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Member’s Motor – The Story of ‘Henning Van’ a 1970 Westfalia – Part 1 – by Simon Gregory

No doubt my fascination with cars comes from my father, who has owned many interesting vehicles over the years, ranging from an Austin A35 to various Renaults and BMWs (including a 2002 Tii and a 635CSi) as well as a Jaguar XJC.

My first exposure to air-cooled VWs was in my late teens when my best friend owned a ’70s beetle.  Although not particularly sporty, I was impressed with its reliability and seemingly unburstable engine.  One summer we bought 2 beetles from a scrapyard for £30 (yes £30!) and made ourselves a very rudimentary VW dune buggy to race around a friend’s parent’s farm.  It was absolutely terrifying but great fun, nevertheless!

Over the years I’ve owned several Mk 2 Golfs, a particularly nice Mk 1 Scirocco Storm (that I still miss to this day) and have also built several kit cars.  However, I’ve always had a longing to own an air-cooled VW camper and so, about 10 years ago, I bought myself a copy of Hayne’s ‘Volkswagen Bay Transporter Restoration Manual’.  Whilst this is an excellent book, I must admit that it slightly put me off the idea of owning a T2, as 90% of the contents seemed to relate to rust repairs!  However, despite the rather gloomy picture painted by the Haynes manual, my ‘itch’ to own a T2 didn’t go away.

In 2018, I spotted an advert on eBay for a 1970 VW Westfalia Camper that was described as a California import and rust-free.  The T2 was quite local so, with the rust repair sections of the Haynes manual foremost in my mind, I decided to look and see if it really was corrosion free.  To my complete surprise, it was ‘as described’ with no significant rust but with plenty of work still required to get it roadworthy again.  The owner had previously restored a VW split-screen bus and, knowing the time and money it takes, had decided to sell the Westy given his young family and imminent plans to move house.

So later that evening, I casually mentioned this rust-free T2 that I’d spotted on eBay to my wife, Cate.  Fully expecting a firm ‘NO’, I was pleasantly surprised to hear that she also had a secret desire to own a ‘cute’ old VW Camper one day.  After some nail-biting and frantic bidding on eBay, we won the auction and ‘Henning’ the Westy was finally ours!

I managed to borrow the works pickup and trailer and collected Henning the very next weekend.  After clearing a suitable space in the garage, we came across our first major problem; Henning was slightly too tall for our garage doors!  After some head scratching, we decided to remove the pop top and let some air out of the tyres and, hey presto, Henning was safely inside.  A major expense over the coming year was some rather smart (but expensive) taller garage doors.  I consoled myself by the fact I had always fancied electric opening garage doors and now I had the perfect excuse to buy them.  

Henning was in a very sorry state when we got him, with no front panel (the original panel apparently being badly dented by the spare wheel), a bump to the rear offside corner, and the dashboard and engine having also been removed.

The interior was also in a very bad way and had obviously been a comfortable home to various creatures over the years.  After Cate declared she was “never going to go camping with that old interior,” we decided to remove and sell it on eBay.  I had initially thought that we would be lucky to find anyone interested in just taking it away, let alone paying money for it.  However, I was amazed at the interest (and bids) it generated, I had obviously badly under-priced it!

To be continued…

Inspect A Gadget – Portable projector by James Reeves

Some people like a TV in the camper van for those longer, darker evenings when there is no club marquee to sit and natter. Others like it for specific events such as Wimbledon (which we put on the club TV by the way).

Another option instead of the TV is to use a portable projector. James and Marina Reeves, part of our supportive management team introduced us at a recent event to the Anker Nebula capsule, miniature projector. Just 6 inches / 15 cm high, this little cylinder has a built in battery that lasts 1.5 hours in standard mode and up to 4 hours otherwise. At 200 ANSI lumens, it does really need a dark evening but can project an image from its tiny cylinder onto any flat surface – a 40 inch (1 metre) diagonal picture from 4 feet away (1.14m) up to a colossal 100 inch (2.5 metres) diagonal picture when the surface is 3 metres / 10 feet away. We tried it on a planked shed and it looked incredible.

You can stream anything from YouTube and Netflix, plug in a USB stick with movies on it, there is even a remote control!

The Anker Nebula retails around £320.

Don’t Panic! Ask The Mechanic! Fitting Power Steering to Baldrick By Bob Grimley

After talking to Nick at the AGM, I told him that I was fitting a “Litesteer” to my 1979 late bay, he suggested it would be a good article for the magazine. The Litesteer kit is not the cheapest but on delivery, the quality of the kit I received was very good, and the instructions easy to follow. Plus a 10% club discount was a bonus!

The parts and harness are of top quality and made to last. First job was to remove the old steering wheel column, disconnect the battery and remove the pedal cover.

Next remove the kick board, rubber mats, disconnect wiring, remove steering wheel and disconnect the column from the steering box.

Next the column needs to be cut, using the spacer this give you the exact position to cut the column to ensure it fits without error. The plate then needs drilling to take the ECU, fitting the new unit was easy.

Next run the harness under the van to the battery and connect to the positive terminal, follow original harness and clip to it. Plug in four connectors to the ECU and one to the light switch.

Connect battery to earth and you are ready to go. I could not believe the difference it has made, it is like driving a new modern car, Baldrick is better than any T6 VW camper. With its 2000cc Type 4 engine and twin choke Webber, large sump oil cooler it makes a very good tow bus.

The whole process takes only a few hours with the box of parts costing between £834 and £1,194 depending which vehicle and they will fit it for £300 extra. Remember that you can get 10% off as a club member!

Another option instead of the Litesteer is a package available on eBay for £295. This also takes a few hours and needs the steering column cutting but this package does need a small amount of welding of the steering column as well plus a bracket to stop the column from twisting. Just search eBay for “Bay window power steering”.

Sleeping Under The Stars by Mark Hodgson

(or… How I tried to turn my T2 into a mobile Cathedral)

It happened in Oxford. Very fitting for the start of an ecclesiastical undertaking. My wife Lindsay and I had stopped for a weekend sojourn among the dreaming spires on our way to the Isle of Wight for a VWT2OC summer meet. It was June 2021.

Our recently acquired 1976 Devon Bay Conversion (affectionately known as “the camper”) had let us down twice: in the same place on the M65, trying to get to Orcaber Farm campsite at Settle (highly recommended btw). Brakes seized on all wheels. Turns out it was the servo, which our local champion “The Slambassador” duly replaced. So we were nervous of such a long journey from Liverpool, and split the route in two.

On the second night Lindsay had gone to the shower block and I was up in the roof space making the bed. And then all of a sudden I wasn’t. I was on the floor of the camper with halves of a broken bed in splinters around me. If it hadn’t been for the movable seat/storage cupboard directly underneath, our poor dog Toby would have been flattened. As it was, he stared at me in a mixture of shock and disappointment.

We slept on the rock’n’roll bed for the rest of the trip. Examination of the bed boards revealed that they were made from something similar to a pound shop picture frame stuffed with egg boxes and covered with hardboard. Hardly sufficient to support my ever increasing bulk and that of my not insignificant other. Small children perhaps, or Ken and Barbie, but not big kids. So, I went to our local timber merchant and had a couple of pieces of 18mm plywood cut to size. Not even the elephant in the room would be able to destroy that! And so it remained: strong and reliable, but also plain and wooden, until our first successful trip to Orcaber Farm.

We took the Settle to Carlisle railway, entertained on the way by a group of Dutch tourists who were slightly tipsy but great company. We decided to experience the atmosphere in the Cathedral to full effect by attending a short service with choir. And it was looking up at the awe-inspiring ceiling inside the Cathedral, as we listened to spiritually uplifting song, that I got the idea to paint our bedboards in the same pattern. Deep blue with golden heavenly bodies and red and white adornment. Eighteen months later, the job hadn’t started. Amazon were fresh out of tuits, round or otherwise. It was a project for the future.

And then I turned the telly on one day, happening to catch an episode of “George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces”. George was having a caravan bespoke built by a team of artisans and professionals, and guess what design he was planning for the ceiling? A facsimile of Carlisle cathedral! I had a Victor Meldrew moment, and then I was spurred into action.

There was half a tin of gloss (coincidentally called “Oxford Blue”) left from when I had repainted the front door, and a can of gold spray paint that had been buried for years somewhere in the shed. Armed with rolls of masking tape and some acrylic primer, I set about my grand design. Toby gave discerning looks and barks, and tried to put his own pawprint on proceedings while the paint was wet. Together we got the job done.

I haven’t dared to watch any more episodes of George Clarke. I’m sure his design will be more elaborate, more ornate and very much more expensive, and I’m not going to give him the opportunity to rub my nose in it. But I am very happy with the result, and hope you like it too. I’m thinking of turning the sink into a font next, and maybe the under-bed storage into a crypt. What do you reckon?

BUSFEST! From your own roving reporter Bill Jowett

Well, what a time. For those of you who have not attended, why not? A great weekend of seeing some wonderful VWs and all sorts of modifications. Over 200 traders, plus people doing a little garage clearance. Plenty of bargains to be had, nice people to meet and the opportunity to put faces to, not only some of the names mentioned in this august publication, but also the dealers you are in contact with. Plus some wonderful scenery!

In short, three days of catching up and making wish lists. Or is it? (cue dramatic music) Well no, obvs! Despite it being a working showground some people were there 3 weeks before the opening day. Lots of jobs need doing. Firstly, we’re expecting something like a thousand people to camp. That includes tents, VWs, caravans, in fact anything you can think of including at least 2 tear-drop trailers! So we need electrical hook ups for some of those pitches, especially the disabled pitches. Then we need to mark out the rest of these fields, plus another 7 behind me.

Don’t think it’s all about the camping though! There are fences to build around the arena and staff only areas. Then there’s the traders’ areas. When we turned up there was about a week to go and there were already 4 or 5 club members there, plus Lynn and John the camping co-ordinators, actually they seemed to be everywhere 24/7!! I don’t know where they found the energy.

Sunday afternoon on of the hottest days of the year and we’re out on the fields marking out the first pitches. Gunther and family, denominated “The Northfield Crew”, where already working hard too having some 7/8 fields to cover. But as they’ve been coming here for 23 years (as I recall) they definitely know exactly what they’re doing, and novices like us will only slow them down!

Anyway, the next 5 days consist mainly of measuring 7m squares in the blazing sun. It didn’t take some of us long to go “continental” and start earlier, take a long lunch and get back at it in the late afternoon, and, in that heat putting up marquees meant working in the shade for about half an hour (such are the simple pleasures in life!)

This will become the traders’ area!

There was still loads of other stuff to do too, Laura was lucky enough to be given inside work that meant air con! Good but simple food was provided to the volunteers for three meals a day. But the most rewarding part of it all was watching it all come together!

The gates opened Friday morning and people came from ALL directions! Fields filled, families staked claims on adjacent pitches, but importantly, all fire roads were left clear despite our fears that some might become “private” gardens. One thing I noticed, that despite pitches being well marked, due to the heat people headed for shade whenever they could, including hiding the bus in the trees at the side of some of the roads!

The real benefit of all the hard work was being able to help people when difficulties raised their heads. As an example, Marina Reeves also volunteered, and she was approached by a lady and her young family who had found the pitch she had chosen was now next door to a group of young men being overly exuberant. Marina, having more knowledge of the site was able to swiftly find her a quieter pitch. This single act was enough to confirm the usefulness of volunteering and the benefits of marshalling.

I, too, was able to help later on when a chap approached me looking for a pitch. The field he was in had several “reserved” pitches in it and by quickly asking about I found not one but two pitches where all attendees were present but extra spaces where “baggsed”! When this was discovered, families involved were very helpful and apologetic about their oversight.

As I said earlier, the show itself was a great event, the traders seemed to have both enjoyed it and traded well, so it was worthwhile. The bands where great, at least two each night, plus the disco, VDub Radio, and fair adding to the atmosphere.

As Sunday evening approaches, everyone is packing up ready for the off, with most traders packed and leaving the site by 5pm. This means that the campers are also getting ready to depart by tea-time. So, by mid-morning we’re starting to pull up all the little pegs we so carefully hammered in! Winding up the tape that defined the edges and “no-go” areas, such as emergency gates that are closed.

We forget such things as the “fire stations” that need to be distributed and collected, the bins that were, pretty much, on every corner. Plus the marquees now need to come down and be packed away again! I can honestly say that while it was, at times, hard work it was also great fun. And personally, I found it quite a bonding experience. Would I do it again? At the drop of a hat!! Looking forward to next year, if Lynn will have me!!! and I hope to see some more of you there both as volunteers and on the club field!!

Editor Nick says – Thanks Bill for another great write up. Anyone who wants to attend Busfest during the build up week and work for their entry ticket, please contact Maggie on secretary@vwt2oc.co.uk who can pass your details to the Busfest team for inclusion in this year’s group.

On an unrelated note, at Busfest 2023 in the VWT2OC club field on Saturday evening, we were delighted to have our very own Lorna singing for us. Sadly, she was also talked into a duet with Editor Nick on the alternative lyrics to The Beatles’ “Help!”, dedicated to our wonderful Chairman and guru of all things mechanical, Mr Malcolm Marchbank. We hope that he is still talking to us after that.

We sang:

Help! I need a Malcolm
Help! Not just any Malcolm
Help! You know I need you Malcolm
Help!
When my van was younger, so much younger than today
She never needed anybody’s help in any way
But now these days are gone and we’re not so good at stuff
Now I find I’ve lost my mind, I’ve opened the engine door
Help me if you can, I’m feeling around
And I would appreciate you coming ’round
Help me get the circuit to hit ground
Won’t you please, please help me?
And now my van has changed in oh so many ways
My van it seems to vanish in the exhaust haze
But every now and then the steering is quite poor
I know that I just need you cos it’s never done that before
Help me if you can, I’m feeling around
And I would appreciate you coming ’round
Help me get the circuit to hit ground
Won’t you please, please help me?
When my van was younger, so much younger than today
She never needed anybody’s help in any way
But now these days are gone and we’re not so good at stuff
Now I find I’ve lost my mind, I’ve opened the engine door
Help me if you can, I’m feeling around
And I would appreciate you coming ’round
Help me get the circuit to hit ground
Won’t you please, please help me?
Help me, help me, oh no….

Eric the Viking – a restoration in many parts – December 2023

Spend since last report: £230. Total hours labour since last report: 9.75

A fairly brief update for what happened in November and December. Following the broken leg, I started walking again in October and was not really able to get around properly until mid November. The pain and swelling from the ankle was not expected and continues, with the Consultant now saying this may well continue for at least a year. Great.

Being somewhat weak of ankle, in discomfort and rather fed up has meant that only minor jobs have happened. The exhaust manifold has been wrapped in heat bandage to reduce heat under the engine as it will vent out of the exhaust rather than radiating underneath. The brake pipe nuts that arrived just before the AGM were fitted to new pipe from the front splitter to the flexi hoses for each front wheel.

More seam sealer was added on joints to really try to keep the metal from rotting and as I was there, I added some insulation to the central hot air pipe which is easier when Eric is on his side. Bolts have been checked, the clutch cable bracket on the torsion tube was advised by an ex-air cooled mechanic to be a little flimsy, so that received a further 2mm steel plate to make it stronger.

The discolouration on the lower part of the photo is where brake fluid was coming out of the reservoir during my convalescence! Brake fluid is a great paint stripper, so that area has been cleaned down, neutralised, rust proofed, primed and painted. Again.

Spending this time is a set of Fuchs alloys with tyres from an ex-club member and a load of Just Kampers bits for pedals, grommets, brake light switch and other little bits. It soon adds up!

Maybe I can get in the garage soon and start bolting bits on, but in the meantime, I’m going to put my sore ankle up.

Upgrading your Brakes on your T2 by David Eaton

Have you ever been in the situation when coming up to a set of traffic lights and you have picked your braking point when someone comes up the outside of you and jumps in front then brakes hard?  Stopping in a shorter distance can be difficult and that is why I decided to upgrade my brakes.  Most people know that it is possible to upgrade the brakes on a late model T2 by fitting the Porsche calipers, but you must have 15 inch rims to be able to do that.

My van is an early model with 14 inch rims and I wanted to upgrade my brakes without having to replace the wheel and tyres, because this affects your speedometer, unless you keep the same rolling radius by fitting different aspect ratio tyres.  Porsche callipers will not fit inside the wheel rims of an early bay. There is also the issue of caliper offsets relative to the disc.  The offset from the caliper to the disc is different between early and late bays.

After a little research I came across a Company called “Fosseway Performance”, based in Gloucestershire.  They make kits for both the early T2 and the Late T2 braking systems.  Their kits consist of new calipers, pads, anti-squeal shims, flexible brake lines, flexible brake pipe clips, new mounting bolts and mounting brackets.  The mounting bracket and bolts are what makes the kits different between the early and late bays.  The supplied brackets also change the caliper offset to the disc. The bolts are also different between the early and late bays and so it is essential to correctly specify what you need. In both cases you need to replace the discs to the late model.

Each caliper has 4 pistons which improves the braking efficiency by 30% by being able to apply more pressure to a larger brake pad.  The calipers are made from a single alloy billet and they are beautifully made.  They are also lighter than the standard calipers which means it lowers the unsprung mass of the suspension system.

The kit comes with a comprehensive set of instructions and is relatively easy to fit.  In order to fit them you will need to remove the dust covers from the discs and throw them away.  To be able to do this you will need to remove the outer hub carriers.  I found that someone had rounded the bolt holding the hub carrier to the stub axel and so had to grind this off and replace it with a new one.  If none of this makes sense to you then I would suggest you get someone else to do the work but in reality it is very simple.  You will need to bleed the whole braking system afterwards.  Again if you do not feel confident to do this, take it to someone who does, as this is your life at stake.

If you do decide to upgrade your calipers it is essential to replace the discs as well.  The new pads need a new clean flat surface to bed in to.  The company can supply you with cross drilled discs but for a van which is not going to see high speed repetitive braking this will actually reduce the braking efficiency and I would suggest you just stick to standard discs.  They will need around 300 miles to bed in and it is essential that you do not brake too hard during this period as it will glaze the pads.  The pads come coated in a ceramic a compound.  Once this happens you will not have an efficient braking system and will likely need to replace the pads.

My personal experience with the kit is that they are very well made and make a world of difference to the stopping of the van, especially going down very long steep hills when fully loaded for a camping trip.  Cost? – well not cheap but how much would it cost to fix your van if you cannot stop??

I hope you find this useful.

David Eaton

Member’s Motor – Mark and Helen Broad-Holcombe

The first van I converted was a T4 Caravelle. It came with all the usual interior trim so was left in place for a more professional finish. Saved a lot of lining out labour as well. The next project was a T5 panel van – a blank canvas. On looking at this blank canvas I was surprised at the amount of space within the panel cavities. As I was going to carry out a rear kitchen conversion, meaning less storage space, I decided to utilise all those cavities by constructing pockets and cupboards within the lining out panels.

The van was a barn door model. The nearside door was too full of door lock etc to be viable but the offside could be made into a good-sized hinged door cupboard. All the other panels could be used to construct door pockets in. The construction I used was the same for all except the rear door had a hinged door with a catch attached to it.

Panels were cut to fit using 3.6mm plywood. Covered with 4-way stretch lining carpet to match the rest of the rear lining and attached with a combination of panel fixings and s/s flanged bolts going into rivnuts. The plastic fixings not being strong enough to hold the panels to the van walls. Harrison’s trim and Megavan mats are good sources for lining carpet, adhesive and trim clips. The rivnuts need a rivnut gun to be fitted and a drill of the correct size to enlarge the holes where they will be used. I tend to use manufacturers bodywork holes – the less holes drilled the better for me.

For each panel I had to work out available cavity space and position it on the plywood panel. Access holes were cut, and a box frame of softwood battening was glued and nailed to the rear of the plywood panels. To the rear of this frame, I glued and nailed the backboard plywood. Before lining the panels, I took the hard edges out of the corners by gluing in some quadrant and beveling with a sanding wheel in a Dremel.

To finish holes were drilled at either end and a length of bungy cord passed end to end to help retain contents. This is especially needed on the sliding door as the last thing you want is something scratching the rear exterior paintwork as the door opens.

Don’t know what cavities are like in other models but with regards to the T5 I found the offside middle to be the most useful panel giving two good sized pockets. The sliding door gives three shallow pockets, the rear quarters are probably not worth the time of constructing and the rear offside door gives a very useful cupboard.

All in all, constructing these pockets was time consuming. I’m not the fastest and I’m sure others could come up with quicker methods but I did find them to be useful storage. Ironically my latest project is a T6 kombi conversion, and I have stored the table to the offside middle so no pockets there and I don’t want to risk bodywork damage on the sliding door side.

Member’s Report – Kevin Stroud and Billy

After purchasing our camper, who we have called Billy, during the Covid saga the idea was to go local for a few camps to see how we and Billy would go. Being complete novices with the campervan and camping scene, we are well out of our comfort zone. Billy has had a lot of work done but more of that later.

Well, having the invite from VWT2OC and a nice discount negotiated by Lorna, we decided to take the plunge and give it a go to Petruth Paddocks, after all the reviews were positive. A nice camp with people who have same interests (VW campers) would be a safer bet than other camps we looked at (in safe company) although a bit further than just local as we live in Tamworth Staffs.

With the help from Lorna and the VWT2OC committee we booked our pitch. After a week of deciding what we needed and a fair bit of shopping for our adventure we were set to go.

Having a few sleepless nights of how to manage the porta potty, the Elsan waste points and how the hook up works, we sorted just about everything  we would need including the bus emergency breakdown kit. So much stuff, not much room.

Bus, camper, van now fully loaded (not sure the correct name to use) we were ready for an early start.

Friday morning 5.15 am and off we go. Me, Janet and Bella our Bichon on our way, M42 then M5.

Just a few miles on the M42 and it started to rain and rain and rain. Billy running just fine then just before a planned stop at Stentham, it had a little flutter/misfire on one cylinder for a few minutes, but felt like ages. My heart in my mouth hoping we weren’t going to break-down and Billy just perked up and started running OK again. 

A quick stop for a loo break a coffee and a discussion, shall we turn around or carry on?

Carry on said Janet lets go for it. So off we go.

Traveling along and rain continues, the closer we got to Bristol the worse it was getting, so much rain.

Somerset within our reach and we got there early, very early. A drive to the camp to find it and see how we check in. “A bit early the young lady said”. 

After a drive to Cheddar and find a car park, sat in the bus for a coffee and a bite to eat we ventured into Cheddar then to Petruth Paddocks at 2.00pm.

A quick camp induction from the young ladies in the office and the offer of “we will tow you out if you get stuck” was a bit of “oh dear is it that bad?”

Once directed and marshalled into our pitch we were greeted by Nick who welcomed us and gave us some great advice about the camp site and the VWT2OC activities. 

A meet up at the local brewery to meet some of the VWT2OC members was a really nice tonic as being novices we were not sure what happens at a club camp. Introducing ourselves and meeting new people who made us very welcome was a bonus. Lorna told us that Nick is the club burger King and flips a good burger.

Well a few hours later, the smell of burger and onions was too tempting not to miss. Although the rain did put a bit of a damper on it. 

Meeting Nick again on the grill and Val doing a great job on the onion pan the burgers were most welcome.

A chat to a few people during our camp was interesting and the bacon bap on Saturday morning was another bonus.

We had a good time, it was a pity there was so much rain but it has not put us off, we plan to do some more short stays but hopefully not in the rain.

So for our first venture it’s been a great experience, a bit of an eye opener to say the least, there are some things extra we need to bring especially a mat/grid for outside the bus as trying to get your wellies off without getting  your socks all muddy is a trial in itself and maybe a small awning would make it a bit better.

Member’s Motor – John “Undie” Underwood and LottyAnne Part 2

For those who don’t know us this is LottyAnne a 1976 Devon conversion late bay. We bought her 7 yrs ago as a running wreck, but after a clean up and engine renovation she runs like a dream, but like most of these buses of age other work is needed, looks are deceiving!

Read about the front panel change in the last issue.

With all this done and 6hrs into the project we decided to cut away the passenger wheel arch.

No mean feat I can tell you, but from the pic you can see how much was rust. The new wheel arch was put into place and spot welded just to hold until we could get a better position to weld. Ie. Up on a ramp to seam weld up and over without showering ourselves in weld.

Day 2. Early start and straight to it! Checked all the areas welded from the previous day. All good and onto the assembly of all the ancillaries, lights, indicators bumpers dash top and dashboard.  Believe it or not this is where the time was taken as new wiring was needed for a couple of items, a bit of fiddling about we managed to get everything back on and into place.

Yes I know some of you purists will not like the lights, but hey these vans are all individuals and have their own identity so this is mine and like marmite you’ll either love it or hate it!

With everything now in place, I noticed several of the dash lights were not working, having done all the usual checks, I had to remove the dash top again to find the main wiring loom to establish where I had gone wrong on the rewire. But patience is a virtue and after several hours managed to get to the root of the issues and got everything working as it should.

With still a few bits to do I’m going to take my time and work through them. The front was mainly done to head off any MOT issues that I was not aware of, plus I needed to stop the rainwater ingressing further into the front of the cab.

I will say the whole job has seen its ups and downs, as like many vans of this age the more you dig the more you find, but hopefully you hope you get through them all to have a decent solid van, but I fear I may never get to this as time and money will play a big factor in the renovation, and besides which I want to enjoy driving her as opposed to seeing it sat on the driving doing nothing. 

If anyone is doing or about to do this work and want some pointers, help or general information at various points of the job, please feel free to drop me a message on our Facebook page and I’ll do my best to answer from what I’ve learnt doing it myself.

Now I’m just going to relax and take 5 as it’s been a hectic time getting her sorted, but looking forward to seeing some of you at the shows down south west way.

Cheers for reading, hope it was helpful !