I used freestanding furniture in my van, but son built upright cabinet later. I like the Toyota minivan, but the seat rails put me off. Grand Caravan had the easiest floor to convert. Needing to sit upright in bed drove all my decisions. Next time I REALLY want to be able to stand. I'm 78 so crawling around was particularly hard. I like your setup and am saving video for future reference.
I totally understand about the crawling around part. I started with the minivan cause it’s what I had. I’m happy with how it turned out and would like to upgrade to a full-size van in the future. Thanks so much for watching! Happy travels.
That's so exciting, congrats! Hope this was helpful. Thanks for watching, and best of luck on your build. I think the Sienna is a great vehicle for it.
Thanks so much! What I love about this build is it’s basically a shell built over the original van. I can pull it out anytime and, except for a few holes in the plastic molding, the van is untouched. I wanted that, because I knew (this being my first build) I’d want to make changes in the future and wanted to leave the option open for revising the whole thing. Best of luck on your build. Love your channel!
You deserve an award for the amazing build and pushing the boundaries of what is possible in a mini van. You are a inspiration! I am getting close to making a huge decision/purchase of a fancy camper van, This really has me reconsidering because of the huge savings this approach makes. Toyota and Hondas are the most reliable vehicles for this category so excellent choice for the build. Thank you for sharing. You should consider doing consulting because there is a huge market for this area of van builds. 🔥💪👍. It has the most cozy mini house RV vibes I’ve ever seen in a mini van.❤
Thank you so much! What a sweet comment. I’m so glad you enjoyed the video. I’m filming an 8-month review of the build video this weekend. You might want to watch it before you undertake your own build. There’s def some things I’ll change in my next van build. Hope you have a wonderful day!
To floor, ir bit to floor😁 that is the ? A Ford Transit connect passenger i guess i shall start my channel, as the builds, and or no builds seem to be quite popular. Love the wall instruction. I'm awaiting my stainless shelves, to incorporate kitchen wall. TiS TINY IT B. 🚌SEE U SOON ☝️🤟🕉️
Wow. Amazing job !!! I am trying to decide if I want to sell my Ford E250 high top and down size to a minivan. I had a mini that was partially built out and I loved it. I switched to the high top because I wanted to be able to stand. I’m really torn. My build is not that great but it’s do able, I could easily make just a few changes that might make it a lot better. As I’m watching you do this build I’m getting great ideas. I may just stick with what I have. You’ve done a really great job on this. You should be really proud of yourself ❤ Best of luck to you, I’m in Phoenix for my home base so if you will be in the area feel free to reach out we could merge up for coffee or lunch. ❤ I did read a comment from someone who said they were 72 or 78 and crawling around was really difficult.
Thanks so much for your comment. I def learned a lot with that build. I need to record an update, maybe in the spring. Haven't been using the van much as everything else is super busy. I do plan to get back to some shorter trips this year. Best of luck with your build. Not being able to stand in the minivan turned out to be a big deal for me. I won't rebuild for that reason, waiting to scale up to a full-szie van.
Thanks! Right now I have travels planned through October and will decide then what comes next. I’m thinking I’ll load up and spend the winter in the Tucson area but we’ll see. Just getting started on this journey. Thanks for watching! Best of luck if you decide to give the van a go.
Awesome van build! Definitely love the yellow. Do you remember the brand and color name of the yellow paint or stain you used? It is such a beautiful warming color yellow. Thank you
@@cynalexander Thank you soooo much! It really is a beautiful yellow, which is my favorite color. I painted my fridge and dishwasher with a yellow chalk paint lol but I just love the look. Again, great job on your van!
Thanks for sharing your creativity! I'm in the "contemplative" phase of pursuing a van life. Looking at all the options on the spectrum of no-build to completely modified like yours. I already have a Sienna. 😎 My question is: How much do the flooring and cabinets weigh? I guess you save some weight not having the seats there, but I wonder how close you are getting to the vehicle's maximum weight.
No, no where near with the weight. The floor and the cabinets together don’t weigh as much as all the seats. That said, when I build again, I won’t use this model. The cabinets take up a lot of space and the walls cost me about six inches in width. Having traveled in this for six months now, I think with a minivan, no build is the way to go. The minivan is just too small for a buildout imo.
what a great build :D I just love the yellow doors and how you've styled the interior. what other wall covering options are there in addition to the wooden planks?
Cool, congrats. This was my first conversion, so it wasn’t easy just cause I knew nothing about any of it. Looking back, and considering all the changes I want to make before I head out again, this wasn’t so complicated to do. Best of luck! Hope you have fun.
liked the video and it looks great , can you tell me how do you attach wood to the vehicle ? the walls or that six by ten board . i know how to attach wood to wood but wood to metal ?? don't what screw or bolt to use thanks again for the video i'll be watching
So the only two places the wood is attached to the vehicle are that top cross support beam and the 1x2’s at the back. In both cases, these drilled into the plastic casing of the vehicle, not metal. Hope this helps. Thanks for watching!
There's a 28x20 two-shelf cabinet and a 12x8 two-shelf cabinet, plus three shelves built into the walls by the windows. The rear has two cabinets built in the walls and then there's the entire under-the-floor storage. If you're just traveling with normal-level equipment, ie not extensive photography, telescope, videography, and art equipment like me, it's more than enough storage. For simple camping and non-working road trips, it's been more than enough for my needs, at least. Thanks for your comment!
@@cynalexander some designs have nooks and crannies for storage everywhere, not an inch wasted. I've not built my minivan camper yet so I'm learning about how much 'stuff' be travel with. Weight vs function is a constant balance.
@@neilmckay8649 "Wasted" is definitely subjective. Comfort, cozy, adorable, and functional were my priorities for this build (and will be for my next. I'm buying a full-size later this year). I'm all about the pleasure factor in my travels. I'm sure you'll figure out what suits your needs and have fun doing it. Best of luck on your build :)
Haha, just a couple. There’s def some things I’ll do differently with my next build, but I’m a firm believer of practical AND pretty. I only want to be surrounded by things that make me feel 🥰.
OMG I’m so jelly!!!! Working on my Cherokee XJ car camper build and can’t wait to get out there! Definitely throwing you a follow and if you make your way to Lake Havasu hit me up. Do you have an Instagram account we can follow as well?
