Renault Trafic Van Camper Conversion

Since buying the van in January, there has been a wobble in the steering wheel when going around corners. After taking the van to Kwikfit (for convenience as there is one near my work), I was informed that I needed new CV Joints and tracking rod ends. I caved and let them install, for an outrageous £271!! The steering wobble got much better, but didn't totally go away, and I spent 6 months ignoring it whilst I fitted out the van, sorted the EGR valve, got it through and MOT, fixed the driveshaft seal, broke down in a McDonalds drive through, and much more. Starting to get expensive, but as I have started to use it more in preparation for our trips, I decided to get it looked at. My suspicion is the tracking needs doing, which my mobile mechanic has confirmed, but it also turned out some of my wheels are basically 50p shaped, definitely not round! To counteract that I have swapped the 50p shaped wheels with straighter ones, as I won't feel the rough edges on the back parti...

After my last post, I realised again we required more!! So I have made a basic shelf to go underneath the boxing in the corner of the roof that houses the electrics and the reverse camera wiring. Im holding it in place currently, but this is the rough gist. I will also be covering it in a remaining piece of tongue and groove wood that I have floating about so it matches the rest of the van. I have painted the inside with a product called Plastikote (also known as Plasti-dip elsewhere except note is cheaper on eBay and just as good). Its a spray on vinyl wrap, and has worked well elsewhere covering parts of the plastic trim in the van. The beauty is if you don't like it or want a change of colour, it simply peels off. I've sprayed the inside of the shelf as its a rough kind of wood, which although I have sanded down, there were still a few loose bits that may cause splintering, so by covering it with the Plastikote, it keeps it relatively smooth, and besides, you won...

Having decided to start driving the van a bit more day to day to ensure its smooth running, I noticed a lot of stuff moving around in the back from where its just been left. I also then realised that I'm lacking majorly in storage... Theres only so much stuff that can be held in one place with bungee cords! I decided that I needed a place to store the little things, such as cups, glasses, cutlery etc. Having a look around pinterest gave me a few good ideas, such as: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/333618284887007447/ So this is what I set out to do. Turns out from where I made the table, there was already a platform built in to provide support for a shelf, I cut 2 pieces of wood, screwed them in shortly after, and was left with this: It is very basic, I know, but it will do the job for our Isle of Wight trip coming up. Maybe in winter I will remove the table and apply some more carpet, but for now, it will do. I have ordered more of those tiny net holders too as they ...

Our first trip is coming up, that being the Isle of Wight for Cowes Week (sailing event) and to visit some other places whilst there. We have booked a spot at Comforts Farm in Cowes (http://www.comfortsfarm.co.uk) for a few days, and now for quick tip! It generally costs around £60 each way to take the Wight Link ferry from Portsmouth to Fishbourne in the Isle of Wight. The trick to making that cheaper is to travel at anti social hours. I have booked the outward ferry over at 3am, and the return journey at 1 am! It cost us £27 each way, so all in all no more the £60 for the whole trip! Just going one way during the day would cost the same if not slightly more normally. I have already started loading the van up with stuff we need, food, pots, pans, utensils, disposable cutlery and plates and bowls etc. This is because we haven't got a sink or waste and fresh water tanks built in yet, I figured the van is a little small for that and we don't have the space. So everything gets...

So the van is at last mostly complete! We have had our first few nights out, and she is very comfortable. We will deffinetly be buying a drive away awning though to enlarge our space and to ensure we don't get too stuffy inside in the summer.. We have some rough edges to tidy up such as the side of the table obviously, and some other holes in the chassis, the rear doors are still uncovered (might just be painted), and it needs a little more storage. We've got a load more of those little net compartments that are great for holding phones and nick backs, phone charger cables, battery isolator keys, etc etc. The table was made from a piece of kitchen work surface I found onsite where I work, and then a small wooden frame made with quite cheap wood from B&Q, as I didn't want anything too heavy. It has been screwed in so it doesn't move, but is easily removed to use the van as a van. Sadly I still haven't put enough into the van to be able to ta...

Apparently a common problem with Renault Traffics, Nissan Primastars and Vauxhall Vicars is the EGR Valves. (These vans are all the same minus the badge). I found this out the hard way when the van turned itself off in a McDonalds drive thru. It was just like the key had been turned off. Embarrassingly, I had no choice but to knock on the window that I had just ordered from, as the lady had disappeared. Eventually three guys came and pushed me out, and then one guy came and handed me my order whilst I tried a few things I thought may be the problem and called the AA. Turns out the EGR was blocked and sticky. The AA man smacked the valve with the bottom of a can of Easy Start spray, sprayed some in whilst I turned the key, and she burst into life! After that I removed it and cleaned it, quite well I thought, but sadly to no avail. It stopped a few more times, and I saved myself by smacking it with a readily available hammer in the back. After some research it was decided it n...

Got it through the MOT! Wasn't expecting that, maybe I should have more faith in my own mechanical skills. Got the new washer jets literally five minutes before I was going to have to cancel the MOT because of dodgy washer jets! Fitted them pronto and got it through, with just an anti roll bar linkage on the advisory, and a slight gearbox leak to investigate. We will hopefully get out now for a night, despite needing to link the batteries still, and buy a curtain, camping stove, and to decide whether we will have a little sink, fresh and waste water tanks etc. I have finally finished the carpet (mostly) too, and also had a problem with the EGR valve! But thats another post. As it starts to tidy up I will post more pictures, the LED lights I installed look awesome at night.