Van Morrison's Transformation

When we bought our 1979 GMC Vandura it was in original condition. Paul felt it was in good mechanical condition. The interior had some sweet brown vinyl wall covering and thick shag-like brown carpet. The body was in not that bad of shape. It had some surface rust in a few spots. We started the renos farily quickly. First off, we bought Morrie from an impound lot. So we needed to purchase a new key set. Some of the locks were seized and needed some repair. Then came the tear down! Bed, stinky carpet,vinyl walls….really everything but the kitchen sink…and stove. We decided to leave the cab vintage. The propane tank needed to be sanded and painted. 3 sliding windows were siliconed because they leaked. Paul spent many hours cleaning and improvising window seals so that they could be functioning windows.

Unfortunately this is the only before picture we can find. All that is missing is the couch/bed on the left.

A lot of the renovations were tricky because we were working often in the early spring, outside of a shop in the cold (like -10 celcius). We often used a space heater to keep warm. Painted the wood panelling in the kitchen, added pine wainscotting to the walls for a super sweet cabin feel. Custom cupboards and custom rock knobs were installed. We painted the inside of the topper to freshen it up. Painted the outside of the topper. I added cork board to our clothing cupboard door for a super sweet road map and polaroid picture wall. The van couch/bed was covered with a mexican blanket (the cost to have it upholstered was more than we wanted to pay). Now having spent some time sleeping on it we might look at padding and adding new upholstery. I sewed new curtains. We used repurposed vinyl plank on the floor. A custom bookshelf and ledge running along the topper edge, extra storage shelves in the back. We bought a chemical toilet and a shower bag. The exterior and mechanical work are definitely Paul’s area of expertise. He sanded off the rust, filled the holes and repainted the bottom panel around the van. Moved the spare tire to the front by fabricating a new support to hold it. We added a new hind bumper and painted the front. The hind bumper needed to be replaced as it wouldn’t fit properly with the bike carrier. Yes, we are brining his Kawasaki KLR 650 along for the ride. I buffed the exterior and painted a decal on the rear panel on the driver side. As per the engine, a general tune up. New tires, front wheel bearings, rear lights installed on the bike carrier, just to name a few. All in, this has definitely been more work than we ever expected. However we are so happy with the results and can’t wait to finally use it.

#morrie #renovations #vanlife