Old vans are cheap and look cool but are they worth restoring?
New caravans are typically heavy, big and, above all, expensive. If you like retro charm, simple design, relatively low towing weight and above all, an affordable purchase price, buying and restoring an old caravan looks like a great option. But is it?
Old vans look cool but beware of hidden problems if undertaking a resto
Back to basics
On the face of it, caravan restoration looks so simple that you’d think anyone could do it. Ignoring rare birds such as fibreglass caravans, what you generally find in a golden oldie is a steel chassis on which a timber frame is built, with your basic fit-out carpentry inside and trusty ribbed aluminium cladding on the outside. What could go wrong?
Water leaks are one of the biggest problem in old -- and some new - caravans
Finding a caravan worth saving
Firstly, you need to find a project caravan at the right price and one worth saving.
Although caravans first became popular in the late 1940s to 1950s, you’ll be hunting for a long time to find a van from this era. If you can actually find a pre-1960s van that’s not completely shot, you’ll pay good money as they’re increasingly sought by collectors and getting rare.
You won’t find much on the used market of anything before the mid-1960s, from which time a caravan boom took hold until the market withered for a few years after the 1979 oil crisis.
Mouldy or worn canvas is expensive to replace
Pick a van from the ’70s
So the bulk of cheap, old, restorable vans on the market are mostly from the 1970s boom years, and there are also some from the 1980s as the caravan market began to recover.
While even that pool of used vans for sale has receded in the last three or so years, for anything between $500 to $3000 you’ll still be able to grab a 1970s-‘80s van, that’s well-worn but complete.
Fibreglass vans look great but are hard to find
Water damage the killer
The first thing you’ll find is that unless the van has been stored undercover and periodically resealed, it will have water damage. This is the biggest problem for cladded caravans – old and not so old.
A sure sign of water leaking in past the sealant is water stains on interior lining, but even then the leak might not show up so clearly if water has leaked through the side or front/back cladding (although a mouldy smell inside the van is a sure sign of long-term water damage).
Water leaking on the timber will eventually cause it to rot. Replacing rotted sections of timber frame is not exactly a five-minute job for the novice. For starters, you’ll need to pull off a lot of the cladding just to get to the timber.
Some old vans, like 1970s Viscounts, have an aluminium frame so no worries there. Except they still leak, and cabinetry and interior linings will still rot.
Identical replacements for items like cladding can be impossible to find for old-timers
Parts are hard to find
If you want to replace original items like interior lining or cabinetry, then you face the problem restorers of any old stuff have – finding replacement parts. Except unlike the car industry, caravans were built in relatively small volumes and there just isn’t the demand to keep making replacement stuff like 1970s woodgrain-finish plywood.
You can gut the inside and replace with new, contemporary linings, but what if it’s only one section that requires replacement? A replacement section in a ‘modern’ woodgrain or white finish is going to stick-out big time.
Stress fractures are a common problem on old van claddings
Original wall/ceiling ply will be long gone from spare parts shops, unless you’re lucky to find a caravan workshop that has stored some away in the back and forgotten about it.
Want to replace those crumbling, warped orange or green bench tops with identical pieces? Same thing; they’ve not been available since caravan manufacturers came to their senses and started using materials in more subtle hues.
You may still find some things are available new, like plastic window locks and plastic trim (in those lovely shades of brown all the rage back in the day), but if parts like window glass are broken, new replacements will have to be made to measure.
Water marks on interior linings a sure sign of water damage
Same problems on the inside
It’s the same with the components on the outside. You’ll (incredibly) still be able to buy stuff like replica Viscount wheel spats – and even name transfers for some long-obsolete brands – but ask for just about anything else... Well, the caravan parts guy will usually deliver the bad news with what will become a familiar grimace and a slow shake of the head.
To even buy matching aluminium cladding with the correct creases and grain is going to be hard enough, let alone those that have been powder coated in the original colour, replete with those fancy yellow racing stripes.
How’s your skill-set?
If you were lucky enough to find a cache of original parts or just ditched the whole original look and bought contemporary stuff, then you have to ask yourself if you really have the skills – and above all, the time – to restore a caravan.
Being able to measure, cut and hammer together wood for your child’s billy cart project isn’t going to be enough if you plan to do a decent job of the interior fit-out.
Repairing old dented aluminium cladding is possible, but to do it properly is incredibly difficult. If you can do it well, you’ll make the guy who makes new steel panels with an English wheel for his 1930 Austin look like an amateur.
Stress fractures are common on old vans too, and there’s not a lot you can do about them other than trying to seal them with some silastic or replacing the section entirely.
Make sure you've got the skills and time before undertaking any resto
Repairing dodgy old fixes
If you’ve been lucky enough to buy a weathered but original van, you might still have to dig in and fix the previous owner’s home handyman repairs.
Removing hardened mastic caulking is not a lot of fun, but if it’s been replaced by gobs of silastic later (worse still, acidic silastic old mate had left over from a bathroom reno) then you’re entering into a whole world of hurt.
Acidic silastic is not meant to be used on metals like a caravan’s aluminium cladding as it’ll eat into it, and silastic is time-consuming to remove at the best of times.
All good underneath?
While the chassis, suspension, brakes and coupling are usually either very sturdy or use commonly available replacement parts, there are still some tricks to learn.
Want to replace the wheel bearings on your 1985 Windsor? No worries: you’ll need a combination of Ford and Holden bearings. Make sure you ask the old guy at the caravan parts counter for them though, because chances are you would have lost the poor millennial as soon as you said 1985.
Restoring an old van can be a very rewarding experience
Canvas ain't cheap
If you’re restoring a camper trailer or caravan that uses canvas (such as a caravan annexe), the biggest killers are mould and canvas that has worn so thin that it has started to leak or rip.
Make sure you know what it’ll cost going in, because replacing the canvas top on a hard-floor camper, for example can cost upwards of $3000.
Repairing an old two- or three-way fridge doesn’t involve chump-change either. You can budget for at least $600 to replace the absorption unit if it has started to leak out ammonia solution.
Old caravan chassis and suspension parts usually don't need to be replaced
Call in the professionals
Lastly, there are still a couple things you’ll need a professional for: gas and 240-volt electrics. You may not need new gas lines and connections or electrics completely re-wired, but you’d at least want the systems inspected for any problems.
Having a van explode because of a gas leak or having your body become the path to earth for dodgy 240-volt electrics is no fun.
Worth the effort
Restoring an old van can be incredibly rewarding, and it’s great to see your efforts result in something that looks like new again. You’ll also save money by doing it.
Just make sure you know what you’re in for; otherwise you might find you’ll get much more than you bargained for.
