From Rough To Ready

InspireTrails camper van refurbish

- Rochelle McWilliams

I received a call from a friend in Johannesburg after he had sent me pictures of a T3 VW camper van with a Jurgens body he had seen at an auction. Backtracking a bit, I have been planning to drive from Cape to Cairo and into Europe and beyond, and what better than a snail-like camper van home in which to undertake this adventure. I love the idea of van life, as I have been scaling down slowly to make space for this long-term travel dream of mine. After all, I am 31. What better time than now! So… I went ahead and purchased the camper van.

I was the only bidder (and a blind one) at the auction as the van was a non-starter. Eventually, we got it to run and after my friend finished off the paperwork, we climbed in and started to drive. A few kilometers from the auction house, the vehicle died and needed to be towed. My friend Henning arranged the tow on my behalf and sent it to a local mechanic for work, which entailed a new clutch system, battery, and a major service. I asked for everything to be done to make it drivable long distance, as I needed to get it back to Cape Town after a business trip up to Pretoria. I did learn that I was too trusting in the individual who did the work and paid the price in monetary terms and stress. We spent more money at the mechanic than the actual cost of the vehicle. A perfect example of why not to purchase vehicles blind, on auction and at long distance, unless you really know what you are doing.

At the end of my business trip, we loaded up, got some last-minute supplies like a fire extinguisher, triangle, duct tape, cable ties, bedding and of course water bottles. This was it; this project is real and happening! Let’s see what the adventure had in store for us.