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  • my 2002 800 special

    so i've been meaning to do a build thread for ages...

    **I'll come back and add some pics later**

    i started looking for a van probably around 2007, found nothing for sensible money and carried on looking for the next few years. then i needed something 'sensible', so started looking seriously in 2013 and after seeing a few rotboxes (one for sale by a well known member of the 'scene' who acted surprised when i put my hand through the sills) i found a bashed up but solid van, which i bought from deano at CCR in baldock in september 2013. the plan was to make it a day van with a bed for festivals and camping, but then it ended up being my daily so progress has been slooooooow. and i have a 2 year old daughter, so progress got even sloooooooweeeer.

    it's an india blue transporter, with the abl 1.9td engine. it's 'special' because it seems to have no extras whatsoever.

    so if i summarise what i've done to it so far:
    2013:
    removed mesh on tailgate window
    swapped passenger single seat for a double
    swapped the dash speakers for some 10cm vibe speakers
    bought a set of spare wheels, had them sandblasted, painted them and then binned them because the paint reacted with the primer
    2014:
    cut out the half bulkhead
    replaced the bonnet release because it was stupidly stiff
    smoked/clear lamps all round
    replaced the driver's door handle because it broke
    bought swivel bases for front seats (driver's one fitted, other still in the shed, waiting for me to fit some rear seats so i can put the passenger single back in)
    found a diesel leak from the pump
    bought a t5 caravelle rear seat and rails
    cleaned out the rear of the van and removed the sound deadening ready for mounting the seat rails
    bought a straight sliding door to replace the current dented one
    discovered that the tailgate doesn't sit straight because the hinge panel seems to be bent
    2015:
    fitted 17" t5 steels from si coles, with a kwak green powdercoat
    chopped a hole in my new sliding door for a window, dressed the outer skin back and plug welded it up
    2016:
    found rust breakig through on my powdercoated wheels. not impressed.
    bought side windows, with sliding openers
    replaced passenger door handle because it broke
    made up mounts for the t5 seat rails
    replaced the water pump as it puked its guts up in the carpark at work
    blanked the EGR
    2017:
    fixed the rear windscreen wiper and heated window that have never worked
    replaced passenger door handle, because it broke. again
    fixed the gear linkage at the side of the road with cable ties, because it collapsed on the way to work leaving me with just 3rd and 4th
    replaced all gear bushes and drilled for short shift
    replaced the diesel pump because the MOT man finally noticed it was leaking. did the cambelt at the same time.

    and i'll come back to some of that and add pics.

    the plan now is to get all the dents pulled out, remove rust, respray satin black (i want nato green but my gf hates it), and fit all the parts i've collected - side windows, the bloody rear seats, carpet lining, interior panels, etc. and get it all done this year so i can start using it for camping.
    Last edited by gojira; 3 May 2017, 10:29 AM.
    my van - http://just-t4s.co.uk/showthread.php...02-800-special

  • #2
    what i've done most recently is blacked up the front bumper. it was practically white in places. i considered boot polish, but for £10 it seemed sensible to at least try a proper plastic dye. so here's 'black forever'...

    before:





    tools required:



    remove these and the bumper's off:



    wash with fairy liquid, then forever black special soap stuff:



    start applying the dye:



    1st coat, you can still see patches of white plastic:



    2 coats:



    done:





    i'm quite impressed. they are properly jet black now. time will tell how well it'll stay black. if i did it again i'd probably sand down the scuffs on the plastic before dying as they're more obvious now.

    oh, and i need to do the rear bumper and wing mirrors now.
    Last edited by gojira; 3 May 2017, 10:43 AM.
    my van - http://just-t4s.co.uk/showthread.php...02-800-special

    Comment


    • #3
      Quite a journey mate and well done! It's taking shape nicely

      Comment


      • #4
        How did you fit the t5 wheels?

        Comment


        • #5
          I've just been thinking about doing my bumpers so this thread is very helpful. Van is coming along very nice bud.


          Sent from my iPhone using Just T4s

          Comment


          • #6
            Originally posted by daleydub View Post
            How did you fit the t5 wheels?
            bought them with adapters from scvwcustoms. they're a lovely bit of kit.



            they're staggered to make the rears poke about the same as the fronts. trouble is now i've swapped to bigger tyres so i can't open my slider more than half way. i'm waiting on a wedge (also from scvwcustoms).

            also a random friend of a friend who works for vw uk in mk gave me some 60th anniversary centrecaps, which just happen to fit the bore in the adapters.

            Last edited by gojira; 3 May 2017, 03:29 PM.
            my van - http://just-t4s.co.uk/showthread.php...02-800-special

            Comment


            • #7
              I will look into them. By the way are you sure your older enough to be driving [emoji102]

              Comment


              • #8
                Great to see another T4 on a journey.. keep It up.

                Sent from my SM-T705 using Just T4s

                Comment


                • #9
                  Nice work buddy got fed up colouring mine so painted them same as the van but used to love my black bumpers

                  sent from over there

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    and the rear bumper.

                    tools required:



                    had to make a trip to hellfrauds for the 18mm socket. it's a size you don't get in socket sets, but i had a nagging feeling that i'd already gone out and bought one.

                    spline socket screws, one in each wheelarch and one just below/behind each wheelarch have to come out. 18mm bolts through the chassis have to come out. at this point i found they hadn't been removed since the factory fitted them, so i ended up needing all these:



                    in total about 2 hours to get the bolts out. i managed to chew the head off one of them and had to use my dremel-ripoff to shave the head down to 17mm so i could carry on winding it out with a smaller socket. it took the full leverage of my 18" breaker, and each one was '2 turns out, one turn in, 2 turns out, etc.' i don't think i've ever had to put that much effort into getting bolts out, and until this t4 i've been mainly dicking about with aircooled vws. it doesn't help that the bolts are about 10mm longer than they really need to be, and that 10mm was rusted to buggery.

                    here's why they were so hard to get out:



                    so they got stuck in a vice and wire-wheeled. before & after:



                    and then another 20 minutes of wire brushing, greasing, winding each bolt in and out of each captive nut, rinsing with brake cleaner, regreasing, winding in and out, etc. until it was all in a state that i could refit it. it it hadn't been a sunday i'd have binned them and bought new, but i had to re-use them to get the bumper back on.

                    bumper bar got vactan on the rust, and i filled it with dinitrol:



                    'forever black'ed the bumper... and it's back on:



                    it's scuffed and scratched, but it still looks better black than various shades of dark grey.

                    and then i looked up and found i had left out the impact foam. aaaaargh. it's not a disaster though, the whole thing needs to come off again anyway so i can properly address the rust i found growing under there.

                    and then last night i remembered where my nagging deja-vu feeling came from. i'm sure i had to buy an 18mm socket to get the rear brake caliper carriers off a couple of months ago. so now i've got 2, but one is lost.

                    now i need to buy some stainless m12 bolts to replace the rusty ones that i had to re-use. and a couple of those plastic rivets that hold the bumper mounts to the rear quarters, as i have one missing and the bumper's a bit saggy. and also a full set of plain hex sockets, as the bi-hex ones apparently tend to round the corners off of stubborn bolts.
                    my van - http://just-t4s.co.uk/showthread.php...02-800-special

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Originally posted by gojira View Post
                      so i've been meaning to do a build thread for ages...

                      **I'll come back and add some pics later**

                      i started looking for a van probably around 2007, found nothing for sensible money and carried on looking for the next few years. then i needed something 'sensible', so started looking seriously in 2013 and after seeing a few rotboxes (one for sale by a well known member of the 'scene' who acted surprised when i put my hand through the sills) i found a bashed up but solid van, which i bought from deano at CCR in baldock in september 2013. the plan was to make it a day van with a bed for festivals and camping, but then it ended up being my daily so progress has been slooooooow. and i have a 2 year old daughter, so progress got even sloooooooweeeer.

                      it's an india blue transporter, with the abl 1.9td engine. it's 'special' because it seems to have no extras whatsoever.

                      so if i summarise what i've done to it so far:
                      2013:
                      removed mesh on tailgate window
                      swapped passenger single seat for a double
                      swapped the dash speakers for some 10cm vibe speakers
                      bought a set of spare wheels, had them sandblasted, painted them and then binned them because the paint reacted with the primer
                      2014:
                      cut out the half bulkhead
                      replaced the bonnet release because it was stupidly stiff
                      smoked/clear lamps all round
                      replaced the driver's door handle because it broke
                      bought swivel bases for front seats (driver's one fitted, other still in the shed, waiting for me to fit some rear seats so i can put the passenger single back in)
                      found a diesel leak from the pump
                      bought a t5 caravelle rear seat and rails
                      cleaned out the rear of the van and removed the sound deadening ready for mounting the seat rails
                      bought a straight sliding door to replace the current dented one
                      discovered that the tailgate doesn't sit straight because the hinge panel seems to be bent
                      2015:
                      fitted 17" t5 steels from si coles, with a kwak green powdercoat
                      chopped a hole in my new sliding door for a window, dressed the outer skin back and plug welded it up
                      2016:
                      found rust breakig through on my powdercoated wheels. not impressed.
                      bought side windows, with sliding openers
                      replaced passenger door handle because it broke
                      made up mounts for the t5 seat rails
                      replaced the water pump as it puked its guts up in the carpark at work
                      blanked the EGR
                      2017:
                      fixed the rear windscreen wiper and heated window that have never worked
                      replaced passenger door handle, because it broke. again
                      fixed the gear linkage at the side of the road with cable ties, because it collapsed on the way to work leaving me with just 3rd and 4th
                      replaced all gear bushes and drilled for short shift
                      replaced the diesel pump because the MOT man finally noticed it was leaking. did the cambelt at the same time.

                      and i'll come back to some of that and add pics.

                      the plan now is to get all the dents pulled out, remove rust, respray satin black (i want nato green but my gf hates it), and fit all the parts i've collected - side windows, the bloody rear seats, carpet lining, interior panels, etc. and get it all done this year so i can start using it for camping.
                      Coming on nicely [emoji1303]Can I ask who did the powder coating on your wheels as I'm looking for a powder coater round here.


                      Sent from my iPhone using Just T4s

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        this week's experiment: ghetto rivnut setting.



                        that's an m6 rivnut, with a washer, 8mm ring spanner, washer, m6 nut, threaded onto an m6 bolt. (plus a 10mm spanner and 10mm socket.)

                        open the interior trim holes out to 9mm (or 3/8" if you've lost your metric step drill bit):



                        insert this arrangement:




                        then hold the 8mm spanner and socket still, whilst turning the nut with the 10mm spanner until the rivnut has gripped the metal... et voila:



                        (the socket and 8mm spanners are there to isolate the rivnut from any turning forces while you are crushing it down with the nut.)

                        just another 100 or so to go... then i can buy some stainless socket head screws to put my interior panels in. then remove /replace them as often as i like.
                        my van - http://just-t4s.co.uk/showthread.php...02-800-special

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Also tried out a new toy:



                          for parts an angle grinder cannot reach. ideal for cutting through the rivets that hold the plates with the captive nuts for the load tie down points:

                          my van - http://just-t4s.co.uk/showthread.php...02-800-special

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by gojira View Post
                            and the rear bumper.

                            tools required:



                            had to make a trip to hellfrauds for the 18mm socket. it's a size you don't get in socket sets, but i had a nagging feeling that i'd already gone out and bought one.

                            spline socket screws, one in each wheelarch and one just below/behind each wheelarch have to come out. 18mm bolts through the chassis have to come out. at this point i found they hadn't been removed since the factory fitted them, so i ended up needing all these:



                            in total about 2 hours to get the bolts out. i managed to chew the head off one of them and had to use my dremel-ripoff to shave the head down to 17mm so i could carry on winding it out with a smaller socket. it took the full leverage of my 18" breaker, and each one was '2 turns out, one turn in, 2 turns out, etc.' i don't think i've ever had to put that much effort into getting bolts out, and until this t4 i've been mainly dicking about with aircooled vws. it doesn't help that the bolts are about 10mm longer than they really need to be, and that 10mm was rusted to buggery.

                            here's why they were so hard to get out:



                            so they got stuck in a vice and wire-wheeled. before & after:



                            and then another 20 minutes of wire brushing, greasing, winding each bolt in and out of each captive nut, rinsing with brake cleaner, regreasing, winding in and out, etc. until it was all in a state that i could refit it. it it hadn't been a sunday i'd have binned them and bought new, but i had to re-use them to get the bumper back on.

                            bumper bar got vactan on the rust, and i filled it with dinitrol:



                            'forever black'ed the bumper... and it's back on:



                            it's scuffed and scratched, but it still looks better black than various shades of dark grey.

                            and then i looked up and found i had left out the impact foam. aaaaargh. it's not a disaster though, the whole thing needs to come off again anyway so i can properly address the rust i found growing under there.

                            and then last night i remembered where my nagging deja-vu feeling came from. i'm sure i had to buy an 18mm socket to get the rear brake caliper carriers off a couple of months ago. so now i've got 2, but one is lost.

                            now i need to buy some stainless m12 bolts to replace the rusty ones that i had to re-use. and a couple of those plastic rivets that hold the bumper mounts to the rear quarters, as i have one missing and the bumper's a bit saggy. and also a full set of plain hex sockets, as the bi-hex ones apparently tend to round the corners off of stubborn bolts.
                            After removing the rear bumper on mine today I can now share your pain, bloody hell was those bolts in there. It as well took me about 2 hours to get them out, my impact driver wouldn't even touch them. There was much blood, sweat and tears involved but all done and looking good. Thanks for the heads up though pal on what was needed it was a great help.


                            Sent from my iPhone using Just T4s

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Speaker pods... The dash speakers are a bit crap, even though I’ve upgraded them, so I decided I need some bigger speakers and they need to be pointing at my head instead of at the windscreen.

                              First I dug out some speakers that I bought for a completely different vehicle about 8 years ago. Then found some 15mm(sish) MDF out of a corner of the garage and cut some rings to screw them to. These are the smallest circle I could cut with my router using the circle cutting attachment. Then I ran round the outside with a cutter which rounds the edge. Because that's the smallest circle I could cut with a router, the inside was done with a jigsaw and cleaned up with a flap wheel in a drill.



                              Then I took out the door cards, marked out a rough shape for the back of the pod, covered with 2 layers of masking tape, and layed up 3 layers of 450g CSM with polyester resin. This is the spec according to what I read on line, but tbh it's overkill. It came out so rigid and thick that they'd probably do as a structural chassis component.



                              (If I did it again, I wouldn't have taken the panels off the doors to do this. When they're laid down they twist, and my backing plates then turned out to not quite match the contour of the panels when they were back in the van.)

                              Then I marked out the shape I wanted, and hacksawed and sanded them to shape.



                              Next I mocked them up in the van, with the rings pointing where I wanted them - vaguely towards my ears when I'm in the driver's seat - cut some offcuts of wood to length and hot-glue-gunned the rings to the backing plates.



                              Internet guides all advise using 'fleece' to make speaker pods, but where do you get stretchy fleece from? I bought some lycra/spandex off ebay. This got stretched over the pod frame until all wrinkles were out and then secured with a cable tie.



                              (If I did this again I'd just use an old t-shirt.)

                              Then it all got a couple of coats of poly resin.



                              Once dry it was attacked with a knife and flap wheel to make what looks like a speaker pod.



                              This was then glassed (the lycra is pretty flimsy), only one layer of CSM this time, and it had a few sessions of filling, sanding, filling, sanding, etc. And I holesawed out the back so I can get the wiring in. And a few coats of satin black.







                              (If I did this again I'd cut a much bigger hole on the back, leaving enough to screw the pod to the door, and through the hole I'd glass the inside and then there'd be no need to fill/sand/repeat.)

                              Then I drilled holes for mounting the speaker. I don't like self tappers, so I drilled for machine screws, rebated the holes and epoxied in some nuts.





                              Now I taped up the door panels and marked where they will fit, drilled mounting holes in the door, then drilled through them into the pod. They're fixed on with more stainless screws and nuts.



                              And that's pretty much it. Now I need to find some wiring bellows for the doors so I can wire them up.





                              (Also - despite ages getting the curves right and matching the lines to the door panel I somehow forgot to check the window winder handle. If my hands were much bigger I'd smack my knuckles on these pods winding the windows up and down!)
                              Last edited by gojira; 3 November 2017, 12:01 PM.
                              my van - http://just-t4s.co.uk/showthread.php...02-800-special

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