The why's and the where's?

Hi, this is the first post charting the conversion of my Volkswagen T4 into my own little home from home. I have started this blog at the time when I have begun a rebuild, so the first incarnation of my van is a retrospective and much of my new work is from the ground up anyway.

So why a t4 and why "Dogvan"? Well back in 2009 my partner and I decided we'd like to adopt a retired racing greyhound.

They are fantastic pets and really deserve a comfortable life after they finish racing. So off we went to the local adoption centre and met Benny, a black tuxedo boy who duped us completely with his "I'm so quiet, I'm so sweet" act. Don't get me wrong, he can be quiet and he is sweet but the transformation once he was out of the kennels was remarkable.

So full of energy!

Anyway, once we were approved and Benny was with us we tried to take him out in our car. This was not what a Benny-dog liked. Despite having a Vauxhall Vectra he was not happy with being in the back, even with the seats down.

So we thought of changing cars, and amongst the ones I liked was a VW Transporter. Of course a Split Screen was high on the want list, but prohibitively expensive. So looking at what I could get we settled on a T4.

What we got was a 1999 T4 India blue panel van, 1.9TD 800 Special with 196000 miles on the clock. The trouble with "fashionable" motors is the scene tax, but the miles didn't seem too much of a worry as it is 11 years old after all. It had some dents and a little rust but I saw potential. It had previously been used by a company of industrial saw repairers, and yes, it had the scars to prove it.

So on to the transformation...