There are few SUVs suitable for motorhome interior due to the low volume rear. The exceptions are Landcruiser 78 (Troopy) and Land Rover Defender. Especially if these have some form of raised ceiling it is possible to build a mini-motorhome interior with standing height. Here is presented an interior built in an LC78.
The car had an old interior, but it was quite impractical. The storage space was benches with cabinets, but when the cabinets are very low and it is less than half a meter between them in the aisle, it was very difficult to find anything inside the cabinets without lying down on the floor with the legs out the back door. In addition, there was no gas bottle cabinet.
Gas cabinets should be designed in accordance with the regulations for your own safety.
So I built a cabinet based on drawers instead. It is time consuming to build drawers myself so they are taken from a tool cabinet where I cut away everything except the plates where the slides were mounted, and then welded them into a skeleton built of 15 and 20 mm steel square tubes. I chose slim dimensions to keep the weight down. The skeleton was then partially covered with aluminum and with water-resistant plywood bathroom panels in visible places. The bathroom panels are made of good plywood quality and are covered with a hard plastic coating on one side so they are well suited. In addition, there are various aluminum moldings that are adapted to the plates, for example for finishing.
The drawers are quite wide, 57 cm so it gets cramped when they are pulled out, but it is possible with two people in the car, a couple of legs on each side. The slides look somewhat flimsy so the drawers cannot be used for heavy items. I have the same tool cabinet in the garage with lots of heavy tools, but that cabinet stands still. The same cannot be said when driving on a heavily corrugated road.
The drawer section was extensively stiffened before all the unnecessary steel was cut away, and welded into the framework before stiffening was removed. It is important to keep the drawers spaced correctly. At the bottom there is no drawer since the wheel well gets in the way. Instead, a small closet for the heavy items, such as wine bottles. Accommodate at least 12 liters.
The drawers are locked with a square tube from the top to the floor while driving.
Since the drawers are relatively low I made a narrower but higher drawer on the side for pots and such. The drawer is made of one of the tool drawers where I cut out a section in the middle and then welded it back together, and raised it with aluminum plates. The locks used are so-called slam latch locks, purchased from China. At the top it was also planned a drawer, but it became a box since it could be made with a lid at the top.
The framework was welded outside the car. Relatively easy work, but a bit nimble to make it fit with bodywork. It is fastened to the floor with 4 pcs. 8 and 10 mm through bolts with a backing plate on the underside, and with 4 pcs 8 mm bolts in the wall. In cae of a sudden stop this must be firmly secured.
The framework is also designed so the forces of a bang are transferred to floors / walls where there are heavy items stored, such as a gas bottle.
Gas cabinet
The gas cabinet should be airtight. It should also have a 5 cm high threshold at the bottom, be vented at the bottom with a minimum of 5 cm2 opening and also be vented out at the top. (Check local regulations). Holes in the floor is not good if one is to cross deep water, but the plan is to seal the hole with a rubber stopper of the type used to seal hydraulic hoses during service. Service plugs can be purchased on eBay.
The door had to be stiffened with two aluminum profiles to seal well at top and bottom. The seals are window seal lists (P-seal). Hinges from China, locks from two old mailboxes. Inside the cupboard there are hooks to attach a 5 kg bottle. I use German steel bottles, and do also carry an adapter to POL, US standard. It covers quite a few countries in terms of refill.
On the other side of the counter are boxes made of the same bath room plates, while aluminum angles hold it all together. Everything is screwed or popped together. Pop rivets are used where there is no requirement for strength and where there is no need to be able to dismantle to get access for service.
The boxes work as a seating bench, but can also be used as a bed if you do not want to lie up under the roof, as if you are in an exposed place. Then you place the back-rest plate in the aisle and get a usable, if somewhat narrow bed.
Compressor and recovery equipment
On the end wall towards the back door there is a small cupboard with room for compressor and an extra cooker for outdoor use. Here there is also gas outlet for the stove and Anderson contact with 40A course for compressor. It is open to the wheel well so things can be stored here, and it is easily accessible from the outside, as recovery equipment.
Water filter is at the rear of the wheel well for easy access. The filter is Ultracarb from doulton.com. It is recommended by several overlanders and quite affordable. Filtration 0.5 – 0.8 micron, ie it stops most bacteria. Otherwise, Nature Pure is popular, but costs significantly more.
In front is a large box of clothes and such. Under the box there is a 50 liter water tank and diesel heater.
Diesel heater and water
The diesel heater is mounted on the floor with intake of fresh air and exhaust through the floor. Not ideal for deep water crossing, but the only practical option. The heater can be turned 90 degrees, but not the way needed to get exhaust through the wall. Either way, it’s sealed with sealant and high-temperature oven sealant on the underside, and the pipes I plan to plug with service plugs as in the gas cabinet. Anyway it is 80 cm below the floor to ground so it is not often you cross that deep water.
In front there is an inlet for 220 V, ground fault switch / fuse and inverter 12V / 220V. The water pump and accumulator are also mounted in the panels. All of this is accessable for service by removing the drawers and unscrewing a few plates.
Batteries
The batteries in the battery box are strapped to 4 10 mm through bolts in the floor, and locked with aluminum profiles laterally.
The 50 liter water tank is attached in the same way.
It is important to utilize the space. Rear hatch behind wheel well with room for recovery equipment, extension cord and the like which is easy to have easily accessible. The rest of the volume inside the side panels can be accessed through hatches in the boxes. Great for spares, hoses, belts and other things that hopefully you won’t need.
Center console and cup holder
The biggest (and only?) problem with Landcruisers is that they do not have a cup holder. My Troopy does not have a center console either. It is very convenient for papers and small things that otherwise float around.
I made one of 4 2mm aluminum plates popped together. Two 5mm aluminum flat irons stiffens the top. The lid is made of 10mm plywood with a bit from a sleeping pad glued on top and covered with vinyl sheet. On the underside I have screwed a 2 mm steel plate with holes that fit the seat belt bolts. The box is raised 4mm above the mounting plate to get the bolts for the seat belts properly tightened.
