Could this UK custom Ford Transit motorhome be bigger?

Anyone can build a custom motorhome. Throw a sleeping bag on your back and you’re good to go, but building a great home away from home takes skill and imagination. In this case, skill and imagination combine to give this already important Ford Transit an upstairs bungalow. Of course, many campers have a raised roof, but this one is permanent. And if you are a supplier of classic Volkswagen vans, this roof may look familiar to you.

This custom campervan build comes to us from Simply Campervan Conversions and we are very impressed. Affectionately called Apollo, the Ford is not short of space and it is before the custom roof. This Transit Jumbo offers two living areas with tables, separated by a convertible rock and roll bench seat that accommodates moving passengers and flattens into a small bed for children.

Further back is the kitchen with two small refrigerators and plenty of counter space, not to mention a stove for cooking. A full bathroom is adjacent to the kitchen, and a smart kennel in the back ensures the safety of furry family members while traveling.

The centerpiece is the roof, which comes from a Volkswagen T25. It fits fairly well at the top of the Transit; it is accessible from the front and contains a large double bed for lying down. Three 100-watt solar panels are installed outside the roof for power supply, and the cabin and water heat comes from separate diesel radiators. Once the roof was permanently attached, the entire exterior was given a matte gray finish, and in fact, it’s pretty refreshing compared to the usual white you see on pickup trucks.

Apollo isn’t quite finished yet, but it’s done enough for a quick vacation. It’s built entirely from the ground up, using salvaged materials for some sections, and it looks quite comfortable on the inside. The build process is featured on the Simply Campervan Conversion YouTube channel, and a new channel called Stearmans on Tour offers a quick video tour (featured above) of the van in its current state.

We’re not sure how high this pickup exactly reaches, but apparently it gets all kinds of attention on the road. In the Facebook post embedded earlier, we see it fitting under the cover of a gas station, so it’s probably not too heavy to handle. Construction certainly uses a lot of available space, and hey, how many people can say their van has a legitimate, full-time upstairs bedroom?