The Cadillac Escalade seats are in, 2 captains chairs and behind the driver the 3rd row bench. We should be able to transport 4 people comfortably. Not air seats, but will be better than the well worn bus seat I removed. Late model GM trucks and SUVs have integrated shoulder belts which was an important safety consideration. All seats are bolted down with 1/2" grade 8 hardware and under the floor there are 1/4" thick bars and/or plate washers for pull through security.
After initially trying to use the 3/32 plywood paneling I've used elsewhere in the bus on the ceiling I switched to FRP plastic paneling. The wood just couldn't bend well enough at the edges near the windows. Since the FRP is notoriously difficult to paint I put the shiny textured side up and sanded the dull back side as our ceiling painting surface. After sanding a thorough wipe down with rubbing alcohol all while wearing a good dust mask, the F in FRP stands for fiber so I wanted to process it safely. I also decided to reduce my stress and to have an eventual backing to caulk the gaps I glued a 3" strip (1.5" overhang) to each panel so that the gaps aren't as ugly. I may eventually glue some strips to the ceiling to cover the gaps in a more uniform way but I'll wait for the ceiling paint to decide.
I still need to trim everything out with quarter round molding. Will try to use the PVC stuff since it should bend before breaking.
Also pictured is our 12V LED lighting, 1 in the garage, 1 in the bedroom, 3 in the living area, and 1 up front in the driving area. All are offset to the driver's side so that I don't bang my head walking down the aisle.
Overhead storage in the driving area, the bottom shelf is about 12" deep, divided into two smaller shelves on the passenger side for smaller items. It has USB and 12V power outlets in the upper left hand corner.
Overhead storage is done. Springs or bungees for stops, piano hinges, and spring loaded magnetic closures. Plan to add some small hooks to keep them from opening going down the road.
Under counter drawers complete. Getting the drawer faces to somewhat line up required creative use of shims. For pulls we used 6" cuttings from a poplar limb.
After 16 months all major systems for the conversion are done. Interior paint and trim plus I'm sure a few other odds and ends to come in the future after a few test trips. Thank you all for this site and the wealth of information it contains. I'll post back when I have more stuff to share!
Love your build. Everything is turning out nicely. I have a lot of similar ideas I was planning and I could see how they looked in your build. does your driver seat swivel? I might scavenge for a GM seat too.
Love your build. Everything is turning out nicely. I have a lot of similar ideas I was planning and I could see how they looked in your build. does your driver seat swivel? I might scavenge for a GM seat too.
