Thijs and Robin's USA adventure trip

Yes I did:


Will put a recap on our trip here soon, with more pics!

There it is! Looking forward to seeing the recap!

,,,,I would say the trip began just about here,,,,,,,,

Haha yeah that was the first van I was chasing. Glad it sold before I could get it, the one I got now is so much better!

Little update: The van is on the containership, went through the Panama Canal a few days ago and is just North of Puerto Rico now. Will be in Portugal on the 27th, ETA for The Netherlands is October 5th. I can't wait to see our van again, really miss it!

You're in the home stretch now, Tice! Thanks for taking us on this USA adventure with you and a BIG Thanks to all those Vanners who pulled this off for you!!! In true vanner spirit, these people went out of their way to help a fellow vanner in need of assistance...We hope you have many more adventures with your van and continue to send us updates!

Enjoy!!!

Last week our van finally arrived in The Netherlands. My friend Ed and I went to pick it up at the shipper. It came over undamaged, which was quite a relief. And the van started easy, like we parked it the night before. So I was able to drive it home, but I thought it would be more fun to take a detour. I was very happy to be able to drive the van again, but now in my own country.

This morning I had to take for the license check. They basically do an identity check on the car and check it according to the periodic technical check every car here goes through every year. But the guy was easy on me, and only pointed out the major issues. That was corroded brake lines and a leak at the right rear wheel. So have to replace all brake lines and hoses. Apart from this issue the van was all fine. The guy really loved the van, and the condition it was in.

New parts are ordered already, so I can get on the road asap!

Congrats Thijs! So happy to hear the good news. Now you can experience a whole new set of adventures in your homeland. Please continue to send pictures and keep us posted on your progress!

congratulations

Great to hear your Van made the trip well! Sure was quite a start to what will hopefully be many years of traveling adventure!
btw, My right rear brake leaks a little too...but no one cares here! lol

now that's a new vanner smile , congrats and keep it fun...

Nice new Avatar pic Tice!

Congrats on getting her home save and sound. Looking forward to more pics of future adventures. I most certainly enjoyed the last one.

Hi guys, since I have the van in my workshop now, I've looked into some things I want to fix. The floor in the front is not to good, but not bad either. Some rusted holes and some surface rust, but also a lot of smal holes. Some had some sort of putty in it. All in beads ends. What is there purpose? Is it wise to weld them shut?

Looks like they must have had something bolted down to the floor. I would weld those shut. Maybe they just put those there to drain water if they were having issues with the windshield leaking or something...Just thinking out loud.

I think I just weld them, I experienced there is more water coming in through these holes then it's draining, haha. And I can always make new holes Thanks for your reply guys.
When the job is done I'll post some pics of what it'll look then. Want to paint both top and bottom of the floor to preserve is.

Got to love your parking brake handle!

Haha yeah, oh well, it's working... I have a new one, but it's hard to get the old pin out that holds the remains of the old handle....

Hey Thijs. Those holes are in all the floors on Econolines. They were filled with seam sealer from the factory. I assume they were to allow draining if water got under the rubber mat but Ford must have found they caused more harm than good so they sealed them. Seam rot is pretty common as well. The seam where the toe board and floor board meet usually have some rot in them. You can replace this with a single layer of metal in the effected areas. Just weld it solid. For the pitting in the rest of the floor I would use something like POR 15 or Rust Bullet on it. It will seal up pin holes and pitting to help stop it from spreading. Use either as directed. Your floor is not as bad as most. Even Rocky has a rust hole in the floor. A little prep will take care of it.

Duane.

Thanks Duane!

Duane, you never cease to amaze. I had no clue that those holes were there and were just filled with sealer...learn something new here every day! Thanks for all the knowledge you pass on!

Hi guys, a little update. I needed to redo the brake lines because they where corroded and leaking at ome point. I ordered a kit from Mac's to make it easy as I had quite a busy period at work. Unfortunately the lines from the kit didn't fit, so I still had to make them myself. Actually not that hard. I copied all the lines with new cunifer lines. And replaced all hoses. While underneath there, I also pulled of what was left of the clutch fork dust boot, and put a new one on. Hope I get it through inspection this time, so I can get on the road!

Hey Thijs!
What's new with your van? Haven't heard from you in a while.