
indigochim said:
Looks great I did you have the extra side windows fitted or did they come standard on your model?
Morning!I had the windows fitted by a local guy, I supplied them and he did the work, it's the one thing I didn't fancy doing, cutting large holes in the van was too daunting!
Cheers.
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