Taking shape

The seat boxes are going in today! It seems such a shame to cover up the beautiful wood panels but it has to be done! We're replicating what was originally in the Fiat when we bought it, however we've shortened the bench seat by the side door so that it doesn't cover up the door way. We've decided instead to have an in-fill piece that is stored under the seat. It means that we will lose a little bit of storage but it will make living in it feel so much more spacious. From a design perspective it also looks really nice having a long bench on one wall and a shorter one on another. The long bench extends beyond the table and allows for a space to sit next to the table rather than behind it.

For this summer we've decided just to leave the floor bare until we can find a floor covering we like. Nate loves it because it is so smooth and slippery. He has had all his friends in it sliding around on the floor!

Cause gaffa is a guy's best friend

Unfortunately we haven't been able to find a replacement skylight yet. We're holding out to find a vintage one to suit the car rather than just fit a new caravan skylight. We've had about a week of very heavy rain and discovered that our temporary solution wasn't quite watertight so today Woz repaired it with silicon and swathes of gaffa tape. Tomorrow the last ceiling panels can go in!

Seats you

The first shots of the camper with the panels back in. We're still missing the panels near the skylight as we're waiting for a clear day with no chance of rain before we attempt to fix the problem. But already it is looking beautiful. Different types of wood have been used throughout so the panels aren't uniform in shape, but it does seem to add to the vintage look. I love how warm and homely it makes it feel and I can't wait to wake up to that beautiful curved ceiling. Once again, it is very reminiscent of living on the boat.

Today we started to build the bench seats. We've ordered four seat belts for the back of the car. With three in the front and four in the back we should be able to fit seven people in the Fiat once it's up and running. Perfect timing for our trip to Denmark and for exploring Austria this year with all the guests we have lined up.

Crouching room only

Things are moving forward on the Fiat. We've been driving it around for a few weeks now. To Woz's delight we've been keeping up with the traffic at 120 on the motorway (that being said, that scenario requires a generous helping of momentum and bit of gravity on a downhill slope.)

The camper has felt very much like an empty shell since Woz removed all the wooden panels to sand them and re-stain them. We weren't sure if we could successfully sand the curved sheets of plywood but they had been quite poorly stained by the last owner and they were generally very grubby so we decided to give it a try. Woz decided to pop his head in to a local woodshop (Tischerlei) with one of the ply panels to see if they might be able to sand them for us to save us a bit of time. He noticed that the apprentice had already stopped for the day and so Woz asked if they'd like him to do it himself. Austria being Austria (no policies and procedures in force regarding health and safety), the friendly boss ushered him towards the machinery and off he went. It took him about three days to sand all of the individual pieces and then he left the sheets there to be sprayed professionally with a clear satin stain.

 We got them back on Saturday morning and we went straight to work to fit them. It just happened to be pouring with rain, (thankfully) which led us to discover a leak near the skylight so we've fitted all the panels with the exception of the two near the leak. The panels look so beautiful now so the last thing we want to do is risk water damage.

Preparing the first sheet.

By the time we finished the last panel it was dark so there's no 'after' shot yet. Tomorrow's job!

Tomorrow Woz will pick up some more timber from the hardware and we'll start work on making the bench seats for the table (which then fold down to make up a double bed.) The rush is on now to get it all done in the next three weeks when we plan to drive to Denmark via the Czech Republic and Germany with my brother Matt and his girlfriend Emma. They arrive in a week and we travel in three. Nothing like a deadline to get you moving.

Must be the floor

When we bought the Fiat it had an old musty smell to it. In restoring the Fiat we had ripped out pretty much everything in the back including the seat cushions and the old lino which was damp hoping to rid the camper of the smell. It was such a pity to rip out the vintage green lino. It had to be done unfortunately. It was badly damaged and was definitely carrying a musty smell which no amount of hot days was going fix.

After all that, we found that the wood lining the floor of the camper was also musty, so out it went. This means that from the back section of the car we're only keeping the wooden panels for the ceiling, walls and doors, and the gas hot plates. It's hard to believe this is going to be a home on wheels with any feeling of warmth to it. Right now it feels very industrial.

Goodbye vintage lino ...

Woz two Austria nil

After what has seemed like a very long road, we've finally been kicking some goals lately. Woz has been working away slowly at what has turned out to be a very big job - registering the Fiat.

Registering the Fiat in Austria was always going to be a challenge. Basically, when it comes to any bureaucratic decisions, if something hasn't been done a million times before the same way, then it can't be done. Unfortunately our approach to just about everything in our life either hasn't been done before or at least hasn't been done in Austria. So importing an unregistered old-timer from Poland was always going to be a risk. Thankfully, we'd done it once before, with a newer car registered in Texas (that's a long story!) So we were able to approach the task with some confidence. But it was still going to be a challenge.

In a textbook exercise in cross-cultural relations, a job which could take a week or so, has taken months as Woz has had to make several visits into the testing centre to sweet talk the guys who work there into accepting the Fiat for registration.

The conversations go a bit like this ....

"Hello I would like to register my car."
"Okay we need Form XYZ from the previous owner."
"Actually it is from Poland so they don't have a Form XYZ. What information does the form contain?"
"We need Form XYZ from the previous owner."
"They don't have that form in Poland, can I give you a similar form?"
"We need Form XYZ from the previous owner."
"Okay then! Nice talking with you!"
 
Woz goes home, researches Form XYZ. Finds out what is needed and goes back in with the information.

"Hello I'd like to register my car!"
"Okay we need Form XYZ from the previous owner."
"Actually it is from Poland so they don't have a Form XYZ.... "
"We need Form XYZ from the previous owner."
"I don't have the form, I have all the information you need though. It is on these three documents, but if you look, all the information you require is there."
"We need Form XYZ from the previous owner."

Repeat this process during several visits with several different people until finally, (as of Wednesday this week) they agree to register the car!

Having registered two imported cars now, Woz has worked out a few tricks.

1. Don't take no for an answer.
2. Don't attempt to sway anyone in one single conversation. Chip away at it in bits. This is also connected with number three.
3. Become familiar to them. Strangers don't get to upset the status quo. Friendly familiar characters can just about get away with it.
4. Ensure the conversation ends on a good note. Distract them by steering the conversation towards something they are passionate about. In registering our last car Woz found out that the manager was a fellow Porsche fanatic and so they were immediately the best of friends.
5. If all else fails, say "But I was speaking to Herr Eisl and he said it was fine." (Crucially, Herr Eisl is the manager of the testing centre!)
6. Take the papers and run.

Project Grill

The majority of the jobs on the Fiat thus far have been fairly insignificant photography wise. New spark plugs, new leads, yada yada yada. But Woz has also been doing some cosmetic work. The main project for the last few days has been sanding back and painting the grill on the front of the camper. It's amazing what a bit of sandpaper and a can of paint can do. Thankfully we have a gravel lane next to our house which is very forgiving of Woz's spray painting projects!

The week that Woz

We had beautifully warm sunny days all of last week, and so with autumn closing in and warm days on the way out Woz decided to use all the daylight hours working on the Fiat. All of them. Honestly I barely saw him. Which was fortunate because I was spending all my daylight hours with my computer. Reading.

He mainly concerned himself with the mechanical side of the car, in the ambition of getting it roadworthy and ready for inspection for registration in Austria, but he couldn't resist getting stuck in to the cosmetic things too. As usual, we have become a bit carried away with drawing the line on what should be replaced and what shouldn't, but we decided that the kitchen area of the camper wasn't very practical (or functional) so we decided to rip it out. We are hoping to design a kitchen in a cupboard, which will close up for travel and also to de-clutter the small space. As well as that, we want to fit it along the back wall (rather than an L shape that is/was existing.) The idea at this stage is to fit it with lockable wheels, make a ramp and then have the option of wheeling it outside to cook, turning it into a freestanding kitchen and BBQ. This will free up space in the camper and also make it a lot more fun! We're a long way away from that though, still at the ripping stuff out stage!

So, some highlights for this week. Woz has been busy .....

checking the brakes ...

pumping up the four flat tyres (with some help) ....

Ripping out old lightfittings and messy cords to eventually be replaced with LEDs ...

After (for now)

Before

After (for now)

Ripping out the messy kitchen arrangement (we'll keep the sink and the gas hobs) ...

After (for now) ...

accumulating A LOT of old wood ...

cleaning up the engine bay and repainting ...

Ta da! In order to paint the rocker cover (the black bit!) we had to bake it in our oven for an hour to harden the paint!

adjusting the valve clearances ....

and generally getting used to small spaces again!

All of the cosmetic work on the engine bay wont be in vain. We discovered from the inspection on our last car that the Austrians care a great deal about how clean things are. So, in order to get past the inspection smoothly we're brushing everything up with a sand and some black paint.

It is amazing how similar renovating a camper feels to renovating the boat. Particuarly one of this vintage. The curved plywood panels and the low head room (but for the skylight) are all too familar. As was the case in the boat, I don't have any issues standing up (not enough to bother me anyway), but it's a bit trickier for Woz. We've decided that it will be Nate's job to wash all the dishes as he's the only one who can do it without stooping!

So far today it has been cold and wet so Woz and I have both been inside the house, computer bound, but I'm pretty sure that the moment the sun comes out again I'll hear a 'Just popping out for a minute ...' followed by the door closing behind Woz. He's back in his element.

A new era

The workers.

After a lot of work on Woz's part we were able to organise for the Fiat to be delivered to us last night. Our intial thought was to drive our car to Poland to pick it up, and then we would drive home in the two cars, however we discovered that the car wasn't registered in Poland (or roadworthy) thus the bargain price. Thankfully Woz is exactly the right kind of person to buy an unroadworthy car and bring it up to scratch, so that wasn't daunting, however we had to first ensure that we'd be able to register the car here. It is an Italian car, purchased from the Netherlands, and then sold to us in Poland so the back history was a bit complicated. (Not unlike us!) We're 99 per cent sure we can register it, and it will be a similar process to when we imported our car from the States so we've been through the beureacracy before and will take it in our stride.

We don't actually have a carpark with our house (it is a townhouse which is directly on the street) so we had the car delivered to a car park in the village where we have purchased a community permit for a very reasonable price. So, the Fiat has a home, and there is plenty of room there for Woz to spread out and work, and it is quite private too.

Nate was beyond excited last night when it was delivered and this afternoon after school I dropped him straight off at the Fiat to hang out with Woz and dream about how we're going to set it up.

We did have a slight hitch when it was delivered. The skylight came off in transit. Woz drew the driver's attention to it when he arrived and the driver was horrified. Firstly because he was delivering the car in a worse condition than the photograph and secondly because he was worried it had caused an accident or damage to other cars ... somewhere between here and Poland. Thankfully we have a full week of sun forecast but in the meantime, Woz has had to make a makeshift repair to the roof. He'll make something more permanent tomorrow now that he has worked out a solution, and in the meantime we'll try to source a replacement sunlight.

Today was the first of many days working on the camper to get it up to the standard we want it to be in, both mechanically and cosmetically. We know that it will be worth a lot more once we've done all the work, but more than that, we plan on it being the beginning of a new lifestyle for us, one that will be an incredible childhood memory for Nate, and for us to look back on as a family.

To the Fiat!

Woz's overnight solution to the massive hole in the roof!

It starts here

It started with a fire truck.

Woz was spending an evening looking up weird and wacky vehicles on ebay late one night when he found a vintage German firetruck for sale. It had been converted somewhat into a sleeper/camper and his eyes lit up as he scrolled through the photos.

He was met with an outright no.

It was a bit of a random thing to look at for us. We're not camper people. I think probably we think we are a bit young for it. But who are we kidding? I'm 38 and Woz is 43. We're collectively nudging our way into 'middle-aged' and camper vans are looking seriously seductive. Especially when we have Europe on our doorstep. Landlocked Austria (where we're based,) shares the borders with seven countries. Perfect for road trips.

A few days later, Woz showed me some photos of a Fiat 238 camper with only a few days to go on Ebay. Having warmed to the idea of something camperish related (keeping in mind the last thing I looked at was a firetruck) the Fiat looked exactly like us.

'Buy it!' I exclaimed and a very surprised Woz jumped straight on it. As the clock counted down we put in our top bid and waited the last few seconds. Winning the auction was the best feeling in the world. A whole new world of travel had just opened up to us and a new way of life. It opened up Fiat Freitags. Friday afternoons where we take off in the Fiat and explore some of Austria's gorgeous scenery, with a free roof over our head and no need to pack. Just like our barge years but with a little more freedom and a little (just a little) more speed.

 It is the beginning of a new era of learning and exploration for our son Nate and a remedy to quench the relentless thirst for travel in us. Languages, smells, food, people and spectacular scenery await!

Fiat Freitags

Well we didn't get the fire truck. We did however, get the Fiat.

Tonight, with six seconds to go, we won an ebay auction on this baby! Now that Woz has more flexibility with his time, mine is still flexible, we're hoping to take advantage of Nate's lunchtime finish on Friday afternoons and start a new family tradition: 'Fiat Fridays'. As usual we have plans to renovate it inside, so it will also be a fun project for us to be creative with.

Now that the challenge of winning the auction is out of the way, the next challenge is getting the car back to Austria from Poland.

Let the adventures begin!

Help!

We've had an incredible summer and Woz has the camping bug. He's been online tonight looking at airstream caravans. Which I love by the way, but it's just that we haven't really been thinking along those lines lately. But eBay is a marvelous thing: he's now digressed to an ex-German firetruck. Seats six.

Nate is in on it too. 'Dad do you have enough money if I use all my pocket money too? No really, I mean it.'
 
I'm not sure exactly if they're wanting us to sleep in it, drive it or both. Either way I'm out.