Baby steps: Starting with a small van.

[BigT]

Hello!

Kind of new to the board. I joined a couple years ago, but for some reason was't able to log in after a while, even though I knew the required info. That's OK, I didn't post more than once or twice back then anyway.

Now, however, I have a van, so I'm back!

I picked up a 2010 Ford Transit Connect cargo van and quickly converted it into a weekender/camping/music festival rig: bunk w/folding leaf, toilet, 2 tables (1 that folds out of the wall), water supply, camp stove, awning, sliding side windows, kayak rack, curtains, plywood/carpeted floor, DVD player, etc.
(completed within 6 weeks of purchase).

My plan/hope, after I no longer have any pets, is to sell/donate 90% of my useless belongings and live in a converted van of some sort. This one may be a bit small for a 6'4" guy, so for now I'm using it as a stepping stone to get used to the concept.

Once I find the right rig, I plan to continue working full-time and get a gym membership, for showers and swimming, and the smallest storage unit I can find for the stuff I'll need on a daily/weekly basis.

Hopefully everything comes together the way I plan. Good thing I have this site for all my upcoming questions and concerns.

-T

 

[Cherokee]

Welcome back...nice job on the van!

 

[VanDwellerMod]

Welcome back to the CRVL forums T! If you PM me your old user name and email address, I can merge your old posts into your new account.

In the meantime, we've put together a list of "Tips & Tricks" with lots of useful info about how to use and get around the forums. We look forward to hearing even more from you.

 

[One Awesome Inch]

Love it!

 

[cyndi]

Love your set up. So clean and simple.

A great many of us travel with a 4-legged for companionship. Why wait?

Welcome back!

 

[LowTech]

Nice usage of pipe hardware
What made you decide to put the bed on that side? I'm guessing you don't fit behind the D seat.

 

[coolmom42]

Nice job on the conversion!

 

[HarmonicaBruce]

Gym membership, storage unit, sounds like you've got it going on. I looked at the transit connect. I'm only 5'9", but the transit connect is too small for me. They're so cute, they look like a baby sprinter. Looks good.

 

[Bdog1]

Slick seat-up. How tall is that van inside?

---

Set-up. Oops!

 

[BigT]

Nice usage of pipe hardware
What made you decide to put the bed on that side? I'm guessing you don't fit behind the D seat.

Thanks, plumbing nipples and floor flanges seemed like a good system. If I want to bolt the bed to the floor I have an easy way to do it. I was going for a clean, simple design that was light weight and easy to remove for times when I wanted to return the van to cargo duties. I can have the bed, toilet, water and flooring out in less than 15 minutes, and everything was built as light weight as possible, so mpg isn't effected to any noticeable degree, if at all.

Putting the bed on the right side made the most sense. Since I'm tall and the drivers seat is where I spend most of my time, I like to be able to push it all the way back and recline it whenever I like. The cargo area of the TC is just 6' long, and that's the length of the bed with the leaf folded up under it. I don't always use the leaf, but when I do it lengthens the bed to 6'10" and requires that I push and tilt the passenger seat all the way forward to make room.
If the bed were on the left side, and extended, I wouldn't be able to move the van, say in an emergency, etc. without first tearing everything down and moving the seat back (pain in the rear imo).
Fortunately TC's have double sliding doors, so a left side entry was possible. I also put the awning on the left side. Keeps things simple.

btw... The awning bar makes for a great way to load the kayak on the high roof by myself. Slides right up the bar and into the saddles.

-T

The table folded into the window blank. (I'm particularly happy with this mod).

 

[Spirituallifetime]

what more do you need? It looks like you got it going! I think I see that the passenger seat is all the way forward too fit the bed in. Looks like very good rig.

 

[BigT]

Slick set-up. How tall is that van inside?

---

---

I'd have to check the manual to get the actual measurement, but I can tell you that with the 16" bed height and high roof, and my being 6'4" tall, I can sit on the bed with my legs/hips/calfs at a 90 degree angle (comfy) and my head is about 1" from the ceiling.

As for having a pet live with me. Unless that pet was a hamster or mouse, it just wouldn't be a big enough space and wouldn't be fair to my cat to lock her up in there all day (she's an inside cat). My luck she'd freak out and pee all over my carpet, making it unlivable inside for either of us. :/

This is the leaf system I designed and the rear-mounted kitchen counter (while it was being built & before the plexiglass top) where I prepare my meals (in good weather).
Like the leaf, the "kitchen counter" is suspended under the bed, up out of the way when not in use.

 

[LowTech]

Fortunately TC's have double sliding doors, so a left side entry was possible. I also put the awning on the left side. Keeps things simple.

Nice! That totally works out great for your set-up. We did a similar "reverse" build (lol) in an British Ford Transit, took it down to the continent for the winter, . . . right hand drive an all :s

btw... The awning bar makes for a great way to load the kayak on the high roof by myself. Slides right up the bar and into the saddles.

The table folded into the window blank. (I'm particularly happy with this mod).

This is the leaf system I designed and the rear-mounted kitchen counter (while it was being built & before the plexiglass top) where I prepare my meals (in good weather).
Like the leaf, the "kitchen counter" is suspended under the bed, up out of the way when not in use.

I did notice that about the table, nicely done.

I did a diff vers of the rear tables in my Ford over here. Made them two units, one folding down to each door. Then I could still use one of them if I only had one door open.
Also like doing stove units that fold out of the door. Great for cooking while standing outside the doors.

The kayak trick, . . . that you're going to have to show me

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I really dislike (don't say hate) remembering that there's no spell-checker on here, . . . right after I click "post". :-/

---

The rear awning bar, I think I get it.

 

[BigT]

Gym membership, storage unit, sounds like you've got it going on.
Looks good.

Thanks, it's almost perfect. I just need a PO box for my mail, and (in California) a physical address for the DMV. :dodgy:
Gone are the days you could give them a Post Office box. :s

I agree that the van is pretty small; probably too small, but I'm hoping with my planed system I can make it work. I'm not planning to quit my job and live the gypsy life on the road, taking jobs where I find them, so I'm hopeful that it will be OK.

-Steady income w/benefits
-A place to keep my extra stuff
-Access to fitness and hygiene
-Free WiFi, bathrooms, power-strips and a kitchen (at work)
-Safe parking at night with the above work-perks

I figure I won't be doing much more than sleeping in the van, so hopefully the cramped space won't be such an issue.

My basic weekend getaway set up:
-Water
-Cooler
-Stove
-Toilet
-Bed

If I go full-time I'm hoping I can get by with just a few bins of stuff in the van, using the storage unit like a large walk-in closet.

 

[Theadyn]

Freaking sweet!! And goes with the Keep It Simple Stupid that I like.

 

[BigT]

Like the leaf, the "kitchen counter" is suspended under the bed, up out of the way when not in use.

 

[Ken in Anaheim]

Just curious as to how these Transits compare, size-wise and mpg, to a minivan; Toyota Sienna for instance (?) Aren't they roughly the same price-ish ?
KinA

 

[BigT]

Hi, Ken,

The Ford has a wimpy 4-cyl engine whereas the Toyota has a V-6, so as long as you're not hauling a lot of weight or climbing hills, the Ford will get better mpg. I've driven both and can tell you that the Toyota is super fast and a lot nicer and better appointed on the inside, but mpg sucks. There's a little LCD readout on the dash of the Sienna, and it never got above 13mpg when I drove it.
My TC gets a consistent 20mpg around town, and a little higher, if I don't run the AC and don't have the kayak on the roof, on the highway.

The Toyota has 150cu/ft of cargo space and the Ford has 135, but the high roof of the Ford and the fact that the rear doors go all the way up to roof-line, make it (imo) a more useful space than that of the Sienna. I'm 6'4" so obviously I can't stand up in the Transit, but I can kneel on the floor and sit on the bed without hitting my head on the ceiling; something I can't do at all in the Toyota.

I wanted a cargo van with no interior and fewer windows so I could more easily convert it to camper duty. I'm not sure you can get the Sienna in cargo form, which means plastic and carpet everywhere and multiple seats and windows.

As for MSRP, the Toyota starts at $28,600 and the Ford starts at $23,300. I bought mine from the original owner, though, so I paid about half that much.

 

[Bdog1]

I was checking out one of these going down the hi-way, kayak and bike on the roof, cargo trunk on the hitch in back. Very cool! Sounds like the interior height is similar to my Ford full size. I'm surprised the MPG isn't a little better, my 4x4 diesel E350 gets around 18, and it's 7000lbs.

Like that fold up table, very clean!

 

[BigT]

I'm surprised the MPG isn't a little better, my 4x4 diesel E350 gets around 18, and it's 7000lbs.

Like that fold up table, very clean!

Yeah, the weak-ass engine is a popular point of contention with this model.
A slightly larger engine, or even a diesel, would have been a much better idea. I'm not sure what Ford was thinking when they designed it this way.

For me this van is just a stepping stone to get started. Once I figure out exactly what I need/like, I'll buy something else that gets better mpg and transfer as much as I can to the new van.