How does two-time world downhill champion Danny Hart get to the trails in style? How about a £150k custom van conversion with slide out bike rack, kitchenette, cosy bed, and power to charge his e-bikes. Danny’s fully tricked out Volkswagen Crafter conversion was one of three totally cool MTB-specific builds on display at the 2025 Caravan, Camping and Motorhome Show, held at the NEC Birmingham, recently.

It’ll come as news to no one that van conversions have become massively popular in the last few years, particularly since Covid, and mountain bikers are a huge market for the specialist fitters that have sprung up to meet this demand. With a thirst for adventure, the desire to be self-sufficient in the middle of nowhere, and a need to accommodate bikes and kit, loads of mountain bikers are trying to design and build the ultimate bike-friendly set-up.

Danny Hart’s Custom Dirty Weekender van

Danny Hart’s Dirty Weekender custom VW Crafter

The first van to catch my eye was two-time UCI Mountain Bike DH World Champion Danny Hart’s new van. This custom build uses a medium wheelbase Volkswagen Crafter, and was so hot off the press that Danny hadn’t even received the keys yet. In fact he was due to pick it up from the NEC and drive it home once the show was over.

As a professional downhill mountain bike racer, it’s no surprise that a lot of time and effort has been spent on getting the garage and bike space just right for Danny’s needs. So it has a really cool pull-out rack with space for three bikes, plus spares and accessories, as well as onboard charging for an e-bike.

But with the bikes on the floor, there’s still room above for a snug double bed arrangement forward of the bulkhead. One cool feature being the flared panels that give some extra width to the bed. So there’s enough space for the whole family over a race weekend. In the front there’s also a fridge – for all the Monster cans – a sink and loads of storage.

CJL Leisure MAN van conversion

CJL Leasure MAN TGE conversion

Arguably the highlight of the show for me was the CJL Leisure stealth-luxury conversion. It has everything I could possibly want as a professional bike tester, with room to carry up to six bikes thanks to a clever rail system, and a fold-out wetroom design for cleaning down after a muddy ride. Being sealed, means no smelling like a wet dog on the way home, either.

CJL has used a low-roof MAN TGE 3.18 for the conversion, and Cye Hayes from CJL Leisure told me there’s sufficient power on tap to charge several e-bikes and make a brew thanks to the 12v 460Ah battery and 3000 watt inverter.

Ok, so it only sleeps two people – your mates will have to take tents – but the modular seating system has space for six people to travel in comfort. There’s also an induction hob, sink, and fridge in the front.

Other clever touches are the removable workstand clamp that mounts to the rear door, custom shelving for bike cleaning products, and detachable cleats to hang all your shoes and helmets neatly in the back. I’d better start saving though, since this particular model is priced at a cool £110k, excluding VAT.

Van Haven VW Transporter T6 with roof tent

Van Haven VW T6.1 with Latitude roof tent

Downsizing a bit for my third van, the Van Haven VW T6.1 is more like the kind of vehicle you could use as a daily all-rounder. It’s not so big that you can’t take it to the supermarket or on the commute, but there’s still space for a weekend riding trip.

There’s a double bed inside, as well as a cool slide out kitchen area at the back with an all-important coffee machine and loads of storage. Up top there’s an optional roof tent from Latitude that pops up in seconds, and can also support up to 80kg of bikes when closed. No need to cut a hole in the roof of your brand new van!

And for those pit set-ups at the races, or bike parks, there’s also a cool cantilever awning with integrated lighting, so you can work on your bike in the evening, or just chill with mates and a few beers.

That wraps up my visit to the 2025 Caravan, Camping and Motorhome Show. I saw three very different styles of van, all designed with riding in mind and all of them were super cool. It’s even got me thinking about a few tweaks to my trusty Vito!