I realized that it's been way too long since I updated this thread. It's been a much more laid back winter build season than the last several years, but I still managed to make several improvements.
The first thing I did is revamp the electrical system, the deep cycle batteries are now on their own dual bank charger, and the start battery has it's own on-board charger/maintainer. So now I simply isolate the batteries when charging, and all the batteries get charged correctly. The previous setup was less than ideal as the start battery is a lead acid and the house batteries are AGM. This just works so much better. all around, and with the current charging setup, I can leave the van lit up, open, with the interior and exterior stereo, fridge, etc all on indefinitely and the charging system will keep up as long as I'm plugged in. Then obviously I can un-isolate everything and charge all the batteries with the alternator when driving.
The other nice feature I added is house style 110v outlets that are live whenever the van is plugged in. That is going to enable me to make coffee, or the girlfriend to be able to straighten her hair, etc without having to leave the van when camping. Should be so much more convenient.
It all tucks nicely in this little compartment
I also added this little volt meter so I can keep an eye on both batteries while camping or at shows..
The next thing to address was the radiator. it still had the original single pass radiator with some cheap electric fans zip-tied to it with no shroud. It worked decent, but wasn't up to the task when towing up larger hills. The straw that broke the camel's back was that one of the end tanks started leaking. I got the dual core aluminum from Rock auto, the shroud came from Summit, and the fans are basic 12" fans from Amazon. They are controlled by the Flex-a-lite controller that was already in the van. This setup works amazing! IO haven't had a chance to really push it yet, but the fans really pull a ton of heat out of the radiator and I actually had to turn up the temp on the controller a little bit because they were doing too good of a job.. Good stuff.
Anyways, eye candy:
The biggest project of the winter was to replace the rear conversion van bench/bed with an actual bed. While it looked amazing and worked for the purpose of having extra passenger seating, and also a bed.. It was extremely uncomfortable and was actually causing me some back pain and whatnot. Definitely not ideal for a situation where you are supposed to be enjoying the experience.. Also, I've decided that it's really not a "family oriented" vehicle so the rear seating really isn't necessary as I rarely carry more than 2 people.. So I built a new bed. I'll outline the whole project here:
The old setup, it looked great, but just wasn't working like I needed it to.
Out with the old:
Here is some of the puzzle that was the electrical project:
After literal days of nothing but measuring and making notes, I started building a frame out of steel 1" tubing.
Here is the finished main frame: (There is another shelf piece that extends further to the rear and hinges up)
here is the front fascia in progress. I made that out of MDF. There you can see the 2 drawer cut-outs and the smaller compartment to the right (can't put a drawer there due to the minibar)
Here you can see the rear shelf as well as the front piece of plywood decking that the mattress will sit on.
Here you can see the entire platform is test-fit and the drawers are built and installed.
Here you can see some of the layout under the decking: The drawers and compartment towards the front, and the access from the rear which includes a special spot for a large double camping chair as well as other items such as storage for the porta-potty, tools, etc.
The finished fascia panel with drawers and door installed. Looks almost seamless and matched the minibar as well. The gloss black is 3M vinyl wrap, the top part is wrapped in black vinyl to match the rest of the interior, and the chrome trim is Cloyes trim same as used on the bar. The 3 buttons are poppers for the drawers and storage compartment
And here is the entire unit mounted in the van. The platform has marine grade carpeting on it as well as some tie downs in case I need to actually haul something.. Or whatever else they may be needed for ;)
Here is some of the aluminum panel work under the rear of the bed. Lots of storage for jack, tools, and a bunch of other stuff. I also added lights under there and a prop rod.
Here is what the inside of the small compartment looks like, the drawers are finished similar inside. I forgot to take a picture of them. There are blue lights in all of them which make it really nice at night
https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/r401/tuner4life2/PXL_20220208_230612253.jpgAnd here is the entire project complete. It's finished off with a set of black satin sheets, a fleece blanket, and the furry comforter on top, also the random array of pillows. The mattress is a 4" thick custom sized piece from "The Foam Factory" It's nice and firm and super comfy. I couldn't be happier!
The last thing I did was to add to the JDM VIP styling of the interior as well as solve the problem of having windows lol. These are custom curtains from Influenced VIP. They make lots of cool stuff for VIP styled cars and they make custom sized curtains to order. I wasn't confident that they would get it right, but they knocked it out of the park per my measurements. They fit great, look great, and when closed, they actually cover extremely well. They are very close to full blackout. Anyways, I'm super happy with them, I have them on all windows except the windshield.
First test fit on the front doors. I need to add a snap at the front lower corner, but I love it! (Yes, I still need to make some front door panels)
Anyways, that's about all of it for this build season. I need to give the carb a little tune up once the weather gets warmer, but besides that it's good to go! I plan on going to several different shows and events this year including the Nats, and Vanfest in Ontario.
It's just about Vannin season!!