Considering converting a van for weekend trips

[Scout80]

Yep, I'm probably not like most here, as while I think it would be an awesome experience to live on the road for a while, it's not my current intention.  I've been through a number of campers over the years, most recently with a '74 Amerigo truck camper.  While I like it quite a bit, rot has taken over quite a bit of the framework, and given that I still work 50-60 hours a week, it's going to be a lengthy process for me to rebuild it.  I'm thinking at this point it will be a year-plus project, quite possibly multiple years.  

I started thinking about buying another camper to use in the meantime, but as I don't get a chance to get out often, I'm not spending what it would take to buy a new, or nearly new one, and buying another older one could very well leave me with TWO campers that need to be rebuilt due to rot, lol.  

I also started thinking about how neat it was to stay in random places off the side of the road during my last road trip from Arizona to Michigan, such as my first night somewhere between Durango and Silverton in Colorado, along some river.  500 feet off the road, and it felt like I was in the middle of nowhere.  2nd night was in the municipal campground in Brush, CO....some interesting characters there!  :lol:  After that, I realized sleeping in the back of a Chevy Volt just wasn't cutting it (partially claustrophobia was setting in, and just flat not having enough room in the car with all my other trip essentials that I sure as heck wasn't putting outside there, not really being able to move around properly for changing clothes, not being able to open windows for a breeze without letting in bugs, etc), and I spent the rest of the trip in various motels.  

Then I started thinking about how a Class B camper, or a van conversion might just be the hot ticket here.  Little concern about moisture rotting out the frame work, as I live in the desert and van bodies aren't made of wood.  Better than the 5 or 6 MPG that an old Class A or C would get me.  Blend in better for urban camping nights.  Have even been considering gutting the Amerigo, and using all the appliances, inverter/converter, AC, etc to convert a van to a camper.  I'm not about to drop 10's of thousands into a factory Class B for something that will sit more often than get used, and I think by reusing parts I already have, I could build a nice unit for less than 5 grand.  And being that I'll also be towing a 4500lb trailer load with me some of the time (Samurai off road crawler on a trailer..flat towing is absolutely not an option with this one), I think a converted 1 ton van might make for a better tow rig than a loaded out factory built Class B.

So I'm going to spend some time on the forums doing some research, as I have quite a bit ahead of me here and I don't want to jump in blind head first

 

[rvwandering]

Welcome to the CRVL forums Scout80! A project! We love to follow along on builds so keep us updated on your plans.

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips & Tricks" post lists some helpful information to get you started. We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[highdesertranger]

Welcome Scout to the CRVL forums! To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips & Tricks" post lists some helpful information to get you started. We look forward to hearing more from you. looky there you got a double official welcome. highdesertranger

 

[BigT]

Actually, lots of members don't full-time in their vehicles, myself included. My tiny Transit Connect was never intended for living in, but rather for weekend or week-long excursions to far away and interesting places. It was also a testbed for mounting solar and camping gear, and it's been a great learning experience.

Welcome to the site! I look forward to reading about your build.

 

[Scout80]

Annndd...I'm already learning! Doing the insurance company merry-go-round this morning, finding that, like many others, once they hear "conversion", I get an emphatic NO! At one company that just flat won't insure any van, RV modified or not, period.

Realistically, I'm still hoping to be able to get a factory built B anyways, as while I like the idea of building it myself so that it ends up exactly the way I want it, I also know that projects like that are going to take me a stupid long time to complete...and I want to be out enjoying the world, not making sawdust in my garage.

 

[WanderLoveJosh]

I think many people could benefit from getting a Van or some kind of specific vehicle for weekend trips. I fully encourage it. I try to get my friends to do it, but have been unsuccessful, money issue on their part or else i'm sure they would give in.

 

[drysailor]

Annndd...I'm already learning!  Doing the insurance company merry-go-round this morning, finding that, like many others, once they hear "conversion", I get an emphatic NO!  At one company that just flat won't insure any van, RV modified or not, period. 

Before I bought my van I asked my insurance co about converting it; they would not cover any "non-original" equipment, unless it had been converted by a professional, i.e. Sportsmobile, etc. But they would cover the van itself. I didn't ask them specifically about adding a hightop, or living full time in it (I don't).

 

[Almost There]

Insurance depends entirely on the jurisdiction in which you are resident of.

That said, shop around, preferably not with your own insurance agent. I say that because I had a very bad traumatic experience when I asked my own insurance broker about it. It took 3 days of calling every broker in the book before I found one that while he couldn't help me himself, had someone in another broker a 100 miles away that could.

I ended up with the van itself including the high top being insured for stated value...much like they do with antique and valuable vehicles. The contents had to be insured under my home policy which, well, I didn't have a home so I ended up basically self insuring those by making sure I had a savings account big enough.

I also couldn't re-title the van as a motorhome because then it would have been impossible in that jurisdiction to insure it because it was DIY and the insurance companies just plain refused anything like that. Technically I could have had it declared an RV by the government because it met the criteria but then wouldn't have been able to insure it.

I moved cross country and after jumping through procedural hoops, my van is now titled as an RV and insured as such!

 

[tx2sturgis]

I also couldn't re-title the van as a motorhome because then it would have been impossible in that jurisdiction to insure it because it was DIY and the insurance companies just plain refused anything like that. Technically I could have had it declared an RV by the government because it met the criteria but then wouldn't have been able to insure it.

THIS is one of the primary reasons I am looking at a pickup truck/camper combination.

I will have the money soon to buy any van I wish, but the logistics of traveling to get one that I want, then the month or two to convert, then the registering and insurance hassles...plus, there are RV parking restrictions at my home base. 

If you google 'self built RV insurance' you can find a lot of options in the UK...but not here!

 

[Almost There]

Whether the interior or 'converted' part of my van could be insured or not was not a deciding factor in what I chose to live in.

Rather it was nothing more than a logistic problem to be worked around.

That and a headache while I was trying to do it 'MY way'..ie, have it titled as an RV and have it fully insured for replacement value.

By the time I was finished arm-wrestling with insurance companies, I was just happy to be able to get liability/collision/comprehensive coverage on it and have the van itself, complete with high-top, insured for what it would cost me to replace it in case of complete loss.

Personally, I wouldn't let incomplete insurance stop me from living in what I wanted to, nor would I let a somewhat higher insurance premium kick me off my plan. After all, it's still cheaper than living in a S&B. That said, if I wanted to convert a step van or a schoolie and couldn't get someone to insure it AL ALL, that would make me sit up and rethink things.

It's not just in the UK that it is possible. I did it in British Columbia. I couldn't do it in Ontario.

It's up to each and every individual jurisdiction as to what is involved in having a DIY titled as an RV and then it's up to each and every insurance company operating in that jurisdiction as to what they will or will not insure and at what price.

 

[John61CT]

A bare vehicle with just vehicle insurance.

Expensive parts of the buildout, installed as easily removable "modules", insured as personal property at agreed value as a rider under a renters or homeowners policy.

If the loss happens to occur while your stuff is being "transported" on a boat or van or by plane, not an issue.

Unless of course it's your homemade battery pack igniting that destroys everything