My Vixen 21 Urban Explorer

[ejohnson]

Hi, first time posting here, but have been a reader for awhile.

About 6 years ago I found this rare and nice looking Vixen 21. It is a compact RV, 21 feet long, about 7 feet tall. It is powered by a BMW 2.4 lt turbo diesel engine mounted in the back. Power is fed into a Renault UN1 5-speed transmission. This little bugger gets 30-35 mpg on the highway

Mine is the very rare "limo" model, so it lacks many of the standard RV stuff. It also has a fixed top roof, unlike the RV version that had the folding top.

Anyways, when I got it, it had been sitting in florida for about 5 years, then sat another 4 years here in minnesota. The insides were leaking, and full of growing green plans :snorkel:

I gutted the whole inside of it, redid some of the electrical work on it and fixed it up a little bit.

But now I am at a brick wall on how to do the insides of it. I think this is going to be my best place for ideas.

I want this to turn into a Urban exploration vehicle, so utility is going to be top on my list. But, I would also like to be able to take my wife and daughter camping (when she is old enough)

My first idea is going to be to cover the big side window on the drivers side. There I want to build a rather large storage system, with a work bench on top. I was thinking of doing it just like a toolbox with a steel top. I plan to remove the bathroom and turn it into a full height closet, matching closet on the other side. On the passenger side (in front of the side door) I want to install a bench seat. Up front would be a drivers bucket seat, and a bench seat for the passengers. In total I want to seat 5-6 people.

Pretty much final result I want to be able to carry 5-6 people plus gear for anything we may need to climb, swim, jump, hike, or run to.
The 2 full sized closets would be set up to hang large gear in.

On the back I want a bike rack able to hold 6 bikes.

In the back above the engine is a perminent full bed. This will stay for future camping.

Tell me what you guys think of it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNmQCOHh_D0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rW5fuoMm3-I

Here is my mini offroad machine. Its a 1988 BMW 325ix. Its awd, lifted, tons of fun in the dirt, mud, and snow.

 

[mhiscox]

Vixens rock! Welcome to the forum and good luck with your project. It'll be great to follow your build.

 

[ejohnson]

Thanks! It will be a slow build, but it will be just how I want it in the end.

Just to note, the insides dont look like those pictures anymore, There is nothing left inside of it, just a empty shell.

 

[mhiscox]

Just to note, the insides dont look like those pictures anymore, There is nothing left inside of it, just a empty shell.

Yeah, don't I know how that goes?

 

[Mc Taco]

Pretty funky looking. Which is a good thing. Sure seemed to run very quietly too.

It looks to be a large blank canvas on the inside. Lots of room for ideas to take hold. Good luck with the project, will definitely be checking in on this one.

 

[jkam]

Welcome.

Be very careful with how much weight you add to this. I don't know much about Vixens but it can't have much in the way of cargo carry capacity. Also think about where you plan to put things so you can balance out where you add the weight of new things.

If you eventually want to use it for family camping, you will regret covering up that window permanentlly, so consider options to be able to remove whatever covering you use.

Maybe consider finding a bike rack to use up front instead of the rear. Access to the engine will be easier and you can balance out some weight by putting a little up front.

Have fun on your build, I'll follow along.

 

[ejohnson]

Good point on the covering of the wnidow thing.

For now I will build up the inside with the windows intact, but make a cover that clips in over the window on that side.

 

[ThomD]

On the back I want a bike rack able to hold 6 bikes.

What? With all that room you can't make a garage inside for the bikes? :sombrero:

 

[ejohnson]

lol, funny story about that
The guy I got it from raced motorcycles, him and a friend got this thing with the idea to use it for haul their race bikes and to sleep in. After they got it all fixed up, they realized they could not fit their race bikes into the side door.

They thought about cutting out the door and making it bigger, but decided not to cut it and just sell it off and buy a van.

 

[BertCaldwell]

Maybe consider putting an outside access tool/toy storage compartment in where that window is. It would only need to be 8 or 10 inches deep and would leave a lot of room for the workbench on the inside. think of the pickup canopy on the utility company trucks and the way some of them are accessible on the side.

 

[ejohnson]

Did a little shopping today, while looking for power converter/inverters for this little bugger (someone stole the original one) I started looking at linear actuators.... this got me thinking, I dont really like to have to keep my neck bent just to stand up in here, there is about 5.5 feet of headroom in mine (td has a flip top roof). I can install 4 actuators, one in each corner to lift the roof another, say, 8 inches. This would give me ample headroom to stand, walk, and move about the small cabin.

So, running with this idea, I am going to order up four 8 inch stroke actuators, and enlist my mother in laws sewing machine to make a nylon/screen tent to go around the roof. Right now it has the roof bolted on, but can be unbolted and actuators installed to pop it up. I want to use a very very long bungie cord thats inside a "loop" around the tent area. This will pull the tent inwards as the top closes keeping good contact between the roof and the seals on the body.

Thoughts?

 

[jkam]

You are opening up a can of worms.
From the outset, it seems to me that you have the wrong rig for intended use.

As cool as the Vixen is, I'd sell it, find something more in line with your future uses and start over.

 

[ejohnson]

I think its a perfect fit. I dont plan to go offroad, I need something thats small enough to park in the city, but big enough to fit 5-6 people. 35 mpg is great for traveling long distance to places. The inside has plenty of space, loading capacity is pretty high since its just a chevy g20 full sized van frame/suspension.

Not sure why you think its wrong for my uses.

Also, the can of worms was opened 4 years ago when I bought this Vixen, I am a mechanic by trade and autobody tech by schooling, so fixing this is not really a problem.

 

[kerry]

I've loved the Vixens ever since I saw one in my neighborhood about 15 years ago. Well worth fixing up. I'd consider buying an old pop up camper or regular camping trailer for a few $$ and transferring the relevant interior parts over to the Vixen.

 

[ejohnson]

I have thought of that too, my friend said he would sell me his old pop up for 100$, it has not been opened up in 12 years though so who knows whats living in it.