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Transformer. T5.1 LWB 104PS DSG

27K views 36 replies 21 participants last post by  Batandball 
#1 ·
Collected it last Thursday.

This was originally going to be a kombi but VW having lotsa probs getting type approval for the version I wanted, yadda yadda so I ordered the panel van and will get windows and seats added in a couple of weeks.

Short/medium term plan is for this to be company car, camping and MTB carrier, and then all being well will get converted into a camper in a couple of years.

So work done so far over the weekend, starting with the "before" pics ...



Still smile every time I see it.



Not totally "before" as i'd already removed the lashing rings and covered the holes with flashing tape before I remembered.

Don't reckon the floor is a major source of noise, but decided to hedge my bets with some flashing atpe on the wider unribbed sections of the floor ...



... with some ply on top to bring those sections up to the level of the surrounding ribs.



Then a layer of bubble foil insulation - not a very effective insulator but again seemed to be "better safe than sorry".



Then things start to get a bit tricky.

I ordered a lining kit from plyliningservices.co.uk as it seemd a better starting place than making my own templates etc. The floor is 9mm, but a) it comes in 3 pieces and b) it has cut-outs for the lashing points (which I am not using).

So first off I had to patch the holes, including patches on the underside to make them stronger.

And then I wasn't very happy with the solidity and fit of the 3 panels ...


... so I decided to plate it with hardboard panels glued over it. This made a big difference.



There's a funny effect on thsi pic that makes the floor look like it bulges - it doesnt!

And that's about it so far - have got the vinyl laid but not fully trimmed off, and have built an internal bike carrier from PVC pipe, pics to follow.
 
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#3 ·
Stew,
If you are going to get rear seats fitted I would check with the guys that are doing the conversion for you if it's okay to go ahead with the floor finish, they had to remove the ply on mine, they were very specific on the thickness, If I can remember well, they wanted a 15mm ply? but not 100% sure, then again my seats where on a rail, yours may be a different system, maybe safe bet to check before you apply your lino! good luck with th conversion, red 5.1 looks good.
Exo
 
#4 ·
Cheers exocet for the warning

Seats and windows being done by Lakeland (not the kitchenware people) and I think they have a 3ft or so print out of email correspondence on the subject so far ;)

Their view seems to be that its customer choice to put final layer on first or not depending on whether you want to be able to easily remove it later with seats in place or prefer to have the whole thing bolted togather by them.

My seats are going to be a 2+1 San Marco high back on quick release fittings, not rails. That may be the key point as I guess rails mean channelling through everything to fit them.
 
#6 · (Edited)
So now the vinyl - B&Q imitation checkerplate is down:



I have a treadplate to go across the back but I'm not fastening it all down until the middle seats are in - justr in case it all has to come back up again.

Of course now the floor is a good bit higher than it started - so the step insert needed modified to fit. Built up the level underneath for support, trimmed back some of the support waffles under the insert where it was now fouling on the new floor, and finally (can't really see it in the pic very well) shaped a piece of ply to fit under the now raised lip of the insert, and painted it black.



Again, it's all loose until the seats go in, but end result looks like this:



Then it was time to turn my hand to upholstery with the Graphite carpet from MegaVanMats.

Decided to do the tailgate first as a) it already had a trim insert that I used to fine tune the not perfectly shaped piece from the ply lining kit and b) it had no contact with the floor or sides that might change once seats and windows are in.

As well as tuning the shape a bit, I took off a few mm all round to compensate for the carpet thickness wrapped round the edge.

I am quite pleased with my first attempt - lots of tucks round the corners, then slice them off with a sharp blade and it all sits nice and flat on both sides.





When it came to fitting the panel, I realised there are already a lot of holes in the lip I'd be screwing into, so I marked suitable screw positions with tape round the edge of the area befor eoffering up the carpetted insert. Didn't want to screw through my panel only to find fresh air on the other side!

B&Q recycled plastic bottle insulation in the cavity, sealed with bubble foil and aluminium tape. Tip of the day for everyone with no fingernails: tear your aluminium tape rather than cut it - it's a lot easier to find a bit to peel back that way!



I used black No 6 3/4" self tapping screws from Namrick which worked out very well - I bought cups too but didnt use them. The screws will drill through the metal themselves, making it a fairly simple job to hold the panel in place and use a drill to screw through the panel and metal in one go with no pilot holes etc.

Screw them right in and they almost disappear into the carpet.

 
#8 ·
DSG = all good.

I've come to this from a Citroen C4 Grand Picasso that had their equivalent (but with steering wheel paddles for the manual shifts).

DSG is much smoother than that - you don't notice most of the shifts and it seems to be pretty intelligent re speed, load etc.

Whacks you up through the gears for economy (55mph, 7th gear, 1500rpm) but happily drops you down a couple if you put the foot down.

Only annoyance is that they haven't made a true RHD version of it so all the gate letters are on the "other" side and as a beginner you have to peer round the stick to see them.
 
#9 ·
Got the seats and windows put in a couple of weeks ago by Lakeland Windscreens in Kendall

Two privacy glass fixed windows bonded in:





Nicely finished inside:



Tailgate glass tinted to match:



2+1 high back seats installed - they're pretty basic but they tone in nicely and have seat belts, which is all I need for their occasional use over the next couple of years:



Positioned carefully to ensure I can still get an MTB in lengthways behind them:



Haven't had a minute to myself since then, so no progress otherwise, but have high hopes for the next week or so (and my wife would like to get that ply and carpet out of the hallway).
 
#10 ·
Did the slider door panel last night.

Don't know why I make things difficult for myself, but having seen the examples of VW logos raised under carpeted panels, I had the idea to set the logo into the panel for an embossed effect instead.

Traced an enlarged logo onto card and used it mark out the door panel. jigsawed out the circle bits I'm going to keep and glued a piece of hardboard to the back of the hole.

Then I traced the template back in to the hole and glued back the raised pieces in position.



I glued the carpet to the logo area first - very nerve wracking!!

I'd thought I'd be able to lay the carpet "loose" on the logo and work it into the areas - but the glue grabs too quickly and there was no slack, so it had to come back up and be done from the top down, working it into the grooves as tightly as I could with an assortment of tools - sturdy paint scraper, artist paintbrush handles, scissor handles etc etc.

I did end up with one crease in the flat below the logo - I think this may be unavoidable - and I'm not sure I did the best job of cutting it down/out. Hopefully a bit more brushing will hide the scar.



The effect is very subtle - perhaps too subtle for the effort! In certain light it stands out but otherwise is quite low key. Thicker ply (this is 6mm) would be more obvious, and I did consider adding depth behind but the panel is already going to be hard up against the door frame so that would push it out.



Trouble is - I now feel committed to doing another one in the opposite panel!
 
#18 ·
Phase One Complete

Good old half term - at last got a whole bunch of things finished off.

Door/side panels in place:



I'm a bit concerned that the panel on the slider door does lightly brush the side of the van for a few inches when opening and closing - thats 6mm ply and the "standard" megavanmats carpet. Not a big problem as long as the van is clean - but over time I expect the panel to get grubby, and potentially the paint to suffer. So we'll see if it wears down soon or if I have to do something about it.

Side panels in place:



I think I modified every panel in the kit. Always removed a few mm all round to allow for the carpet (used the stock hardboard panels as templates on door and tailgate) but sides had even more surgery. In general I adapted the panels to sit inside the surrounding frame rather than span the thicker supports. That gives a bit more elbow room and I'm happy with the paint/carpet mix rather than all carpet.



If I was doing it again, I'd spend more time making sure everything followed the contours more exactly.

I also got my DIY bike rack fitted - miraculously (wish I could say by design) it lines up with the front of the wheel boxes so I've clued another piece of PVC pipe right across the thing and screwed clips into the wheel boxes so its all removable.



BTW I added an internal 2x1 frame inside the wheel boxes so they won't collapse it they get sat on.

And then to wrap it all up I got ma shine awn. Double bucket wash with sheepskin mitt and Autoglym shampoo, Super Resin Polish with a cheapie 12V polisher, then a layer of Extra Gloss Protection.

oh and everything short of "Mr Muscle" to get the insect corpses off!



What's next? Probably interior LED lights, maybe new headlining, leisure battery, extra 12V sockets.
 
#20 ·
Thanks - but I'm confused by your post.

I'm not sure how you know how much I spent on the windows (or the package deal I agreed including seats and tailgate tinting), but regardless of the price, the short answer would include things like:

Preston is an hour further away than Kendall for me.

I'd rather spend a day on foot in Kendall than Preston.

Many didn't get on the shortlist of companies I'd trust to cut holes in my brand new van.
 
#24 · (Edited)
The van has been mainly busy driving around the last few months - 20,000 miles in 9 months so far.

But I've spent a chunk of the last couple of weekends applying some vinyl. This has taken a LOT longer than any youtube videos would suggest!



I got the vinyl from Splashographics. I sent my designs to a couple of different places and Mel at Splashographics just blew the rest away with responsiveness and help from start to very finish. And were cheapest too. I would recommend them to anyone looking to have custom vinyl made (they have off the shelf stuff too).

I designed what I wanted using Inkscape to produce vector graphics that they could use as cutting paths - so I knew I would get exactly what I sent them. The idea being to get that GT500 look with the Transformer theme :cool:



Mel laid out my pieces to get best use of least vinyl - and fitted in a few extra pieces for spares and repairs, so I have extra sets of VW logos, lettering etc.

I haven't yet worked out what I'm going to stand on to apply the piece above the windscreen, and first attempt at doing above the rear screen failed as I hadn't thought through the implications of the high level brake light, which leaves a very narrow strip below. I have a piece to try again with tho'



Getting to grips with the detail of positioning and applying vinyl for the first time, it took me hours and hours to just get these 3 pieces of stripe on last week!

Yesterday, things went much faster and I did both sides in a few hours.







I'm pretty happy with the final results - but a bit dissatisfied. If I was doing it again:

I'd leave a bit more space between the centre stripes.

I'd have got pieces made with cut outs for the top light and tailgate handle (I planned the hole for the badge but had to do these cuts myself).

I'd try and do it under cover. Being scrupulously clean is hard when the wind is blowing grit around.

I'd have heat (hairdryer) ready on hand from the start. Works wonders on the compound curves and miraculously fills in tiny nicks.

I'd trim the backing paper parallel to the design so it could be reliably used for alignment.

I'd assume from the start I was going to trim pieces to the edge of panels and not waste time trying to wrap round ends.

... but the reality is I guess we always feel a bit precious about our own work on our own vans. It actually looks ok :)
 
#25 ·
Looking good Stewart, we've kept the whole design on file so if you should have any unfortunate incidents that damage any parts of the vinyl we can easily replace and for you.
If you need any areas cut out for future reference its easy enough for us to do if we have your dimensions as we did with the badge for you. All in all you did a great job of fitting :)
If we can be of any help in the future don't hesitate to give us a shout. :)
 
#29 ·
Nice van and great build but can i just ask one question as an observation is your glass on the drivers side coming unstuck at the top only it looks like its lifting away and there is a gap therelooks abit concerning. i must admit i do like a red van when they are propper clean and shiney.

Mike
 
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