Plans are to design the van as more of an exploration vehicle than a live-in. The design will be similar to my Westy camper if the VW were to inflate itself 1.5 times to a become a full-grown van.

I started collecting some of the parts I needed while I waited for the van to be built, especially those that were hard to find because of the pandemic. My first add was the FVC roof rack and ladder. That was a fun addition that had been taking up space in my garage.

 

That roof rack looks great on your van! Any wind noise? Are you really happy with it? I'm thinking of getting one soon.

 

Next up was adding Thinsulate and some Rattle Trap sound deadener that I had leftover from my Syncro project. I have Motion bunk windows on order and an AMA half slider that will go behind the driver's seat above the kitchen area. Waiting on a couple of things I have ordered before finalizing the floor design, so I can provide adequate support under a few of the heavier items. Rylee thinks the gear drawer might be where she will ride.

 

Next up was adding Thinsulate and some Rattle Trap sound deadener that I had leftover from my Syncro project. I have Motion bunk windows on order and an AMA half slider that will go behind the driver's seat above the kitchen area. Waiting on a couple of things I have ordered before finalizing the floor design, so I can provide adequate support under a few of the heavier items. Rylee thinks the gear drawer might be where she will ride.

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Next up was adding Thinsulate and some Rattle Trap sound deadener that I had leftover from my Syncro project. I have Motion bunk windows on order and an AMA half slider that will go behind the driver's seat above the kitchen area. Waiting on a couple of things I have ordered before finalizing the floor design, so I can provide adequate support under a few of the heavier items. Rylee thinks the gear drawer might be where she will ride.

View attachment 138900

Hi I just finished a build on this exact van even the same colour. Just wondering where you got that drawer?

 

Looks like a great Doggie Mobile"..just like our "SNOWFLAKE" our 130 wb Low Roof is basically a day;ly driver but first and foremost a Show Dog Transporter (SDT)...sound deadener, insulated, panelled,mattress for the overnights ( not so much in the Western Prairie Winters)..great for doggie road trips with our crew of 4 Border Collies!

 

interesting, we have followed the same paths, i had VW westfalia syncros (6 of them actually), then a four wheel camper (actually started working for FWC to) and took delvery of my AWD magnetic metallic 148 LHR yesterday. ill be posting my build thread soon to

 

Yeah, I have noticed that common thread too. After hanging out on this forum for a while I recognized some familiar names from the Syncro forum. The same with the Four Wheel Camper crowd. I think it was @ranchero that posted this side-by-side comparison of his syncro and Transit. While the Four Wheel camper was great, especially if you needed the truck for other things, but we really missed that sort of wide open communal space with the front seats facing the rear and the slider open. Pretty confining in the truck camper by comparison.

 

Look forward to your build thread...working on my OTCH X when Covid allows Obedience trials again..!!!...grrrrr

 

@coguzzi the vans with the Co plates are owned by @ranchero (I'm about 90% sure). I'm out in Pennsylvania now, but my wife and I grew up in Laramie and we have a ton of relatives in Co, so I'm there a lot. Mike at Rocky Mountain Westy in Ft. Collins was the one who set me up with the kit I used to drop a Subie engine in my Syncro. I lived in Bozeman for about 11 years between Laramie and Pennsylvania.

 

I to am migrating from a VW Westy to a Transit. I say good buy to my Westy on Monday. I need to start a transit build thread...

 

I was able to get a fair bit done over the weekend. I installed the thinsulate, which was pretty straightforward using 3M 90. I left two sections of the roof uninsulated to leave room for the fan and AC unit -- the first holes I have to cut. It was a hot day and the difference with the added thinsulate was noticeable both in temperature and reduction of road noise. I was able to pry open the headliner panel and install rattletrap and thinsulate without having to remove it completely, which doesn't look very fun. The other areas I didn't get to were the hollow spaces in the large tube-shaped support beams (not sure what the technical term is) about 4-5 inches in size. I've seen folks stuffing rolled up thinsulate in there, so that might be what I do, but I'm thinking that space my be useful to run wiring through, so I don't want to jam it up yet. I'm a bit nervous about using spray foam, thinking about future access to whatever I stuff inside.

I also began working on the floor, cutting templates out of some 4 x 8 sheets of cardboard I found at our local lumber store. This was not as straightforward as I thought because I soon had to make some decisions. One was running the floor all the way to the back doors and cutting an access panel for the spare tire hoist, or stopping it short of the last panel to leave access to the hoist and some of the other rubber plugs in that area. I decided to leave that area open. Another was if I want to extend the floor over the step at the slider door and if so how far. As we are leaving that area open and without any cabinets, etc., we decided to stick with the factory floor outline.

 

Minicell insulation installed on the floor and plywood cut to fit. Waiting for propane tank to arrive before finishing floor so I can access the bolts that will support the tank under the driver's side. While I'm waiting I will be waterproofing the plywood sheets.

 

Finished installing the propane tank tonight. Wanted to get it mounted before I bolted down the floor sections. Happy with how it turned out. Went with the 8-inch diameter Manchester tank. The bottom of the tank is level with the bottom of the fuel tank. I considered the 10-inch tank, but was worried that it would sit too low.

 

Hauled the fridge in and have been playing with some faux countertops to see how best to organize the kitchen space. I think I should have paid a little more for that window behind the stove. Poor ventilation.

 

I picked up this license plate when I drove my VW Syncro van to Inuvik in Canada's Northwest Territories. I would love to go back with my new adventure Transit.

 

@Bazz99 I just drove about 80 miles in the 70-75 mph range and didn't hear anything that sounded like wind noise from the roof. I installed the rack before insulation when the van was a road noise speaker. You might have to find someone with an insulated van that has added the rack to see if they noticed a difference. I also haven't mounted solar panels or anything else up there yet.

 

So, my Jeep seat arrived today and I propped it up on some old boxes to take measurements. Very happy with the color -- it is almost an exact match for my front seats. I went with this seat because it was the right width and folds forward which I need because the last 24 inches or so of the platform bed is going to slide over the top of it. The seat is one of those things that I had to have before I could finalize plans for several other things, including the water tanks. Now that I have it in the van, there are several new possibilities, so back to the drawing board. Drawings are nice, but having the real components in the van really makes you look at things differently.

If you look closely you will see the seat it sitting on a couple of old explosives boxes that must be 70 years old. My wife, who loves to watch all the craft shows on TV, thought I should use those as drawers I plan to build under the seat. What do you think?

 

Great build, you ordered the exact van I have priced out on Fords website like 10 times. Can't wait to see it come together.

 

Thanks @Uglyobesetraveler . I'm pretty happy so far with the options I ordered. There were a few things I wanted that I wasn't sure if I could find on a Transit sitting on a Ford lot. I wanted AWD, Ecoboost, the larger fuel tank, swivel seats, adaptive cruise, the 8-inch radio screen, and the cross traffic alert.

 

Including the color that is my dream van to start with. The Ford dealers I reached out too all said it would take 3 or 4 months to get one at this point because of supply chain issues. Glad you got one when you could!

 

So my wife and I are standing in the garage amid a pile of camper parts yet to be installed in the Transit and looking at the van parked next to her Mazda CX5. She tells me "I think my tires are bigger than yours." Oh, the horror . . .

 

Big day for the van build -- installed two Motion bunk windows. Scary cutting holes but nice to family have some ventilation. I'm still waiting for the AMA half slider to arrive that will go behind the driver's seat above the stove and sink.

 

I ordered a similar window last week but it's on back order, not sure when it'll arrive? We're going to install it on the sliding door. Yours looks very nice, great install!!

 

It's been a productive week for the Lab Hauler. I finished installing the bamboo floor. With that done I will be able to start building and adding cabinets, my bench seat, Propex heater, etc. It also means I'm going to lose that cavernous floor space, which I have been enjoying. Must build though, so I can be ready to hit the road in the spring.

 

I also installed the Fiamma awning on my FVC roof rack today. We have loved having an awning in the past and used it a ton, mostly for rain rather than sun. It was one of the must haves for our build, and partly why I chose the FVC rack which gave a good base for mounting the awning. I'll add more detail about the install over on the FVC thread. Transit High Roof 148" Roof Rack

 

Getting a feel for how everything is going to fit. The challenge has been deciding which component has to be built or installed first. The key to our design is that the last two feet of the platform bed, which runs north-south, will slide over the top of the bench seat and part of the kitchen counter. It's a design I really liked about my Four Wheel Camper. When we aren't in bed, we'll just fold over or remove the last two feet of mattress and slide the front section of the platform bed under the rest of the mattress on top of the permanent bed platform. This will give us another two feet of counter space, as well as access to the bench seat, which we really liked in our VW camper. In the next day or two I'l be finding a local welding shop to build a steel frame to mount the bench seat to the floor. My plan is to build a drawer underneath the bench seat between the supports. The back of the seat folds forward, which will give access to a panel with all of the electrical switches.

 

Spent the weekend installing the MaxxAir fan -- seems to be a right of passage in building the camper van. It would have been scarier if I hadn't already installed the Motion bunk windows. I guess I'm getting used to cutting holes in the van now. I used the Hein adaptor, which I would highly recommend.

Nothing like enjoying the fall colors through the gaping hole in the roof . . .

Rylee thought it was cool . . .

The final product . . .

 

Picked up the frame I had made for my bench seat. Pretty happy with the results from a local metal fabrication shop.

Some Rustoleum paint. The plan is to build a cabinet around the frame with a drawer opening from the front under the seat.

 

The bench seat is now installed. I bolted through the floor with steel plates underneath to spread the load. I also built the walls for the garage space and built the bed platform using the Ikea method. I used 3/4 inch ply for the garage walls for supporting the bed. I didn't like adding the weight much, but wanted something substantial enough that I could mount all of the electrical and water system components.

Rylee decided this would be her spot before it was even bolted down.