[highrepute]

I caved in. After a few months of checking the classifieds every night, I've bought a Caddy. Having spent god knows how many hours researching various 'how to' things on the internet, I've hit a brick wall with some of them and admitted defeat so I'm hoping for some wise and worldly knowledge for you clever lot.

PaulB: Having looked though your flickr build gallery, I was wondering if you made your own ply panels? I can only find ply lining kits for full sides etc. as opposed to the minimal ones that yours had.

Wiring additional LEDs/power into the back. Is this something that a total novice could do? I've found a few forum threads and understand the principle, but don't think I'd be confident enough to know what to buy/how to do it without an idiot proof step by step guide. Any suggestions on where to look, or should I just get a real man to do it for me?

Carpeting: I can't decide whether to do spend a whole weekend doing it myself and doing an 'OK' job, or just pay someone to do it and know that it'll be done properly. Any thoughts from people who've done it themselves?

Ta! Simon.

Have you seen in mine and ellie's van simon, there's pics on fb somewhere? We did the carpeting ourselves and I think it looks pretty good. So doubt you'd struggle.

Ply - if you've got templates then your fine.

Electrics - We haven't done this yet but have been intending to. let us know how you get on?

[north_country_boy]

As Paul_B said, I did have a Caddy (2005, 1.9tdi) until recently but have sold it on to another happy climber.

It averaged approx. 50-55mpg over the time I had it (3years/45k).

I did all the insulating, ply-lining and carpetting myself and added LED lights in the back too. I also built a platform as per Paul_B, which I could remove and store if necessary. I also bought a Caddy Maxi rear seat which I could bolt in and out as I pleased so I had the benefit of using it with four seats.

If anyone is interested PM me and I can send you some pictures for ideas/inspiration.

[sjw]

Electrics - We haven't done this yet but have been intending to. let us know how you get on?

I did this today after weeks of internet research and some very helpful instructions from north_country_boy (thanks again). It was pretty daunting, but it's quite straight forward - if I managed then it can't be that hard. I now have LED lights and two switches in the rear or the van: one turns the lights on permanently (if 'off' then the lights come on when the doors are opened) and the other is a 'master' switch to turn them off permanently (even when doors are open).

Shopping list:

12V regulator with fuse
Twin core cable (at least 0.75mm)
X2 switch
LED lights (Ikea do these for the same price)
Choc blocks (this ended up going into a little 90p plastic box from screwfix)

I basically followed this wiring diagram: http://www.benwoodbridge.com/photos/i-Tc84LG8/0/L/i-Tc84LG8-L.jpg (taken from a thread on vwt4forum).

1. Cut off existing rear light connector and pull the cable back down the B pillar to the passenger seat (that's where I tucked the fuse box)



Red/black = +12V
Brown = permanent -0V (light always on)
Blue/white = switched -0V (light on where door open)

2. I labelled everything up so that I didn't mess up. Wires, terminals, everything. Disconnected the battery, cut off the plug on the LEDs (they have a transistor built in) and wired it all up. Checked everything twice. Reconnected battery. EUREKA!





3. Disconnected battery, installed switches etc. in the correct place, drilled a hole through the rear footwell panel in the back for a discrete cable-run, rewired and tucked the fuse box bits behind carpet under the B pillar.

I wouldn't say it's complicated, just a bit fiddly - everything took ten times longer than I expected. I'm really happy with the job though, very glad I got stuck in rather then getting a real man to do it for me. If you need any help I'd be happy to pass on all the very helpful info and advice that various people have given me.

[schloosh]

A mate is emigrating and selling his van, pm me if interested and I'll pass on details:

2012 (just 2 years old) with 15k miles - VW California SE BiTDi 180 DSG 4Motion (leather, goretex top liner, rear mattress extension, towbar, headlight protectors, insulated window blinds, blah blah blah). It's metallic grey and has been his pride and joy for all of 8 months! Just serviced at vw and has another free service next year
£40k.

[Probes]

Has anybody any experience of the Smev sink/cooker units... this one in particular, was thinking of getting the full kit and fitting it into my own made unit. £200 for a sink hurts but they look smart, wondering if they are worth the extra shelling out for?
Just starting a conversion job on my T4, starting from scratch virtually, well psyched to get it super pimp.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/251338267494?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

[Adam Lincoln]

Yes worth the money Paul! Lets see some pics of your van?

[Fultonius]

We got a Cramer 2 burner thing - very similar to SMEV. Fitted it myself too, not too hard. Gimme a shou tif you need any tips.

[Probes]

No point showing you inside, just boarded and carpeted out, will post up a few once I get going though, but here she is from the front. Had it 6 months actually, and its just done harris and back for the week, solid as a rock 



cheers yeah i think ill splash out then, yeh the Cramers look good, going for a narrow as possuble though so i think the thin smev one might fit better.

[Fultonius]

Looks nice. We got a Cramer one (not that one) because it was the shortest (front to back) we could find without being too wide. Our kitchen design needed as short a cooker as possible. Even then I wish I had 5cm more legroom!

[Fultonius]

Grrr!

DIY mechanicery woes...

Just before I went back to Scotland for 4 weeks for some work, the back left brake decided to seize solid with the other half was driving.    It had been grinding for a while as the pads were gone and the disc was...well....in need of replacement! With the ludicrous prices in France I decided to wait to pick up the discs and pads that we had stockpiled at my parents' place. (we got them when we bought the van).

Yesterday I got started. I'm reasonably mechanically minded but also reasonably ham-fisted!  Anyway, I got the calipers off, pads off and then tried to the the "pad carriers" off. They're held on with 2 x 18mm bolts. I didn't have an 18mm socket so borrowed one of a mate. Unfoortunately it was 3/8" drive and my breaker bar is 1/2". I managed to break the 1/2" ot 3/8" reducer pretty easily and being May 1st, no shops open. 

This morning I bought an 18mm 1/2" socket and got one side off but the back right was seized solid and the bolts ended up rounding off. Fuck fuckety fuck.

I also think the caliper pistons need a bit of work as they are very stiff.

On the plus side, I got the handbrake cable replaced, so I now have 1 new disc, 2 sets of new pads and one old disc (I was only doing the rears). Fortunately the right side disc wasn't so bad.

Once again I question the wisdom of doing these things yourself....

[205Chris]

I realise this might sound like a stupid question but has anyone got any advice on sourcing T4s / T5s for conversion? I've tried all the usual haunts like gumtree / ebay / T5 forum and vantrader but everything I've seen seems to fall into one of two categories:

i. overpriced (yes, I'm aware they attract the scene tax) / interstellar miles

ii. Reasonably priced, but sold within hours of being listed

Looking for a late model T4 / Early model T5 ideally.

[SA Chris]

We had the same dilemma, especially living up in this corner of the country, we searched for about 9 months with no joy. What's your budget?

[205Chris]

We had the same dilemma, especially living up in this corner of the country, we searched for about 9 months with no joy. What's your budget?

I suppose I'm working on the possibly optimistic £10k converted budget, although I suppose this could stretch slightly if I bought the van and saved a bit more during the conversion.

Prices seem to fluctuate hugely. As an example I've seen an '03 T4 888 Special X-Pack with <70k miles sell for £5250 and another with 120k miles at £7200! When I spoke to the guy about the former he reckon he'd taken 20 plus calls in 24 hours and then asked me if I thought he'd underpriced it!

[Paul B]

If you're wanting to stack the odds in your favour then don't go looking for a converted van (or a convertible if that's your thing) during the summer months!

Try some of the lesser visited for sale sections, Volkszone, T4/5 forums. Magazines perhaps (VW specific not Autotrader). Perhaps even consider going to one of the many VW events and seeing what's for sale (often over-priced).

[tomtom]

Is it seasonal? Ie more in spring less in winter?

[SA Chris]

I suppose I'm working on the possibly optimistic £10k converted budget, although I suppose this could stretch slightly if I bought the van and saved a bit more during the conversion.

Trouble is T4/5s hold their value so well, one of the reasons they are so popular. Are you going to do the conversion yourself?

[Fultonius]

We had the same dilemma, especially living up in this corner of the country, we searched for about 9 months with no joy. What's your budget?

I suppose I'm working on the possibly optimistic £10k converted budget, although I suppose this could stretch slightly if I bought the van and saved a bit more during the conversion.

Prices seem to fluctuate hugely. As an example I've seen an '03 T4 888 Special X-Pack with <70k miles sell for £5250 and another with 120k miles at £7200! When I spoke to the guy about the former he reckon he'd taken 20 plus calls in 24 hours and then asked me if I thought he'd underpriced it!

There's T4s at an OK price coming up all the time on a facebook group I'm on - https://www.facebook.com/vwt4spares?fref=ts seems to be updated regularly.

We got ours (1998 t4 2.5 tdi) for €3500 from the Netherlands (so, left drive obviously) with about 140,000 miles. We built the interior ourselves and made it relatively "removable" so if it dies we can rebuild in a new van.

[205Chris]

Cheers for the replies folks. I'm aware of the seasonal variation, I started looking months ago and it slowly drifted into summer! I'm not working to any particular timescales so might wait till after silly season now.

My current plan is to buy a van and convert it as time / funds allow (unless a conversion came up at the right price) aiming to do the simpler jobs myself and get help where required.

[sjw]

I have a leftover 1.2m² x 25mm sheet of HD Classic Acoustic foam from soundproofing my van which is still in its wrapper if anyone has a use for it?

Free to a good home, collection from Stockton on Tees or meet in Yorkshire/County...or I will post if required.

[JedHashs]

Quick question regarding plugs/charging.

I'm off to Verdon this weekend and realised I might want to charge my camera battery whilst out there.  We're camping so euro-plug adapters aren't an option.  We are however hiring a car, so I was wondering if there is such a thing as a cigarette adapter for figure-eight type plugs that are required to plug into my Nikon battery charger..



The charger is Nikon Mh-18A and the description indicates its 100-240v input.  I know close to nothing about all the voltage stuff, but have a suspicion the output on fag chargers is ~12V and won't cut the mustard, but are there smart gadgets that up this (something to do with voltage/amplitude/impedence and their relationship to each other, shit I didn't pay attention to in Physics 'cause Biology/Genetics was far more interesting  ).

Have spent a while trying to find such an item but with little joy/success.

Or should I just fork out for a spare battery? 

Well I have faced similar situation earlier but I opted for spare battery and it is working absolutely fine for me..

[JedHashs]

Quick question regarding plugs/charging.

I'm off to Verdon this weekend and realised I might want to charge my camera battery whilst out there.  We're camping so euro-plug adapters aren't an option.  We are however hiring a car, so I was wondering if there is such a thing as a cigarette adapter manufactured by electronic cigarettes manufacturer for figure-eight type plugs that are required to plug into my Nikon battery charger..



The charger is Nikon Mh-18A and the description indicates its 100-240v input.  I know close to nothing about all the voltage stuff, but have a suspicion the output on fag chargers is ~12V and won't cut the mustard, but are there smart gadgets that up this (something to do with voltage/amplitude/impedence and their relationship to each other, shit I didn't pay attention to in Physics 'cause Biology/Genetics was far more interesting  ).

Have spent a while trying to find such an item but with little joy/success.

Or should I just fork out for a spare battery? 

Well I have faced similar situation earlier but I opted for spare battery and it is working absolutely fine for me..

[205Chris]

Latest member of team yellow checking in 

Anyone got any knowledge on battery monitors for leisure batteries? The previous owner has done a pretty good conversion with leisure battery etc. but it hasn't got a power management system.

I thought fitting something like this would be a good option for monitoring the leisure battery.

Anyone use anything similar?

[SA Chris]

No, but it sounds like a great idea! Pics of acquisition?

[205Chris]

No, but it sounds like a great idea! Pics of acquisition?

Cheers Chris.

I've been having far too much fun to take photos, I'll try and sort some soon.

[unclesomebody]

Does anyone have an opinion on something like a VW Crafter? Like this one: http://www.gumtree.com/p/campervans-motorhomes/vw-crafter-race-van-camper-motor-home-not-t5/1081227042

Which is also on ebay for £2500 more! http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Volkswaggen-Crafter-Camper-Race-Van-Motor-Home-T5-/111471027661?pt=UK_Campervan_Caravan_Accessories&hash=item19f430e5cd