The van that earns its keep.

Both are medium wheelbase MAN TGE conversions, but they’re built for different priorities. The Summit is an open-plan, high-specification two-berth designed around comfortable living — a full kitchen, a super king sliding bed, an indoor shower, and a large off-grid electrical and heating system for extended time away.

Basecamp is built around flexibility and load space. The layout is modular and pared back, the kitchen is compact, and the systems are sized for shorter trips. It’s the right van if you need it to do more than one job — work van one day, weekend camper the next — and the more accessible of the two on price.

Yes. If you already own a suitable MAN TGE, we can carry out the conversion on your vehicle rather than supplying a new one. This is one of the things that makes Basecamp flexible — it suits buyers who already use a van for work and want to add camping capability without buying a second vehicle. Tell us about your base vehicle on a discovery call and we’ll confirm whether it’s suitable.

Two as standard, on the sliding bed. With the pop-top and extra seating added, it sleeps four. The pop-top changes the roofline and the character of the van, so if four-berth use is central to how you’ll travel, it’s worth seeing one in person at the workshop before you decide.

A pop-up shower and a composting toilet come as standard, housed in the bench seat and folding away completely when not in use. There’s also an outdoor shower connection at the rear, useful for rinsing kit, wetsuits, and dogs. If you’d rather carry more people than wash inside, the bench can be swapped for two belted rear seats — and if you want a permanent fixed shower room, the Arroyo and the Mesa are both built around one.

Basecamp runs a Victron electrical system with a 200Ah lithium battery, a 1.8kVA inverter, 50A DC/DC charging from the engine, and solar from 200W. It’s sized for shorter trips and everyday use rather than extended off-grid living, and for most Basecamp owners it’s exactly enough. Additional battery capacity and solar are available if your trips run longer. If extended off-grid endurance is a priority, the Summit’s larger system is worth comparing.

The Truma Combi heating and hot water run from the main diesel tank rather than the battery, which means cold-weather use doesn’t draw down your reserves the way an electric heater would.

Yes. The van is insulated throughout, and the Truma Combi diesel heating provides warm air and hot water from the main fuel tank, with no gas cylinder to run out of. The internal fresh water tank is protected from the cold. For buyers spending significant time off-grid in deep winter, it’s worth discussing the electrical specification on your discovery call.

No. The MAN TGE MWB platform falls within the 3,500kg gross vehicle weight limit covered by a standard Category B driving licence. If you’re planning to drive in Europe, your UK licence is valid across EU member states.

The MAN TGE isn’t the most familiar choice — most people arrive expecting a Sprinter — but it’s the right platform for what we build, and the reasons are practical.

Against the Sprinter, it’s comparable in quality and capability at a slightly lower base price, which means more of your budget goes into the conversion rather than the base vehicle.

Against the VW Crafter, the more important difference is support. The MAN TGE is the commercial vehicle version of the same platform, which means it’s backed by MAN’s truck dealer network — service centres across the UK and throughout Europe. For a van you’re taking seriously into remote places, that network matters in a way it doesn’t for a van that stays close to home.

We’ve driven other platforms. We kept coming back to this one.

The MAN TGE base vehicle comes with a three-year manufacturer warranty through the MAN dealer network across the UK and Europe. The Onyx conversion is covered by a one-year Onyx warranty, and Victron components carry their own manufacturer warranty. Every completed build also comes with a free three-month check-up. For conversion-only builds on a customer’s existing vehicle, the base vehicle warranty depends on the age and history of that vehicle — we’ll cover this on your discovery call.

Yes. Every Basecamp built on a new vehicle goes through an Individual Vehicle Approval process and is registered from new as a motorhome. A panel van registration option is available if preferred — which suits buyers who want to keep the van usable for work — and comes with a small discount on the build price. It’s worth understanding the insurance and usage implications of each before you decide.