Installing Westfalia Pop-top in a Chevy Express

[Cowboy]

Originally Posted by Dentedvw

Having seen this conversion in person, I can vouch for the WTFalia and the feeling of "why didn't I think of that?"

Hey Mike! Why am I not at all surprised to see you posting in this forum? I hope your presence here means there's a new camper project in the works! (I guess it could solve your housing problems if it's as big as your last one!)

[Monkeyman]

Originally Posted by bettyford

I finished mine last Monday did you see the pictures? I all so think that shaping the VW top to fit the Van top is the way to go, the part you will be shaping has nothing to do with how tight the canvas will be. its just the edge of the fiberglass, I shaped my first about 3in to fit my old Ford. this one was only about 1.5in for the Chevy. Please let me know if I could be of any help. This picture was before i screwed the tent down more of the install on my threat "Betty White Pop Top install".
Ron

Only this pic loaded. None of the others on the thread would load. I was wondering if you could send me some photos? I'm thinking about doing the vw pop top. I have found one for a t2-3 or one from a t4. Do you think one would contour the roof better? The t4 looks to possibly be a little flatter.

[JWA]

This thread was last updated way back in 2011--could be some of the folks here have moved on.

[Monkeyman]

Originally Posted by JWA

This thread was last updated way back in 2011--could be some of the folks here have moved on.

I know. Cant hurt to try lol

[86Scotty]

VW tops are easy to mount in anything. Finding the tops is the problem. If you decide to bail on this project let me know where they are and I will buy them all.

[Monkeyman]

Originally Posted by 86Scotty

VW tops are easy to mount in anything. Finding the tops is the problem. If you decide to bail on this project let me know where they are and I will buy them all.

I'm just trying to decide what one to go with. The type 2 with the little luggage rack up front or the eurovan one. If I end up coming across anymore I will let you know. I can tell they are kinda hard to find by my searches.

[campism]

Transplanting Vanagon Westy roofs is done all the time in the Vanagon community when a tintop owner wants a poptop. Sounds like you guys are doing the "easy" route of just moving the poptop and hardware over. What the hardcore guys do is a roof transplant in order to get the specialized bed structure for use with the poptop, either by cutting through the roof pillars or by drilling out the umpty-zillion welds holding the roof sheetmetal to the body structure and moving the roof skin from the donor over to the project vehicle. Either way, you get everything for the poptop already in alignment.

For use on a non-Vanagon you'd probably want to do the skin job so that you could place this on your own roof and cut out the appropriate area to be replaced and weld in the new.

If anyone is looking for Westy roofs, either from Vanagons or the earlier Bay vans, I know of a few in some VW-specific junkyards in Virginia and Maryland. In my experience the Eurovans are harder to find.

[campism]

Vanagon Westy complete poptop ONLY in NY.

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...50817065233616

[Monkeyman]

Originally Posted by campism

Transplanting Vanagon Westy roofs is done all the time in the Vanagon community when a tintop owner wants a poptop. Sounds like you guys are doing the "easy" route of just moving the poptop and hardware over. What the hardcore guys do is a roof transplant in order to get the specialized bed structure for use with the poptop, either by cutting through the roof pillars or by drilling out the umpty-zillion welds holding the roof sheetmetal to the body structure and moving the roof skin from the donor over to the project vehicle. Either way, you get everything for the poptop already in alignment.

For use on a non-Vanagon you'd probably want to do the skin job so that you could place this on your own roof and cut out the appropriate area to be replaced and weld in the new.

If anyone is looking for Westy roofs, either from Vanagons or the earlier Bay vans, I know of a few in some VW-specific junkyards in Virginia and Maryland. In my experience the Eurovans are harder to find.

Thank you for the input. Do you feel as one of the roofs would be better then the other as a transplant on the Express van? The eurovan seems to be a bit lower profile? But would be cool to have the litte luggage rack on the front from the t2

[campism]

My only user experience is with the Vanagon. The luggage rack is handy; we use it to hold occasional items that we know won't be used every stop (bagged screen room, hibachi, and other items that just seem to take up valuable interior space) but we could live without it. Other Vanagon guys have decided the same thing and have done away with the luggage rack and actually extended the pop portion to extend the roof's full length, but this requires a new, longer canvas to be fully appreciated. They use the luggage part; they skin over the depression area to make it a full-height top section and blend it into the main part. A lot of work, but some of us are nuts and more energetic than the rest. Pic and project roof below from user Howesight on thesamba.com.


I like the look of the Eurovan roof, sleeker and lower profile but harder to find. PleasureWay essentially copied it for their Traverse line but it's a shorty poptop like a Vanagon uses, ending behind the front seats, while the Eurovan is full-roof length. I think your selection will come down to which poptop you can actually find. Vanagons are most plentiful and probably the cheapest but you might luck out and find an EV. Check the Samba EV classifieds. Note: There's a seller in Pahrump NV with a less-than-stellar rep.
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/cat.php?id=76

Some Type/T nomenclature: All VW vans are Type 2, the Transporter; the Beetle was Type 1. The various versions of the Transporter are the T vans; the original split was T1, the Bay (or loaf) bus was the T2, the Vanagon was the T3, etc. So, a Vanagon would technicallly be a Type 2 T3. It can be confusing.