A 20+ year love affair with a worthless old modified Vauxhall van

Friday at 18:27

Alternative titles:

Only 20% original parts

Turning a mundane old van into a hot-hatch track weapon

Modifying a Vauxhall Combo Van

The invincible Isuzu mechanical diesel engine

The Beginning - why I have a van.

Firstly, we have to go back in time, to when I was a Music Tech student at Derby University from 1999 - 2002. My parents have been separated for nearly all of my life, so I learnt to drive in my instructor's Nissan Micra, my Mum's Toyota Corolla, and my Dad's Ford Escort. My Dad also owned an Austin Maestro van for his painting and decorating business. I used to borrow either of my Dad's vehicles whenever I went to see him, and return it two weekends later. I always thought the van was cool because you could get so much stuff inside it, which as a musician meant throwing guitars and keyboards in the back, and being useful to friends. Imagine my joy and surprise when on my 20th birthday, the Maestro van became mine. Also bear in mind that this was already a 12 year old vehicle with an A-series petrol engine, and a 4 speed gearbox, and instead of pottering around South London, it was now being ragged by a spotty youth up the motorway to student gigs. Being young and owning a van though is a really quick way to make friends, and NGL, I loved it. I did what any self respecting 20-year old would do, and fitted bigger speakers, a tape to aux adapter for my portable CD player, and never checked the oil level or tyre pressures.

2 years later, when driving the Maestro van to work up some Surrey country lanes, I failed to allow for the slippery conditions, my lack of talent, or lack of ABS, and crashed corner to corner with an oncoming Honda Civic. As both were 10+ year old vehicles, both insurance companies declared a write-off. I was genuinely distressed when the recovery driver started my van and revved the nuts off it dragging the damaged front-left wheel and strut at an unnatural angle on to the flat bed of his recovery truck.

My first Vauxhall van

My Dad accepted it's fate though as it had needed constant welding in recent years. I doubt he could have sold it to anyone so giving it to me solved a problem! As a musician though I definitely wanted another van, not a boring normal car. One of his builder mates was selling a common-as-muck reliable Vauxhall Combo van, the one with the engine so good Vauxhall couldn't even make their own and instead sourced an Isuzu small truck naturally aspirated mechanical diesel from the GM family. At £2200 for a 5 year old van, this is still the most I've ever paid for a vehicle. I was now white-van-man! I had my Dad's carpenter mate fit the insides of the back of the van with plywood so I could attach stuff to the inside. (or something. I'm really not sure why). I made more friends with other musicians and went took their gear to their gigs for fuel money with dangerous loads and people sitting amongst the gear in the back.

I loved it. I did what any self respecting 25-year old would do, and spent my hard earnings on a custom subwoofer and component speaker install with an Alpine head unit and never checked the oil level or tyre pressures. Fun fact, I still have this exact sound system now. Then I started modifying in the only way I knew - adding electronics and gadgets. I made a handsfree phone system way before these were popular, by hacking apart a set of earbuds with the in-line mic, fitting the mic into the sun visor, and connecting the earbuds output to the aux on the head unit. On my early smartphones - Sony Ericsson P800, P910, I even had a TomTom app. In the back, I carpeted the floor, and had a leisure battery and inverter fitted so I could do cool useless things like have an electric jam session in a park. None of these people are me, just my cool friends.

Way before smartphones had decent storage for music, and because I didn't want an iPod, I built a mini PC to act as a music server to run off the leisure battery. Someone had already realised a similar niche and made a remote control app for the above Sony Ericsson phone so I could control the music server from my phone.

I loved camping in my van, and took it on a road trip tour of the South of England visiting friends and family.

Here I am up a Welsh mountain:

My second Vauxhall van

I don't remember anything important mechanical events happening for the next 5 years, until suddenly one day it just stalled at a junction, and wouldn't start again. Knowing nothing about engines at the time, I had the vehicle recovered and was told it something complicated with the injection pump that would need the engine removed and sent to a diesel specialist. Basically not worth it with an old van. So disappointingly, I need to hunt for a new van. With all my interior gadgets the most economical option I could think of was to find the same model again. The last model year for this body shape was 2001, but even in 2009 they were still easy to find. A bit of internet hunting revealed a 2001 model with the same 1.7 Isuzu n/a diesel, but in an unusual dark blue which I had always thought was more cool than white. I took a mechanic with me to make sure I wasn't buying a lemon, and drove it home.

The next stop was my friendly auto electrician who had fitted the leisure battery to help me transplant all my gadgets. I towed my old van with the new van, forcing my Mum to steer, whilst wrapped in a 12v electric blanket running of the leisure battery.

Over the next week, the auto electrician and I moved over the plywood boards, curtains, leisure battery, split charger, inverter, sound system, my bodged handsfree kit, and an aftermarket alarm and remote central locking I had installed a few years prior. Now I had a blue van that was the same as the white van.

I'm a mechanic

Again I just drove it without caring about mechanical stuff until a neighbour showed me how easy it was to change oil and filters on a vehicle, especially one as basic as this. What a revelation, I thought! Now I never need to pay anyone for an annual service. I probably starting caring about checking the oil and tyre pressures from this point.

My next challenge was to replace a leaky radiator. I checked with my local garage that it really was as simple as detach all the hoses, make a mess on the ground, unbolt the old radiator, replace it, connect everything and fill 'er up. Success! I was now a DIY mechanic! Over the next few years, I even changed a timing belt and water pump, brake pads, discs, shoes, drums etc.

I doubt anything else interesting happened until 2016. I had been dreaming of something more fun to drive for ages. This van was dependable, but with just 59bhp every manoeuvre required a mile's forward planning, and I was a liability on the outside lane of the motorway. Sure this is all fun with something with deliberate character like a 2CV or a Series Landy, but this van was plain boring. People swap engines in cars, right? But everyone I mentioned that idea to said it would be a waste of time. That is until my Mum met her current partner - Alan. He thought it was a great idea, providing I did the research!

The first major modification

So Vauxhall designed the Combo B based on the Corsa B. Now what is a Combo A? Firstly a Corsa A was known as the Nova in the UK. Hardly a secret I know, but the Combo name first came from the Opel Kadett Combo. This was the A model, branded as the Vauxhall (or Bedford) AstraMax in the UK. Curiously the Corsa B came with a range of exciting petrol engines from 1.0 to 1.6, and diesels sourced from Isuzu consisting of the 1.5 n/a, 1.5TD, and 1.7 n/a. The van though just got the 1.4 petrol or the 1.7 diesel. No turbos, no 16v, nothing exciting. Externally though, all the Isuzu diesels are identical: Same engine mounts, same gearbox, and with the only electronics being a timer for the glow plugs, and a fuel solenoid on the injection pump, trivial to swap. I sourced a 1.5 TD and spent a weekend servicing it on an engine stand. Here is the donor engine in the car I bought it from, and in my next post, we will find out if the engine swap was a success!

5,584 · Friday at 19:25

This thread reads like my own retrospective, but with more competency and less FAILURE.

27,575 · Friday at 21:44

I had a Corsa B with the 1.5TD engine. It was a laugh. Very old school turbo - foot down, count to three, theeeeeere's the torque. It desperately needed wider tyres as it would just smoke the inside tyre if the turbo woke up halfway round a roundabout or junction.

Had 150K miles on the clock when the car was scrapped by the owner after me due to terminal rust, still running like the day it was made.

11,415 · Friday at 22:21

MORE

(Obvs in your own good time)

14,524 · Friday at 22:50

Astramax were widely regarded as the fastest things on the road. This is a new level, top work.

27,610 · 2025-04-26T06:31:01Z

I had a combo B once and loved it, there is something about bombing around in a 2 seater car derived van that is just fantastic.

2,819 · 2025-04-26T07:29:15Z

8 hours ago, High Jetter said:

Astramax were widely regarded as the fastest things on the road. This is a new level, top work.

I fondly remember the ancient Astravan I had for a year or so (company vehicle). There's a bump in the road between Nairn and Grantown that would have the thing airborne every time... there was the double crash, first as the van landed, and then the second as all the tools in the back touched down again!

It was the Isuzu engine, and it was genuinely rapid. I don't even know who makes what van these days, they're all the same and seemingly... all shite.

2,819 · 2025-04-26T07:29:56Z

Forgot to say, great read OP, cheers 👍

2025-04-26T08:27:22Z

On 4/25/2025 at 8:25 PM, Sir Snipes said:

This thread reads like my own retrospective, but with more competency and less FAILURE.

You need to commit to the long haul, that way you'll be so in over your head that you can't admit failure. I would hate to have to add up what I've spent on this van over the last 15 years. I have to add up the cost of repairs and improvements to my 924 regularly for agreed value insurance, and it's eye watering, and that's on a car with some proper value.

On 4/25/2025 at 10:44 PM, Zelandeth said:

I had a Corsa B with the 1.5TD engine. It was a laugh. Very old school turbo - foot down, count to three, theeeeeere's the torque. It desperately needed wider tyres as it would just smoke the inside tyre if the turbo woke up halfway round a roundabout or junction.

Had 150K miles on the clock when the car was scrapped by the owner after me due to terminal rust, still running like the day it was made.

I've had this problem as well. Wider tyres aren't very achievable in the narrow front wings, so I've gone for stickier tyres instead, as you'll see later in the story.

On 4/26/2025 at 7:31 AM, Dave_Q said:

I had a combo B once and loved it, there is something about bombing around in a 2 seater car derived van that is just fantastic.

There's just hardly any car derived vans now. All bespoke van platforms.

On 4/26/2025 at 8:29 AM, TrabbieRonnie said:

I fondly remember the ancient Astravan I had for a year or so (company vehicle). There's a bump in the road between Nairn and Grantown that would have the thing airborne every time... there was the double crash, first as the van landed, and then the second as all the tools in the back touched down again!

It was the Isuzu engine, and it was genuinely rapid. I don't even know who makes what van these days, they're all the same and seemingly... all shite.

The latest Combo van isn't even a Vauxhall or Opel, it's a rebadged Fiat, but the Isuzu engine did live on into the Combo C with a 16v head. Not bad a for a small truck engine from the 80's.

11,940 · 2025-04-26T08:41:21Z

@TrabbieRonnie.. "There's a bump in the road between Nairn and Grantown that would have the thing airborne every time... there was the double crash, first as the van landed, and then the second as all the tools in the back touched down again!"

I used to do runs up 'the borders', from Tyneside, in my WVM days....

Anyone who knows the A68, near the reservoir...

... knows the 'flat out >> hump!!' which is really Zero G 👀.

🚙💨

2025-04-26T08:53:14Z

So before we go forward, I'm going to have to back track and add a few things I forgot above. I could edit the post, but it might not make sense.

Maestro van problems

I had forgotten I had two problems with this van. One was too much heat, one was a lack of it. With only a measly 4 speed gearbox designed for pottering around town, at motorway speeds it would overheat and cut out if driven over 70mph. Long journeys didn't need to be that challenging.

Then the blower fan stopped working, which seemed to be integrated into the heater matrix and stuff I didn't understand. Anyway, I pulled the entire dashboard out one Saturday with absolutely no clue as to what I was doing, found the HVAC unit and removed it. What I didn't anticipate was that the heater matrix is part of the engine cooling system (obvs now!), so my plumber neighbour made a loop to close up the cooling system, and I drove it around for a week with no dashboard, the gauge cluster balanced on top of the steering column, with two holes in the floor for the heater matrix, in winter, with gloves on.

Then it was off to the local scrapyard. This was about 2002 when scrapyards were still old school - cars balanced on top of each other 3 high, no high viz or safety rules. Just walk in, they inspect your tool kit, and you go and rip off parts from other cars, then present it back at reception where a random price is agreed. I found another Maestro without any problems (try that now), and liberated the part in no time with my new found experience. Fitted it back to my van the next day and it worked for the rest of my ownership.

The irrational love affair begins

A week into owning the blue Combo I realised I missed the electric windows of the white one. The blue one was full poverty spec: keep fit windows and no rear demister (there can't have been any other options surely?). So I went back to the auto electrician's yard where we had already abandoned it, and relinquished the door cards, regulators and motors. Of course I had hoped my blue one would have the wiring loom in place for leccy windows. Surely it wouldn't make sense for Vauxhall to customise each wiring loom? Alas I was wrong. My mate from Uni was coming to visit though and he's a dab hand in DIY electronics, so he sat on the ground for the afternoon with my gas soldering iron, the Haynes manual, and a bag of wires and heatshrink, and MADE A WIRING LOOM! It still works to this day, although I've had to add extra protection where it pokes through the holes in the door hinges.

Way before I had the chance to do my dream engine swap, I had fitted heated leather seats from a Calibra (all share the same seat mounts and rails), had the clutch fork break at a junction so I learnt to change gears without the clutch, and I paid my local body shop for a "quick blow over", which turned into an immaculate respray. The local body shop was literally just up the road from me, and we had become good mutual customers, so I got mates' rates too.

Before