My 2008 conversion

cajundjb

New member
Okay folks. Here's my conversion in progress. As I've stated in another thread, I bought a 2008 2500 long bed/high roof on EBay for $33,001.00 with less than 3000 miles. This included sprayed in foam insulation, plywood paneling and the 6 'Winnebago style' windows and 2 for back doors were included in the deal but weren't installed. Sportsmobile wanted over $5000.00 to install them but the conversion company I bought the Sprinter from did it for $2000.00. I believe I saved over $20,000.00 over dealing locally on this Sprinter. The owner of Midwest Coachworks in Ohio had bought this van to convert for another customer who couldn't complete the deal so with the economy, he auctioned it off in early December. Around the beginning of this year, we worked out a deal for him to do a custom conversion for me.

So far, thanks to weather, etc delays, we've got a dinette in the rear raised about 24' to be able to access stored totecases, etc from the rear or inside by raising the seat cushions on dinette. There is also a shore power panel near the front of dinette on driver's side along with a power converter, 2 batteries, inverter, etc. In front of dinette on driver's side is a shower then a 76" gaucho sofa/bed in back of driver's seat. On the passenger side in front of the dinette, we are building a kitchenette with a convection microwave, 4 cubic foot refrigerator, sink with hot/cold water and holding tanks, some of which will be mounted underneath as needed but they will be heated.

We've already changed the badges to MB and will do a woodgrain dash kit in it. We've installed a 15k btu central AC/heat system that works of a remote control and a superfan in roof. I may do a remote control superfan later on. We're going to put some hard wood floors in it instead of carpeting.

The stereo will be a Kenwood Excelon DNX8120 as seen at:

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_113DNX8120/Kenwood-Excelon-DNX8120.html?tp=144&avf=N

It has 2 USB lines coming off the back that I'll run into the glove box to connect 2 500GB external hard drives to. I have one HD with about 64,500 MP3's and another with ~ 600 .AVI movies on it. When I convert the movies to .AVI, they only take up about 750-1000 MB per movie. I think I'll be able to watch these movies through the dash unit. It also has built in Bluetooth and I'll set up the back up camera for it.

We're installing an 'in motion' satellite dish on the roof. Pricewise, it was only about $400.00 more than the stationary model. This allows me to listen to the XM radio stations I normally have at home through DirecTV without having to pay for another XM radio subscription. It will also be connected to a 26" Toshiba flat screen TV with built in DVD player mounted in back of passenger seat. This TV will be stored for travel.

The generator that we're installing is:

http://meps.com/products_details.aspx?PRODUCT_ID=4

It runs off the Sprinter diesel engine. This way, I'll have one less engine, etc to maintain and gives me more room in the back of the van without having to cut into the walls/floor and should provide smooth power for laptop use.

I plan to install a Jotto desk for my laptop and run a video line up to 26" TV to use for my monitor along with a wireless mouse and keyboard for use while on Gaucho sofa. I could have set satellite dish up for a modem also but will probably use a datacard for laptop instead.

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ehallspqr

Member
Looks great so far and it sounds like you got a pretty good deal on the van and conversion. We are doing something similar as are a lot of people here on the Sprinter forum. I looked at finished class B conversion vans that where anywhere from 85-100K plus. Couldn't afford that so we bought an empty cargo Sprinter for a pretty decent price and are converting it ourselves. Using shops and conversion companies only when needed to install something that is beyond our knowledge and comfort zone. I figure we will save anywheres from 25-30K and get something custom tailored to our needs. Great post!
 

cajundjb

New member
Thanks, ehallspqr. I'll post more pics and comments as we go. If you have any ideas/suggestions, please let me know. I looked at a few completed conversions also and besides being pricey, I knew I'd do things a bit different. :cheers:
 

cajundjb

New member
Our MEPS generator was installed last Friday and it works great, with the AC/Heatpump at full load it runs the generator at 40%, at idle! Cabinets and counters should be installed this week.:popcorn:
 

baker

It's BlueBlack!
I'm getting ready to panel in the ceiling of my cargo area shortly. What is the thickness of the plywood being used for yours. Looks like a great conversion.
 

cajundjb

New member
Thank you Mr Baker. The ceiling plywood is only 1/4 inch. Where the TV mount is installed, there is a metal plate above the ceiling that is screwed to the roof 'ribs' that help support it. Also the TV has a quick disconnect plate so removing it for storage while traveling should be fairly easy and fast.
 

BaywoodBill

pre-Yuppiedom
Do you think you could use door skns for the ceiing? They are only 1/8" thick, I think, and would cut the weight of the ceiling in half.

I think the ceilings in our conversion (factory made) are maybe masonite covered with vinyl.
 
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cajundjb

New member
Hi Bill. Thank you. In the first photo it shows the bare plywood but farther down where the TV mount is shown, we've got a cloth skin covering the ceiling now. We could have gone with 1/8" plywood but needed some extra support for the TV mount, etc. I don't believe that extra weight will be a major factor as opposed to wanting the extra support up there. I don't plan on hauling much around except some clothes, etc for trips. I do have a BMW K1200LT road bike that I may trailer on occasion but maximum bike weight is ~ 1000 lbs with the Pace American trailer weighing ~ 800 lbs.

BTW, in the photo that shows the gaucho sofa that hasn't been mounted on its base yet, that's a sample of the wood floors that we'll probably use. I think this sample will closely match the woodgrain kit for the dash area.:smilewink:
 

cajundjb

New member
Slowly but surely its coming together. It always seems like the tasks that should be done quickly take 4 times longer and the bigger ones are done quicker than expected. LOL

This base under gaucho sofa/bed will contain 1-2 water tanks when completed.

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We're still working on kitchenette now.
 

cajundjb

New member
Uggh!! Sounds like a Florida Gators fan making requests from a LSU Tigers fan. :lol: Seriously, I had a few other pics that the owner of Midwest Coachworks sent me but I didn't think they were that interesting. I'll post them now though. Since my last post, we've been finishing the hard wood floor project and working on our kitchen and cabinets. He's promised me more pics by week's end. I'll post those as soon as I get them. Completion has been delayed until about the 22nd of this month because of delays in getting the running boards from Millennium Products. I could have gotten the nerf bars or black ones elsewhere but I like these fiberglass ones better.:drool:
 
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cajundjb

New member
Okay, here goes. I'll try to organize these a little better. :thinking:

Here are a few pics showing some of the work that Midwest Coachworks has done. Todd Reid, the owner, sent them to me before starting our conversion to give me some ideas of what we could do but on a smaller basis. These along with the idea of having a completely custom conversion and feeling like I'm dealing with a very honest and reputable company were deciding factors in going this route.

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cajundjb

New member
Initially we were going to install this little diesel generator. It was going to draw its fuel off the main Sprinter fuel tank. After seeing all that was involved in cutting through the floor and side for exhausts, fuel lines, etc we decided on the MEPS generator. It was a little more pricewise but saved a lot of room in the back of the van, plus that leaves me with one less engine, etc to maintain. I expect the Sprinter will use more fuel but figure the other benefits outweigh that fact. Also I was concerned with the power fluctuations when the A/C kicks on and off while using my laptop. The idle control had to be installed for this set up. :snore:

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cajundjb

New member
At the risk of getting redundant, here is the shower in progress. We wanted the gaucho sofa behind the driver's seat to maximize space enabling the driver's seat to be laid back. This pushed the shower over the rear wheel hump so we'll use that hump to support the commode and give us a little extra height when needed. Velcro should hold it in place while traveling. :bow:
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This pic is a little closer to completion.
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This will be our shower door, We'll wait until close to completion in an effort to prevent marring it up before I get my hands on it. :bash:
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