the "TONKA" express budget van build

[david.lemke]

this build has been going on since may of 2015, this is a budget build so a lot of things will get creative on a shoe string budget.

I acquired this 2005 chevy express van, 2wd, 378k, 4.3 liter v-6 with a open rear end, from where I work as this is a retired unit from our maintenance department, this is the second vehicle I have turned into a camping vehicle.
we learned from the first van about mistakes and items we are going to change on this one



this is going to be updated over the night with lots of photos and info, so sit back and enjoy the ride..........

 

[david.lemke]

below is the finger sliding bed that was built to either hold a full size mattress when slid out all the way when we are in use




as seen here I have added a cabinet for a cooler converted into a fridge which sits right behind the drivers seat, it has 2 areas for storage of can and box goods for meals, the bottom of the unit is where all the electrics for the house battery's will be housed with connections to these from other life support systems that will be critical for survival.

across the hall will be a small counter with a sink for fresh and waster water to be stored underneath and there will be a hand pump style faucet as well

 

[david.lemke]

 

[david.lemke]

well as you can see I installed a swivel seat in the passenger side seat and the open area below the cooler / fridge is for all my electrics

 

[david.lemke]

well heres the start of a long electrical system being built for our survival on and off the grid


on memorial day weekend our local LKQ had a half off sale on everything in the junk yard, we paid 12.50 for this high top and it took a month to get home due to the fact of not getting any help from anyone, well finally the glass shop I use here locally came out and cut the urethane so 4 of use could finally get it home on june 30, I set a time of 30 days at this point to have it done and completed so camping could start

 

[david.lemke]

in these pics we started wrapping the wood cabinets and started putting them in place

 

[david.lemke]

below are two pics of the access panel for shore power, couldn't refuse the price from the rv store and it was only $3.00, so it has a scratch, not like its gonna stay clean anyways




finally the 300 watts of solar showed up the last week of july, cant wait to get something mounted above the high top so I can get it up and running

 

[david.lemke]

here are a few pics of the led lighting in the camper, I put a bright light over the sink for cleaning, there are 5 small 3/4" led for reading spread out over the back of the bed area, there is a strip light above the rear storage compartment, there are 2 strip lights in the overhead valance for all around lighting, these are all on separate circuits and between all of them I am only pulling 1.5 amps................YES

 

[Paddy]

Nice man. Smurfmobile comes to mind for a name!

 

[david.lemke]

here is a pair of custom front door screens for at night so we don't overheat in the camper while sleeping,
these just slide in the window channel and the window rolls up the pinch it in place.


sorry, nice 19 inch led tv.......fits like a glove




and here is the counter top covered in laminate,

 

[david.lemke]

im not going to bore you with details of how I did it but I am just going to put some more pics up for your enjoyment

 

[david.lemke]

I decided to do a 1" body lift, it took me and my son 4 hrs to do this..........




once I got back from the tire store, which I went to a 265 85 lt 16, 10 ply tires
the wife saw this and shook her head, this made a 3.5" lift of the vehicle

 

[david.lemke]

well when I got home the wife named the old girl
......
she said the van looks like a Tonka toy, big wheels and the roof looks like it will fit your hand
......
VROM....VROM.....

finally the 2nd weekend of this month we made it out camping, and shook her out real good
I built some cribbing out of 2x4 boards and used a scissor jack at each corner to stop the van from rocking
when getting in or out of the side door, they worked great but I need to find one more with gear reduction head on it from a express van as the one that I had to use was a fast crank and it sucked trying to level the van

 

[david.lemke]

today I tried to install cruise control, the plug is there in the column........yes
but I still need the cruise control module for under the hood and the cable as well
I guess its time to hit a junk yard tomorrow for more cheap parts


things to still do are.......
4wd solid axles for 4x4 conversion
transfer case and cross member to get
tag behind trailer for equipment
solar mounting with high top
fog lights to be mounted on roof bracket of some kind
custom make front and rear bumpers with winch
canopy for passenger side of van, prefer 8 foot unit
custom spare tire mount carrier
steps of some kind so the wife can get in easier (shes gravity challenged)
solar shower for when not water hole is available


and im sure I have a lot more things to get, but this is now up to date and in the right category
look out for more updates to come

 

[k9lestat]

I would like to see how you did the cooler fridge. Do you have thread or video of that posted somewhere?

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