Driving the ALCAN in Extreme conditions-ALASKA VANLIFE 

Greetings from Germany, if you drive in very cold temperatures a diesel my advice: Make sure that your glowplugs are good. They age and start to produce less heat. If you start in these cold temperatures, give a little throttle while starting, it increases the fuelinjection and the T3 will start better.

After spending 10 years with all types of vanagons, I'd say you are the bravest man i know.

I love starting up vanagons. I feel like it’s comparable to starting a space craft you just randomly found after 40 years. All the lights going and shaking. Love it.

Dreamiest coffee sequence I've ever seen. Great music.

It's beautiful up there. Thank you for sharing. Love Your Auntie!

“you came here in *that*? - you’re braver than I thought” Princess Leia

A blanket wrapped up the legs, a. the VW van is COLD. Happy trails! Onward!

If you don't have it already (and from how you describe the heater core unable to stay warm and cold air getting in while driving, I suspect you don't) the next upgrade you should do should be the Vanistan cabin air recirc kit. Made a HUGE difference in my van's heater performance. Granted, I haven't driven in subzero conditions, but just bopping around Anchorage in ~20f, the heater will roast you out with the outside air blocked off.

Great drone footage. Can’t believe it would fly in -20f. Have a safe trip and a Vantastic adventure 👍

Wow such a relaxing video😊

I used to put a total front to cover the frill of my Rabbit. Also, in extreme cold it is fine to mix up to 10% gas with the fuel . In my area it would be -25 to -30 and 10- 15 deg cooler at night.

Throw an insulated blanket behind the seats when driving. Hold the cab heat up front.

It's a fantastic journey ! wow ! My respects !

Excellent Video. Thank you.

when I was young we used to have one of these over in german and it had the same problem with the heater just not pushing all that hard. I remember my parents had what I can only describe as being like giant floppy fridge magnets, which had been cut to fit around the rear vents. Capping those off allowed the rear engine area to retain more heat and in turn heated up the cabin better. that made all the difference in the world. maybe that works for you. Nice van!

Thanks for sharing your trip! learned a lot about Alaska and the Vanagon Camping. and yes get the Vanistan recirc kit!

Gotta leave Anchorage for Utah in SEPTEMBER or OCTOBER at the latest! Snow ❄️ is a 🐻 BEAR!

I was on the Alcan in 1974 when it was gravel, now that was a trip.

The Alcan is a snooze fest now. I spent 53 days traveling Alaska from the Kenai to Deadhorse/Prudhoe Bay in 2022. The Alcan was the most boring. Now, between 1977 and 1980 I drove the mud, gravel, clay Alcan 5 different times its entire length. THAT was exciting!!!!!

5:49 this whole dawn “pre flight” coffee and engine start/warm up was fantastic. Feels like you’re on another planet

Right on buddy!!

Dude I love your videos. I have an 87 westy and I always assumed it would just fall apart in the cold. Your an inspiration man! Love your videos!

What a road trip. Good luck

Wow!

Yes that looks a awesome fun to drive in.Good job topper van 😀 🥶

Within the First 3mins it’s already a Banger!

Great Travel!!!

The Westfalia interior is my favorite travel home ever

Love the channel! Been following you for a while! You’re living my dream while I sit on the couch! Hats off to you man, and keep the videos coming

Damn, that's a haul. I had an 82 diesel westy full camper that I swapped an 1.9l td AAZ engine into. it was brutal to drive long distance with the drone of the diesel but got like 25-26mpg which was great.

I appreciate you capturing this beautiful footage of a place lots of people dream about seeing in person but may not realistically have a chance. I hope that in between all of the setting up shots and recording you had a chance to appreciate the raw beauty of what you were witnessing.

Wow

awesome video buddy, love the van!

you got balls ilove it safe travels my friend

wow very interesting experience friend

I drove a Diesel Vanagon on the highway once maybe 20 years ago - it was possibly slower than my old 1600. Stay the course man, good on you.

Great adventure it was great meeting you in Anchorage and I’m glad you got to experience the Alcan in the winter it’s my favorite time to drive it. Looking forward to the rest of this trip.

Hey Sebastian love your videos man! I’ve got an 86 westy and would love to do some of the road trips you have done! What size tires are you running? And what modifications are required to fit that big of a tire on a 2wd vanagon?

Glad you made it. You make noodles a funny way haha🎉. Really scary with -30. we would freeze in our rooftop

Awesome drone footage bro. First time on the channel. Subscribed!

❤❤❤❤ its just awesome...hope you make an other part of 1500 km

crazy ride bro, you really pushed the limits with your van, and winter, i bought cheap toyota vans for my summer-long trips to alaska, i did it roundtrip from texas 23 summers, 5 months livin in cheap toyota vans, probly 400,00 miles-500,000 miles total, hardly an issue, i usually split alaska before it gets bad in sept, a few times i did leave in mid october and it was super sketchy in some spots and i myself got in some real potentially deadly spots, so i quit leavin alaska late.... definitely early sept or earlier, then i can have more time and fun weather in bc and alberta, i love new roads and places , i took every new route i could take, i love the cassiar one way, unless its socked in with rain which happens ALOT..... then its useless, i dont wanna fish in the rain, then the alcan is the other, gotta decide in watson lake. every summer i played in several great bars at almost every stop. i played the discovery bar in whitehorse, the gateway hotel bar in watson lake, stewart/hyder, and a zillion other bars, into vancouver or the other route jasper to banff and whitefish what more of a wild ride could anyone ask for, never regretted shuttin my business down in texas to play music and camp in fantastic places.... a big tip for travelin the alcan: i stopped the truckers from throwing rocks at me by moving into their lane, head on, they would slow down below 60 or 50 mph, then i would move back in my lane , they didnt have a choice. and they couldnt sling rocks at me anymore ever again, they cant do shit about it either, i never lost a windshield cuz i wouldnt alow it to happen. i am too far from home to play games with sadistic truckers we, (travelin with my friends)/ or i travelin solo, loved stoppin at liard hotsprings and most of the time we/I had it all to ourselves, no buildings or people, we would stay 2-4 days to recharge, cook and sleep in the parkin lot, the only ones there, now its so different... i will cherish livin in my van for 5 months each summer, fishin, playin music in bars, western usa and canada, alaska how do ya top it? i am gearin up but i dont know where...

Hello Sebastian, This videos been sitting in my “watch later” folder for a few days. It looked interesting so I saved it… I’ve never been to Alaska, although I’d love to go. I’m a bit further south than you in New Mexico about an hour from Old Mexico… Looks like you dos good many interesting things so I subscribed… Stay warm and safe out there

Wonder if your engine thermostat is stuck open or your heater control valve is closed. You should be getting hot air out of your vents. Fantastic trip. Such a bucket list item.

Hey man! That gravel pit right after crossing into the Yukon was one of my favorite spots. I look forward to pulling into that road whenever I take this trip. Cool to see someone else enjoying it. 😁

Youv got to love the vw t25s so capable for an old van chad on living the van life use to do videos in his and it was such a good van great vid fella

Cardboard GUUD🥶😎

We did the cardboard in front of the radiator when I was there, but later questioned, that if you had a working thermostat,,,was that needed.

Drive the Alcan twice in the winter of ‘98 in a geo storm with my brother. Anchorage to Phoenix and back. Better road conditions than the summer trips we took the year before.

I drove from Girdwood to Bellingham in mid November with a front wheel drive Suzuki hatchback. It took me 4 days, I loved it...😊

Just commenting for the algorithms

Just found your channel. AWESOME. You should install a diesel hydronic heater. Heat and easy starts for the rig. Nice setup BTW. We’ve been full time in a Sprinter with 34’s for 18 months. Wouldn’t change it for the world. Sub’d ❤

That looked like great coffee. edit. Very good narration. - N Idaho -

Considering diesels rely on heat for proper combustion, running too cold is one of the most destructive things for their longevity. A relay to bump up idle isn't a bad idea either if you want to let it run. Idling is hard on them because of the same heat issues.

My brother did a job in Western Yukon, couple weeks there it was -35 last year, fortunately the work they were doing was inside warming huts on a pipeline....

I watch your video and all I can think is BRRRRRR! Love the MacGyver radiator block, used to do the same here in the NE with my truck. Blocking that fresh air intake would really make a difference, a gutter screen from the box stores fits flush with the intake unlike the plastic screen on it. You can easily do the same cardboard with it. Can not wait to see part 2, stay warm!

I’ve been up and down the AlCan over 60 times, but only twice in the winter. I enjoyed your footage. Btw, the bison were reintroduced into the area by the hot springs over 20 years ago. Long time truckers hate it because they hang out on the roadside year round. When they widened the highway there grass was planted which has become the main food source for the bison.

Your videos rock Sebastian ! looking forward to seeing some content from the lower 48. I recently bought an '87 westy and drove it from Washington --> Boston, 3100 miles goes a lot faster than you'd think when dissociating to podcasts. Good luck !

in winter always keep some mixed nuts (wallnuts, almonds, salted brownd cashu, pistachios) mix ready to eat and hot water in rubber hot water bottle with its woolen cover, also carry a motel room size whiskey/brandy bottle at hand.

Somebody might have already mentioned this, but you should think about an engine preheater for them cold starts. Where it circulates and warms up your coolant.

Next time on winter season fill up your tank 3/4 of the tank with diesel and 1/4 on premium regular

❤❤ nice vlogs car camp

Well done man brave heart 🚐🚐👌🏿

9:15 so you described how cold it is about 10 times then you set about blocking off the grille to improve heat output but YOU LEFT THE VAN DOOR OPEN

My gosh you guys in these vans are amazing. That is incredible the darn engine even started at 1 degree. LOL You have any sort of heater or anything like that on this unit? I really enjoy watching Living the Van Life as well. He has one hell of a setup on both rigs.

Nice haha!

Really cool man, such an inspiration. What are those headlights!? Or have you replaced the loom?

Alaska is absolutely beautiful but way to chilly for me. Sébastien is your van a Volkswagen? Since I have had Volkswagens I know they don't hold the road to good. To lightweight. And in snowy weather not good. How r u and the van doing?

The drone footage. You’re alone, how did you launched the drone while you drove? Must be super high tech drone? That follows the car? Beautiful shots, love it. Thank you.

I watched this video recently. I live in Salt Lake City and believe I saw your van parked on west temple near 300s today?

I owned an 86 Diesel Jetta and that thing absolutely despised the cold weather. Anything below 5 Celsius and I had to plug in the block heater. Pretty well ZERO interior heat either. Great fuel mileage though....

I wonder if by running your diesel heater at night you get enough heat into your engine bay to help a bit with morning starts?

Your diesel heater pump sounds pretty loud, is it a planar / Autoterm heater? sometime there is air inside of the pumpe that makes the pump very loud and heater heats not very well.

I own an 87. With the extra feul did you have a problem getting gas along this route?

Just found your channel. It’s awesome!!! What do you use for filming? Looking at getting into it.

Hi! In Ukraine, we have a device where you cut the engine coolant pipe and insert it between the two pipes. This device acts as a pump with a heater, allowing you to heat up the coolant to warm up your engine. Additionally, you can wrap the fuel tank pipeline with some heating wire."

Hey dude! Diesel mechanic here. Someone’s probly already said this. But one, that Power Service additive is our favorite, good choice. Adding a bit too much won’t hurt anything. I have a 75 bay window. But I also have a ford with the 7.3 diesel. I run my glow plugs 4 or even 5 times when it’s really cold. So if you’re battery is good run those things 3 or 4 times at least when it’s real cold. Safe travels! Good video man.

It the guy in the white synchro from Pennsylvania?...Van looks familiar.

I have driven to Alaska twice in the winter, both times in December. It wasn't fun, IF you do decide, you better have good winter clothing and a cold weather sleeping bag, there are not many stops along the way for shelter. and fuel up at every gas station. Avoid driving at night , most gas station are close at night.and there very few cars on the road, if you ever break down and need help.

They sell different grades of diesel, #1 and #2, kerosene is the old standby to cut diesel with or straight kerosene will keep fuel from gelling ....

Does the diesel there contain additives to be usable at -25°C please?

Did the cardboard allow your heater core to work better for you?

So you did this in a two- wheel drive Vanagon? How many times did you have to be rescued? Was gas available when you needed it? My sister , a USAF retiree, lives in Palmer and I’d love to visit her.

Around 8:57 time stamp. Whta brand are your gloves?

Fox shocks suck....run away....blew one out on my new raptor....22k miles...hiway driving only....i put in a 110 dollar f150 shock from a well known name brand...rides even better now...saved 370 dollars,each side✌

That ticking sound, diesel heater ?

Hi, I am new to the channel, What is that constant ticking noise ? (no, I don't mean the diesel engine)

Is that an aftermarket diesel engine you put in there That's not a factory is it

Beaver Creek was the most expensive fuel I found on the AlCan

Be careful of your water pump in the tank if they freeze they can split .

A real adventure? What VW diesel engine are you running?

Next time you travel in that weather do not shut the van off, ever

Do you own a wireless mic or any mic

🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻🚙🚗

It’s a diesel engine. Keep it running!

Ballsy drive! What speed do you average on icy roads like that?

Diesel is not cheap...

Hey Sebastian! Greetings from Russia. Yeah, you're being watched in Russia, your videos are very interesting. Recomend you the channel of guys from Siberia, who travel on cars LADA NIVA: www.youtube.com/@sibtrofi/videos

block one half of your radiator

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