Convert camper van from Dacia Jogger – This is a budget-friendly way to turn our family car into a camper van. 

Summer season is almost coming to an end, and we have been enjoying all our camping trips this year. My children dream and are motivated to save every penny for their camper van.

We own a 7-seater Dacia Jogger, which is one of the most affordable modern family car in Europe. Currently, we only need 5 seats and a large car boot. If we have guests over, we can turn the car into a 7-seater. 

After some research for cheap camper vans within our budget, we found out that Dacia Dokker is perfect for camper van conversion. In fact, the Spanish company Camperiz makes a really cool camper van out of Dacia Dokker. Unfortunately, Dokker are no longer produced and Jogger is the best next alternative. 

Why we chose to convert a camper van from our family car?

• Camper vans are expensive in Germany, especially for a family. Most cheaper vans are for couples and have only two seats. This alternative only costs us less than €150, and we can have 2 people sleeping in the van. For more storage space, we place a roof box onto the Jogger. For more sleeping space, a roof tent can be placed instead. 
• Dacia Jogger is suitable to be converted. 
• Even though I dream of a van life, it is not suitable for us. We have a home, and we do not intent to have 2 cars because of storage and cost purposes. Other than that, camper vans can only be used in summer (in our case). 
• The main reason of this decision is that we wanted to have a 2-in-1 solution. On one hand, we can use our car as a usual family car. If we want to go camping spontaneously (since we live near several camping grounds), we can easily convert our family car into a camper van.

Tips to convert a camper van 

You will need

• 2 long wooden feet for the front with 1 side cut slant because the car boot of Dacia Jogger is not flat. Slanted side facing downwards is needed for travelling and transporting the board. Slanted side facing upwards is required for sleeping.
• 2 short wooden feet for the back part of the car boot
• Several small wooden blocks for support and lifting purposes1 stable basket or box for support (when necessary a rectangular wooden block for height and support) 
• A large board for sleeping. 1m x 1m wooden board is sufficient for us. However, if you are taller, you may need a board with extra 5 – 10cm in length.

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How to convert camper van from Dacia Jogger

1. Turn head rest(s) of the rear seats to the opposite side.
2. Fold the rear seats.
3. Put 3 blocks under the rear seats – 2 small blocks on the left and right sides of the seats (C), 1 large block between the single and double rear seats (D).
4. Place 2 long wooden feet against the rear seats on each end, with the slanted sides on the top side (A).
5. Place 2 short wooden feet at the sides of the end of the car boot (B). You may need several small wooden blocks to support the feet, so that we get a 90° angle.
6. Since we do not have any special gears or furniture, we place a basket and some wooden blocks as height to support the bed (F).
7. Gently, place the largest board (E) over the 4 feet and the basket connected to the rear seats. Below there are some space for our tent and all we need for the camping.
8. In order to save storage space, we place 2 camping mats and sleeping bags on top of the bed. A foldable mattress will be an alternative.

How to convert camper van back to a family car

1. Remove the camping mats and sleeping bags. 
2. Turn the 2 longer wooden feet against the rear seats 180° over the other sides. 
3. Shift the largest board towards the end of the car boot. 
4. Remove all the blocks under the feet of the backseats.
5. Fold the back seats back. 
6. Return the head rest(s) to the original position.

We are no van experts. This is the first time, we are taking on such an exciting project! We are really happy the way it turned out and enjoyed our camping holidays. I hope that this will be an inspiration or idea for you, in case you are interested in converting your family car into a camper van. 

Are you a fan of van life, and what do you think of our idea? Share it with me in the comment section below!

Until next time!

Greetings from the Black Forest,
Pia

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