Camper Trailers, Motor-homes, Van Conversions

[wjmark]

I was talking to my girlfriend about Canada, and how many people have some form of mobile accommodation - camper trailers, motor-homes, etc. (I have an old van with bed, kitchen etc. there, and was enticing her into a Yukon road-trip).

I have never seen anything like them in Thailand, and believe that they are against the law?

She just thought there are none around because a Thai person rich enough to afford one wouldn't want such a 'low-so' toy.

Anybody know about this? I would love to build a nice 'room on wheels' into some vehicle here.

[jubby]

Can't see a problem with you converting something like a Toyota minibus or something, if you do it subtly.

Wouldn't think dragging a Caravan around would be advisable here.

Accomodations just too cheap to justify it, but if you fancy doing it as a project to keep sane then why not.

[kartman]

Have seen motorhomes very rarely on Citroen/Fiat base plus one of the Vigo/D-Max based ones that are shown at Bangkok motorshow so they are legal.

[Nampeung]

Sounds like a fab idea Wjmark

[retiredusn]

Good idea, "BUT" there are no parks ect. that are set up for a camper/motorhome items such as electric/sewage and so forth.

[fred2007]

I was talking to my girlfriend about Canada, and how many people have some form of mobile accommodation - camper trailers, motor-homes, etc. (I have an old van with bed, kitchen etc. there, and was enticing her into a Yukon road-trip).

I have never seen anything like them in Thailand, and believe that they are against the law?

She just thought there are none around because a Thai person rich enough to afford one wouldn't want such a 'low-so' toy.

Anybody know about this? I would love to build a nice 'room on wheels' into some vehicle here.

Motor homes or camper trailers are legal in Thailand so are normal trailers if you decide

to build your own caravan or camper trailer you need an engineer class 3 to aprove it.

Be aware the maximum width of the trailer is 2.5m.

Cheers

[H2oDunc]

I toyed with the idea of converting a small bus but after being here for a while decided it was pointless. Accom is cheap and plentiful, Cheap food is also available everywhere so you don't need to drag a kitchen about and it would be so hot.

[xbusman]

I built a lot of that style toy back in a former life. About four years ago a major US builder contacted me and we did a project for them to build the entire interior in Thailand for installation in the US. After some serious effort and number crunching we gave it up. The required support industry is just not here and importing anything is a dicey proposition. We could have gotten some cabinets and furniture built though, a small part of any conversion, but the furniture industry here was going great guns and we were unable to get them interested at realistic rates. Eventually we put that work in Taiwan near the boat industry, the Taiwanese quality was far superior and with the Taiwan dollar higher than the Thai baht it made no sense to try and deal with Thai manufacturers.

One thing we used to build that I thought might sell into Thailand was an executive limousine we built on a Sprinter chassis. The Sprinter is capable of handling the weight and has some excellent characteristics for conversion. We built some executive transporters that had a full office, complete IT set up, satellite com, even lavatories. I have often sat in Bangkok traffic quite convinced that more than a few phuu yai would spring for one just for the commute. We also developed a level of armor probably enough for SE asia.

Keep it simple enough and they could be built here without much trouble. As for a motorhome, just not enough here to get one done and if you got it done, then what?

[Birdman]

In Thailand nobody has that, 'cause it would be very expensive to buy and to operate - imagine the costs for the a/c. It's extremely hot here. Thailand is one of the hottest countries worldwide. A camper without a/c must be like a micro wave.. .

...and EVERYWHERE in the country are hotels at all price ranges.

[Kan Win]

I built a lot of that style toy back in a former life.

Keep it simple enough and they could be built here without much trouble. As for a motorhome, just not enough here to get one done and if you got it done, then what?

I'm tired of paying mortgage bills, utility bills, property taxes, (rent!).

I want to live more simply, pack up the dog and move into a travel-trailer.

I don't mind being called 'trailer trash',

but I want to get your opinion...............................

Yours truly,

Kan Win

[jubby]

Was that an Alpha in the luggage compartment ? Class !

[xbusman]

Thats the kind of stuff I used to build. Twin slide outs, thats a serious piece of hardware there.

We built mostly on commercial coach shells, that would preclude an auto in the belly because of the structure.

They take a lot of maintenance relatively speaking, think about shaking your house up every day. Bits come loose and its all rather tightly packed in. I did however, know quite a few people who lived in them full time, but not that style, its not really very livable. The live ins built them along the lines of boats, tons of storage and very little living space, life was lived in the dinette. Its a pretty loose life style, I guess it harks back hundreds of years to the gypsy wagons, something to be said for it I guess.

Great story.

Ernst Holtzman and his wife.

Ernie was somewhere north of 90 and his child bride was probably ten years his junior. Very very german, despite being in America for about 80 years he still spoke with a heavy accent and did things old school. Senf on every sandwich.

We called Ernie the ratman and he loved that. He would proudly tell you all about rats, everything. Ernie had put together a business somewhere around Chicago that raised rats for laboratories. Thanks to Ernie I know too much about rats. For example, some medical experiments last for decades and the researchers need rats that are relatively genetically similar so they buy them from pretty controlled suppliers. I never thought about it but someone has to supply rats to labs. Well, old Ernie was the king of that biz and shipped around 10,000 every single calender day at about $1 profit each. Thats slightly more than a boatload of rats and not bad money to boot.

Ernie had as much money or maybe a little bit more than the pope. He spent money on nothing, in fact I remember him changing his oil on his bus, no small feet for a youngin, much less a 90 year old man. I know he did it to save a few pennies, thats a miserable and nasty job on a coach (about 30 some quarts of nasty oil to deal with...). His wife used to knit stocking caps that had the beer cans in them, you know those stupid things, and give them to relatives for christmas. Imagine getting a knitted beer can hat from uncle ernie, the multi multi millionaire for christmas. Its a shame really, we obviously forgot the lessons they had learned in a long life. Anyway, I digress.

The company I worked for had been building motorhomes since the 60s, and Ernie had one of those antiques. Built on a school bus chassis, it had a huge diesel engine in the front, between the driver and copilot, covered with a cap that was pretty flimsy in 1964 and all but gone in 1995. They took that coach everywhere and had it for decades. One day Ernie shows up at the factory with a brand new unit, similar to the one in your photos above. They had just bought it, latest everything, top of the line, rear engine model. Ernie fussed around it but nothing was broken, couldnt change the oil manually, just start er up and drive. He had traded in that old junker for around $60,000 and paid cash for the new one, somewhere around $700,000 and off they go.

About two months later, in comes Ernie driving his old coach. Some young family had bought it and Ernie tracked them down and TRADED EVEN for the new one. They were rather happy to oblige.

I got Ernie to the side and asked him what the hel_l he was thinking and he said this to me, doubt I will ever forget it.

Ernie said..."Vell, you know ve hav been married over 60 years and you need to know a little bit about a woman to stay happy that long. I bought that new coach with the engine in the back and you know, it just got quiet enough in the front that we could talk. I knew that was bad idea and we just needed to get that engine between us again to keep us happily married."

The stories of the people living that life were so varied and wonderful I think I could write a book.

Go do it Kan Win, you will never forget life on the road or the people you will meet.

[thaiclan]

Hi everyone,

I looked into hiring a motorhome for a month so my family (2 adults 2 kids) could get around Thailand and have a motoring holiday. We lived in Thailand for 4 years (but now live Singapore) and we have done the top hotels, the beach shacks, the boat trips etc so I thought a motor home trip would be nice.

Anyway....I googled and found a company in Bangkok, I asked for a quote for 4 weeks in September....232,000baht!! (5,100 euros)

This was for a "Lance Lite 845" which I also Googled and its nots a great big posh camper (might have paid that for the one photo'd and posted on this thread)! LOL

Does anyone know of another place to hire a camper? Or maybe someone here would like to go into business hiring these out - must be a hefty profit margin in there!

[harrry]

I understand Carryboy has a slide on camper for a Toyota Hiace. I think it would bew of limited use in THailand though because of the cheap availability of hotes and the climate,

[Texpat]

Sadly, campers fall into the same category as riding lawn mowers.

No great feat in the west, but a monumental expression of wealth and flaunting -- a prime opportunity to triple (or 4x) the price in Thailand.

[Boater]

i have seen a few og the VW campervans around

[jaideeguy]

I have had the fantasy of building a slide in pick up camper here in LOS for some years now......just for weekend and holiday use. Not really to save hotel money, but to stay in some off the beaten track places, one of which would be up in the cool mountains around Chiang Mai, where you don't need air con and maybe beaches during the cool season. I have some friends in the mountains that wouldn't mind letting me park it in a nice setting near a stream for a few days......in fact, almost anywhere in LOS, you can find friendly people that would allow you to set up camp on their property [for a few THB] and there are the national parks that might allow you.

The design that I had in mind would be aluminum/or steel pipe frame with aluminum skin and plywood interior with good insulation sandwiched between.

Have seen these cargo pickup trucks with a cab over frame that would be almost perfect. I can see the 'bits and pieces' would have to be imported, like a porta potty etc.

It would be a good idea to not make it look like a camper, but camoflage it to look like a utility vehicle so as to not raise too much attention.

Anyway, I've been googling on designs and did find a type of 'pop-up' design called tha Alaska Camper and it would be a good model to copy. Gives you a lower profile, saving money on gas and safety from the many low power lines and tree branches.

Good thread and hopefully it will expand with others input.

[Birdman]

The most important issues are the air circulation and the lack of areas with proper connections for that. As far as I know, there is not one single camper place in Thailand.

So, one has to be imaginative. Maybe to build a camper with some kind of a Southern Thai roof for air circulation.

Or better to find a public power point somewhere. That shouldn't be too difficult. In many areas Pooyai Baans built some "recreation places", which are seldom used by the public. And there it is.

[Grant]

Less than 2M

[katabeachbum]

Electricity no problem. You get a 2KW gas genny at HomePro for 10.000 baht. Enough to run one aircon OR the micro. Long cord, and you dont hear the noise of it.

[jaideeguy]

So, what would the shipping/duties be on having a [used] camper sent over from the states, where you can get 2nd hand campers for small $'s. Just did a quick classified search and found an "Alaskan Camper" with stove, propane fridge, porta-potty, inverter, and other extras for under $3,000.

The Alaskan Camper is unique in that it riases when camping and lowers when on the road for less wind resistance and better handling.

the concept can be viewed at http://www.alaskancamper.net/index2.html

A rig like this could be quite comfortable and not so obvious as a regular cab over camper that drives like an aircraft carrier and if mounted on a 4wd truck, you could go anywhere in comfort.

Again, the concept is not to save money on hotel rooms that never feel like home and are often noisy and who knows what happened on the bed before you slept on it....not to mention that the tv in the hotel room is rarely English.

[LivinLOS]

I spent a good portion of my childhood in converted horseboxes, postal vans, ex military transports.. Folks had a couple of VW campers but those were the weak ones not the liveable homes. Spent a lot of time on the 70's hippy trail between Morocco and Europe.. Missed years of school.. Often 6 months a year.. And when in UK were sometimes on sites and other layups.

Memories of driving over the sahara kitted up like Lawrence of Arabia hanging onto the roof of a K9 troop transport while a mad pikey driver chased dust devils flat out all over the desert will be with me my deathbed.. Happy days.

[lannarebirth]

I remember this ad from threads gone by. Maybe he's still got it.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Camper-Sale-t91710.html

[jaideeguy]

Thanks lanna.....viewed the photo and it is really not the best of designs. Looks home made, but clean. The main problem is that it only sleeps 2 and looks like the small cab over is way to small to sleep a midget.

[trottermoggy]

Hallo,

I have a camper for sale, look at:http:

//www.thaivisa.com/forum/Expedition-4x4-camper-Mercedes-Unim-t293816.html

greetings Kees en Ellis from Holland

[mackayae]

Less than 2M

From where? Any email address, company name, website or phone number?

[mackayae]

Carryboy Caravan.

carryboy.com

[LJW]

I built a lot of that style toy back in a former life.

Keep it simple enough and they could be built here without much trouble. As for a motorhome, just not enough here to get one done and if you got it done, then what?

I'm tired of paying mortgage bills, utility bills, property taxes, (rent!).

I want to live more simply, pack up the dog and move into a travel-trailer.

I don't mind being called 'trailer trash',

but I want to get your opinion...............................

Yours truly,

Kan Win

I used to live in San Francisco in a 1959 International bread truck. A great life, but staying clean wasn't so easy because I didn't have a shower,

but it had a beautiful interior- with a skylight where I could watch the stars from my bed....I miss that life SOOOO much, and I am looking around at the options available to me..

[WarpSpeed]

Yep some people just don't understand, heat and hotels in deed mostly they aren't from hot climates...What they fail to understand because they're not true campers is this is as luxurious as one needs and they are self contained usually which means you don't need a sewer hook up, water or electric hook up you park anywhere....

[gotlost]

New thread on this subject on the CM forum with some updates.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/393856-motorhomes/