campervan interior

General Discussion
1

Hey people,

Because they wouldn’t let me shape boards for credits I persuaded my teachers at my study (Industrial Design Engineering in the Netherlands) to let me design a new campervan interior with the travelling surfer in mind.

I need to know what you think about your van to be sure that my design will be what surfers want.

One of the goals of this project is to take all the best bits of information you supply and make a ‘How to’ manual for self improvement of your van. If I receive enough information to give some really good tips on interior improvement Soul Magazine will post an article this winter (on internet as well for overseas contributers). If all goes as planned, get your tools ready, work on your van and enjoy it next summer!

Please answer these next questions in as few words as possible. You can reply to: van.improvement@gmail.com. If you have pictures please mail them as well.

If you have questions feel free to ask, I will do my best to answer them.

  1. How old are you?
  2. What type of van do you have?
  3. For how much time per year is your van your home?
  4. Where do you take it?
  5. How do you use it when not on trip?
  6. Did you make anything of your interior by yourself?
  7. What are the positive things of your interior?
  8. What are the negative things of your interior?

2

A surfing van? Man you need a shower with hot water(for the cold winter time and to shower before work)and a little curtain to change. stainless steal floors with a drain and seat on ether side for about 4 people. then make a aerodynamic fiberglasss fron to go infront of the boards on top of the van so they dont blow off at higher speeds. and you need to be able to hold about 6 longboards

3

This is interesting because I just picked up a new van to use for surf trips and will probably even use it locally and I’ve been thinking of the best modifications to make. My van is a 1972 Fiat 238 camper van. Basically it was a regular box van that a German company called Weinsberg bought from Fiat and did the camping conversions on. So it’s similar to a VW Westfalia of that era: stove, sink, fridge, table, pop-top, etc, but laid out differently since the engine isn’t in the rear. My boards up to 8’ will fit inside on the floor so I’m thinking to make some kind of contraption to hold them safely. For the longer boards I’ve been thinking of hanging them from the ceiling inside so I don’t have to put them outside on top since I haven’t found any racks that can reach from my gutters and still be high enough that the boards will clear the pop top which sticks up a few extra inches when down.

A hot shower would be the ultimate! Until then it’s just jugs of water poured over the head.

Here are pics of my van (I took that rack off the top already though): Fiat 238

4

Howzit Maraboutslim, For a 1972 that’s a nice van, If you don’t mind , how much did it cost. Aloha,Kokua

5

check out sportmobile.com. they have some pretty cool van conversions, one i especially like that has an interior made with the surfer, biker, of road adventurer in mind-ie no carpet, etc.just hose it out when dirty.

6

Couldn’t find sportmobile.com, but did find http://www.sportsmobile.com. Is that the one you were talking about?

7
Quote:
Howzit Maraboutslim, For a 1972 that's a nice van, If you don't mind , how much did it cost. Aloha,Kokua

Thanks, it’s hanging in there ok for being 32 years old now! I paid $2750 which is probably too much, considering the paint is kind of thrashed and there is some rust to be removed, but mechanically it is pretty sound. I drove it from Oregon to SF. I’m a big Fiat fan and have had 8 different Fiats over the years so it was worth it to me to get this van regardless of the initial price and the money I’m going to end up sinking into it.

Surf was closed out in Pacifica this morning so we hopped in my van and went down to the coast in search of better conditions. It’s pretty convenient for little trips like that!

8

that’s it…

9

  1. 27

  2. 71’ VW Bus

  3. So far not much, still working on it.

  4. Take it to the beach.

  5. Drive it all the time. Help people move.

  6. Yes. Made a new sunroof, electric converting bench/bed, electric shower, wood floor.

7+8. The elecric bench to bed is very cool but takes up too much room because you can’t store much under it. The shower is awsome, you open the back hatch and the shower head is in the hatch, perfect height. Wish it was hot water though. Sunroof is definetely nice also, it didn’t have a top and everyone said to just screw some sheet metal on there to seal it up, but I just couldn’t do it. It is so nice. When I need to strap boards on top I just open it and I can reach the straps easy. I am working on making a big lockable secure box.

10

At the Big Sur campout, Paul Jensen had a side canopy on his van that was framed out of 1/2 inch EMT, galvanized electrical conduit. The top tubes slid into his surf racks where the end caps had been removed. Anybody take a photo of that? John Mellor had a nice water heater…propane?

11
  1. How old are you? born in 80's
  2. What type of van do you have? 76 VW Bus
  3. For how much time per year is your van your home? 1month
  4. Where do you take it? Surf trips and comps
  5. How do you use it when not on trip? Everyday use
  6. Did you make anything of your interior by yourself? Yes
  7. What are the positive things of your interior? Extended bed, more storage and room for boards
  8. What are the negative things of your interior? Bad passenger traveling.
12
  1. How old are you? 42
  2. What type of van do you have? VW Kombi 1974 1840cc Twin Carb
  3. For how much time per year is your van your home? 12 months
  4. Where do you take it? Nowhere any more
  5. How do you use it when not on trip? Spare bedroom
  6. Did you make anything of your interior by yourself? No
  7. What are the positive things of your interior? 2 burner stove and grill, 3 way fridge, sink, electric pump, 60 litre water tank, pop top, cupboards, double bed.
  8. What are the negative things of your interior? Crappy sound system, Radio whistles when you get to 50 mph
To put the record straight my Kombi, Herpes the Love Bug II, is very sick and only runs on 2 cylinders when she feels like it. She is sulking in my garage waiting in vain for a new motor, paint job, electrical refit, registration check etc....

Hicksy

13

Howzit Bauke,

I often dream and design a perfect camper! Heres some ideas,

(btw, im a grub so i dont need a shower or toilet (ill just use da macccas toilets)

A good Heater,

Plently of open space,

Dont muk 'round with those tiny single beds that fold out on the roof, the free space/headroom kicks arse.

A Table and chairs that fold into a double/queen bed at night in only a couple of stress free minutes.

A Stove, Desant size fridge with frezer and also A sink with tap to wash up.

Some custom build racks for the walls/roof would be gold too, so you could securly hold boards up to 9ft5.

Thats about it really.

Josh.

14

This Would do well, except the top bed, get rid of them! I toured up the east coast of OZ with one of these and it RULED! Josh.

15

Hey everybody

great thanks to those who have already replied. Already I’m getting new ideas for the ideal interior!

This picture from a guy sent me is a good example for what I hope to solve. Even though he can be proud of that twinny, I’ll keep him anonymous.

By the way,

1- I’m 25 this saturday

2- I drive an early '79 vw van, kermit the frog green.

3- live in it for about 2 months in total per year

4- take it up and down the european coast, southern portugal up to the tip of denmark (not going there again though, driving north just doesn’t seem right)

5- Everyday use when not on trip, gets me to my local spots

6- did all the cabinets myself, had to do in two days because it was the start of summer and the travel bug was bugging me big time, resulted in a crappy design and crappy build but they have lasted me for 3 years now…

7- positive: put a rug on the floor up front, makes it alot warmer and quieter i believe, bit of rug on the gas pedal as well (great for bare-foot driving), running water, fridge, easy fold out double bed, great vintage blauwpunkt cassette player with matching speakers, dylan never sounded so good

8- negative: eventhough only i only carry passengers about halve of the time i drive my van you’d never guess it by looking at the amount of stains in the carpet on their side…

it’s a petrol guzzling, slow, stinky, oil consuming bastard

but she hasn’t let me down once in 45.000 miles i’ve driven with her so far :slight_smile:

Lets build ourselves paradise on wheels!

16
  1. How old are you? 33
  2. What type of van do you have? '89 Toyota Van/Wagon
  3. For how much time per year is your van your home? Any time I'm driving it
  4. Where do you take it? Everywhere - it's my daily driver
  5. How do you use it when not on trip? Daily driver - get groceries, go surf, dog taxi....
  6. Did you make anything of your interior by yourself? pulled back seats, made platform bed
  7. What are the positive things of your interior? platform bed - can sleep on it, dogs love it, out-of-sight storage underneath for skateboards and tools
  8. What are the negative things of your interior? More to do with the design of the van itself - the engine is underneath the bloody driver's seat!! Pain in the arse to check oil/coolant, and work on the thing in general. Oh yeah - and the platform eliminates the passenger seating in the back. Kind of a bummer. Would like to have a design like the VW's had - with the fold-down seat that extends the bed from the back.
The van's got plenty of pluses and minuses. Engine placement is the biggest minus. Forward control design I've found to be a big plus. Turning radius due to the FC design is better than any other truck/van I've been in - I can make a complete u-turn in just under 2 lanes. Fits in a compact car's parking space. Great ground clearance. Just wish it was one of the 4wd versions. Oh well. Having some mechanical problems currently, but hey - it's got nearly 240K miles on it! Have a backup '86 Toyota 4wd truck, but would rather drive the van. Can't find anything I like to replace it so far, though I'm really interested in a Pinzgauer.... Talk about ultimate 4wd! If I got one of those, I would get the hard cab 4-door version, and somehow make a fold-down bed-seat for the back seats like the VW's. That way I could have seats if I wanted, and bed if I wanted. Lots of ideas, just need the $ to bring them to fruition....
17

This was the pic for above

18
Quote:
At the Big Sur campout, Paul Jensen had a side canopy on his van that was framed out of 1/2 inch EMT, galvanized electrical conduit. The top tubes slid into his surf racks where the end caps had been removed. Anybody take a photo of that?
  1. How old are you?48...
  2. What type of van do you have? 1988 Toyota Cargo Van - 4WD...
  3. For how much time per year is your van your home? A couple weeks a year, but I'm 48 with a nice home...
  4. Where do you take it? Work - Surf - Snow...
  5. How do you use it when not on trip? Tool hauling, Trailer pulling, Boat launching, my everyday vehicle...
  6. Did you make anything of your interior by yourself? Yes, built-in cabinets...
  7. What are the positive things of your interior? Big enough to sleep in... can keep boards up to 10'4" inside...Built-in storage eliminates loose cargo...
  8. What are the negative things of your interior? Not a negative, but I can't stand up in it...Otherwise, I consider it to be perfect...
I'm nearing 280,000 miles on the original motor, it still runs smooth...22 mpg...Everything works like original, 'cept the gas guage...The 4WD gets me to the chairlifts without chains, out onto the sand and back without worries, and up and down the boat ramps without spinning...I'm gonna get to 400,00 miles, God permitting...


19

Cool set up Paul. Does the canopy cover the boards too?

Here are some links for off-road living (some practical, some a little pricy):

Equipment:

http://www.glind.com.au/htm/default.asp Hot water/shower. Water from any source heated by your engine.

An air compressor is good to have onboard.

Vehicles:

http://www.earthroamer.com/index.html

http://www.fourwheelcampers.com/index.html

Real life adventures:

http://www.planetincognita.com/silver_ghost.htm

http://www.sandcruiser.com/index.html

http://www.expeditionoverland.com/

 Recently saw this vehicle in Cambridge, Mass.  

 Great pics of vehicle & living space mods scattered throughout the travel journals.

http://www.maximog.com/ OK, this is outrageous!

20
Quote:

  1. How old are you? - 50
  2. What type of van do you have? - it’s not a van, it’s a boat
  3. For how much time per year is your van your home? - weekends and similar, spring and fall
  4. Where do you take it? - inland waters, not to sea. Anchor up in protected waters, surf, fish, play, read, kinda decompress
  5. How do you use it when not on trip? - see previous
  6. Did you make anything of your interior by yourself? - yep, and more to come over the next 20 years or so
  7. What are the positive things of your interior? - adequate size, good galley, good bunks. Eating/resting/reading area is well thought out.
  8. What are the negative things of your interior? - would like a wood or coal burning stove with an oven, better cold storage, different cabin sole.

Van stuff- well, lots to be learned from how small boats are set up. Living in small spaces at sea is a pretty well thought out, ‘mature technology’. Lots of stuff for it on the market already, usually of far better quality than the cheap junk sold for automotive use.

hope that’s of some use

doc…