[GUIDE] Fitting Van-X Side Skirts on a T6

[Andysmee]

This thread was split out from this one:

Side skirts / Cill covers

Hello,just wondering if anyone has a set of the newish side skirts from van-x ? What does everyone think of them,i think they look pretty nice?

www.t6forum.com

Thank you. Very helpful. I didn’t know about the tape, which should mean that using silicone is unnecessary.

Just looking at mine now


@Martin Gibson any tips on fitting as there's no instructions?

 

[Martin Gibson]

Hello @Andysmee ,if i remember rightly,we offered the skirts themselves up against the van first and that made it a bit clearer what went where. The brackets use existing mounting points and the plastic piece in your second photo fits at the rear of the skirt i think. After you work out how they actually fit,make sure everything is spotlessly clean and remember to heat the 3m tape and the sill with a hairdryer or something before the final fitting to help it all stick properly. If it would help,i could take some photos of mine in the morning. If you want me to,tell me exactly which bits you need photographed and i will do them for you. @Shaun Witts there isn't a lot of room for debris to get behind these skirts to be honest,there is 3m tape running the whole length of them so not a lot could get behind them in my opinion

 

[Andysmee]

... If it would help,i could take some photos of mine in the morning. If you want me to,tell me exactly which bits you need photographed and i will do them for you.

The kit came with nuts and bolts to fit the brackets to the skirts but i would like to know how to fix the ends to the wheel arches and what bolts the brackets fit to the van with? That would be great! Thanks.

Edit: Van-X does show this:

 

[Martin Gibson]

Hello @Andysmee ,cant remember if the screws to connect to the wheelarches came with them or if you use existing screws from the arches? If i remember right,they have a little nut on the back of them if thats any help. The brackets bolt to the van with existing bolts on the van. Fit the brackets to the skirts and then line them up on the van and it should be obvious then which bolts to use. I have taken a photo of the front and rear wheelarch fittings(excuse the dirt,it's filthy!). I fitted a piece of protection to the front end because i thought it might end up being stone chipped,thats why it looks different and i have tried in the second photo to show how that piece of plastic you had in your second photo fits,hope this helps,anything else just ask

 

[Andysmee]

Hello @Andysmee ,cant remember if the screws to connect to the wheelarches came with them or if you use existing screws from the arches? If i remember right,they have a little nut on the back of them if thats any help.

Thanks, that's really helpful. There are no screws for fitting in the kit (nor a nut). The last question is which bracket positions to use - there are 2 (big) brackets but 3 sockets, presumably for the LWB you would have an additional bracket each side. I guess it will be obvious from under the van.

 

[Martin Gibson]

Ok @Andysmee ,i would guess from that that we must have used existing ones then because i can't remember having to get any extra fittings. Sorry i can't help any better than that,my memory is awful and my friend that helped me with them is no better! I think that there should be 6 brackets though Andy,i don't remember having spare places and the lwb version hasn't been released yet. I have just checked Van-x website and it says there should be 6 brackets so i think you will need to get in touch with them as it seems you are missing brackets,hate crap like this,sadly it seems to happen all too often these days,they will probably blame Covid,it seems to be the go-to excuse from everyone at the minute,hope you get it sorted ok and anything else just ask

 

[Andysmee]

Ok @Andysmee ,i would guess from that that we must have used existing ones then because i can't remember having to get any extra fittings. Sorry i can't help any better than that,my memory is awful and my friend that helped me with them is no better! I think that there should be 6 brackets though Andy,i don't remember having spare places and the lwb version hasn't been released yet. I have just checked Van-x website and it says there should be 6 brackets so i think you will need to get in touch with them as it seems you are missing brackets,hate crap like this,sadly it seems to happen all too often these days,they will probably blame Covid,it seems to be the go-to excuse from everyone at the minute,hope you get it sorted ok and anything else just ask

I do have 6 brackets, not 8 (2 are the smaller ones from the far end, not shown) So i guess it's deliberate

 

[Andysmee]

I did some measuring under the van and the bracket positions I picked happen to be correct: (pictures may be confusing as I measured to other side of the van ) EDIT: for one side of the van!

Front wheel arch near-end bracket:



Rear wheel arch end bracket:



Next rear bracket, measured from rear end:



Mid point bracket, measured from front end:

 

[Andysmee]

So the middle bracket position varies from offside to nearside; offside to the rear position, nearside to the forward position. When I bolted the brackets on I added washers.

Note that the metal (effect!) trim can be removed if you want to paint or wrap the skirts or trim in another colour.

 

[Andysmee]

I'm a little further with the install and so I've updated the post above - the two middle bracket positions are because the nearside and offside under protection is not symmetrical. Not sure why Van-X don't include instructions. Also, you need to find a longer screw to replace the front wheel arch liner screw when you fit the skirts. It's not included in the kit. Here's the amount of length you need to add (although this particular screw was too thick, so I had to rummage for a skinnier one and use a washer again):


The sill on this side of my van is badly damaged so not a picture to learn much front. I ran out of time in the light so fitted the other side in the dark, so no pics until the morning.

In spite of the shortcomings of the kit - no instructions, and missing fixings - it's easy to fit as the brackets are really strong so the tape is just to keep the skirts from riding up and fouling the doors. I've used insulating tape to keep the pressure on the tape overnight as it's freezing at this time of year.

I've not ended up using the flat slotted panels that came in the kit, it wasn't obvious how to fit them, nor necessary, as the rear wheel arch liner is black already.

 

[Andysmee]

Rather agricultural screw I ended up using at the front, might replace it with a black cheese head one some time.


Woke up to heavy rain but the tape has adhered.

I'll post about my van and its looks on another thread, as this "guide" is there or thereabouts.

To wrap up, you'll need an allen key, torx bits, a short screwdriver handle (unless you are prepared to remove the wheels, you can make do by turning the front wheel onto lock), an 8mm socket, a pair of long replacement screws, and insulating tape or other low-tack tape for supporting while it sticks.

 

[Andysmee]

Today I starting splitting the rails to have them painted and I'm going to wrap the inlays. The inlay clips in but also has 3M tape, pretty solid setup:

 

[Lawzio]

Do you have pictures of the finished article?

 

[Andysmee]

Do you have pictures of the finished article?

Take a look at this thread: https://www.t6forum.com/threads/side-skirts-sill-covers.20511/

 

[Andysmee]

18 months later...mine didn't stick to the sill so I caught my foot on them. Will be trying to get spare brackets as it broke two of them clean in half. The side skirt mount broke at the rear end but no visible damage on the outside of the skirt, so should be able to glue the mount back on.

 

[Pewt]

I doubled up with extra 3M tape and so far they have held spot on......so much better than side bars IMO.

 

[Andysmee]

Van-X are sending me some replacement brackets and 3M tape for free. Can't fault that for customer service!

Yes, the same Van-X whose curtain kit I was swearing at last week..