El Kapitan Van Conversion

[JMyerz]

Anyone ever seen / used this company?

http://www.elkapitan.com/surfer_van_conversions.htm

Looking for inspiration on vans geared for surf trips, I ran into their site. What I'm most curious about is the VW Westfalia style seat / bed they have in there and if I can just buy that outright or maybe someone knows who sells the just that seat.

I emailed them, so if I hear back I'll be sure to post an answer.

J

 

[dsw4x4]

I have seen them before but have never heard from anyone that has dealt with them. I will be interested to hear what anyone has to say and the price of their conversions? They look like very nice conversions though.
Derek

 

[Herbie]

The bifold sofa on that page is pretty standard van conversion fare. There are also "trifold" sofas with a back extension that accordions out.

Try discountvantruck.com or others for some examples. I bought a sliding/folding bifold bed from a Dodge conversion van for my Astro on Craigslist. Once I get a few more details sorted out for my van, I'll have it reupholstered to match (its also filthy) and bolt it in.

The main difference between a Westfalia style seat and other van conversion seats is that the westy mechanism raises the seat bottom up to meet the level of the engine cover/rear firewall area. Most van conversion seats only either fold back, or slide forward and fold back without much lift. If you prefer the westy style, you can by reproduction hinge kits from busdepot.com and build your own bed box.

 

[1leglance]

not much info on the 4wd conversion, looks nice inside.
Would be nice to find someone who owns one and can tell us more.

 

[JMyerz]

Email bounced back.... so not sure if they are still around?

Thanks for the link to discount van! Lots to look at and plan things out

J

 

[Switchfoot]

El Kapitan conversion

We have an El Kapitan conversion in a Quigley Ford diesel van and it suits our needs with three tall teenagers very well. The tri-fold sofa seat/bed in the back is more gimmick than functional as it is way too short and not very comfortable as a bed. It is nice to partially recline the back seat for comfy long-distance cruising though.

El Kapitan does nice finish work and uses quality materials. It has held up well over washboard roads and the kids love the comfy seats and DVD for road trips.

El Kapitan has moved away from the 4x4 van conversions and are heavily into building really gaudy, blingy GM high-top vans that are exported to China as fast as they can build them.

Great forum! Long time reader and finally took the time to register and post.

Bob

 

[doubleb]

For surfer van ideas I would check out this site:

www.outsidevan.com

I have seen quite a few of Erik's vans and they are very nice, I myself have pulled many ideas off of them.

 

[bmcd]

I've had work done here. They are pretty busy doing full conversions to ship to other countries so it takes awhile to hear back from them. They have worked with me on doing small projects on my van and I'm sure they would help you track down that seat. I would call and talk to Ron. He is good about returning calls.

 

[Steve_382]

I find it interesting that after doing a search on the Forum I can't find any recent posts about El Kapitan conversion vans. It looks like they do quite a few 4x4 MB conversions and I was just curious what feedback people have with their vans. Thanks for any feedback.