To be honest, the van sits in the driveway most of the year. Last year we came back from a holiday to find the door open and a bunch of stuff gone. We might not have checked to see it was locked before we left. We just don’t know. Since then our garage door has been open twice when we didn’t know it and we have had items stolen. Clearly we need to be more conscious about security.
The plan for the neighbourhood would see a three storey multi unit apartment go in behind us.The back lane is already crowded and we can see that we might have difficulty manoeuvring the van out of its spot when we do want to go camping. Also it’s a dead giveaway that we’re not home when the van is gone. What if we had a camper that we could put in the garage? Of course that won’t matter if we don’t remember to close the garage door, but it would save wear and tear on the vehicle.
Recently we took a trip out to Vernon in the Okanagan with our 30 year old Toyota Previa. We love that thing. It’s quirky and it too needs some TLC. We’ve looked at alternatives and have come to the understanding that we don’t really want an alternative: we want this van with a few more bells and whistles. So this brings me to the latest crazy scheme. What if we were to sell the current camper and make the mini-van into a camper customized just for us?
On the one hand we’re giving our heads a shake. The van is 30 years old for crying out loud! But Toyotas can go for 400,000 km on the motors before they give out and we have under 300,000 in 30 years of travel. It could fall apart at any moment. It could but so could any other second hand vehicle and we know exactly how this one has been maintained. It needs body work because it’s starting to rust. Well, yes but so does the RoadTrek.
I’ve always wanted to do a van conversion. I know, if we do it, it will be a headache at times and we will wish we had never thought of it. At the moment I’m excited by the possibilities. The Previa gets great gas mileage compared to the RoadTrek. It’s way easier to drive and we are very fond of it. In our lives the latter counts for a lot.
I’ve been down the YouTube rabbit hole on camperized Previas and have found a channel by an Oregon couple who have converted their 1992 Previa into a camper and live in it full time. Their blog posts are very instructive and we can learn from their experience. Also we don’t have to go whole hog if we don’t want to. We can start slowly with a minimum amount of fuss and then decide how much time and effort we want to invest.
We have already started to investigate. The other day we pulled out one of the rear seats. It was much easier than we thought it would be, a matter of two bolts. There is actually quite a lot of space inside. There’s no potty which means that there’s no black tank to worry about. The water system could be very simple so we wouldn’t need to worry about either putting antifreeze in the lines or blowing them out at the end of the season. As well, there are solutions to not having a potty. As we have found, any camper is a compromise, even the one you think is the absolutely perfect model.
We like the idea of some of the new camper vans but they are just too ‘perfect.’ They are beautiful but not cozy and they don’t have all the wonderful little nooks and crannies for storage that Kermie the lime green Volkswagen had. Kermie was our favourite camper. It was severely underpowered; the engine leaked oil, and the steering would freeze up in the winter because the engine was in the back. Nevertheless, we liked the coziness and practicality of the build. There wasn’t an inch of wasted space; it was easy to park and good on gas. I guess what we really want is the feel of Kermie without that particular set of problems.
I know myself well enough to understand that I love the seductive sparkle of a new idea. Some of my ideas are great and some are total duds. The nice thing is, we don’t need to do anything about our vans right now. For the moment I’m enjoying the many possibilities. One thing I do know: the old red Toyota van will continue to have a place in our garage for the near future. I’ll be sure to let you know if this idea ends up having legs or if it falls flat. Stay tuned.
