AN ECCENTRIC mechanic has converted a London taxi into a crazy rat-rod van in just seven days. 44-year-old Paul Bacon, from Leicestershire, spent over $600 on a traditional black cab and with the help of some timber, fibreglass and expanding foam he managed to construct a rusty rat-rod that he now uses for work. It took Paul just a week to finish the project – and he admits that he can no longer drive around his local town without receiving a few strange looks.
Video Credits:
Videographer / director: Alex Wilkinson
Producer: Danny Baggott, Ruby Coote
Editor: Thom Johnson
Video Credits:
Videographer / director: Alex Wilkinson
Producer: Danny Baggott, Ruby Coote
Editor: Thom Johnson
Category
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MotorTranscript
00:00A lot of people who first see the van say it looks like something from a horror movie.
00:16The centric car customiser Paul Bacon has created this weird yet wonderful vehicle to act as brand ambassador for his car customising business Cyclone Works.
00:28So the inspiration for this project was just to build something really quick. I needed a van. I wanted that retro sort of cool look.
00:36Initially I was looking at taxis just to use the chassis on a different project but then it occurred to me you know I could convert this into a van.
00:46So then the taxi van even though it looks like it's been quite heavily lowered it's not lowered at all. Suspension's totally standard.
00:53What I've done I've lowered the wheel arch from about just here down to there.
01:00I've really liked cars all of my life particularly sort of custom cars hot rods that sort of thing.
01:06We've got the truck style wing mirrors and we've also got the swamp box at Econ there as well.
01:12Just made out of the back box just from a scrap yard.
01:19Started off in the in my back garden. I basically cut the back of the old taxi off.
01:24Built a timber frame and then started to construct the new shape of the van around that timber frame.
01:31Using dye bond and expanding foam that was finally covered in fiberglass.
01:35Built the taxi van in seven days. The reason it was done in seven days I had seven days free.
01:42I needed a van. That was all the time I had so it had to be done.
01:47So inside the van, first off we've got the seats.
01:51It's the rear seat out of a 1974 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow.
01:57And you know that just went in really easily. Just fitted like it was meant to be.
02:04Under the bonnet of the van. It's a really big heavy bonnet.
02:082.7 Nissan engine that loads of London taxis had.
02:15So the paintwork on the van is it's a sort of a fake rust paint and then it's got some white.
02:21And then that was all tinted over with 2k matte lacquer.
02:28At the moment I've only ever really been up to about 64, 65.
02:32But I'm hoping to break that magical 65 barrier over the next couple of weeks.
02:36You know probably on a nice downhill stretch of road.
02:40Whole process start to finish. Came in at just over a thousand pounds.
02:45The taxi, I got the taxi for about 450 pounds.
02:49It's probably the most usable vehicle I've built.
02:53A lot of people smile, people wave.
02:55People come up and ask a lot of questions about the van.
02:58You know but it always starts every morning.
03:01It always works. I can carry loads of junk in the back.
03:04And you know that's probably all you need from a van really.