Inhoudsopgave van Issue 101 - VWt

100 NOT OUT Hi VWt, I just wanted to say congratulations on hitting 100 issues! I’ve been a subscriber since issue 2 and still look forward to the day my fresh copy hits the door mat, even more so during lockdown! As someone who works in a hospital, in what can only be described as quite a stressful time right now, your mag provides a welcome distraction during my lunchtime (when I get one that is!). In fact, I often leave it in the staff room and find others reading it and dreaming about vanlife adventures. As soon as this virus has packed its bags and done one, I’m hitting the road in my Trusty T4 and road tripping to Barcelona. Stay safe! Laura Fitzpatrick via email VWt: Hello Laura,…

Okay, it’s not a new thing and has been done a few times before on VWt feature vans, but it seems to work so well in a T4 or air-cooled van. There’s something about the earthy natural wood tones that seem to blend seamlessly with beach life and surf culture; the OSB floor steps things up a notch, to the point that, sitting inside Nathan’s van you could be in a surf shop in Newquay or equally a Shoreditch coffee shop. Shabby urban chic for less than a month’s supply of caffee lattes – we’ll take that any day of the week. We love the fact that so much tech is hidden under such an unassuming set of cabinets and especially like the fairy lights set into the ceiling panels.…

Looking at the photos it would be the crime of the century to call this luxurious Transporter anything close to a compromise, but in the beginning that’s what it was. Owner and the man behind the plan, Brett Young (49) told us about his first accidental show-winning camper. “My main passion is bikes, but anything with a motor and I tend to go over the top,” he confesses with a smile. “We had a T5.1 before this. I ended up in the wrong car park at a show in Towcester and came away with first prize in the show and shine!” With his family including two lads, Harry (25) and George (22) plus their extended entourage of female friends, Brett found the camper van layout of the converted T5.1 a…

Windows down, sunglasses on and tunes blasting out the speakers, isn’t driving in the summer great? The roads are dry, the days are long and the biggest worry for most of us is what beach to go to. But as those leaves begin to fall, and we dig out our winter wardrobe, a little van prep can go a long way in avoiding having to spend the night stuck on the hard shoulder waiting for the AA man to track you down in the snow. Brrr! Doesn’t sound appealing? Listen up then.... 1. CHECK YOUR BATTERY The majority of ‘failures to proceed’ in winter are down to battery failure. It’s a part you might not give a lot of thought to, but when it stops working it’s suddenly the most…

Do you ever meet someone and think: “How do you get the time to do all this?” Lee Rhodes is one of those people. Not only does he own and run Reload Creative Signs (@reloadcreative_signs) but he also finds the time to manage several builds each year under the Reload Campers (@reloadcampers) banner; the company has built several T6’s, Crafters and Sprinters to date, each of them has been handcrafted to the same high spec. Lee also mentioned that he’s thinking of raffling off the camper you see in the pics: “I’d love to see somebody win this van for £15 – the look on their face when we deliver it would be priceless”. To find out more and be in with a chance of winning, head over to www.reloadcampers.com…

Your world, your life, your vans… Send us yours: Ever dreamed about seeing your van appear in the pages of VWt? Make that dream a reality! Simply e-mail a selection of good quality high-res images of your van to glenn.rowswell@kelsey.co.uk along with a full spec list and add the subject title ‘Your Vans’. But please remember, if you didn’t take the photos, you MUST have permission from the photographer to use the images in the magazine, and all images should be free from watermarks (by submitting an image you assume responsibility for any copyright infringement). So, what are you waiting for? Let’s see those project builds! MATT HARRIS’ 2018 T6, Worcestershire Hello VWt, I’ve always been a fan of Transporters, in fact ever since being a kid. We had a…

Engine: Standard 150bhp DSG Chassis: VB air suspension with auto level and remote control, Custom 19” Radi 8 split rims, Falken 225/45/19 tyres Exterior: Fortuna Red,Thule roof rack system, Thule awning, Thule WanderWay bike rack, Sportline side bars, silly splitter (Ecowagon’s words!) Interior: Power close door, VW California sliding bed, Reimo remote control electric high lift elevating roof, Ecowagon Froli sprung roof bed with hatch, 4g / 5g Mifi Wi-Fi system, Votronic triple power management system with 100ah lithium battery with 600w inverter for off-grid camping, 150w solar panel with MPPT charge controller, hook-up lead, 12V USB points, 12V and 240V standard sockets, Wireless phone charger in roof bed area and lower cabin worktop, Remote control dimmable LED lighting, Dometic Waeco CR50x fridge, Dometic slimline hob and sink, Ecowagon hand…

Engine: Factory stock 1.9TD Chassis: 4” 1200 Faulkner springs with ECG shocks, front chassis notches, steering arm notches and lower arm notches, 8x17 Autostar Minus wheels with 205/40/17 tyres Exterior: LED headlamps, buffed original paint with a patina fade, roof rack and graphics by SWD Design & Print, 100w flexi solar panel Interior: Owner-made recycled burnt wood interior that folds into a 6-foot bed, Skoda vRS seats, smart TV, Sony head unit with two 6x9s and two 12” subs, 750w amp, two leisure batteries with diesel heater and smart solar panel controller Thanks to: Turners Garage for always helping out and bailing me out in tough times, KC Vehicles for all the notching and SWD Design and print.…

MNGO T5 POP TOP T-SHIRT Say hello to new boys on the block, MNGO (short for Mind is›Not›Getting›Old) whose new online store is packed with everything from tees, hoodies and air fresheners to super-cool prints. We love their fresh approach to design and could buy a week’s worth of tees from them in just a few clicks. Our favourite tee has to be this slammed pop topping T5, available in white, mustard, denim blue or dark grey with every size covered from XS right up to XXL. Price £22 www.mngo.co.uk LOW N SLOW T-SHIRT This low n slow tee is perfect for anyone that is a fan of low rides, the low life and classic dubs. Featuring distressed graphics front and back, a hand stitched sleeve tag and screen printed…

Name: Lee Porter Age: 39 Previous VWs: Mk1 Golf, T4, T5, T6, Amarok, Beetle – you name a VW, I’ve owned it Occupation: MD at JC Vans LTD Instagram: j@c_vans_ltd Dream Car: Porsche 992 Turbo S First Car: H reg Escort Eclipse Hardest part of the build: Sound system build Favourite part of the build: I love everything about this van What lesson learnt from this build would you pass on: You’re never happy with a build and always want to do more. Try to plan your build with a definite goal What’s next? I’d love to do a Crafter flatbed…

MODIFICATIONS: Engine: Pendle remapped 102 to 150-160 Chassis: 8.5x20 inch Wolfrace Dortmund alloy wheels, Toyo Proxes Sport tyres, H & R 50mm lowering springs Exterior: Sportline front spoiler kit, upgraded LED headlights, LED fog lights, gloss black side bars, colour coded Skyline poptop with black scenic canvas & bifold bed, Fiamma 45s awning Interior: Full orange bespoke Nappa leather interior with upgraded sport seating, heated front seats, heated front windscreen, gloss grey lightweight cabinets with silver shutters & solid oak work top, 112 RIB bed with certified RIB seat installation system reinforcing fitting bracket with full orange Nappa leather, Nappa leather headlining and all trimmed parts including blinds A & B Pillars, LED dimable lighting, reading light with USB ports, 24inch smart TV with DVD player, waterproof flooring, Sargent electrical…

Going against the grain, quite literally, Kenny decided not to clad the entire seats in leather but to try out a new velour from his supplier to break things up. “They make things for luxury hotels and I’m told this particular material has a very high ‘bum count’,” he laughs. Apparently, that translates to hard-wearing. Conversely, the material is super soft to touch. “I felt a sample and said ‘oh, that’s lovely’,” says Kenny. Only to then find out the company actually named it Lovely! “It might be a bit 70s for some,” he smiles. “But it’s something a bit different and really softens up the whole interior.”…

Quite often, people start into the VW scene with a T4 for affordability reasons; often people will then either step up to a T5 or 6 or get into an air-cooled build. Nathan did things the other way around; he ticked off a few air-cooled builds starting at age 10, but owning a T4 was always on the cards, as his family-owned them all the way through his childhood. This van started life as his Grandad’s daily hack, but it was always in the plan for it to be handed down to him; he’s certainly done it justice in the four years he’s owned it.…

MODIFICATIONS: Tuning: None currently (bloody warranty!) Chassis: VB 4 corner air suspension, TSW 20” Luco wheels Exterior: Rear panels cut out and replaced with privacy glass, limo tint to all side and rear windows, limo tint across the top of the windscreen and lighter tint on passenger and drivers doors, electric side doors and rear hatch, electric folding mirrors, all external matt plastics (bumper, wing mirror sections and transporter side and VW badges) painted gloss black, ABT complete front grille, front and side skirts with amber running LED’s and white courtesy LED’s fitted under side skirts, T6.1 rear spoiler, brake callipers painted bronze with Back2Black logo, Reimo awning rail fitted to nearside, satin black stripe with narrower bronze stripping from rear bumper to front skirt, LED exterior lighting all round,…

MODIFICATIONS: Engine: 2.0TDi (102) Pendle Performance remap to 180hp, Milltek DPF delete pipe,custom stainless steel turbo back exhaust system Chassis: Airlift 3P air ride and management setup, VW Amarok V6 8x19-inch Cantera alloy wheels with low profile rubber Exterior: Fully refinished in VW Harvest Moon Beige, genuine VW T6.1 facelift including wings, bonnet, headlights, slam panel, bumper brackets, fog light surrounds and bumper inserts, custom made rear pickup bed; T5.1 mirrors; custom made stainless side bars, garden decking pickup bed, custom LED rear lights Interior: Fully insulated and sound deadened with Fat Mat, GTi trimmed T5.1 seats; newly painted seat bases, NRG 350mm red woodgrain steering wheel, GTi tartan gear gaitor, Hertz H8 DRC remote; Airlift remote control, custom red seatbelts ICE: Alpine Halo 9 headunit, Hertz H8 DSP processor,…

I think you might have realised by now that I’m a fan of the orange leather interior, but I feel that it needs a special mention. Not only does it make the interior pop, but the addition of the orange A-pillars and sunvisors make it pop from the outside too; it’s kind of like when you see a full-custom street rod build at SEMA that has a full red interior with matching headliner – it can’t help but draw the eye from the outside of the car and makes you want to take a closer look. Let’s face it, we always want to see what’s inside when we find a van we like the look of and this one doesn’t disappoint.…