I bought a 16plate Kombi at the end of last August, the first one we saw in Pearl Black. We never got to spend a night in it due to work and wanting to make it a bit comfortable untill this weekend. I spent the resulting months on this forum and learnt loads. I sound deadened and insulated it, done a 6hr round trip to Scarborough to buy a bed,added some lights under said bed, bought ac/dc chargers and an inverter,bought an awning and got some extra speakers.
Some stuff I found out about the van.
1- 40 winks bed was hard and a bit high to the ceiling, not good for a claustrophobic wife. I think it needs more padding and lowering. I did take the seats out to create more space which it did, also put 2 timbers below the slide out section to prevent it sagging when getting in and out. Worked a treat.
2- Fuel Lagoon black out blinds were brilliant. Went for wraparound front screen and internals for the rest of the van.
3- Vango cairns awning, wasnt impressed by it but defo needs an awning rail fitted which I didn't have. Ground sheet is separate which resulted in a very wet floor after last night's rain. Need one with a sewn in groundsheet.
4- Sound proof and insulation was worth every penny. Was raining most of the night, could hear it but nothing major, glad I done the roof. We were both warm and dry but did have a bit of condensation on the front screen.
5- never got round to sorting van elec. I didn't want to kill the starter battery so tried to remove the fuse for the internal lights, couldn't do it thanks to my fat fingers and it just wasn't practical taking off the lower part of the dash to just remove a fuse. So, turned them all off and removed the door step lamps. Van starred first time, with fingers crossed of course.
Sorry it's a bit long but I think it may help others out there staring out without a big budget.
Any ideas to improve would be great. Cheers.
Some stuff I found out about the van.
1- 40 winks bed was hard and a bit high to the ceiling, not good for a claustrophobic wife. I think it needs more padding and lowering. I did take the seats out to create more space which it did, also put 2 timbers below the slide out section to prevent it sagging when getting in and out. Worked a treat.
2- Fuel Lagoon black out blinds were brilliant. Went for wraparound front screen and internals for the rest of the van.
3- Vango cairns awning, wasnt impressed by it but defo needs an awning rail fitted which I didn't have. Ground sheet is separate which resulted in a very wet floor after last night's rain. Need one with a sewn in groundsheet.
4- Sound proof and insulation was worth every penny. Was raining most of the night, could hear it but nothing major, glad I done the roof. We were both warm and dry but did have a bit of condensation on the front screen.
5- never got round to sorting van elec. I didn't want to kill the starter battery so tried to remove the fuse for the internal lights, couldn't do it thanks to my fat fingers and it just wasn't practical taking off the lower part of the dash to just remove a fuse. So, turned them all off and removed the door step lamps. Van starred first time, with fingers crossed of course.
Sorry it's a bit long but I think it may help others out there staring out without a big budget.
Any ideas to improve would be great. Cheers.
