Custom Van Kids Hoodies

Hop Cap was located in Bremen, Indiana, just 25 miles away from the epicenter of van conversions in the 1970s - Elkhart, Indiana. And yeah, no idea how Elkhart became the place where custom van dreams became reality, but that's another story... These rigs were known as Vantastic by Hop Cap and they specialized in customizing vans as mild or as wild as customers wanted. Some just have a little shag carpeting, custom paint, and a bubble window, while others were totally over the top.

Long before online colleges and distance learning were a thing, correspondence courses were the way people could get a degree or certification without having to ever set foot on a college campus. One such institution was Auto Upholstery Institute of Orange, California. In an attempt to ride the car and van customizing wave of the early '70s, A.U.I. set up several correspondence courses to teach auto upholstery and customization. Advertisements in automotive magazines and comic books advised readers to send in the included form for a free course catalog. Once registered, schools sent training materials, lesson worksheets, and the tools and supplies for the selected course. A.U.I. was even accredited by the California Department of Education.

The oddly named HeadRest Van Conversions was a line of custom vans produced by Gerring Van Conversions of Elkhart, Indiana during the ’70s van craze. As legend has it, Gerring used the word ‘head’ in the name as it was common for hippie types to refer to themselves as heads, so HeadRest was an idea where these cool vannin’ hippies could crash out and rest.

During the custom van craze of the ’70s, there were plenty of local shops as well as larger builders that for some reason were all based in the Midwest. Grand Systems was one of these larger builders that worked both consumer direct and with dealers to build the conversion van of their dreams. While they did full custom, they also offered several packages that were offered turn key or as starting points for further customization, including the 'Blue Diamond' package reflected here.

Rollin’ Rooms Van & Custom is the go-to place in the Inland Empire for all your street van and car customization needs. That is of course if you’re living in the 70s or are just down with van culture. Rule it up!

1970s Custom Van Retro Design

During the custom van craze of the '70s, the Trademan was a popular platform for vanners everywhere and Dodge capitalized on this by creating a factory customized Trademan called the "Street Van" package.

Vanhalla Kustom Shop was one of Southern California's premier van customizers throughout the '70s and well into the '80s and provided customizing services ranging from mild to wild. So, whether you wanted something as simple as a porthole window installed or a radical custom fabricated body restyling, Vanhalla had you covered.

1970s Custom Econoline Van / Faded Thrift Style Retro Design

Vintage Custom Econoline Van / Faded Thrift Style Retro Design

A design for hardcore JCVD fans!

During the custom van craze of the '70s, there were plenty of local shops as well as larger builders that for some reason were all based in the Midwest. Grand Systems was on of these larger builders that worked both consumer direct and with dealers to build the conversion van of their dreams.

Custom digital artwork of the character LUC DEVERAUX from the extraordinary movie UNIVERSAL SOLDIER featuring JEAN CLAUDE VAN DAMME

Retro Van Custom Made 1974 Dad's Birthday Vintage

During the custom van craze of the ’70s, there were plenty of local shops as well as larger builders that for some reason were almost all based in Elkhart, Indiana. Van Vinyl wasn't a full custom builder or conversion shop, but rather a manufacturer of custom interior components, many of which were used by the larger conversion shops, but also sold directly to consumers. So whether you want royal blue captains chairs and a matching sofa that folded out into a bad or just want new door panels and a customer matched dashboard cover, Van Vinyl was the go-to place!

When van customizing became the hot new thing, most shops focused on styling out vans with custom paint, tires, wheels, and countless appearance upgrades, but never really got into the performance side of things. Van Works Customs of Los Angeles took a slightly different approach, instead focusing on balls out powertrains that would give even the hottest muscle cars a run for their money. Big block power in an early Econoline? No problem. Supercharged 327 in a G10? Done deal. You name it and Van Works Customs could pull it off, the crazier, the better.

A nod to a time with the van was king...Respect it!

The '80s were a great time for over the top custom four-wheel drive vehicles and while there were plenty of shops in the greater SoCal area to get your ride tricked out, there were none greater than El Centro's Ultimate Off Road. While other guys were just adding lift kits and chrome bits, UOR was building rigs that actually performed off road as well as they looked, so if you were rolling in a UOR build, you were doing so with confidence as they were as bulletproof as they come.

First-generation Chevy Van refers to the first G-10 half-ton production years 1964 through 1966. There was a market for a compact van based on a modified passenger car platform to compete with the already successful Econoline and A100 vans. The 1964 Chevy van had a cab-forward design with the engine placed in a “doghouse” between and behind the front seats. Engines and brakes were sourced from the Chevy II, a more conventional compact car than the Corvair which was used as the basis for the Chevy Greenbrier vans. The 1st Gen vans were available in only the short 90-inch wheelbase and with the standard 90 hp 153-cubic-inch straight-4 or straight-6 engine. A first-gen is quickly identified by its single-piece flat windshield glass.

In 1976 a line of trucks and vans dubbed ‘Adult Toys’ was launched. Don’t be gross, these ‘Adult Toys’ were a series of factory vehicles that included the Street Van, which rolled off the assembly line outlandishly customized in what would become a staple of late '70s automotive culture – custom mag wheels, wild paint schemes, and plenty of shag carpeting among others. Despite the rich host of custom options the Street Van rolled off the line with, the true intention was for it to serve as an enticing platform for even more customization. To get buyers headed in the right direction, every Street Van came with a customization kit that included detailed instructions and plans to further style their van to their individual tastes.

Custom drawing of a Dodge Van

Founded in the small desert town of Sky Valley, California in 1971, the aptly named Sky Valley Van Works was a small shop doing big things during the heyday of van customization. Whether you were looking to go low with some serious street van attitude or looking for a go anywhere 4x4 conversion, Sky Valley Van Works could make it happen. From all out custom jobs like their 'Foxy Box' to basic upgrades like porthole windows and side pipes, the guys at Sky Valley were a true gem in the desert that was worth the drive to get your rig tricked out.

In 1976 a line of trucks and vans dubbed ‘Adult Toys’ came out. Don't be gross, these 'Adult Toys' were a series of factory vehicles that included the Street Van, which rolled off the assembly line outlandishly customized in what would become a staple of late 70’s automotive culture - custom mag wheels, wild paint schemes, and plenty of shag carpeting among others. Despite the rich host of custom options the Street Van rolled off the line with the true intention of it to serve as an enticing platform for even more customization. To get buyers headed in the right direction, every Street Van came with a customization kit that included detailed instructions and plans to further style their van to their individual tastes.

One of the more ubiquitous sights from the late ’60s, this guy was still truckin’ along with his timeless message, but received a vannin' twist in 1974.

somethin' about rockin' and somethin' about knockin'.

There's just something cool about hopping in the van and truckin' down the road as wherever you're going, it will be a vantastic voyage.

T&H Van Works Unlimited got their start in the early '70s, riding the wave of custom van fever and offering a huge selection of custom parts from porthole windows and sunroofs to side pipes and flare kits. From their Los Angeles, California showroom, they also operated a thriving mail order business, with ads in all the major vanner magazines instructing people to write them for a free catalog. In the early '80s, custom vans had died down considerably, and T&H expanded their offerings to support the booming mini truck craze, but by some time in the '90s as mini trucks began falling out of favor, T&H called it quits.

Black Image of a Van, with eyeballs as tires. Lake Balboa in purple text is on the side of the van.

Astonishingly cool and colourful 70s ad for a van competition

Car giveaways have been around for a long time, but in 1976, a cross-promotional sweepstakes took things up a notch when three different American companies got together to create a one of a kind ride. This wild, custom '76 Econoline van utilized elements from the three sponsors to create a truly unique custom van that was dubbed the 'Denimachine.' From its crazy custom flamed exterior to its wall-to-wall denim interior, the Denimachine made quite a splash as people sent in their bottle cap liners in droves for a chance to land one in their driveway. There were ten Denimachines given away in the U.S. and fifteen given away in Canada beginning in 1976 and through most of 1977.

In the '60s, Rodco made a name for themselves as one of the biggest snowmobile dealers in Vermont, but when vanning blew up on the West Coast, they decided to get into the custom van game. Based in the town of Randolph in Orange County, Rodco Custom Vans turned out hundreds of unique rides with multiple interior options, custom exterior styling, and most notably, hand painted murals and artwork that made every single van an original. Rodco primarily worked with the Tradesman platform, and were a customizer to many dealers, but they did create a few one offs from other makes. Given the harsh Northeast winters and overall regional weather, few of Radco's rolling rooms have survived, and those that have, were usually taken west.

Brubaker Box The First Minivan

Unlike most van shops of the day that focused on selling and installing custom parts and accessories, The Van Doctor was a comprehensive auto body and mechanical repair shop. Sure, they also sold the goodies to make your ride stand out, but that was secondary to this Van Nuys garage.

Custom vans were all the rage in the '70s, and there were shops catering to boogie van lovers from coast-to-coast helping vanners build their dream ride. By the mid '80s, many of those shops had either gone under, or shifted their focus as vans fell out of favor, but for those who kept on trucking, a few standouts kept the flame alive. Miami's Contreras Customs is one such shop that kept building show quality rolling rooms well into the '90s. Sure, they did lots of other custom work too, like traditional lowriders and restomod muscle cars, but continued to support vanners, even going so far as to manufacture many custom parts that could no longer be found.

Based out of San Gabriel, California, Pathfinder Equipment Co. specialized in 4x4 conversions for full-size American vans of all makes. They initially offered their conversions through car dealers as an option since the manufacturers weren't offering 4x4 models for the most part, though eventually they began selling conversions direct to consumers both as turn key installations from their shop and as palletized kits for the mechanically inclined vanner to do it himself.

A nod to a time when the van was king...Respect it!