Newbie question; near-camper in VW dealer spotted

[dilbu]

Hi all - just signed up to the forum as an just beginning my camper journey! I’m sure I’ll be back and forth but have a burning initial question I was hoping people could help with; thanks in advance!

A local dealer had a T6 up for sale that I went down to see today as I’m currently shopping for a base vehicle to do my own conversion; it had gone but I spotted a 2020 van that had two single front seats, was fully lined (not just ply but the fabric too), had two side windows and curtains. Unfortunately it had been sold but it’s got me thinking; my mrs is keen for us to do a camper project but wants it to be short and sharp as we have several home diy projects in the go as well! I’ve already found some kits that will speed the process up but I had no idea you could buy vans like this - I know it would cost me more but it does save a lot of time. I really would like two single front seats in particular to be able to walk through and I’ve read it’s a bit of a ball ache to source and change the dual front seat to a single.

So I’d really like to know if anyone knows more about these vans. Do they come straight from VW like that and why? Are they insulated at all under the lining? How rare are they? I tried speaking with the staff there but just had a junior who wasn’t able to help me with these questions beyond ‘tell me what you want and I’ll try to source it’.

thanks so much!

 

[Pete C]

I don’t think you can buy the van layout you describe direct from VW (I stand to be corrected of course).
It sounds like someone made some changes, and then stopped.

Pete

 

[airhoguk]

Two seats only at the front can be a bit of a unicorn but possible from factory if original owner specced them. Rear carpeting has been done after purchase. Whether it’s insulated or not you will only find out by removing panels unless dealer knows. Sounds like you’ve seen a panel van that’s had the side windows added later as well as the carpeting. A converter can do all this for you and will be cheaper than buying a kombi with the side windows already fitted

 

[GordonHR]

If you don't want a full camper conversion then a shuttle might be a good place to start. They seem to be a bit cheaper as they aren't as popular to fully convert. My 2019 lwb 150 dsg with 6k miles on was £26k! It depends how far you want to go with a conversion really. Any kids, pets or hobbies to consider?

 

[dilbu]

Thanks all for the helpful replies - will respond to to you all here. I've spent the evening looking at models and in all honesty it's bloody complicated; it really seems they could have simplified the naming conventions, but anyhoo, my first port of call is working out the seating conundrum before I melt my brain over the other model info too.
@Pete C & @airhoguk I found a live chat on the VW site and the agent there said that you can't ask for 2 front seats as part of the customisation process for a 6.1; that might be different in the past but the one I saw was a 6.1 - so at this stage I'm going to have to assume they at least did the seats themselves.

@Gordon no kids or pets, and would really just be looking for the two front single seats, and fitting out the back with the standard units/rock and roll bed. Is there a recommended way of getting the two single seats? The only way I can see is pulling out the dual passenger one, selling it for a pittance on ebay and hoping you can find a 2nd hand one that matches on ebay, which fetch over a grand. Does that sound right or is there a more official or third party route?

Some of the models do seem to come with official windows though, with the word 'window van' coming up in VW's own approved used vehicle filters. Do the official VW windows offer anything than ones fitted by a third party don't?

Thanks a bunch - really appreciate the much needed help

 

[Skyliner33]

Thanks all for the helpful replies - will respond to to you all here. I've spent the evening looking at models and in all honesty it's bloody complicated; it really seems they could have simplified the naming conventions, but anyhoo, my first port of call is working out the seating conundrum before I melt my brain over the other model info too.
@Pete C & @airhoguk I found a live chat on the VW site and the agent there said that you can't ask for 2 front seats as part of the customisation process for a 6.1; that might be different in the past but the one I saw was a 6.1 - so at this stage I'm going to have to assume they at least did the seats themselves.

@Gordon no kids or pets, and would really just be looking for the two front single seats, and fitting out the back with the standard units/rock and roll bed. Is there a recommended way of getting the two single seats? The only way I can see is pulling out the dual passenger one, selling it for a pittance on ebay and hoping you can find a 2nd hand one that matches on ebay, which fetch over a grand. Does that sound right or is there a more official or third party route?

Some of the models do seem to come with official windows though, with the word 'window van' coming up in VW's own approved used vehicle filters. Do the official VW windows offer anything than ones fitted by a third party don't?

Thanks a bunch - really appreciate the much needed help

The guy on the live chat from VW doesn’t know his arse from his elbow. My T6.1 panel can has 2 captains seats.

 

[dilbu]

The guy on the live chat from VW doesn’t know his arse from his elbow. My T6.1 panel can has 2 captains seats.

Ohhh man haha! Did you buy it new like that as a customisation request, and do you know roughly how much it cost extra?

 

[Pauly]

VW do produce some specials that are not available for public purchase
Registered bodybuilders can purchase an empty van with just the cab/front seats and a bare metal shell ready for conversion so it’s possible you saw one of these that had some work done or it was a normal vehicle that had been started ?

 

[Skyliner33]

Ohhh man haha! Did you buy it new like that as a customisation request, and do you know roughly how much it cost extra?

Yes, it was specked without a bulkhead and twin captains seats with OEM swivel. I’m sure you can cost it on the vw configurator. I can’t remembe4 of the top of my head.

 

[Ozi]

The advice from VW chat is complete bo**cks!

I specced by new 6.1 with twin singles with swivels. You can order with or without swivels from the factory. Either way, you most definitely can order singles and it’s cheaper than doing a retro fit.

If you check the VW vans website and then go into the brochure, you’ll find the options and costs there.

 

[Pete C]

Just gone on the VW commercial website and you can definitely configure a single passenger seat on a panel van.

Pete

 

[Gavinda]

Two single seats has always been an option (standard on kombi) it's fairly common for people to carpet line the back of a van but not something that can be ordered from vw. If you're committed it's something you can do yourself in a couple of days including insulation.

 

[ThreeBridgeT6]

Hi @dilbu. I bought my new from factory LWB T6 panel van with twin captain's swivel seats so as others are saying above, you can definitely order a new van like this. However, carpet lining (and insulation) isn't on the options list.

Some of the models do seem to come with official windows though, with the word 'window van' coming up in VW's own approved used vehicle filters. Do the official VW windows offer anything than ones fitted by a third party don't?

The official windows certainly do offer something that third party ones don't - leaks!! If you search on here you'll find pages of posts about it - 6.1s as well as 6s!!

 

[Ozi]

Ah yes, leaky windows......... a factory fit must have!!

 

[dilbu]

Thanks all. Lots to go through here. You're all right about the configurator; I think it mustn't have shown the same on my phone, but I've gone through it and you can change it to to two single seats. It doesn't give a cost, just says 'additional costs apply'. Strangely though, it does have an option to carpet the back (£516) so that must have been what happened. There's no mention of insulation so my guess is for the small time investment it's probably worth doing myself.

However I'm not looking to buy new anyway, so I'm guessing my chances of finding a van that has been configured this way is slim. I'm going to start enquiring with some dealers, but I'm still trying to find the best way to change the seating if I have to.

 

[Ozi]

How old are you thinking of if looking at used?

Worth being aware that used values have gone up a lot recently and we find ourselves in the bizarre situation that you can actually buy new for less than used in some cases, provided you are prepared to wait for delivery.

In terms of costs for single passengers seats, a single passenger seat is no cost option on a PV from the factory, with costs only kicking in for swivels. You’ll pay about 700-1000 to find and retrofit a single passenger seat, so worth considering the costs in the overall costs to buy.

The VW configurator tool will only show list price, but by shopping around you will be able to get somewhere between 16-20% discount off that on new, so I’d use that as your basis for comparison to used costs to see if you can do it within your budget.

 

[dilbu]

How old are you thinking of if looking at used?

Worth being aware that used values have gone up a lot recently and we find ourselves in the bizarre situation that you can actually buy new for less than used in some cases, provided you are prepared to wait for delivery.

In terms of costs for single passengers seats, a single passenger seat is no cost option on a PV from the factory, with costs only kicking in for swivels. You’ll pay about 700-1000 to find and retrofit a single passenger seat, so worth considering the costs in the overall costs to buy.

The VW configurator tool will only show list price, but by shopping around you will be able to get somewhere between 16-20% discount off that on new, so I’d use that as your basis for comparison to used costs to see if you can do it within your budget.

Thanks Ozi - I was thinking 2019 or 2020, so very nearly new. I didn't realise such discounts were available. The general manager there mentioned that there's a lot of 2020 T6.1's around for good deals due to the pandemic (unused fleet vehicles and the like) but not sure how that affects things. I'm hoping to use this partly for work (I'm a videographer and travel regularly for shoots) but need to find out a bit more from my accountant on what is claimable. It could well be that buying new makes more financial sense!

 

[Ozi]

Definitely worth scoping both options. Every dealer I’ve ever met tries to convince me that they are doing me a favour and offering the best deal possible (on new and used) but the variation of what has been offered when buying my new 6.1 has been huge, so it’s well worth the effort to shop around. You may be pleasantly surprised by what you can get for very similar money to a used van.

But if time is a factor, used may work better for you. If you do go new, be aware that lead times can be long if you order through a dealer who has used all of their factory allocation already. So ask whether they are offering you a confirmed build month allocation or not and when it is. The best outcome is to find a stock order they have already placed with the factory that you can amend to your spec. They do exist and could get you a van fairly swiftly by comparison.

 

[dilbu]

Definitely worth scoping both options. Every dealer I’ve ever met tries to convince me that they are doing me a favour and offering the best deal possible (on new and used) but the variation of what has been offered when buying my new 6.1 has been huge, so it’s well worth the effort to shop around. You may be pleasantly surprised by what you can get for very similar money to a used van.

But if time is a factor, used may work better for you. If you do go new, be aware that lead times can be long if you order through a dealer who has used all of their factory allocation already. So ask whether they are offering you a confirmed build month allocation or not and when it is. The best outcome is to find a stock order they have already placed with the factory that you can amend to your spec. They do exist and could get you a van fairly swiftly by comparison.

thanks Ozi. This is prob a second topic but while I have you is there a particular engine and transmission you’d recommend? Cost would be a factor obviously but I’m curious if there’s a cutoff where you think it would struggle as a swb camper. I’m not against auto but am going to assume price would mean I get a 5 or 6 speed manual, but just not sure what engine size to limit my search to. Thanks!

 

[Ozi]

Very much personal choice really. But personally I didn’t think the 110 engine had enough power for me in a camper, and I also wanted the 6th gear, so the 150 was the logical choice for me, particularly as I plan some long runs and motorway driving. Test drive both if you can to see what you think.

Manual vs auto is again personal choice really. I have nothing against auto, but enjoy a manual gearbox, so unless an auto fell into my lap at the right price, I didn’t feel like paying the extra for auto.

The only other factor to consider is weight. A T28 will be ok for a camper conversion, but think about how you’ll use it and the type of fit out you’ll use. So for example if the conversion is on the heavier side, or if you will regularly be using it with kids and the extra stuff you’ll be carrying for them, you might want to consider a T30.