In this latest episode I drive my 1986 VW T3 Syncro from the UK to the Arctic Circle during some of the most extreme weather they've experienced in 30 years.
I did your trip by hitch hiking in January 1973 and spent a lot of money on a sleeping bag. Never cold at all, tent sleeping. There was nothing on the roads back then. Actually when the temp gets down the dryness helps a lot. In 2000 took a 1978 Range Rover to Lapland, slept in -35 on the north Finnish/Russian border, same sleeping bag and that's the secret. Can't do it any more at 72, but enjoy the adventure. My first camper was a 1983 water cooled blue T3 with Sheldon hightop, loved it.
This is so cool. Travelling to that part of the world in such an old van. That tells me you have balls. Well done to you. My other half and I have an old ford. but would never go that far in it. Trust issue. Fantastic video. Fair play to you and total respect. Thank you . I know now where not to go . Although it looks out of this world.
Great adventures in that VW! Wow! It's amazing what you're able to do in that van! The video was quite well made! The B Rolls gave me the chills. The geography & conditions are Epic! Your friend's band Amber Room is good too.
Haha so true, I would love a dog so much, but I travel to a lot of remote countries so atm a dog would make things more tricky. The songs are from my mates band on RU-vid: Amber Room Songs :-)
Awesome video , loved that van of yours . I do over landing with a sea kayak and mt bike with a defender 110 . But When I was a kid my parents had a v w camper van and traveled every were with it was awesome , so liked seeing your van out and doing what they were made to do with a kayak and bike along to make the adventure more fun . Again great video . Thanks for sharing . From Steve stott in sutherlin Oregon u.s.a.
Thanks so much for the kind words Steve. I'm a big fan of the Defender too ( except the new one...very much dislike that.....83 ECUS...in a overlanding vehicle, what were they thinking! ). The 110 is what I'd have or perhaps a 130 modded into a camper. The defender is a more serious overlander than the Syncro for sure....but shares the same maintenance costs haha. The Syncro has been good to me regardless of its faults and it's sort of the biggest interior for a compact exterior van :-)
A lot of the uneducated out there really have no idea how great the t25 vans are get them kitted up right and there capable of anything you throw at them awsome vid fella
Thanks Richard and couldn't agree more. I talk about this a lot on my website. Serviced correctly the stock t3/t25s are really reliable and most importantly have arguably the biggest/best community & parts online which counts for so much. Any issue I've had is so quickly remedied and I can get most parts within days anywhere in Europe ( not to mention it's easy to fix yourself for the most part ). Preventative maintenance and servicing is key. Thanks so much mate :-)
Phenomenal and great video. The place is wonderful and the van is very good. In these conditions the oil is very important, I use Mobil 1 / 0w40 and it is 100% synthetic and is suitable for any gasoline or diesel engine. Good luck and I follow you. Thanks for the video.
Thanks so much, really kind :-). Yeah I always take servicing really seriously. I run Morris multigrade Oil 15w/40 and I can honestly say that its one of the best things I've done for the engine, it runs really sweet on that. I also change the oil/filter every 4000 miles to be safe. My van's pretty high mileage now so have to be careful. :-)
Miss my Syncro. Keep and eye on the fuel pump. Mine leaked and the van went up in flames. Nothing I could do to stop it including using a fire extinguisher. Loved the video.
So sorry to hear that mate, I know that's a big issue. I've just had a total rebuild of my WBX so this has just been changed. I also run a auto fire supression system in the back just incase. They go up so fast, really sorry to hear. :-(
Stephen Rogers thanks a lot buddy. The interior has always come secondary to mechanicals so as I’m sure you’ll understand it’s forever neglected. I’m hoping to do a really nice build soon, so that will definitely have a full tour. However, I’ll also try and do a quick tour of the current interior soon 🙂🚐
I guess im asking the wrong place but does anyone know a way to log back into an Instagram account..? I was stupid lost the account password. I would appreciate any tricks you can offer me
@Thaddeus Abram thanks for your reply. I got to the site through google and im trying it out atm. I see it takes quite some time so I will get back to you later with my results.
That's really cool and though experience. I'm living in french alps doing this king of stuff with my doka (lots of freeride ski touring, enduro MTB, SUP)... but never dare that!
Thanks buddy! Love the Dokas, I think they're the most versatile T3 for living on the road considering you can put a demountable camper on the back. Sounds like you're having a great time, keep it up! :-)
Hey Mike, nice to hear from you and sorry for the slow reply, glad you enjoyed it! As always inspired by your videos, which are superb. Let me know if you head that way, I'll be there til the end of August and will be heading back afterwards :-)
Thanks so much, I'm very envious of the awesome road trips you guys have out in the States ( I plan to hopefully ship my van out there some day ). Our poor vanagons rust like crazy here in the Arctic, wouldn't mind some of your warm gravel roads!
Absolutely awesome video. Really good cut and I am really jealous that you have been there in wintertime. This is a big dream of me to fishing there wintertime and to watch the snow covered mountain. I know Norway only in sommertime. By the way, I love your english accent.
Hey buddy, thanks so much for the kind words. It was incredible, a little intimidating once I got really north in such an old van, but a real adventure :-). Fishing is so huge out in Norway, they have some of the best in the world :-). Summer is very cool too and I recommend it to people in the sense that's all more accessible. Haha cheers buddy!
Oo.. man... that LOTR scene at the end... i've been a few situations like that... eating what was left in the middle of nowhere... i laughed my as#$ off... (nice trip... /envy))
Haha another LOTR fan. I salute you good sir. I've been in that situation too many times, the van tends to consume my income so I consume ' MAGGOTY BREADDD '. Thanks buddy :-)
Sweet videos. I just found you channel and binged all the episodes. Content is great. I'm about to get a syncro and do the same. WOuld you care to do a video where you tour the van and show what you've done to help you vanlife. Thanks man, wish you the best.
Thanks a lot Denis, really appreciate the kind words. Funnily enough this will be the last longer journey video for a while so I can focus on some shorter videos of the build and interior so I'll try and get one live in the next couple of months mate. My set up is pretty basic right now inside as I've focused on mechanicals, but still some interesting pointers that may help :-)
Incredible video. Love the van. What an amazing trip. Really enjoyed watching. Just subscribed too! Ive got a few videos of my family trip to Cornwall in a VW Bay back in 2016 you might like. Not as good as your vid though I hasten to add! Nice one mate.
Hey Jordan thanks so much for the kind words ( I actually just posted a new one ). I really enjoy making the videos it's just my work is so time consuming that i do all my articles/video work in my free time and I get so little of that haha. I will really try and do more next year when Im back in the Arctic :-)
im a truck driver in Norway and Sweden. One of our biggest problem in the winter is camper vans driving to slow. We need the speed. And yes its mostly campervans....
Interesting! I just stick to the speed limits tbh so don’t really have an opinion. I was just impressed by how fast they can travel on such slippery roads with studded tires and the like ☺️
What about modifying the heat-source with a hose that goes up oner the comforter, wherein you just turn on the heater for 5-10 mins as needed through the night- thinking, after you are settled and enough heat is stored underweight, that your need to leave the heat on is not a compromise.. ? A thought..
Very interesting ideas, thanks for the suggestion. I fitted an all new Victron battery charging set up with two huge new leisure batteries and solar this xmas so I'm hoping that will allow me to run the petrol heater all night no issue :-). One thing I do really want to do, which is sort of linked to your point, is instal a seperate outlet to pre heat the engine in the morning!
Just a tip. Don't idle the car to warm it. Give the engine a steady load by driving it for warming it up. Keep the rpm between 1000 - 3000. Idle is bad.
Hey buddy thanks for the advice really appreciate it, always learning. The only issue I had with the extreme cold is that the van actually won't get warm in -24 and I'd let it idle for around ten mins just to get any heat to the engine before the wind chill when mobile drove it back down. I could probably block up the side air vents in future to help the engine but it was ok after a few hours. Poor old van haha :-)
@@JackMac Actually block the whole front. You can use cardboard as a quick and cheap fix. But use it only if it's -10 or less. You can leave the side vents open. Also the usual checks for coolant to be suitable for this weather and the oil viscosity is suitable. Small tricks for the artic. :)
@@Viskibasso Good idea, I've actually seen some of my friends with the LT MK1 4x4 do the same. I'm definitely on point with the correct coolant and I'm running Morris Multigrade 15w/40 which has performed well :-)
I watched the clip and enjoyed it so thank you . For improvement purposes, I would suggest: cut the music out of it, demonstrate a bit more about the van’s equipment, how you have done your cooking and generally keeping warm during night time.
MrGreatpersian thanks for watching and really appreciate the constructive feedback. I make these on the side of full time work/expeditions so they’re just a bit of fun but want to improve. I’ll do another one in January and focus on these points 😊
Excellent trip. music was a bit much at times. I've done most of what you did, but in the spring time. Don't the Northen Light appear in late September to December? When did you make the trip?
Thank you and appreciate the feedback, always learning how to improve :-) . The Northern Lights are present from late September through to early April. :-)
I have a lovely T25 1.9 Petrol hightop, and I adore it. But the Synchro is NEXT level beast! That's a beauty mate - and its a right hand drive too. RARE. How much did you pick her up for, if you don't mind me asking?
Hey mate, I'd rather not discuss the value if that's ok but what I will say is it cost me five times the initial purchase to upkeep/upgrade. The Syncro especially is expensive to maintain if you do big miles. They say that a Syncro in Europe will cost you £15,000 whether you get a rough one for £7k or a nice one for £15k....in other words if it's cheap you'll end up putting a lot in to make it reliable...I would say £20k is what it takes to have something in good shape :-)
@@JackMac No problem, and thanks for being so frank. They do strike me as money puts - mine is bad enough, but I suppose once they're in your blood you can't let em go! I'll probably just be content to watch others use them if they're that expensive! Haha! Great van though. Enjoy your time in it.
Beautiful photography. The cold makes me think of your foreskin. Weenie shrinker. I was in Jasper this last weekend. It was -19C cold but not epic cold. It’s cold for November but above zero this week. I was in the Northwest Territories years ago. Woke up to -37C in March. That’s cold driving. Vehicle didn’t heat up for an hour. 3 vehicles on 3 hours. I think people who live in Britain South or the USA think anything below zero is cold.
Haha yeah it was bloody cold, got down to almost -30c at points. The van did amazing considering the temps, but like you said, it just wouldn't warm up for hours if I started driving....too much cold wind! I know we're a bunch of wimps, schools are closed when it even drops below freezing.....which was great as a kid, but kinda funny when kids in Norway are walking to school in -20!
In olden days, you would spray oil to the underside of your car. There are now better products out there. But it's a no brainer if you are traveling in a snowy place that salt their roads.
My van was undersealed but needs to be done again really. I'm having the lower sections raptor painted next week funnily enough. THanks for the tips you're so right! :-)
matthew bissinger hey mate, thank you. Yes it’s made up of two Thule High Top racks and a rhino Top rack. I had to combine it all myself, but works well 🤗
I'm into land rover I have 2 90 200tdi and a 197 and a disco 1 300tdi iv just got a transporter t5 high roof Iv put rock'n'roll bed in back. But its smoking its head off its getting work as we speak. Soon as its running sweet I'm doing full coast of England me and me pall its vids like yours that inspire me. But I do love the landy life we go all over in them. But if got the VW campervan bug ✌
@@jamesbeaumont1202 I'm a big fan of the Land Rovers too, a lot of my friends have them. The Syncro is a great 4x4 but it's not in the same league as a Defender in terms of off road capabilities. I'm sure some people would argue the case for the Syncro but ultimately they only come close to a Landy if they're an empty panel van with twin lockers. Love both! Have a amazing trip mate and good to hear you're focusing on servicing now! :-)
@@JackMac nice speaking to u mate. It's all about getting out and having fun just wish we could all do more big adventurers in campervan or landyies iv just done nc500 in my discovery 1 it was mint I had little trailer with 12 tubs red diesel in it lol goin Wales soon in defenders can't wait.
Hey buddy, the Eberspacher is really good in the mountains when I'm off grid ( although I just wrap up and switch it off during the night ). I do sometimes use hook up when I can get it at work, I sometimes borrow a oil radiator and that's ideal :-)
Subscribed! Awesome stuff mate, its on my bucket list to do a snow trip up through Norway. The Syncro did well. Did you have any major breakages along the way other than the wear on the alternator? And can i ask whats the band and song in the background at the start and from 3:11 or so onwards? Stay safe and keep doing what you’re doing! Cheers mate 🤙🏻
Hey Rhys, thanks for the kind words! I'll add a load of info about the journey etc to my website www.jack-mac.com over xmas that includes some things I learnt along the way that might be worth considering if you plan a trip there :-). Yeah it's a great van, although I still get nervous before big drives whether I'll make it haha. The van was spot on, only issue was brakes actually freezing to the discs and then burning which was mad. The T3's and WBX engines are very good. However, servicing and preventative maintenance is key. Moreover, the worst part is not knowing how a vans been treated before which is why so many get a bad rep for being unreliable when in reality they've just not been serviced properly. Sure it's my mates band and they have a RU-vid channel ' amberroomsongs ' :-). Thanks again and will do!
I have a standard 1.9 WBX ( currently being completely rebuilt ). The 1.9 is arguably a little better for big miles than the bigger 2.1/2.5 as it doesn't run as hot. Moreover, there's less to go wrong as its just a carb and not fuel injection :-). Thanks for the kind words!
Thank you and appreciate the feedback. I'll be changing to more mellow stuff next time :-). Heater runs off petrol and I do run a leisure battery too :-)
just stumbled on to your channel. wow, that looks cold. How did the drone fair in the minus temps? Also what engine are you running in the synchro? Welldone Mate. keep up the great footage.
Hey Tim, thank you :-). The drone was ok, but it did freak out a few times in -24 and not record footage. I'm running a 1.9 DG ( I'm currently rebuilding )....if serviced properly they're pretty long lived :-) Cheers man really appreciate it!
Yeah I only had a small leisure battery at this point. I've recently upgraded to 220 ah leisure batteries and a victron charging system that ensures the starter battery and Leisure batteries are always full :-)
I understand the perspective but my attitude is what's the point in owning a vehicle for travel if I worry about all that stuff. Almost annually I have bodywork done to prevent anything from getting bad. Rust sucks but missing out on experiences is worse. I totally understand though and mine was never pristine so i think it's different haha
maybe not that well prepared if you cant keep yourself warm inside your van? Extra battery and gasoline is a must i think and i have a sleeping bag with a comfort tempreture of -18 from Thermarest look at that maybe
Hey buddy, it's petrol. I have heard the same recently funnily enough. I guess the only thing is in Norway at that time of the year it is extreme around -20/25 and as soon as you get moving the wind chill just makes the temp plummet so I figure it's best to let it have at least a little time to idle and warm up before It starts hauling itself up mountains. I'm always learning of course, just seemed to make sense in such cold :-)
@@JackMac and I just found your channel, but the last video is a bit ago so I was wondering, did Corona get in between your 2020 plans? Some borders are open still...
Lukas Budde yeah it certainly did. I was back in Norway at the start of 2020 but as things worsened I returned to the UK as I wanted to quarantine with my family. The uncertainty of how long all this will last was unnerving so seemed sensible to head back to somewhere familiar 😊
@@jackob9658 yes it's nonsense although the climate is changing but its natural... when all the ice melts it will finally be the end of the ice age we are just finishing... it's totally natural for the cycle of the earth ... climate change is not manmade... we 've only been pumping out toxins for a hundred years or so.... that is like sniffing a cigarette and saying smoking caused your to get cancer...
@@Sean-lv6fx Thanks John, I appreciate everyone has different tastes. I like a lot of genres but a sucker for grunge like this haha. Plus it's my mates band! :-)
Haha yeah I learnt since making this video that the stuff they spread is artificial salt and I'm sure like you say a lot of that stuff is caused by spiked tyres. Thanks for the info :-)
Hey pal... excuse me... Why your vw van does have. miles / km , speed reader , that van it's European model nor USA version nor you guy use miles instead km...
