Might as well have a stab at it here .. I have for sale my just completed late bay resto. After seven hard years of on off work I eventually managed to return the van to the road but my love for it just isnt there anymore, so after 600 miles to run in the new engine im gonna let it go.. Located in North East Scotland There is an endless list of new parts, genuinely, its safe to say that pretty much everything has been replaced some of it even replaced twice or three times until I was satisfied .. Ok from the off, entire lower 18 inches have been replaced, that includes all inner and outer sill panels all top hat sections under cargo floor, entire cargo floor, all jacking points, all crossmembers. Full replacement VW front inner and outer wheel arches /doorsteps.. full rear inner wheelarches new driver and passenger doors new tail gait new engine lid basically anything wth any rot or rust was discarded and replaced with new panels . with exception of slider which has had the lower inner framework replaced and a new lower skin fitted . This started life as a devon van conversion but not liking the flush glass I fabricated window recesses and replaced all the glass with custom cut toughened glass. every rubber seal has been replaced. every weather channel , and weather strip has been replaced. Front susppension rebuilt with quality ball joints, track rod ends, wheel bearings, New front brake calipers and brake discs New master cylinder and reservoirs. All new flexi brake pipes all new metal brake pipes New steering coupler All control cables for heaters, park brake and clutch replaced new old stock Heat exchangers new central heater tube and all new flexible couplers for heater system. Fully rewired from fuse box to tail lights new headlights H4 new front indicator units new VW spec tail lamp units wood rim steering wheel , excellent working skat shifter leather interior camper units and twin burner smev, just Kampers fridge 240 hook up and split charge 12v with new batteries for both van and leisure. interior lighting rock n roll bed 3/4 Engine was a spanking new 1641 only done 600 miles dual ICT webers rejetted and running great Stainless exhaust system sounds throaty but isn't noisy powder coated tins recon alternator new starter motor Original gearbox rebushed shifter rod rebuilt driveshafts with inner and outer CV joints and boots rebuilt control arms re bushed Heavy duty front and rear anti roll bars with urethane bushings Spax fully adjustable shock absorbers all round adjustable rear spring plates ( best thing I bought for the van VW should have used these) all new rear brakes, drums, shoes, cylinders, cables and backplates.. rear wheel bearings also replaced Pretty much every part replaced during the rebuild replacement roof cap for earlier type to my preference , roof hole extended and reinforced as per manufacturer. new hibiscus roof bellows new roof seals I think you might get the jist of things .. Why do I want to sell it .. basically, I have no love for it anymore. It drives really well, better than my old Jeep to be honest. It pulls strong, cruises well, corners like its on rails. There are no rattles or squeaks and even road noise is minimal with quality van rated Avon tyres .. yes perhaps it needs a wee bit still doing to finish it off completely but my heart simply isnt in it .. agreed value was £20,000 I have all receipts covering the parts purchases for the restoration which exceed this amount, I carried out all of the work myself having nearly 40 years experience of restoring many different types of vehicles many for other people. Therfore I have very little in the way of labour costs, but I would guess If I costed the time it would be around £20,000 if you could get someone to do it for £20 per hour !!!! realistically I need to get £25,000 to break anywhere near even but the current market is low so will let it go l for a solid £19500 .. and thats a bargain.
You need to park it up for 6 months and come back to it. That's an awful lot of work to turn out a stunning van. Sleep on it, a few times. If I didn't have one Id be on the train tomorrow.
Bit of a U turn.. but the look on my old fellas face at the prospect of a road trip ( hes 81 and would have been married to my mother for 60 years come August but she passed away last week) and the relief on my wifes face spoke volumes so dont seem right to be selfish and flog it just because its giving me a butt kicking just now ... Im just gonna have to chill, take care of the frustrating failures and move forward ... It is a nice van, its not perfect, far from it, I just have to learn to love it again.. ... maybe just to much on my plate just now
We appreciate what you have done and been through emotionally and hopefully you will stick with your van and learn to enjoy it. And spend some good times with your Dad.
Just remember that everytime you hit one of these frustrating points the members of the late bay are always here to pick you up (and on the odd occasion join in with the wailing and gnashing of teeth)
Think you`ve hit the nail on the head there fella It`s been a labour of love , as others have said just walk away from it for a month or two , you`d regret selling it ... Have a great time with your dad , he probably needs it as much as you ....
I seldom have a position on the various vans that are advertised here but in your case I have. I'm very very glad you've decided not to sell it, go and make some good memories with your Dad.
You can't sell it mate i haven't finished mine yet and we said we would meet up some time when there both finished.
Thank goodness you've changed your mind, after the "rant" then the For Sale advert I've had a terrible day at work , it's all I've thought about ! (bet there's others on here too ) tonight i'll sleep well .................. Two steps back and one positive forward ,enjoy the bus with your family
Phew! Don't sell it, at least not right now. Sorry to hear about your mum. No wonder van problems were getting on top of you. Going out with your dad and wife in it will give your dad something to look fwd to. ( unless it keeps breaking down with him in it! ). I take my partners mum for a spin in mine every so often. And she loves it
I think the mistake you made was thinking the day you got it on the road it was "finished"! In reality that's just another day of ownership, there'll always be stuff needs fixing, just that now you can actually get some enjoyable times using it in between jobs rather than just looking at it in between jobs. You're still in the shakedown period despite the fortunes and time you've put in. It looks fantastic and is probably better than most on here , keep the faith, I'm sure it'll reward you in time , good luck.
I think that has a lot to do with it, the day it broke down on me i was heading into town to collect my suit for my mums funeral, I kinda felt let down ... then being her executor I was left to make a lot of arrangements including registering her death and then pursuing various stuff on behalf of my old fella, contacting relatives, consoling the old fella, arranging undertakers, and basically making sure everything was covered .. when the occurrence with the hob manifested itself I think I just lost it for a minute, subconscious release in the shape of a rant ... Surprisingly I was a lot calmer today and back to my normal more chilled self .. Spose we all react to stuff differently, Spent the evening reducing the hole size with some 8mm flat strip glued and doweled .. sanded then stained.. Hob dropped in , tossed out the SMEV securing screws and replaced them with a beefier posi screw everything went well, you cant see the infill, its clamped down tight and its looking good ... Just got to hook up the gas.. I promise to remain calm should anything go haywire ..... Many thanks for your compliments and thoughts . Im kinda looking forward to getting away with my old man.. It will be a first. I dont remember having ever spent a great deal of time with him, Its to late to make any effort with my old mum, so wont do any harm getting to know my old fella.. maybe this was the purpose of the van ? Thanks again..
