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So a week ago I picked up this metallic blue slug of a van! Got a few bits to fix mechanically and aesthetically before the conversion starts - wing mirrors being one that I've already got round to (no pics as of yet).
As far as this compares to my previous vehicles it is an absolute POS - no service history, dead battery (which seller charged me £50 extra for as it was "new"), indicators and odometer don't work, exhaust is rusty etc - but I loves it, a lot of character and a solid runner when it actually does turn on. And metallic blue, haven't seen too many around, kind of hoping I don't see any for sale soon and realise I could've got a better one cheaper but I think the colour is perfect for a camper conversion.
I have a few designs in mind for the conversion, the real debate being do I go for the appliances inside the van like my girlfriend and I want and live with only 3.5ft or so of space for 2 people, or do I have them pull out and use the whole floor space for the pull out bed. Also wondering if I should get the headliner and wall/side trim from a window version van instead of reusing the ply lining. Hmmm, decisions!
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Last edited by Jehb (2017-09-16 11:31:48)
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This is what the bed top looks like at 4'
And at 3.5'
3.5 was plenty wide enough for the wife, me and the dog
Do a search and you will find plenty build blogs to give you ideas. Here is mine
http://mytintent.blogspot.co.uk/p/blog-page.html
I presume you bought the 1.9D Scudo. Great engine what never let me down. I would still have mine but decided wanted a larger van as we want to do more Euro longer trips. I took my wee 1.9 down to the Black Forrest and Germany and to be honest you only notice the lack of power when you hit the larger hills. Another guy took his down to Italy, Austria Germany for a few weeks again with no issue. Good service and run a few tanks of BP Ultimate through it. Feels a lot smother and quieter van. Roof linings are quite hard to come buy. Look at the E7 taxi version when searching for one. Some ebay thieves charge £100 but hang back and keep looking for deals as i only paid £20 for mine.
Always think of your weight in the back. Most of that wood looks heavy ply. I used the 6mm stuff what was fine, light and cheap. Consider OSB board on the floor as its half the price and weight that standard 19mm ply. Rock n Roll beds are heavy expensive steel. Look into making one if that is the road you go down.
Good luck and keep us updated as its always interesting to read others ideas and progress.
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Nice colour van, I've seen a few this colour but not many Good luck with the conversion (y) I'm in the same boat as you, just starting my conversion, Loads of head scratching but I'm getting good advice on this forum "Oscar"...
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Guys all i did was bubble foil and spray glue for insulation. If you guys are going down that road be quick on this seller as this is a good price
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Double-Foil-S … 2749.l2649
I just bought a roll to make my own screen blinds.
@ Oscar, i had a cat called Oscar your facebook thumbs up does not work on this forum. Strange that there is no smiles for it.
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Nice colour van, I've seen a few this colour but not many Good luck with the conversion (y) I'm in the same boat as you, just starting my conversion, Loads of head scratching but I'm getting good advice on this forum "Oscar"...
Thanks, yeah only one I've seen for sale at the moment. Found out the alternator doesn't work today so thats another couple hundred down the drain. The seller really ripped me off but hey ho, live and learn. The AA chap said I've been royally ripped out and bought a lemon but at least now I've thought of a nickname for it - The Blue Lemon
No idea what alternator to go for a camper, or if it even makes a difference. Cheapest I can see is £64 via carpartsforless, the same one costs £73ish from eurocarparts with a major discount.
Now to figure out how to unscrew under the steering column so I can fix the odometer - my screwdriver bit adapter is too thick!
Good luck and keep us updated as its always interesting to read others ideas and progress.
Thanks for the pointers, would you say the stock headliner is better than just nailing some planks to the roof? I suppose might be cosier - does it sit fairly close to the roof, as in it doesn't kill too much of the headroom?
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Your 64 quid alternator is about the norm. You may find cheaper with an exchange unit but i would expect to pay that. You dont need to up it for a split charge system. BTW Carparts4less and Eurocarparts are the same people. They sell on ebay as well under both names so worth checking that out also. I say if you can get it go for headliner and yes for the reason you mention, height. By the time you but batons across the roof then whatever ply/planks you lose height. Remember you are also losing height with the flooring wood. Most headliners also come with rocker switch lights and speakers so start looking round all the scrap yard.
You hot a Halfords close by Jehb? I got a set of the hex screwdrivers from them for about £8 however the odeometer is a common problem with no real cure. Mine was always dim and i did have it apart cleaning connectors and checking bulbs.
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Your 64 quid alternator is about the norm. You may find cheaper with an exchange unit but i would expect to pay that. You dont need to up it for a split charge system. BTW Carparts4less and Eurocarparts are the same people. They sell on ebay as well under both names so worth checking that out also. I say if you can get it go for headliner and yes for the reason you mention, height. By the time you but batons across the roof then whatever ply/planks you lose height. Remember you are also losing height with the flooring wood. Most headliners also come with rocker switch lights and speakers so start looking round all the scrap yard.
You hot a Halfords close by Jehb? I got a set of the hex screwdrivers from them for about £8 however the odeometer is a common problem with no real cure. Mine was always dim and i did have it apart cleaning connectors and checking bulbs.
Aah okay so just get the cheapest one then really? £64 + £60-100 labour perhaps then. Not bad and will keep me under my initial £1000 for the van.
Aah really, I was gonna open it up and hopefully just replace the bulb easy peasy. Yeah got a halfords down the road, might have to buy the whole star shaped torx screwdriver set by the looks of it just to get to the odometer. Any idea what bulb is behind there? Seems a waste to go to halfords, buy the tool then go back to buy the bulb when I know which Not in a rush though.
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What is this labour charge you talk off? Change it yourself you lazy sod. Three bolts and a block connector. I cant remember what the bulbs were. Push and twist i think they were. LIke this
The problem is the digits are LED or LCD so it must be a power issue in the clocks themselves. It never bothered me much so never looked into it more
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What is this labour charge you talk off? Change it yourself you lazy sod. Three bolts and a block connector. I cant remember what the bulbs were. Push and twist i think they were. LIke this
https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/Nt0AAOSw … s-l300.jpg
The problem is the digits are LED or LCD so it must be a power issue in the clocks themselves. It never bothered me much so never looked into it more
For the alternator not the odometer, I've done a fair few jobs on my other car but would rather get this done properly and quickly so I can get to work on the conversion. Not sure my jack would be up to the job either tbh.
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Here. Three alternators listed for your motor. 70, 80 and 90 amp
http://www.lucasee.com/en/shop/#!list/a … %20D/2003/
Click on one and scroll down to see what other motors it fits as you might be cheaper buying from another brand like Ford rather than Fiat. A lot of people think as they have a, say Ford then it must be them that make the alternator, starter. Learn to shop around for deals.
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Here. Three alternators listed for your motor. 70, 80 and 90 amp
http://www.lucasee.com/en/shop/#!list/a … %20D/2003/
Click on one and scroll down to see what other motors it fits as you might be cheaper buying from another brand like Ford rather than Fiat. A lot of people think as they have a, say Ford then it must be them that make the alternator, starter. Learn to shop around for deals.
Cool cheers. My only real query with the alternator is what amp. Surely 90 is better but then maybe it depends on the battery and electricity usage. If 70 will be fine then why would I bother with a more expensive 90amp ya know?
Also heard someone say RTX ones aren't that great, but those are the cheapest - surely can't be too much worse than it's more expensive equivalents? hmmm
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IT all depends on what you want to do with the van. I Presume you are putting a split charge in and a 2nd battery. If you are just using that for lights, music, power sockets for USB then i would say a 70 would be fine. YOu going heavy with solar panels, TV, More van lights (Spots, etc) then get as high as possible. I dont know the RTX brand so cant comment but if it comes with a guarantee for X amount of years keep the receipt just in case
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Don't buy the speedo instrument bulbs at Halfrauds they'll rip you off. Use a local motor factor 35p each rather than £2.50 each.
I did my speedo bulbs a few months ago, have a look on the forum for the advice I was given.
Good luck with the conversion, I've had my van for 12 months and only boarded and carpeted it out, not got any further yet!
Hellishly good fun to drive!
2004 Citroen Dispatch 2.0 Hdi
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Don't buy the speedo instrument bulbs at Halfrauds they'll rip you off. Use a local motor factor 35p each rather than £2.50 each.
I did my speedo bulbs a few months ago, have a look on the forum for the advice I was given.
Good luck with the conversion, I've had my van for 12 months and only boarded and carpeted it out, not got any further yet!
Hellishly good fun to drive!
Did changing bulbs fix yours? I never had a blown bulb but swapped a few around for the hell of it and that did sod all.
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I took my dash apart for a second time and replaced a few more bulbs (there's loads of them in there!), everything is lit up now, need sunglasses to glance at the speedo now. It was a dud bulb behind my odometer that caused the mileage to disappear.
2004 Citroen Dispatch 2.0 Hdi
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I took my dash apart for a second time and replaced a few more bulbs (there's loads of them in there!), everything is lit up now, need sunglasses to glance at the speedo now. It was a dud bulb behind my odometer that caused the mileage to disappear.
Just to check, does it require you to unscrew the steering column cover? That's the only bit stopping me atm as my tool is too thick.
A plus note, I fitted new locks all round today, so van is now more secure Learnt a lot about how the different locks work around the van so I can fix them more easily in future. Looks like the previous owner went mad with sealant too as one of the locks isn't screwed in but sealed. And has sealed other bits to the van too Looks horrible.
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Yes the column cover needs to be removed. The instructions are on the Maintenance thread under Speedo/Heater lights
2004 Citroen Dispatch 2.0 Hdi
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Yes the column cover needs to be removed. The instructions are on the Maintenance thread under Speedo/Heater lights
Thanks, thought so. Been doing everything by guess so far, seems to be quite easy to work on so far!
Looks like a torxhead screwdriver is on the shopping list!
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A couple of updates:
1) I had the van MOT'd with the sole intention of finding any further faults before my mechanic gets down to doing the cam belt & waterpump. It failed only on an insecure battery (which was a known fault, it was literally held by it's own weight) and front brake pads! Never been so happy for a fail, I was expecting loads to come up!
He also diagnosed that it's probably the starter motor that is at fault, not the alternator like the AA led me to believe. Rather than source a cheap used one I'm just going to pay for a new one and have the van running tip top! Time to show an old workhorse some love.
2) I bought some swivel seats from a Citroen C8. Bases look to be an exact match, although I haven't fitted them as the pesky floor bolts gave me days of grief - have had to resort to my mechanic. Annoyingly I left the seats on the drive whilst doing something with the van and my cat decided to have a little rest on the passenger seat, not before clawing them to death of course!
Here's a couple pics with the new wing mirrors on, just because. Hopefully I can push that rear dent out but would rather it bubble inwards than out so perhaps I'll leave it! I'm also tempted to colour code the wheels eventually (and the rear door hinges while I'm at it) but obviously it's not the most essential of jobs.
Last edited by Jehb (2017-08-21 22:50:23)
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Hopefully I can push that rear dent out
Hopefully this link might give you a little inspiration on making good or possibly improving the dent
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CuYNBVTXtI
P.S. if your lucky changing a bulb gets your mileage back otherwise I'm lead to believe it's one of the more common faults that arise and apparently it's something to do with how the mileage LED read out is attached to the speedo head and the binnacle needs dismantled along with the speedometer to rectify........... This along with other issues I'm told is why second hand binnacles are scarce and at a premium
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P.S. if your lucky changing a bulb gets your mileage back otherwise I'm lead to believe it's one of the more common faults that arise and apparently it's something to do with how the mileage LED read out is attached to the speedo head and the binnacle needs dismantled along with the speedometer to rectify........... This along with other issues I'm told is why second hand binnacles are scarce and at a premium
Thanks, yeah I did actually replace the bulb already. It reads but has a line through the middle. Like you could definitely make a decent guess - it's a shame MOTs can't put "roughly" and then the mileage haha.
Doesn't bother me but it's a massive shame as it looks dodgy when it comes to selling and what not
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It's happened! Actual progress has been made
First swivel is in, just the lower bulkhead thingy to remove and I can swivel to my hearts content!
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Looks tidy
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Nice looking seats. Lower bulkhead is a bold each side and a big fecking hammer.
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Looks tidy
Thanks! Definitely make it look much comfier and less dated inside!
Nice looking seats. Lower bulkhead is a bold each side and a big fecking hammer.
Thats the way I think it has to be haha, have tried briefly before but didn't have the much space to knock it through with the bench there
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