Day Trip #1: 27/9/2015 - Peka Peka Beach, 4WD day trip lunch on the beach with my girl...

I took my finally completed / fully modified 4WD camper out with my girl for a day trip to a beach for lunch.  Oh what a day!  It was also the first day of daylight savings time frame for the 2015-2016 spring/summer/autumn season!   Enjoy the pics!

Chatting up some fisherman on the beach...

Just in case the apocalypse comes...I am more than ready!  

The shovel is bury the dead zombies of course..  (also for self-rescue!)

Busy New Zealand beaches...  oh yes

24/9/2015 - All major mods nearly all complete now... (Bumper bar, side protection, bash plate, IP68 spot lamps, awning, etc)

Well everyone, my massive number of planned mods for this baby is coming to a close.  After too much spent on the mods (all well worth it!), I am happy to say the only real mod left is to upgrade the shocks to handle this much heavier than factory van for prep for a very long off road trip.  That upgrade can wait for a month or two so I can save some $$$ to pay for it.   ;-)

New custom bumper bar with side protection & bash plate.  New IP68 (fully submersible and dustproof)

A few minor things I need to grab at the nearby stores like:
a) camping food - cans of food, basic pasta, spices, misc camping stuff...
b) Pour and Go - water purifier to help my water filter to a better job (40L fresh water)

New custom bumper bar with side protection & bash plate.  New IP68 (fully submersible and dustproof)

Now is the time to start to prep this expedition van for some road trips and camping.  With the awning in place, this really makes camping a lot easier.    I need to mount my waterproof tool box up top on the basket with marine grade cable and lock. That's only needed to do before each road trip. There's no reason to put it up there other. My MaxTrax are up there now, but will take them down unless I am on road trip.

Up Close - New custom bumper bar with side protection & bash plate.  New IP68 (fully submersible and dustproof)

Rear ladder was repainted frost white to match the rest of the stuff.. nice work!

RhinoRack 2.5m awning - to cover us from light rain or harsh sun...  

Sorted!  All major mods complete except new shocks and perhaps a lift by 1" - 2" (TBD)

Waterproof locked tool box with marine grade cable & marine grade master lock

A must have for every 4WD that's ready for the zombie apocalypse

I still have yet to receive my solar shades that I ordered, but no worries they'll be here soon. I gotta say this entire 5 month long journey from buying this van to getting to this point has been tiring, but it's sooooo worth it the efforts and money spent.  I will have many many good memories with this expedition van no doubt...

Let the good times roll...

7/9/2015 - 1 level bookshelf Installed on top of battery box

So the joiner forgot to add on the little bookshelf with very stiff 2 bungy cords to keep everything in. No worries at all, now it's done. Now I can put books, water bottles, a large supply of sunscreen and even attach a clip on 3watt LED lamp!

Bookshelf - sweet as!

Porto-loo, TP holder, camping knife and fire extinguisher

Later this week I am getting a custom cut mattress created for me for the van.  It will be sliced at key areas into 3 total pieces.  More soon!

Let's also not forget about my last set of mods since in process @ G Guy:

a) Bumper bar with two IP68-rated spot lamps (3485 lumen rated)  installed
b) Side left & right front protection
c) Bash plate
d) 2.5m lightweight 'bag' awning on left side
e) repaint of ladder to WHITE to match the front WHITE bumper bar and side protection

This work should be finalised / completed by 25/9.   My next blog entry will have everything else documented & photographed.

6/9/2015 - Custom snorkel, custom rear ladder & Rhino Rack roof kit (w/shovel holder & spare tyre lock mount) completed

Well they, G Guy 4x4 Motors, did another fantastic job on my van. They unfortunately were not able to get the front work done; this is because the bull bar with front side protection with bash plate.   The challenge was that the used bull bar I provided them (from a different vehicle) would have costed more to adapt than than to create a new one from scratch.  Also another sad reason that the front bull bar & etc is not done is that their main metal fabricator injured his hand in a nasty accident at work.   Ouch!    

Looking good! The rear of the van!  

Rear and right ride of the van. New snorkel looks sharp; I love it!

Custom fabricated ladder

Rhino rack, Rhino basket, snorkel and 200watt solar pannel

I added some of my stickers on the rear window to give the van some personality...

I added some of my stickers on the rear window to give the van some personality...

Anyway, I am bringing back my van to G Guy within 7-10 days for them to finish the bull bar/front side protection, bash plate, bull bar-mounted, spot lamps and side front under protection.  This week I am:

... bringing the van into the joiner to get a mini-bookshelf to be installed on top of the battery cover.

... bringing my van into the RV shoppe to get my plumbing (flexi-pipes, reverse osmosis filtration,etc) sorted out as well as get some LED lights installed inside the van. The LED lights will be wired directly to deep cel battery.

... getting a NZ self-containment certification which means I can 'freedom camp' anywhere without being harassed by park rangers and etc.

... ordering some custom cut solarscreens and getting rid of non-permanent curtains I had created/sewn for me. Those curtains are hard to slide on the curtain wires and a real pain in the a**.   I sadly wasted money on those, about $140, but that's life.  Oh well..