Juanita’s Wish List

Meet Juanita – Somewhere in Big Sur – 2013

When I first started this website as a hobby I didn’t think it would ever get anywhere, then after a year or so it began to generate advertising revenue. Now I use this revenue for keeping the site alive, and keeping Juanita on the road. She’s a beautiful 1985 Camper with 135k original miles, 40k miles on a engine/trans rebuild, no rust issues and everything works, even the fridge on propane. However, aside from the stereo, tent canvas and powertrain rebuild, she is mostly stock. I’ve got plans for her, but plans are, well, cost prohibitive at the moment. I decided to create a wish list of all the goodies I’d like to acquire in the next few years, in somewhat of a particular order. I may be a bit off on some of the prices and ideas, but it’s a work in progress

Professionally done bed liner around the rocker panels and on the front. ~$1,500 at Bedliners Plus here in Eureka. The only rust issues Juanita has are from rock chips and little dents. This would pretty much take care of it. I don’t want to do this myself, though if money comes up short, I may have to in summer 2015.
DONE ! Review & Info Here. 16″ ~~Black Steel Wheels and Tire Set From Go Westy – $1,300 – I just like the looks of these, I don’t need flashy CLK wheels.~~
Two new deep cycle batteries and a power inverter. It has the solenoid switch for the coach battery, but both batteries are about dead.
Pop Top Lift Assist Kit – There’s a few varieties out there(Jack Bombay, GoWesty, etc), haven’t quite decided which ones I want yet. (update, I got the dual Jack Bombay package, they are awesome, I’m about 6 months in)
Lift Springs and Bilstien or Fox Gas Shocks
Big bumpers with front and rear 2″ hitch receivers. I’d really like a sturdy front bumper with a receiver so I can add a winch or bike rack on the fly. An extra roo bar welded on would be rad.
Bigger brake kit for the front. I don’t have any ’86-’91 spindles yet, so if you happen to have some you want to donate or sell for cheap, let me know 🙂
Disc brakes for the rear. Might be easier than finding spindles for the front.
Propane tank and valve set up. They work pretty good now, but it’s a bit rust and outdated.
Propex or Webasto propane heater, the one that mounts underneath, not inside.
Truck Fridge, because I don’t expect my original Dometic to last more than a couple more years.

I’m hoping I can complete all of the above without spending anything on the powertrain. But here’s the long term plan, which I hope is at least 5 – 7 years out.

2.0L Subaru Boxer Diesel Engine Swap – Installed by SmallCar for ~$18,000

Juanita As Of January 14th, 2015 – New Go Westy 16″ Steel Wheels & Michelin Defender Package w/ new 1/2″ Rear Spring Shims