The Roadtrek Nav6 / N6 Active NV Conversions Thread

[WanderlustAV]

Here's a spot to talk about these. 

 

@radin2son  I got ahold of Roadtrek asking about information on these builds and they said they have no information whatsoever.  If another owner was willing to scan up a manual that might be a big help to some.

 

Not the biggest deal though because the build, at least on mine, is mostly real bad and I think most owners are going to gut a lot of it pretty quickly anyhow.   Mine was a prototype so I hope the production models were better made overall.   My advice to anyone looking at one of these is to disregard the RV type components entirely, look at them as work to be done in fact, and focus on the value of an NV with a pop top and a road/crash safe fold out bench bed with belts.  Those two items combined are about 16k and up to install in any van so an N6 can still be a damn good buy if you can find one.

 

To that end I think the biggest assist from owner to owner of these rigs are going to be notes from modifications.  @Phomollient shared an excellent one with me that I'll share here:

"Rerouted the existing 110 wiring and sheath to the rear bumper by removing the inlet socket and then pulling the sheath and wires to gain enough slack.  No need to shorten or lengthen."

 

The running boards are probably going to be up first on anyone's chopping block if they need the van's natural clearance.   Removing them requires relocating the RV hookups.

 

 

 

 

[radin2son]

Quick search came up with videos  and would you believe a Motor Trend review, dated 10/10/2012. Base price was $67k+ to $69k+. Good place to start if interested in buying one. 

 

 

[NVAD]

I have one of these. Mine doesn't have the pop up. Have gone back and forth about selling it. Dont use it as much as I used to. But when I found out Nissan stopped making NV's, I decided to keep it. There isn't a van out there that compares. Ive heard it called a stealth camper. People who like them, LOVE them, and I love this thing. Its built like a tank and has been the most reliable vehicle Ive ever owned. 150,000 miles and it runs like a charm with just routine maintenance. Keeping it for now. Maybe forever. Never came with a RT manual. Dont think RT made one. I bought it to use as a bare bones camper. 

 

First thing that went was the 2nd row of captains chairs. The fridge was ridiculous. I converted that to an icebox with a drain at the bottom. It holds a block of ice perfectly. I keep the fridge compressor because whenever I look at it, it makes me laugh. I set it up so it only runs when the vehicle is running and it helps make a block of ice last a little longer. I do mostly boon docking. The running boards are a death trap. Was going to toss them until I found out they cost about a thousand dollars. I still want to replace them, but haven't found any safe full length van running boards for both sides. Most van running boards have just a half length board on the drivers side. The clearance doesn't bother me. Installed a roof vent, a necessity when camping. Haven't changed too much else. Had to reupholster the seats. The faux leather it came with isn't material. Its crepe paper. Will be putting in a solar system this Winter.

 

No, it doesn't have a bathroom. But Ive worked on RV toilets before. Im happy to have one less thing to maintain.

 

I asked RT how many were made. Their reply was, "theres no way of knowing that". I thought it must be a secret. Will be curious how many RT NV owners show up here.

 

Edited August 14, 2021 by NVAD

[WanderlustAV]

@NVAD  That's a pretty dang good idea for the weird fridge, would be an excellent beer cooler that way.  I'm fixing to pull out the whole galley unit at this point since none of it works/makes sense but I like yer style.

 

We pulled one of the captain's so far, you know the one that prevents entering or exiting the vehicle through the sliding door.  Pretty spacious in there now!  Second captains chair will probably go too if I rebuild the galley.   Props to the mysterious builders at roadtrek for installing those chairs securely though- 6 bolts through a solid plate all the way through the floor with proper nuts and washers.  Lotta pb blaster and still had to cut a pair of bolts to get that seat out finally. 

 

Anybody come up with a decent solution for bug free down stairs ventilation on these?  Tempted to see if there's a slider unit that could be installed to replace the driver's side mid window, or the back ones but that's gonna cost a little fortune I imagine.   My other thought was to put a screened ventilation setup on the bottom opening mid window behind the driver that would draw air down thru the pop top windows.  Not a fan of inoperable windows in cars but I'm spoiled with our other rigs I guess. 

[radin2son]

The problem with NVs always has been too few on the road, so not a lot of motivation to produce aftermarket products. Soon, there will only be used NVs on the road. Even less motivation...

 

I assume you mean widows not screens when camping. CR Lawrence windows with bottom screens are a good product. Check for reduced prices. There are other manufacture as well. I don’t recall what windows are in the N6 listed for sale below. Conversiontrader is good for product ideas and solutions. Fit is another story. 

 

I doubt there are any screened windows for the rear fixed windows. I know econoline owners are looking for the “tilt” opening rear door windows. GM has a similar window but with more glass. That would be a good option for NVs but not with the current glass option. This might with NVs with no rear glass. 

 

When camping, Skeaterbeater screens work well. They make a durable rear screen. Tight fit and depending on how much exposed metal (held in place by magnates) there is the rear door area you have to remove the screen to close the doors. I don’t believe any one makes a sliding door screen for standard top NVs. We made our own. Their driver/passenger door screens work well. 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 17, 2021 by radin2son

[NVAD]

Ive been meaning to look for a replacement window for the galley area Drivers side. Would love something with a screen that slides. Thanks @radin2son for the CR Lawrence tip. Appreciate it.

 

RT modeled the N6 after the old VW Westfalias. Having had a Westfalia, the biggest differences I see are the Westfalias camping equipment far exceeds RT’s. There are some 40 year old Westfalias out there with original stove, fridge, etc., still working. I do have to say the Nissan beats Volkswagon hands down though. No comparison. Volkswagon… carry a lot of spares and tools. Nissan… bring an extra key. Much happier with the Nissans heavy duty build and reliability. 

 

@wanderlustAV the 2nd row captains chair on drivers side sits above the gas tank. If you remove it you either have to drop the gas tank or cut a few or all of the bolts. Takes patience. 
 

I replaced the original 2 USA brand 6 volt AGM batteries. Mostly due to my own negligence. Hence the solar system going in this Winter with a good charge controller so I dont cook my batteries or drain them. I went with Lifeline AGM. Theyre okay. Would appreciate any advice about a better brand.

 

Im going with one 100 watt solar panel. I dont use anything that draws a lot of electricity, so I think one 100 watt panel will be enough. I can always connect another panel if it isnt enough. Just need to have roof space. We’ll see how this goes this Winter. This will be my first solar installation. Im sure Im going to learn a lot.

 

Im on my 3rd set of tires. What brand of tires are you running on these? 
 

Thanks for this thread.

 

 

[radin2son]

Eurocampers.com has or had a limited selection of NV aftermarket parts including CR Lawrence windows, passenger and driver side. Laharview has posts on diy install.  

[WanderlustAV]

Yeah, screened windows.  The CRL ones do look nice, there's even a pass side option.  Doing both pass and driver side would supply a lot of air and convection up thru the pop top or when using a vent fan.   I can't tell if you can leave them open while parked and be secure but, if you could, I think these would be top of my list.  

 

Also found screens from vanupgrades that have a magnetic split closure.  

 

If anyone hasn't done them already the OEM rainguards help a bit and are good quality.

 

The aluminess NV stuff looks super nice but so much coin.  Love me some swingouts though.   I'm a fan of having a garage outside a rig for all the stuff you just don't want in there but I don't like trasharoos or simlar because bears. 

 

BFG KO2s.  Oversized for an extra inch of clearance.   Like 'em so far. 

 

Westy's are perfect to me in terms of layout, size and aesthetic and I love my late 80s/early 90s vehicles;  just can't pay that much for an unreliable rig though.   The n6 interior is weird in a not fun way and terrible in terms of function imo, not to mention utterly lacking any style of it's own.  I'm shocked that nobody is building a modern, production version of the westy's though- how hard can it be to add that as an option to any of the vans being sold by dealers already?   Must not be profitable or whatever.  I see Metris vans for 98k with a weekender layout.  Like everything about that except the mercedes part and lack of awd option on a nearly 100k rig. 

 

I plan on looking into self heated lithium batts to replace my agms eventually, depending on how they would jive with the overall electrical system.  Would be a serious foundation for house power, imo.  My guess is you'll get a lot more amp hours out of a lithiums stuffed into the available space.   Fresh AGMs are probably more than enough though and way more cost effective.  Did you get more amp hours do you think after updating them?

[radin2son]

Anyone who has owned a Westy, has loved, hated and adapted to a great camper van. Our NV interior layout is exactly the same as our ‘83 Vanagan. This time with rear storage rather than an engine. Overall more room, but organization is still required. 

Edited August 19, 2021 by radin2son

[NVAD]

On 8/18/2021 at 7:31 PM, WanderlustAV said:

… Did you get more amp hours do you think after updating them?

The original USA brand batteries the N6 came with were better than the Lifeline brand I replaced them with. 

[Rikkitom]

Have a Nissan N6 that doesn't have a pop top. Does anyone know what the cost of adding the pop to it since these already have a convertible type cap? On a regular NV2500 or 3500 can get up to 15k. I don't feel like it would be that much with the conversion roof installed the way it is. Unless it was welded on.

[N6ADV]

Thanks for starting this thread! 
Hi! We are picking up a 2013 N6 in a couple of weeks. Super excited for a dependable van with a westy set up. We plan to make it our own style, and go exploring. 
Has anyone mounted a max fan or similar in theirs? Also, anyone mounted roof racks or solar panels on the pop top? 

[radin2son]

N6ADV One issue would be weight. There should be info on this that came with the van.

 

Our pop top, different style and manual, supposedly has a 100 pound limit. That added weight would make it more difficult to push up manually.

 

Issues with roof racks include getting to whatever is up there, less mpg and how strong is the latch system to hold the roof in place. (Sportsmobile had to beef up the latches after an accident.) 

 

You may not need a fan if the ventilation is adequate. Our van has 5 windows, Colorado Camper has 6. 

 

Enjoy your NV. 

[radin2son]

Vanlifers has an article on the best roof fans and a guide to installing a fan. 

 

N6AVD If you don’t go with a roof rack, Yakima has a hitch mounted dual level rack. The bottom will hold a box and the upper has a variety of mount options. Expensive but can be removed when not needed. Requires a 2” hitch receiver. Swings away to right side to get access to rear doors. One complaint has been the door or hatch not clearing the bottom part of the hitch.  

 

We had a hitch mounted bike rack that swung down. Always in the way, down or up. Made a great towel rack when using the outdoor shower. Gave the rack away; the previous owner gave it to us. 

 

 

[WanderlustAV]

On 1/8/2022 at 10:18 AM, N6ADV said:

Thanks for starting this thread! 
Hi! We are picking up a 2013 N6 in a couple of weeks. Super excited for a dependable van with a westy set up. We plan to make it our own style, and go exploring. 
Has anyone mounted a max fan or similar in theirs? Also, anyone mounted roof racks or solar panels on the pop top? 

Super late reply here but I looked at one in ID that the owner had put racks on (and a side ladder for access) and he had no issues.   The lifts for the pop top are 12v motors and should have enough grunt for a bit more weight.  However, I recommend getting in there to inspect the lifts as I found mine had some sloppy welds where they mount (one was totally broken off) and needed reinforcement.   My recommendation would be flexible solar where it fits easily + maxxair fan up there and skip the racks.   

 

Has anyone retrofitted heated lithium into the battery bank?  I made a hard attempt at getting a very nice Battle Born GC3 format in there but it sadly did not fit despite my efforts.  Regrouping and planning to put in 2x GC2 or similar.  When I tested the GC3 that didn't fit it made my led lights flicker.  Concerned that the next battery might do the same and curious if anyone's been down this road already.    I'm not sure what would cause that and I'm pretty sure I can't fit another brand of inverter/charger where that tripplite is shoehorned.  

[WanderlustAV]

Well I guess I could've googled the flickering issue before posting....looks like the higher voltage of lithium causes flickering to occur with cheaper LEDs.   Answering my own question here- probably need to upgrade the led pucks (which are harsh imo anyways) if upgrading the battery array.   Could also wire resistors into the lighting circuit I suppose.

 

While the N6 has a lot of great value built into the build of the van I think I've spent more time trying to sort out which way to go when updating components than I have doing the actual work to update them, lol.  The build is very specific to nightly, plug in camping.   

[radin2son]

The combination of pop top and NV have diy potential for great long term use. Low profile and sleeps 4. 

[AdventureMartens]

Hey there.  New owners of a 2012 N6 - modded with a Thule roof rack and rear ladder, Dometic fridge/freezer. 

Pop top version.  Beautiful condition for ~90k miles.  

Plan to use it for our weekend adventures, boat hauler, and family road trip wagon from our home base in Vancouver, BC.

Stoked to start modding it out for our family.

 

Invitation: If anyone's interested in the import/export process into Canada, I learned a lot and am happy to share...

 

A few initial Q's:  

1. The rear bench seems to have a large gap between the bottom and the back?  Like 4-5" of open space where the seatbelts fall down. The belt retractors don't work properly either, but I suspect it's due to being pinched by the rear bed extender.   

I've played around with the folding mechanisms but can't seem to figure out how this is supposed to work or whether there's a slide.  When in bed mode, everything fits perfectly and it's a remarkably comfy bed.  But in seat mode, the seat belts are useless, and the seats are terribly uncomfortable since the back isn't in the right position.  Any tips or video's of how this is supposed to fold or latch?  Pics online all look different (no gap), than my setup.

 

2.  Awnings.  Anyone figured out how to add a nice Fiamma or ABS awning to this low roof?  
 

3.  Any pics on how folks have modded the useless sink & storage section?  

4.  Power - any recommended mods to the inverters, solar, etc? 

 

Thx for the help.  

 

[Local Apparent Friday]

Welcome to the forums!  

[radin2son]

Welcome as well. 

 

Post some photos of the problem areas. 

 

Re awning. Does the pop top in the  down position cover the existing roof mounts? If so, adding awning mounts could interfere with the seal. My guess is that the canvas keeps the water out. Regardless, you will probably have to fabricate mounts or drill holes. There is enough height if the awning is flat.

 

Enjoy your van. 

[WanderlustAV]

Howdy!   

 

That's sad to hear the seats and belts in the production models are just as rough as on my prototype model.   They do function but the belts are dumb and the comfort of the bench is pretty bad.  Solution for the belts is to have the rear bed portion lifted up when buckling (very annoying).  The bench will need padding added to it to gain any comfort.  My version's bench also has a nice thunky rattle from the hardware.  It is a very comfy bed tho!

 

Awning mounts will need to be a bolt through the skin.  I have another, very different, pop top a '94 Delica that has curved bracket mounts that the pop top falls over.  They're glued on.  Could possibly have someone manufacture something like that.  If putting an awning on this van I'd definitely go w a 270.

 

This "sink" is a hoot.  I haven't but would recommend deleting the micro and putting a deeper one in as a fairly straightforward solution.  Otherwise, not much point in using it or the water supply.  I think you could pretty easily add a regular 12v water pump and an aquatainer to the water jug storage area and get a nice, functional faucet but not much point with that silly sink. 

 

I tried to drop in self heating lithium and found a lot of work needed downstream- got flickering led puck lights for instance, presumably due to the higher voltage.  Those pucks would probably need replaced with better spec lights to make lithium work.  I can't find an upgrade charger/inverter that would fit in that area where the tripplite is shoehorned in.   This is where this build can feel very all or nothing when determining how to approach it.   Reworking the electrical area to accommodate a more modern charger/inverter with MPPT, properly hardwiring that charger/inverter instead of using plugs, upgrading the puck lights, junk 12v and 110v receptacles (and adding usb), cleaning up the wiring while yer in there and dropping 2k on heated lithium would bring the van up to speed.   That's a lot of time and cash but seeing as the basic wiring is already in place it would still be a bangin' deal for what you would get.   You would still have all the 110v to deal with which is going to draw hard on 200ah of lithium but might make it usable off grid. 

 

My struggle with this van has been the above + all the 110v appliances.  It's simply made to be plugged in at camp.  My solution is to clean up what I can while honoring it's original design intent as a plug in class B.  Adding a 12v dometic fridge has been a great addition to allow boondocking and provide a center arm rest. 

 

Taking it much further is a decent size can of worms.  I tallied up around 10k to gut the galley, add windows, ventilation, electrical upgrade and bring it fully into a 4 season build I would use personally.  Again, still a very good bargain but a lot of time and work.   I've settled on leaving this as a 3 season rig designed to be plugged in or driven daily but able to boondock a little when desired thanks to the 12v fridge.  Not my personal cup of tea but it's a popular rental rig for my company as is.   

[radin2son]

The N6 is more of a mystery than our Sportsmobile. SMB built NVs with 2 floor plans and no options beyond what Nissan offered. 

 

Has as anyone pulled up the Motor Trend review from 10/2012? I don’t recall if it shed any light on options. I assumed all N6’s came with a pop top. 4 captains chairs was a surprise. Could account for the sofa seat belt issue. Never intended for use? Seats 7, sleeps 4. 

 

Definitely a weekender in its current design. 

 

 

 

 

 

[WanderlustAV]

The pass side 2nd row captains chair made it comically difficult to get in the van so I pulled it.  Nice and roomy now.

 

Fantastic concept for a weekender layout- the production models had swivel fronts so that you could have a dinette and still leave both beds out -just poor execution.   If the bench had belting for three and the pass side captains was located better you'd have a real minivan seating capacity of 7 for daily driving.  

[radin2son]

The motor trend review says 20” rims and Quigley 4x4 were options. 

 

16.2 mpg over 500 miles. 

 

Worth a read if if considering this van. 

Edited August 30, 2022 by radin2son

[AdventureMartens]

Yes I've got the 20" rims.  Definitely not getting 16.2 mpg, closer to 11 in the city.  15 highway.  

 

I'm hoping to make this a rad weekender - have owned many Westy's in the past.  

 

Here are some pics of the ladder, Thule rack, domestic reefer, and rear bench gap.   Also my boat trailer

I'd like to add a seatbelt to make the bench a 3-seater, but I think something up with that bench...

 

Any ideas?