19 replies to this topic

[lsto]

Hi all, back again from the abyss...

I recently aquired a 1.25 fiesta mk6 for £250, its a little bruised but a perfect runner and solid underneath. I put a timing belt on it, give it a service, put some anti roll bar link arms on it and now its spot on.

Anyway I would like to convert it into a van, not weld up the windows or anything, just seats out and tint the windows. From an mot point of view as long as I remove the rear seats and all the belt fixings its then only tested as a 2 seater which is no problem.

I'm a mechanic by trade and all I want a van for is commuting to work, the occasional private job, so occasional transportation of my tools and that's about it. Most of the time it'll be empty but I thought it may save a bit of juice on the commute. I know people will say buy a van and I'd love too but I don't have the money to spunk on van insurance, but I don't know if this would be any issue if I just took the seats out.

If anyone has any past experience I would be most grateful.

Cheers

[domdee]

I cant see there bieng a problem with thtis at all.

 

the amount of minis that get mot's with no back seats in is high, aswell as other cars... rally cars etc.

 

Just be mindful that with no rear seats or parcle shelf, that in the event of an acident, god forbid, that any iteam loose in the back will be flung around the car. i'd maybe look at putting some sort of bulk head in, like 1" mesh on a frame bolted to the floor and 2 points somewhere along the b pillars, to keep maximum visablity

[landsurveyor]

My mini has no back seats and at MOT time it is just noted as an advisory.

Good luck with it.

[dyshipfakta]

Presumably mr insurance will count it as a modification and try to charge some amount of money accordingly but should like a good plan to me. Why not go one further and board it out too.

[nicklouse]

Generally an MOT tester will only test what is present. So if you only took out half of a seat belt it would fail as the other half was not there. Remove it all the you are good to go.

Tinting the rear endows is not an issue.

But you will need to talk to the insurance company but do not use the word VAN just say, something like, I am removing the rear seats and belts in the car as I have no use fir them will it effect the premium?

Changing it to a VAN is actually a very different thing.

[lsto]

That's what I was worried about. I'm not worried about removing the seats and belts, as for an mot point of view as long as its all removed its not a problem. I'm just worried about the insurance.

When I had my astravan the insurance was about 800 quid, before the baby and mortgage that wasn't a problem but now with the fez its only 320 and I don't want them to put it right up because of the seats. I just wondered if anyone on here had already done it and if it had affected their insurance.
I guess I'll just have to phone my insurance and see what they say.

[sledgehammer]

I run my euro box without rear seats / parcel shelf 

 

I've had no problems with mot - but rear seat belts left in

 

It would be the same in a crash / stopping quickly as if the rear seat were stowed away - so shouldn't be an issue

 

in fact it's less weight

[Bungle]

Just what i'm doing with my new van/car

 

i need a van for work but at least 3 seats for school run , most 3 seater vans are too big for the area i work in 

 

so i have gone for a Bipper tepee , based on the bipper van but with seats in the back

 

 

I'm going to stick black vinyl over the back windows and sign write on this turning it back into a van , no problem with insurance as it has business use anyway 

Edited by Bungle, 25 January 2016 - 07:46 AM.

[Carlos W]

How flat is the panel under the rear seat? 

 

How flat do the rear seats go folded down?

[Bungle]

on the bipper ?

 

it's just the panel van floor with a seats on top , seats fold and tip or pull a pin and remove

[Carlos W]

on the bipper ?

 

it's just the panel van floor with a seats on top , seats fold and tip or pull a pin and remove

 

No, more the fiesta. 

 

My Mazda seats go completely flat when folded down, but the Ibiza ones have a step. 

 

If I took them out there's a shaped part under the seat squab

[Big Sam]

Is there much space in the bipper? I know Royal Mail were rolling them out as their van of choice only to realise they are far too small and moved to a Vauxhall Combo.

[Bungle]

it's a similar size to the clio (with  rear seats folded  ) i  have been using for for the last 14 years , although it's a lot squarer   

[Archived1]

With a mini for instance you can add the grp side panels to make it look like a van and thats ok as long as they are removeable/ not a permanent fixture. Weld the windows shut with van sides and it requires an IVA.

With what you suggest with the fiesta in the first post I cant see an issue. You could always add vinyl to the glass.

As above make sure your insurance company's happy

Edited by Elf is a mini, 26 January 2016 - 07:29 PM.

[lsto]

How flat is the panel under the rear seat? 
 
How flat do the rear seats go folded down?

The seats don't fold completely flat, and if you remove the seats there is a dip under the seat base, I was gonna board it out with some ply as I wanted to cover the rear foot well and I was gonna make up a bulkhead as well, that was the idea anyway. The insurance renewal is up soon anyway so I'll wait and see who is cheapest before I remove anything anyway.