Licence a cube van as an RV?

[MazdaMatt]

I am doing a little reading and I am wondering what it takes to convince MTO that my cube van is an RV so I don't need to deal with any commercial vehicle stuff.

Has anyone done this, tried to do this, or have information on how to do this. Does anybody know the implications of doing this?

[MazdaMatt]

I got some info for anybody interested...

source: http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/french/pubs/cycling/index.shtml

motor home
a motor vehicle that is used for personal purposes as a temporary or permanent residence and contains at least four of the following items: Cooking facilities, a refrigerator or an ice box, a self-contained toilet, a heating or air conditioning system, an independent electrical power supply or an independent gas supply or a potable water supply system with faucet and sink.

I have a heater in it already, i own a bar fridge already. If i can get a toilet and sink then my cube van can be licenced as an RV so I don't need annual inspection (yellow sticker) and it is non commercial so log books, daily inspection, hours of operation and weigh stations do not apply.

[mikewolf]

I would go with a microwave instead of a toilet if you are just trying to get what you need to be legal.

[13inches]

What does the toaster in the back count as?

:D ;)

[MazdaMatt]

Yeah, a microwave would count as "cooking facilities" but it would be nice to have a crapper with me. My cube has a fold-down door that is a BIATCH to get into and out of at 3am in a dark paddock. I wonder if a little shelf and a screwed down coleman bbq would be good enough to replace a sink (don't worry, i'll wash my hands after I use the crapper).

oh yeah, the crapper would just be one of those portable units for camping, not a plumbed in toilet with external pump port.

[Vicsr44]

You can buy a camping sink/water container to cover that aspect or build a small cabinet with a plastic water container in it & install a hand pump (or if you want to get fancy use a 12V pump) & have a plastic basin handy. A portable one burner propane or butane stove meets the cooking requirement. A portapotti or a 20 L pail with a toilet seat on it meets the toilet requirement. Add some 12V lights with an RV battery & you're all set! I did all this a number of years ago in a van I owned so it could be registered as an RV.

Vic

[DareBee]

Hang a blue water jug from the ceiling. Install a hose to a Tap/valve into a basin screwed to the wall and you have a potable water system.
Actually screw a bracket to the wall and have a drop in basin. It won't empty itself ya know.

[AFB Race]

:) Another way you can add plumbing is to put a small 5gal tank on the roof and have it gravity feed to the basin, paint it black and you have solar hot water, then have it drain into another 5gal tank mounted underneath the box and presto a self contained water system, this could also work for the crapper too, imajine a flush toilet, you would be the envy of people without one:D
Andy

[DJones]

:( Hey gang, I had a cube van that I used to tow the truck and also used it to camp and use for odd jobs. I tried for three years to get the van registered as an "RV ". I was told by a buddy that if a vehicle had a certain number of criteria it could be a ''home built rv'' The folks at the Dot said that the vin number said it was a cube van so it must remain as that way. You could put as much as you want in it for camping or any other equipment it still will remains a commercial van that still requires a Dot inspection and a larger licensing fee.
It also requires you to go over the scales and the worse part, telling your insurance com. that you MODIFIED a vehicle to another purpose.
You might as well of said ''blown hot rod with special needs intended "
Doug

[MazdaMatt]

My insurance co is looking into it and I'm meeting with him tonight. I will hit the MTO office when I can to find out what they would tell me.

Apparently it is quite common for people to convert a bus to an RV. The law needs to be more receptive to redneck yokels. I like to be one on the weekends.

[MazdaMatt]

So, the plan was to get this done by the end of the month... what I didn't realize is that the government has to do stuff... that by default means it will take weeks to accomplish. I may do it over the winter or next spring, but not now.

Insurance co just wants to see that everything is installed correctly and safely. ie, to the "quality" standards of a commercial unit. Not that it has to be pretty, but it has to be built right. 120V electrical must be signed off, low pressure gas must be signed off, etc. I don't know if they want pictures, or if they want a mechanic or RV guy to write a letter.

MTO has a "special inquiries unit" that must be contacted. They have no phones, apparently, and no email adress. They only operate via fax... the modern technology of 100 fricken years ago... thanks Ontario. Anyway, they will need some forms filled out. I've requested the forms, i will see what's on them when they come out of their caves and get the paper from the fax machine.