by Arran Sat Jun 20, 2015 2:53 pmHello all, my name is Arran, I live on the Isle of Wight which is just off the south coast of England. After searching for a long time, I have recently bought and imported an A108 camper. Importing a vehicle has been one of my bucket list things to do for a while and my wife fancied a campervan rather than the caravan we have now so it seemed like a prime opportunity! It had to be a specific type of van to meet our requirements: Dodge, V8, not too big but able to sleep 5! 18 months ago I had spotted a van on US ebay that looked like it would fit the bill but it was removed before the listing ended so I gave up on it. Then, last spring, the same type of conversion came up for sale 50 miles up the road from me but I missed out on it:( . I had given up on finding the same type of van again so started looking at Volkswagen LTs and then happened across an image of the original van I had seen in the US. I tracked down the owner and we did a deal. He lived in Long Beach, CA, so was ideally placed to deliver the van for shipping, and in February I collected it from Southampton docks, one very happy bunny:bounce: .
So, to the van. It is a 68 A108 with a 318 and auto, p/s, 3.55 open diff. The engine is virtually new according to receipts, having had a new short block and recon heads with new carb, water and fuel pumps and alternator. It has brand new brakes including drums all round and basically goes and stops like new. The body is pretty beaten but it is all original and complete.
I will put some stuff in the between the seats section about the work I've done so far, (I'm a mechanic so do all of the work myself), and some stuff in the camper section about the re-work of the interior which I have completely stripped out as, although was very period and a shame to remove, it was totally water damaged and wouldn't have worked for my family.
Finally for now, as I have written a bit of an essay here, can anyone identify the conversion company who made this van? I have scoured the net for any pictures or info but can't find anything on this conversion. It looks a little like the Travco vista top but my fibreglass roof comes all the way to the front screen unlike the travco which stops a few inches back. Also, mine has a double bed over the cab where as the Travco has fold away hammocks/cots. any info would be greatly appreciated as the only other one of these I have seen was the one I missed out on locally. Here are some picks but these are of it in California. I've not put my photos onto my computer yet
So, to the van. It is a 68 A108 with a 318 and auto, p/s, 3.55 open diff. The engine is virtually new according to receipts, having had a new short block and recon heads with new carb, water and fuel pumps and alternator. It has brand new brakes including drums all round and basically goes and stops like new. The body is pretty beaten but it is all original and complete.
I will put some stuff in the between the seats section about the work I've done so far, (I'm a mechanic so do all of the work myself), and some stuff in the camper section about the re-work of the interior which I have completely stripped out as, although was very period and a shame to remove, it was totally water damaged and wouldn't have worked for my family.
Finally for now, as I have written a bit of an essay here, can anyone identify the conversion company who made this van? I have scoured the net for any pictures or info but can't find anything on this conversion. It looks a little like the Travco vista top but my fibreglass roof comes all the way to the front screen unlike the travco which stops a few inches back. Also, mine has a double bed over the cab where as the Travco has fold away hammocks/cots. any info would be greatly appreciated as the only other one of these I have seen was the one I missed out on locally. Here are some picks but these are of it in California. I've not put my photos onto my computer yet
