01x02 - VW Camper: A 70s Revival

[bunniefuu]

(LIVELY ROCK MUSIC PLAYING)

I'm Ant Anstead.

I've been fixing cars
since I was a teenager.

And I've set myself the task
of restoring...

(ENGINE STARTS)

(SCREAMS) Yes! Come one!

...and selling eight
crumbling old cars for profit.

It's the ultimate road cruiser.

And the stakes are high
because it's personal.

The cow room is now the bathroom.
Okay.

Everything I make is going towards
this 500-year-old farmhouse...

She goes today,
which means big hammer.

...that I bought for my mum and dad
to retire in...

So what's gone wrong there, then?
Bodged.

...but it's a total wreck.

How far away from collapse is this?

A really good storm
could cause a problem.

Let's do it.
With my family by my side...

It feels like a proper
brake pedal now.

...and some help
from my engineer mate, Darren...

Are you joining me to the ride?
Yeah, why not?

...I've got the best team around me.

Ant, watch out!

...as I take on eight wrecks
on wheels...Perfect.

...and a house that's falling apart.

What, the whole thing's being kept
up by chicken wire?Pretty much.

...it's a massive gamble.

(EXHALES) Come on, breathe.

I am losing sleep over this.
I'll be honest,
I have no idea what's going on.

ANT: Scaffolding's up, sun's out,

and building work on my mum
and dad's dream retirement home
is beginning.

This is a big day.

This is the re-roof.

Like that.

I need the roofers
to remove the tiles

and get it felted
and waterproofed sharpish

as I've taken a huge risk
and scrimped on a protective tent.

I'll tell you what the good news is,
at least it's sunny.

The gamble so far is paying off,
and there's not a cloud in the sky.

The roof quotes 12 grand,

and I've made seven grand
from car sales so far.

But this house is chock-full
of nasty surprises.

So I'm Derbyshire-bound
to check out a cult classic

that'll be a proper treat
for my dad.

We're going to go see
a Volkswagen camper van.

Oh, wow! Camper van!
Yeah.

I know it's one of those vehicles
that is universally loved.

The road trip is now cool again.
Going camping is now cool again.

It's a great idea because
it's actually going to appeal

to families
and to non-car folk.

And the other cool thing
about camper vans is,
the VW world is well-supported.

There's not a part on it
that's impossible to source.

For me, it's all about the shell.
If the shell's solid,

putting it together
is relatively straightforward.

How did you find it?
It was just online.

I have a little watchlist
on certain vehicles.Right.

This one came up,
jumped on the chance,

straight on to the seller
and here we are.Brilliant.

So we need to get there
before any other buyer
sees what we saw.

First to the party
gets all the jelly.

Yeah, we love jelly.
(CHUCKLING) We do love jelly.

When I was a kid,
we had a camper van called Pogle

in which we spent many balmy
summer holidays down in Cornwall.

We had five of you under ten.

Five kids under ten.
That's the baptism of fire.

And the baby was in the cot
on the sink.

I do have vivid memories
of being bathed in the sink.

You were all bathed in that sink
at one time or another,
but not all at the same time.

(SCOFFS)

(LIVELY DRUM MUSIC PLAYING)

Wow. So many camper vans.

The camper we're seeing
is being sold through a broker.

My dad's in camper van dreamland.

Some are in a better state
than the others.

Oh, a nice kitchen in here,
turns into a double bed.

I love this one.

Oh, beautifully done up.

The Type 2,
to give it its proper name,

was created in 1947

when Dutch VW importer Ben Pon

imagined a box-like body
on a Beetle chassis

to carry people and goods.

Its genius was its versatility.

And when
conversion company Westfalia

launched a camper version in 1951,
a global icon was born.

That one.
(LAUGHS)

This is it.
Yay!

So this is the first time
I'm seeing it in the flesh.

This camper's one
of over 4.5 million

second-generation Type 2s,
also known as the Bay Window.

Launched in 1967,
owner Joe named her Florence,

And he's here
with his father-in-law, Glen.

Why is the car for sale?
My 16-year-old son wanted me
to do up a camper van with him.

But unfortunately now,
Florence still needs a bit of TLC.

This has gone miles
from where it was.

Okay, so what has been done?
Do the brakes work?

Right now, as we stand here,
do the brakes work?

I wouldn't say they're brilliant,

and most of the electrics
work on it now.
I love the word "most".

It's drivable.We've fixed -
Oh, it drives?It drives.

Are you okay giving us,
say, 10 minutes?

We'll just have a quick look around.
Please, have a look.

Structurally, looks really good.

This looks like a lot of work
because it's just a shell.

Yeah, that has pros and cons.
I mean, the good news is,
it's a blank canvas.

Now we get to tailor-make
an interior that we want.

So actually, I kind of like
that it's empty.

The rust worries me,
and when we take the windows out,
we're gonna know how bad it is.

But in terms of a solid project,

rolling shell, blank canvas,

it's pretty there.

I like the roof.
Can you stand up in there?

Oh, just about. Okay.
Yeah, it's pretty good.

This is a... This is what's called
a Devon conversion.

So many VW vans ended up
with this conversion

'cause look how practical it is.
You get to maximise the space.

You can imagine, pop this up
in a beachside in Cornwall.

Pop the roof up in seconds,
and you've got reusable space.

Yeah, cup of tea, ice cream,
Cornish pasty.

When restoring VW campers,

nailing the look is as important,
and arguably trickier,
than the mechanics.

Their air-cooled flat-four engines
are easy to repair and maintain

because parts are still available.

That is not the original engine.
I mean, it looks really tired.

Some great carburettors.

Do you want to start her up?
Yeah.

Florence's engine has
already been given an oval.

(ENGINE STARTS)

That's pretty good.

But we still need to test
her gears and brakes.

Can you go forwards
and yank the brakes firmly?

Right. Hit the brakes.
Hit the brakes.

Got it.
Can you go backwards?

Do you know where the reverse is?
We're about to find out.

You've got four options.

It's not that one.

Let's try that one.

It's not that one, either.

I'm running out of options here.

(ENGINE STARTS UP)

Yay!

We're going backwards.

Ant.

Ant, my trousers are jammed
on the seat,

and I don't want to get undressed
in front of everybody.

Oh, Dad, you've ripped them.

Yeah. This is no longer
a family show.

Uh, new pair of trousers,
please, Ant. Thank you very much.

Listed at £4,995,

I reckon there's upward
of ten grand profit in this car

if we spend carefully.

Her owners are selling
her mid-rebuild,

so if there's some spare parts,
it'll make the deal even sweeter.

We obviously know
that there's a pile of work
that needs to be done.

What else is there
outside of the van?

I've got two bumpers.
I've got the original hammocks.

I think they're
pretty rare, actually.

And plus, some other equipment.
Happy to throw all that in.

So if you're happy with that,
we'll pay the £4,995,
pick up the extra bits,

we're sticking on the trailer,
we'll be out of your way
in 30 minutes.

Fine.Excellent.Deal?
Sounds good to me.
Thanks.Come on.

What a bargain.
No haggling needed.

Flipping Florence
could cover our roof repairs
with change to spare.

But the question is, can she make
my right hand man, Darren,

also known as the world's
grumpiest engineer, crack a smile?

(HORN HONKING)

Oh, brilliant.

Type 2 VW!
Result.

This is epic.
Oh, you like it?I love it.

Hiya, Darren.
You're okay there, Nigel?

Yes, I've already
told my trousers on the seat.

Do you know what,
this is pretty solid, you know?

We paid full asking price
because it was a great van.
You paid full asking price?

There's no interior.

We paid full asking price,

and then the guy threw in
all the stuff that's in there.

How much would you sell
this van for tomorrow morning?

Somewhere around eight grand,
I would have thought.Eight grand?

(CHUCKLES)

No, you didn't pay more than that.
Tell me you didn't pay
more than that.

Five?

Well, I think five grand,
you've nailed it.

So the best thing to do,
I would say, is,

get it in the barn
and then hatch out plan

because we'll probably be able
to turn this around quite quickly.

I know you and quick turnarounds.

Go on, guys. Go.

This is gonna be tight.

Keep going.

All right. Hold there. (CHUCKLES)

That is very tight.

Is there any way of lowering it?
We could do.

It's kind of big with the VW scene
to drop the buses,

but we've got to think, is that
going to limit our saleability?

Because when this goes
into a campsite,

people are going to want
some ground clearance,

so we need to sort of hit
some middle ground,

so we'll lower it subtly.

Dropping VW campers is a trend

that's come from
the Californian look Beetle scene.

Lowering the ride height
by relocating the hub

higher on the wheel spindles.

For her front hubs,
we'll need modified parts
called drop spindles,

which will set me back
just over a hundred quid

but could add thousands
in desirability.

And the cool thing, on the rear end,
you don't need to buy any parts.
It's purely a labour job.

Basically, under the hub,
remove it off the teeth,
turn it one tooth,

drop it back in, and that's
about the equivalent of 60 mm.

It'll complement
the front lowering perfectly.

Dropping her by 60 mil
should give us the lowered look

and still be practical.

So what we need to do is,
we need to move the hub assembly

back by about that much.

Suddenly, it frees the swing arm

and allows us
to take the swing arm off.

(DRILLING)

Now the capsule. You can actually
see the brilliance and
the simplicity of the engineering,

and all we're going to do
is pull this arm off some teeth,

rotate it, put it back
on the same teeth,

and that, in turn,
is going to lower the van.

While dismantling the brake system,

it's clear Florence isn't
as sturdy underneath
as she is on top.

The pads themselves
actually look quite good.

Hmm.But the drums...
Oh, that's not good.

We'll use this as a flower pot.

I guess I'll add brake drums
to our list of replacement parts.

But now the brakes are off,
having marked the original position
on the arm...

Hey.

There she goes.

...we can rotate it one tooth.

Somewhere right there.

Perfect.

All right, well, let's get
that end cap back on there

so that doesn't go anywhere.

(DRILLING)

Yes. We're in.Boom!

Then it's wheels back on
to see what a difference we've made

to Florence's ride height.

All right.

Oh, look at that!
Look at that.

Already looks better.
Much better.

I reckon we got two inches there.

While Darren matches it
on the other side of the rear,

my attention's needed
urgently on the house

as the roof repairs
have already hit a roadblock.

(LIVELY ROCK MUSIC PLAYING)

Re-roofing has ground to a halt.

The roofers are worried
removing the old tiles could cause

the internal oak frame to collapse.

So I have to reinforce
the beams urgently.

The tiles are actually holding
the oak frame in place,

so I'm stabilising the wooden frame
with the modern timbers.

I need the roofers back on the job
before the weather turns.

So my little brother Michael is
stepping in to give me some support.

Do not lean too heavily
on that beam there.

Just get up there without the use
of the 400-year-old wood.

(MICHAEL CHUCKLES)

As Anthony's spent more time away
from us and away from Mum and Dad,

I think that family has become
much more important to him.

He's trying to create something
where he can spend time with us.

I've never spoken to him as much.

There are some days when we are
sharing dozens of messages,

So that's what the house means
to him and for the rest of us.

You happy?
Yeah. My God, it's freaking perfect.

Oh, my God, look at that.
We're roofers.

Atta boy, Mikey.
Shout me if you need me.

I've got to help Darren lower
our camper's front wheel hubs

using the 60-mill drop spindles
that have just arrived
express delivery.

A bargain at 120 quid.

Oh, my God, it's so pleasing.

I love opening up new parts.

Dropping Florence should supercharge
her value to the VW crowd...

(DRILLING)

...which is good because
the brake system at the front

is in even worse nick than the back.

Right, as well as new drums,
let's put new discs on.

Yeah.
Because these are done.

We might as well do bearings,
ball joints,

give all this a tidy-up.
Mmm-hmm.

I mean, we might as well stick
new dampers in as well.

Now to remove the existing spindles.

(CLANG)

Satisfactory pop.

This is the existing
original ride height.

This is the dropped ride height.

If you put them together,
you'll see that this shaft

places the wheel 60 mm taller,

thus lowering the camper van.

New spindle attached,
and it's back on with the wheel.

And let's finally get Florence
into that barn.

(DRILLING)

Drop her hot.

Oh, my God, that is
infinitely better.Much better.

This is why the VW people
lower their vans.

It's way cooler.

Stop when you hear the crunch.

Whoa, whoa, whoa. Slow down.

A little bit more.

Oh, no.

I mean, it's significantly lower.
Yeah.

But the Devon roof's in the way.

Okay. Time for plan C.

Excellent.

Devon roof. Right.

One Devon roof.

Oh, look at that.
We're in.

She is on the dance floor.

Now I just want to check
how bad the rust on the body work
really is.

The van's really solid,

but the rust Achilles' heel
is this little area
underneath the windscreen,

and it's really common
on these types of vehicles

because the rain hits the roof,
runs down this perfect little canal

created by the rubber, and then
the design of the VW van means

there's this perfect shelf.
Water rests in that space.

Mix water with oxygen and metal,
and ultimately,
you have a bad problem.

Rust.

My best hope is,
it's surface rust

that affects just
the outermost layer of metal

rather than deeper scale rust
which will need filling,

or, at worst, penetrating rust,
which will mean whole new panels.

The only way to tackle this
is to take this window screen out,

which is done from the inside.

It's always best
to start in the corner.

Change this rubber out.

(PANTING) You just need
good fun power.

Okay, it's out.

(SIGHS)

You know what? The majority
of this is surface rust.
This is great news.

(SANDER WHIRRING)

I've taken it off easily
with some sandpaper,

and it's got down
to nice shiny metal.

So I could put some rust treatment
on here,

let that settle,

and I'll probably just get away
with a light skim of spray filler,
prep and then paint.

What worries me the most
is this side window.

The problem is, the rain naturally
wants to wash off this

because it's the side of the van.

But it's held in these areas.

This looks worse than surface rust.

Fingers crossed
the panel's salvageable.

(PANEL CLATTERS)

Yeah, that sound
of sprinkling metal.

This inner edge
is a little bit corroded.

But once I treat that primer
and paint it,

the rubber goes back in it.
Yeah, it's going to look brand-new.

These vans are notorious
for rusting.

I think we've got ourselves
a little bit lucky.

(SANDER WHIRRING)

Once I've TA'ed
all the rust areas off,

I'll give it a little bit
of treatment.
I'll run over to the booth,

drop it into primer immediately
so it doesn't get rusty
straight away.

Every step that we take
progressing this van,

the van reveals itself to be
a really, really good purchase.

So if it stays on track,
the route we're going,

this is going to be a really solid
and profitable turnaround.

Yeah, so far,
I don't wanna jinx it, but...

this van's gonna plan.

While Florence
is making speedy progress,

the same can't be said
for the roofers.

To cut costs,

I've instructed them to save as many
of the original tiles as possible.

And now, they want a word.

Give me the news.
Give it to me straight.

Well, it's hard graft.

Because every single tile
has been nailed.

Instead of having a lug
that sits on the batten
and stops it sliding...

Yeah....it's been nailed, yeah.

I can't just pull them off
and save every tile.

Because when I'm pulling them,
they're breaking.

How long is this going to take?
It's added a day.

So it's going to be about two days
to strip it?

Two days to strip,
whereas if they were normal pegs...

They'd just lift off.
Lift off.

Or I could just rip it off
like a bulldozer.

Please don't rip it off
like a bulldozer,

'cause every time
one of these breaks,

I've got to go replace it.

More time on the job means
that 12-grand roof bill
could be on the rise.

More reason to make sure
we flip Florence for maximum profit.

I've primered her in a paint booth,
ready for a re-spray.

Now I want to nail
her bespoke interior.

Step forward, upholsterer
of 40 years' standing, Craig Hughes.

Okay.Hello, Craig.
Hi, mate.

Welcome to the workshop.
The workshop.
Hi, Darren.Hi, Craig.

What are you thinking?
Like, go creative. Try and sway us.

The seating, for example.
we could go black vinyl.

Okay....and then put
coloured piping on it.

Oh, that feels a bit basic.
Or we can do panels down the centre.

So you've got your seat.
So you've got black seat?
Yeah.And then...

These have not got it,
but a lot of cars
have a centre panel.

You mean like a herringbone
or a houndstooth.Yeah. Yeah.

Do you want to see some samples?
Yeah.Yeah, brilliant.Right.

God, it's a minefield, isn't it?

Because ultimately,
we're making a decision
based on a vision,

and once we pull the trigger,
we've spent the money.

And we don't want to get it wrong.
Yeah.

So I brought things that I thought
you might be interested in.

And this is the houndstooth
from the Porsche.
That's the Porsche one, yeah.

I like that.You could do that in
the centre panels, and vinyl-wise,

depends on what you want to go for.
Yeah, let's go for something bright.

And this is a vinyl.Yeah,
and it feels really soft as well.

Look at it against here.

I love that colour.
That is beautiful.
I think that's how I want it.

So on the seats, we're going to go
predominantly blue sides.Yep.

Houndstooth centre.Yep.

So the seats are locked.
What do you want to do
about the panels?

Keep it simple.
Houndstooth in the middle,

blue on the top
and a blue strip on the bottom.

What's the cost?

Cost-wise for foams,
the houndstooth,

the vinyl, boards and my labour,

you're going to be looking

1,700 to 2,500 for the lot.

Done?Yeah.

Done.

It's a big expense,
but a beautiful, unique interior

could skyrocket Florence's value.

Of all the additional work
we're doing,

it's going to be brilliant outside,

brilliant inside
and brilliant underneath.

But it's only when the paint
is on the van and the trim is fitted

that we'll know.

Because ultimately,
what looks good in your mind

might not translate on the streets.

So it's a bit of a gamble.

Really, there's only one way
to work out if we got it right,

and that is the number someone's
willing to pay when we sell the van.

(CHEERFUL MUSIC PLAYING)

Mechanically, Florence's already
refurbished engine runs perfectly,

but underneath,
it's a different story.

Like many old VW campers,
a life outdoors in rainy Britain

means their brakes and suspension
systems are prone to corrosion.

Oh, yeah, the other bits.

So Darren's been online
ordering loads of shiny new parts
for a total refresh.

I've got another two boxes.
I'll go grab those.

Oh, fancy pants. Dampers.

Man, this thing is gonna
look epic underneath.

My God, there's loads of goodies.

We've got new dampers,
new bearings, new bushes, new pads.

And new anti-roll bar hangars.

The last box.

What did you spend?

Just under 500 quid.

Really?Yeah.
That's unbelievable value.

First to go on
are the brand-new brake drums...

Let's line that up,
which is about there.

Beautiful.

...followed by upgraded dampers.

They'll make the van dry
so much better.

Yeah, this extra step,

cleaning all the suspension off
and ordering all the new bits
is going to make all the difference.

We've got new discs, new brakes,
new drums on the rear.

All the joints have been redone.
Chuck us a damper.

Thanks, Darren.
Yeah.

It's much stronger,
heavier-duty unit.

It's going to last longer,
and it's going to give
a more robust feel

as you go over the bumps
and lumps in the road.

Yeah, And remember,
most campsites... (CHUCKLES)

they're fields.

All four wheels, brakes
and suspension units
are refreshed and refitted.

Florence is now ready
for her respray.

Mechanically, she's great.
Structurally, she's great.

She's going to drive, feel,
ride like a really beautiful
VW camper van.

Now, all the burden now
relies on two big moments.

Perfect paint job
and perfect interior.

And hopefully this car
is going to go on and...

create a tonne of memories
for her new owner

and return a big margin
because...

the house needs the cash.

Especially as the roofers are
in a habit of bringing me problems.

They've reached the dormer window,
and the news isn't good.

There's no structure behind it.

Just chicken wire.
Old-school chicken wire.

What? The whole thing's been
kept up by chicken wire?

Pretty much.

Chicken wire
was used from the late 1800s

to the mid-20th century
for wet plaster to cling to.

It held insulation in place
and helped keep out rodents.

But it shifts over time,
leading to cracks.

Oh, man.

So the window frame's
doing the work.Pretty much.

Without any support
beyond the render and chicken wire,

it's a wonder that these dormers
haven't collapsed already.

I guess I can put a beam in here.

Yeah.And here.Yeah.
And maybe even down there.

This is urgent because if it rains
and there's a hole in the side
of the house,

it's going to absolutely
trash the house.

I was not expecting this today.

Oh, my God, look at it.

That is absolutely criminal.

While I work on the dormer,

upholsterer Craig Hughes

has taken the seats back
to his workshop in North Wales

to perfect the interior.

I've made some bold choices
when it comes to fabrics.

I just hope he can make them work.

The seats, as you can see,
they're in a bit of a sorry state.

It's getting on a bit.
Not as old as me,
but it's getting old.

Looking at these colour
combinations like this,

you see, I can normally visualise
what things are going
to look like finished.

But putting a blue with that,
I'm not totally sure.

I think Ant's taking a gamble,
but it might be a gamble
that pays off.

The first thing I need to do
is work out

what width I want to do
the houndstooth at the centre.

It's really got to look right.

I've been doing this job
on and off now since 1979.

Key points with my job
would be the detail,

making sure
that every detail is correct.

And it's something that, I think,
it's either in you or it's not.

First, Craig uses the old covers
as a template...

There's one side.

I need another one of those.

...before carefully sewing
the new fabrics together.

My critical thing with this
is to sew in a straight line

because these lines
are so distinctive.

If I do a wobbly sewing line,
it will be really noticeable.

So this is the top of the seat,
and this is the border.

I need to finish it
with something.

For car seats, Craig uses
a hard-wearing plastic piping.

The question is, which colour?

I know black's playing it safe.

But I think that works.

It's got black in the fabric there.

It goes well with the two blues.

So I think I'll go
for the black piping.

After protecting the original seat
with a polyester wrap...

All right, moment of truth
with this.

Let's see whether it actually fits.

...it's on with the new cover.

And that looks quite good.

I was very doubtful on Ant's choice
of fabrics to start with.

Seeing it on this seat now,
I think he's made the right choice.

I'm more than pleased with it.
So hopefully, Ant will be as well.

From experience,
regarding campers,

it's the interior
that sells the vehicle.

And it's one of those things
that you...

If you get it wrong,
nobody will touch it.

If you get it right,
you'll have people
scrambling over it.

So hopefully, it's going
to be the latter.

Having gone bold
with Florence's interior,

we've decided to follow suit
with the re-spray.

Hello, yellow and blue.

So we're going to be
at the point of no return
in a second.

Are you comfortable with the blue?

Yeah, I'm kind of traditional

with the white and the yellow,
but I'll go with the blue.

That didn't sound very positive.

What do you want to do
about the roof?

So maybe we paint to here,
up to there in blue,

and then the roof white
so it matches the pop top.

And then to the wheels
and the bumpers in white.

Yeah.
It'll tie it together.

I'll have to leave Darren
to finish the paint job.

I trust him implicitly
to stick to the brief.

But I've been called back
to the house urgently.

With the weather closing in,

it's critical I finish making
the dormers structurally sound

so the roofers can get it
all watertight.

Oh, my God, look at that cloud.

(CHUCKLING) Oh, no, don't rain.

I can smell the rain.

We need to get this thing
weathertight.

Because we gambled.

I'm not putting a tent over it
to save cash.

So right now, my resources
are better served on the roof.

Just hold for us.
We're begging.

I'm blaming you if it rains.

(LIVELY ROCK MUSIC PLAYING)

The tiles are almost off.

But the roofers can't put on
the felt and waterproofing
until I finish the dormers.

Oh, man.

While these lads are gonna
carry on with the rest of the roof,

I'm gonna make this dormer window
stable again.

It's just gonna take a bit of time.
Time I should be in the workshop.

How's that look?
Great.

You could have said it
with a bit more, like...

Today has beat me up.
Let's have a look.

Lovely.
Have I made it as a roofer?

Well, that's more carpentry, but...

Jesus.

Who took the jam
out of you, jelly roll?

That's one dormer down
and one to go.

And while I've been tied up
on the roof,

Darren's finished
Florence's re-spray
and brought her back.

I'm excited to see
our agreed vision in real life.

Look at this.

Man, she looks great.

Well, I like it.
Yeah, looks really nice.
You left the white band?

Yeah, I think
it's a bit more classic.

I thought it'd be a bit bland
if we went just blue into yellow.

What's with the wheels?
Well, you know,
I just couldn't help myself.

Once I put that blue on the car
and the white,
I just had to do the wheels.

You know what, we set out
to make an individual camper van.

I mean, I've never seen anyone
make a camper van
in this combo before.

Probably for a reason. (CHUCKLING)

No, I think this is going
to set a trend.

Let's start doing the final fit-up,
get the bumpers on.

Wait, until you see
what I've done to those.

Wheels I like.
Jury's out on the bumpers.

Wait till they're on.

I'm keen to get Florence sold
as soon as.

Upholsterer Craig is on his way
from North Wales with the new trim,

so we're all set
for the final fit-out.

There you go.
I think this looks amazing.

Go on. Put it on the car.
I mean, it is a nice touch.

It's definitely individual.

Yeah, it ties it all in together.

Yeah, that really works.

Yeah, you're right. Ties it in.
Ties it in lovely, doesn't it?

Shiny parts on classic cars
are usually expensive,

but on VW vans,
they're super affordable.

Oh, my God, the wheels look great.

That little band of blue
matches your bumper.

I knew you'd like it.
Oh, man.

Guess who's here.
Yes!

The moment we've been
waiting for.About time.

How was the trip?

Long.Well, yeah.
Long, tiring trip.Hi, Craig.

Wow, look at that.
You like it?

Lovely. That is stunning.

And the the colour-coded bumper
and the wheels.

Just noticed the wheels.
Don't encourage him.

It's Darren gone rogue.
Oh, it's his choice.

Okay.(LAUGHS) Thanks.
Yeah. Good choice.

Let's see it. Let's see it.
Come on.Right, I've got a van full.

Oh, yeah.Look at that.

Yes. Look at the case of that.
Oh, wow.Yeah, that is proper.

That is amazing, Craig,
you've done a great job.

Fitting the interior is a big job,

but with Craig's help, I'm hoping
we can get it done tonight.

Oh, look at that.
Yeah, it's pretty cool.

First up, it's the panels.

I love this blue against the yellow.

It's such a non-obvious choice.
It works really well,
doesn't it?Yeah.

That's it.
That sounded as if it went in.

It's getting dark. I can't see.

Yeah, you want to be
underneath the van.

That's it, pull it towards you.
There you go. Okay.

Do you want me to go
and get you a quilt?Yeah.

A pillow and nightie.
(LAUGHTER)

Hours later, the final touch
is the carpet.

There you go.
Dude, that is perfect.

It's a proper hippie bus now.
So you've got jute matting in there
and all the upholstery is done.

You ready to go camping now?
So good.

I've got one more thing
for you, actually.

Look at that. (LAUGHS)

The old softy,
and yellow as well.

Yep. So blue and yellow
to match the bus.

Oh, excellent.

It was a long night,
but I'm up early.

Rain is forecast, and the roofers
can't finish waterproofing

until I'm done
with the second dormer.

This is my last panel
for the dormer.

(DRILLING)

This is gonna look
really, really magnificent.

I mean, I've spent 70, 80 quid
on materials,
fixed two dormer windows.

But jobs like this, if I got
somebody to come in and do this,

it would cost me way more.

That's my job done, guys.
The rest is up to you.

Dormers.

Done.

Now I can concentrate on getting
Florence finished and sold.

There is a ritual.

The last thing you do
on a car restoration
is put the badge on.

All of a sudden, she feels complete.

That is unbelievable.

It's incredible.

I can't believe it. Tea.
The colour is unbelievable.

Florence is revived.

It doesn't look like
it was put together
by three dudes in the dark.

Before I decide on a sale price,

I need to figure out
what I've spent.

Darren and I work for free.
But what about the parts?

Do you remember
what we paid for Florence?

Just under five.
£4,995 was the purchase price.

And the interior, but it's actually
only came in at £2,265.

So 1,700 quid on parts
for 800 quid on paint,

and then a couple hundred quid
for miscellaneous stuff.

All in all,
total investment, ten grand.

So I think we just ask
for 20 grand down the middle,

which would double our money
and make 10 grand
to put into the house.

Rather than stick her in an auction,

I feel Florence will benefit
from a more bespoke sales approach.

I've been thinking hard
about what's the best place,

the best platform to sell the van.

There's gonna be a van fan

desperately looking
for a van like ours.

So what I'm gonna do is,
I'm going to put it online

within the VW community.

Right. Press this button.

And Florence is for sale.

Before I let her go, it's only right
I experienced firsthand

van life with Florence
on the open road.

Oh, man,
this is absolutely beautiful.

I'm smiling
because it's just charming.

Nothing about owning a VW camper van
is about speed,

but that's the point of it.
It's about a destination.

It's about slowly
making your way somewhere,

drinking in the scenery,

taking in the atmosphere.

(CHUCKLES) It's so slow.

But it's charming. I love it.
I love it. I love this.

I've got this real hankering now
to take this van

back to Cornwall and Devon
where I was a kid.

Beaches in the rain,
barbecues on the sand,

going to sleep with the rain
hitting the side, it's just...

It's just so special.

I think that's what
the new owner's buying.

They're not buying a vehicle at all.

They're buying a memory maker.

The cool thing
about classic cars is,

the most overwhelming thing
is how it makes you feel.

And you drive this
and you just feel happy.

I think we've been
really, really clever
with the restoration of this van

because we've not thrown
tonnes of cash at it,

and these are the types of vehicles
you can get carried away on.

The fact that we retained the yellow
meant that we didn't have
to paint the inside.

The fact that we made
these two-tone colour choices
made our van individual,

and the biggest cheque we wrote
was for the interior.

It's going to really,
really pay dividends.

And then to make the van
mechanically perfect.

Yeah, I think we've been
very cautious, very clever.

We put the money
in the right places,

and the outcome is,
we have a van that we've invested
around ten grand into.

I mean, ten grand for this.

I'll be surprised if she's
still our van in the next 48 hours.

(LIVELY ROCK MUSIC PLAYING)

Florence's online ad
has had an incredible response.

Hi.MARTIN: Hello.You can't just
roll in here in a Mustang.

How are you?
Pleased to meet you.

But Martin and his daughter Lily
are first in line.

Well, this is Florence.
Florence.

Florence, the camper van.

What attracted you to it?
'Cause there's a lot
of T2s out there.

It was the colour scheme.

Lily's reaction
when she came in was, "Wow."Yeah.

That colour works.
Whose car is this?

I think Lily's going to say,
"It's his."Yeah, yeah, yeah.

She's got two years
before she's driving,

so yeah, we can make
a deal on that one
in two years' time, I'm sure.

I'm gonna put you in
the driver's seat. Check this out.

Now, what's really awesome
is that this is Porsche fabric.

We've had a completely
unique interior made.
This has all been hand-done.

Seats are completely bespoke.
There won't be
another one like this.

And the cool thing is,
it's not overly restored.

You know, it has obviously had
a paint job,
but you can see that the...

lift the carpets and get underneath,
and it's a really good, solid base.

That's got a lovely finish on that.

Yeah, it's really nice.
Worked out well.

Just give her a little start up.
Might... should need a bit of gas.

(ENGINE STARTS)
There we go.

(REVVING)

Like it.I love it.
Looks lovely in there.
She sounds great, right?

Yeah, I love it.

I'd love you guys to have the van.

Give me a sensible offer.
You know what the asking price is.

And, well, let's get you
on your way.

We was having a secret talk,
weren't we,
about numbers, Lily?Yeah.

So where are we?
What about 18?

Eighteen.
How about we go bang in the middle?

Nineteen. No more negotiation.
Florence is yours.

Is that a nod, or is that -
Yeah.That's a yes.We're going.

Congratulations.
You just bought Florence.
Thank you very much.

Oh, that's made my day.
Yeah, and we're good.

I just know Lily, Martin
and Florenceaaaaaaa

have loads of incredible
adventures ahead of them...

Bye, guys.

...while mine with the house
has just begun.

That £9,000 profit added
to the seven grand
already in the pot

will cover the 12 grand roof quote,
plus any extras

and the material for the dormers.

And the best news is, the house
is now fully felted and sealed.

This is weatherproof, right?
I mean, 99% watertight.

Oh, you've done that thing
the lawyers do.

It's not storm proof.
It's just rain proof.

Hopefully, there's going
to be no storms.

There's a storm in my bloody wallet.