Please watch the video first – link here or below the gallery https://youtu.be/JBm-DOODUI0

Bumblebee is a 2011 Renault Master 2.3D L3H2 Van, I built it as a luxury 4 berth camper, motorway cruiser, mobile office, work van and watersports / cycling day van. My goal was to provide accommodation and comfortable long distance transport for four with 4 x very comfortable belted reclining seats with armrests for my big teenage kids so that they can relax and use their laptops on our regular weekly 400 mile trips between homes. The brief was also to have a fully functioning mobile office space and to be able to transport big sheets of ply or bikes and carry a ton of my water sports gear on the roof.

This layout is actually up there with the top of the range £90k Westfalia 4 berths but kind of more useful because instead of having a pop top for the second bed, the bed is inside and you still get the full use of the roofrack. I honestly think this is more comfortable than one of those vans because they use the ’sit up and beg’ rear seats which are rubbish on long journeys….

If you use the cab area of these L3H2 vans – you can unlock another metre of bed or seating space when parked up so no need for a longer van!

Seating:-
It has four full size luxury seats with 3 point belts, (front are Renault original with captains chair bases – rear are VW Sharan front seats) – all of which have armrests, adjustable height and recline. The front two turn around to face the rears. My kids love lounging back and putting their feet up on long runs as well as doing their homework.There is a big walkway between the front seats and the back – it’s honestly like a coach gangway! Under each seat is a large storage locker – the one nearest the door is accessible from both sides.

Tables:-
There are two reclaimed wood tables that can be put in three positions, 1) one big table for big meals or working on the left side 2) big table on the right side or 3) two individual tables. It is VERY comfortable to work in or eat in. The tables can be removed completely to give space for moving gear if needed.

Sleeping:-
Bumblebee has two double beds – both are 6” thick standard double mattresses ( 3 cushions each) with 1 inch memory foam. These beds feel no different from your bed at home! Each bed goes into the window recess and allows the maximum width of the van to be obtained – i”m 6ft and I can fully extend in either bed.

The front bed is made up by turning the front seats 180 degrees and using the included boards to make up the bed base. The rear bed has a lift-up centre section that can be raised to allow bikes or other large items to be transported. The front double bed is massive – it’s almost square! The rear bed is good for putting children to bed first and then close off that area so that adults can use the front section, bathroom and kitchen.
It has a thermal blind set for all windows and a privacy blind on the back doors.

Shower/ Toilet;-
It has a full size 70x70cm shower cubicle with full size domestic shower. This space also houses the removable toilet (Thetfords biggest one with normal toilet height and seat size)
It also has an outside hot shower which I use to wash off myself, surfboard and kids after surfing or wash the dog off when he’s filthy after a muddy walk. It’s great having a hot outside shower!

Kitchen:-
It has a 50 Litre 12V compressor fridge, two burner hob, sink (with hot and cold water), Kitchen storage is massive – comprising 2 x overhead cabinets, 6 x drawers and also a centre storage area for bowls and draining boards etc.

Lighting:-
The rear bedroom is lit by LED strip lights, the front by powerful fluorescents – there is also a light in the shower/toilet compartment

Electrics:-
Bumblebee has a mains hook up socket which powers a double socket and also runs a charger to charge the 2 x 100AH batteries. There is also a massive 2Kw 240V inverter that is more than enough to run a toaster, laptop or microwave if needed. The inverter feeds two sockets in the main seating area.

Storage –
Bumblebee has a huge amount of storage under the rear double bed. On the passenger side there is a long locker for camping chairs at the base, a rack for towels and other smaller items and then 4 x standard cubes which make it easy to take these into the house and then just bring down and slide these into their spots in the van. We use one each. Behind each cube is a space for bottles of water/beer/wine etc or tall food boxes..
On the drivers side the lockers are massive. Two are mostly taken up by the water heater and batteries but the other two are cavernous.
Above the rear bed there are two lockers – one for each person, they make it easy for access to your toiletries, ear plugs, books and pyjamas etc.

Heating :-
It has an Eberspacher D4 diesel heater which makes it toasty even in sub zero temperatures – this sips diesel and runs off the main diesel tank. This runs off a thermostat and can be left running 24 hrs a day if required.

Cooling :-
It has a massive roof air conditioning system that runs off the engine this blows from the roof into the rear section and front roof section and cools the whole van pretty quickly. There is also the centre extractor fan which is very powerful and is good when cooking or to quickly purge hot air out of the van when parked. Passive cooling wise, there is an opening skylight above the rear bed which brings lovely fresh air as you sleep.

Water:-
It has a 110 litre fresh water tank which feeds a 10 Litre super reliable Carver Cascade gas water heater with 10 Litre storage tank. So usually you can get two big showers out of this before having to wait 10 minutes for it to reheat.

Roofrack:-
Bumblebee has a giant Vanguard ‘man bearing’ heavy duty but lightweight aluminium roof rack that is built for people to walk on. We use this for two double kayaks or one kayak and 2 inflated paddleboards and 2 x surfboards. You can add solar here easily if required and use the roof as a deck!). These are £1400 new.

Tyres:-
Bumblebee has 4 x near new BF Goodrich AT off road tyres which do make a difference on wet campsites/tracks but don’t slow it down or chew fuel. They make it look very tough and it’s unlikely you will ever get a puncture or need to replace them.

Base Van Info:-
Bumblebee used to be a NHS patient transfer minibus so has never been above 70 mph or been thrashed and has had a full service history up until leaving the service two years ago. I have done 10,000 miles in it and use it daily. Bumblebee is very clean and tidy all round, it hasn’t got a spot of rust anywhere (it’s galvanised so probably won’t for the remainder of its life!)

It drives very smoothly, quietly and solidly, it’s high up position makes it easy to drive and park. I chose this van rather than a long wheelbase Sprinter or Crafter because it can still be used as a daily driver like a T5 and it fits in parking spaces at the supermarket – (and it won’t rust like they do…).

The van has a high equipment spec, it has sat nav / media console, reverse sensors, electric windows and mirrors, and a powerful roof air conditioning system which does the whole van not just the front.

I have built this in a complimentary Scandinavian style and colour scheme and we get lots of complements about its cool colours. The van is made of painted plywood – so it’s really easy to add little tweaks to it to make it your own without worrying about messing up melamine panels etc.

Mechanicals wise – It has done 187k, nothing to worry about when driven at the sedentary pace of a patient transfer minibus these Renault 2.3’s also have no cambelt – they have timing chains which last much longer and make a right old racket if they need changing. I have done 10,000 miles in it this year including some 1000 mile tours, with no problems at all. I have just had a new MOT from a fairly brutal local MOT centre and as I say I do 400 motorway miles every other weekend in it – it’s been perfectly reliable for me. As of 28/10/22 it will have new oil and filters.

I do have a 100W solar panel that i can fit to it if required as part of sale.

Pricewise – I have priced this super low in comparison to other vans as I need the money to get cracking on my bus conversion over winter.