My T6 Journey...

[moomin-j]

Cheers Bmg - this has been a long time coming and after visiting most (if not all of them, as the Mrs keeps reminding me!) of the VW shows last summer to nosey around others peoples rides and asking as many questions as to what works or what they would change if they could do it differently with hindsight, to all the converters and owners of camper vans that I dare, I am now almost in a position to enjoy my new toy with the clan.
It is to a spec that I am sure is 99% correct for us as a family, but if not I can modify it further or differently, which is why so many people get the conversion / modification bug and keep on spending money that they know they really shouldn't. It's an addictive thing this VW business!!

 

[moomin-j]

Well, Mr Eberspacher called with his van and box of tricks to reset the controller, but alas - no good, as he had been supplied with the proper CAN bus leads, but not the appropiate software on his laptop. This needs to be downloaded from Germany tomorrow. This took him 3 hrs to work out, as he "had not done one of these new controllers before".

Oh well, another day to wait...

I sometimes wish I had specified the old controlller, as my converter has these in stock and he would have just swapped it straight away.

I know that photos make the world go round in Forum land, so here is some of the vapour tank underside pipework run:

Apparently, if this would have been fitted by Propex, they would have just ran it all in standard gas hose, but the converter preferred to run the feed to the rear BBQ point and gas hob in plastic coated copper 8mm pipe, for longevity. Only the supplied filling hose was used, as this has a stainless steel overbraid protecting it from the elements.
I also like the rivets holding the rubber lined P clip brackets, rather than using self tappers. Its these little things that make you feel that you have picked a good conversion company to look after your pride and joy.

Connecting T, feeding the rear BBQ point and gas hob:

I will wrap this T joint in Denso tape (thick greasy cloth tape) to stop the elements attacking it, if I ever need to replace it in the future. Its a really messy job to apply correctly, but done well, it will make renewal of pipework in the future a doddle.


This is a 1 off, machined 8mm bulkhead for the L.P. gas to feed the hob. A standard one will only fit a floor thickness of 10 / 12mm, but the floor measured nearly 25mm thick, considering the floor packers, insulation, flooring and lining. A final pressure test ensured no leaks. This will also be wrapped in Denso tape.


This last photo, made me laugh, as the protective plastic cover over the vapour tank is a Land Rover mudflap. The story is that an employee of the conversion company used to work repairing / modifying Land Rovers and had this mudflap lying around in his shed. When they fitted the vapour tank he wasn't happy with the solenoid valve / electrics etc facing all the crud that could be thrown up at it, especially over the winter months, so came up with this little 1 off design!!
To fill this 15L tank @ Morrisons with LPG cost just under £8.00 and should last a while.

Hopefully tomorrow, the Eberspacher will be mended and I will get a call to collect, watch this space...

 

[Bmg]

Looks like an amazing conversion. I bought my van on friday. 2017 - lwb 102 trendline. Drove 50 miles the got a warning light. Dealer cleaned the egr and I've drove 400 miles now and its not came on again.
Ordered my austops roof today, everything gets fitted in about 4 weeks. Cant wait .

 

[moomin-j]

Looks like an amazing conversion. I bought my van on friday. 2017 - lwb 102 trendline. Drove 50 miles the got a warning light. Dealer cleaned the egr and I've drove 400 miles now and its not came on again.
Ordered my austops roof today, everything gets fitted in about 4 weeks. Cant wait .

Sorry to hear problems re EGR, I understand it's quite a common fault. Luckily I have not encountered this (yet?), as I have only driven from the dealers to the converters, 50 miles away!!
Re the conversion, I think it's all about fully trusting the company with your pride and joy.
If you can give them clear instructions of what you want, or probably more importantly what you don't want, it certainly helps in the end product being exactly what you expected.
Good daily updates from them with photos, conversations with them when things need discussing re little tweaks to scope etc. all help.
Hope your conversion goes well. Don't forget to post some photos.

 

[moomin-j]

Eberspacher controller now working, after new software was down loaded from Germany.

Pick up confirmed for tomorrow - really, really looking forward to it.

Just got to shake the money tree at the bottom of the garden to pay for it!!

First camping trip booked for the Peak District this weekend.

 

[Bmg]

Looks incredible!!!
Enjoy

 

[wojo]

Great story, thanks for sharing. I have anew T6 inbound in about 6 weeks. Long term build plans but starting with RIB seat, solar + leisure battery, insulation and hydronic heating for cabin and water. Mine will be DIY with help so lots to consider and will take a while. Enjoy!

 

[andys]

Great story, thanks for sharing. I have anew T6 inbound in about 6 weeks. Long term build plans but starting with RIB seat, solar + leisure battery, insulation and hydronic heating for cabin and water. Mine will be DIY with help so lots to consider and will take a while. Enjoy!

Had to google hydronic heating to see what it was. I’ve never seen underfloor water heating in a van before, looking forward to seeing how this works out. I’m assuming it will need a gas powered boiler?

 

[czmate1999]

Another hard days work by the converters...

Roof back from the spray shop, with the solar panel to be fitted
View attachment 39156View attachment 39157 View attachment 39158

Various electrics and water hose installed, ready for the kitchen units
View attachment 39159 View attachment 39160View attachment 39161

Its nice to know the converters have nothing to hide and are willing to share and update with photos on a daily basis.

wow, things are going well. just about to press order on my van. just wondering which converters you used? also is the leatherette worth it? thanks!

CZ

 

[moomin-j]

wow, things are going well. just about to press order on my van. just wondering which converters you used? also is the leatherette worth it? thanks!

CZ

The converters are AJC Conversions in Glossop, near Manchester.

Face book page: AJC Conversions LTD

A very knowledgeable set of folk and a pleasure to do business with, I wholeheartedly can say that nothing is too much trouble for them to accomplish and the owner (Andy) listens to what you need and makes sensible suggestions as to what he can deliver.
My van is a keeper for many, many years, but if I had to have another conversion tomorrow, I would not go anywhere else.
They are showing / trading at Camperjam this year and should have a full conversion for sale.

Give them a call and speak to Andy on 01457 239071, Jane - Andys wife will probably answer the phone and she even gets involved in stitching the rear elastic band that pulls the Reimo cloth roof in at the back when closing, so the material doesn't get trapped in the hinges. This is just a little thing that they do, but its all the little things they do that make them such a good team.

I believe at the moment their order books are full until August, which just goes to show how popular / good they are. But they may have a slot depending what you need?

As for the leatherette, its only a £66 option and at first I was worried that it would be plasticky (is that even a word?), but as I opted for the RIB in leather, the seats now match much better than the standard Simora cloth fabric would. I would definitely recommend them and add the heated seats as well.

Good Luck...

 

[czmate1999]

The converters are AJC Conversions in Glossop, near Manchester.

Face book page: AJC Conversions LTD

A very knowledgeable set of folk and a pleasure to do business with, I wholeheartedly can say that nothing is too much trouble for them to accomplish and the owner (Andy) listens to what you need and makes sensible suggestions as to what he can deliver.
My van is a keeper for many, many years, but if I had to have another conversion tomorrow, I would not go anywhere else.
They are showing / trading at Camperjam this year and should have a full conversion for sale.

Give them a call and speak to Andy on 01457 239071, Jane - Andys wife will probably answer the phone and she even gets involved in stitching the rear elastic band that pulls the Reimo cloth roof in at the back when closing, so the material doesn't get trapped in the hinges. This is just a little thing that they do, but its all the little things they do that make them such a good team.

I believe at the moment their order books are full until August, which just goes to show how popular / good they are. But they may have a slot depending what you need?

As for the leatherette, its only a £66 option and at first I was worried that it would be plasticky (is that even a word?), but as I opted for the RIB in leather, the seats now match much better than the standard Simora cloth fabric would. I would definitely recommend them and add the heated seats as well.

Good Luck...

thanks will check them out, a bit far from but more concerned on making the right choice. will probably go the leatherette...on the front and simora on the back bench (getting a Kombi) so the 3 seat bench will probably be easier to sell with that...

 

[moomin-j]

thanks will check them out, a bit far from but more concerned on making the right choice. will probably go the leatherette...on the front and simora on the back bench (getting a Kombi) so the 3 seat bench will probably be easier to sell with that...

If you need to see the Leatherette, why not pop in to you local dealer to see if any of their vans have it?
If you are having a Kombi, I would advise the option of "Comfort Dash" as I would have 100% gone for it, unfortunatelly with buying a panel van this option wasn't possible. It makes the dash more car like and provides cooling for bottles. Well worth it, I think.

 

[James1000]

Nice van - Any final completed photos?
Why did you order 4 keys? Also would you not fit a comfort dash retrospectively?

 

[czmate1999]

If you need to see the Leatherette, why not pop in to you local dealer to see if any of their vans have it?
If you are having a Kombi, I would advise the option of "Comfort Dash" as I would have 100% gone for it, unfortunatelly with buying a panel van this option wasn't possible. It makes the dash more car like and provides cooling for bottles. Well worth it, I think.

yup, already on this list... just weighing up the hill descent assist option...

 

[moomin-j]

Nice van - Any final completed photos?
Why did you order 4 keys? Also would you not fit a comfort dash retrospectively?

The 4 keys were an additional £85.00, and as I plan on keeping the van for a long, long time, I thought it would be cheaper than having to buy additional keys from Vw, if I ever needed to, which I believe are around the £200.oo mark each and would require coding to the immobiliser, also.

As for retrospectively fitting a "Comfort Dash", the parts alone are stupidly expensive and would be more than I would want to pay, as I am already spending far in excess of what I can really afford!!

A few photos of the finished conversion:

 

[czmate1999]

The 4 keys were an additional £85.00, and as I plan on keeping the van for a long, long time, I thought it would be cheaper than having to buy additional keys from Vw, if I ever needed to, which I believe are around the £200.oo mark each and would require coding to the immobiliser, also.

As for retrospectively fitting a "Comfort Dash", the parts alone are stupidly expensive and would be more than I would want to pay, as I am already spending far in excess of what I can really afford!!

A few photos of the finished conversion:

View attachment 42677 View attachment 42678 View attachment 42679 View attachment 42680 View attachment 42681

Nice work. yes, they really do suck the money out of you... but it is a hobby and a lifestyle change - hopefully it'll be worth it. The Van looks great BTW. Nice clean conversion!!

 

[J4son1971]

Great story. Really enjoyed reading about this.

 

[moomin-j]

Great story. Really enjoyed reading about this.

J4son1971 - we are now starting to enjoy "Buster" the Bus and have just completed 12 nights over 4 camp sites since collecting. We have booked for a lot of the Vw shows and 2 weeks in Devon / Cornwall this summer and will do the NC500 early next year.
It really does put a major smile to see the young 'un finding new friends on each campsite we visit.
At first we were really, really worried re the expenditure, but once you make that major decision to blow all the money you have ever saved up for, it seems to come quite easy saying we will have this and that.
Plus, being part of this Forum, you will find that there are things you never knew were available, but are and then have to buy because it's good to have!
A few things have happened in my family's life that says you should live for the moment and not worry too much re the future...

 

[J4son1971]

I’m raising a glass! Couldn’t agree more. We’ve always been a camping holiday family. Firstly, because it was cheap then reverted back because it’s just much more fun. Beach holidays abroad are nice but touring and camping in uk and France just offers greater adventures for the sprogletinos! And us.

 

[CX16]

Hi, lovely conversion and glad to see your getting so much joy out of its use. Regarding 4 keys, we hade a mishap with a lost set of keys and have tried to engineer a solution to avoid this problem in the future. You can get a simple replica key cut anywhere, but this will only get you into the vehicle, but won’t start it. This key is hidden somewhere under the vehicle, ours is held on by a ridiculously strong magnet and a S/S tether. We then have a spare key in our security box inside the vehicle. If you have ever lost a set of keys you will understand what a horrible feeling it is, imagine if you were abroad, how would you cope? For us it meant a 2 day delay in London and a run in with the AA but that’s another story !