MAZDA 5 CAMPER BUILD part 1

#mazda5 #camper #adventure HEY!! WELCOME TO "ITS A GUNTHER THING"!! COME ON IN, CHECK IT OUT AND STAY AWHILE!!
Im starting a series on building my Mazda 5 into something I can take off the beaten path (kind of) and just sleep on the trail in the van! I am not a professional builder, just learning as I go. I hope you enjoy and would love to have you follow the journey! Talk to you soon, and don't forget to check out my other pages and groups as well! You can follow me on:
Fb Page: / melandasherthecat
Fb Group: / 1839847862802471
Instagram: / itsaguntherthing
Twitter: / melgun3

[@lorithompson5574]

Wow I'm so impressed your doing such a great job! You've got some serious skills!

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

Awe thanks Lori! I’m learning as I go!

[@dianncharlan5648]

You are a jack of all trades! I am so proud of you!

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

Awe thanks Diann! I like to challenge myself a little!

[@teresagunther6622]

Its going to be so cozy!

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

I think so too!! I can’t wait to try it out!

[@Davefromcanada411]

Cool Design. I am retiring soon and was looking for a vehicle for road trips and camping

[@carissastrabley5558]

Hey you crazy lady!! Miss you! Also I’ve always thought about putting a bed in the back of my Journey... 🤔

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

Hey! Miss you too! I talked to a guy at the lumber store and he’s doing it in his journey!!

[@jeanniesays6731]

Impressive! I keep thinking I want to do a conversion of some kind. Tiny homes on wheels fascinate me.

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

I would love a tiny home! My dream for sure!

[@jessicacavanaugh8318]

Cool idea! I’m weird about windows.....are you putting up anything over the windows?! I wouldn’t be able to sleep thinking I could look out the window and see a face! I’m weird and paranoid!! 🤣🤣

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

Yes! 100% I wouldn’t be able to sleep either if they weren’t covered! Lol I will film all the things, even making the window coverings hehe

[@GodskidUr1]

dang you did good. Wish you lived near Va id pay you to help me build my bed and get my seats out

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

I bet you could totally do it!!

[@davemgunther]

This is great! Looking forward to seeing part two 😄 Also, does mom need to come visit you to make you wear safety goggles when using the saw? 😉

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

The whole time I was cutting I was thinking the same thing, hoping nothing flew into my eyes haha not very smart of me lol

[@ibmtpx24]

Amazing work! Have you considered removing all rear seats and the spare tire to free up more space? If this is going to be a semi permeant build for long road trip it may be worth it.

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

It won’t be permanent for now, but In the future if it becomes more permanent then for sure!!

[@ibmtpx24]

@@itsaguntherthing9285 Great. I just finished upgrading the stereo of my Mazda 5 so I can use the rear view camera. I am planning to do something similar and make my car into a stealth camper, hopefully before the end of the summer then I can go on weekend trips, boondocking, and on off-season camping!

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

Nice!!

[@annagarcia6856]

That is going to be awesome! Does that mean a lot camping n road trip😊👍🏼

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

Yes!! I can’t wait!!

[@sun6v546]

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥.....................

[@PeterKruseMusic]

I just bought a Mazda 5. Thanks for this. However I am curious, doesn't that back seat come out also? In some of the builds that looks like people have taken that back seat out

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

Yup it does, but I wanted less work to take the bed in and out after summer. Also, I realized after I built the bed, that the two buckets in the back fold flat if you lift the seat part up 🤦🏼‍♀️ oh well, it was a good experience, and I’ve been enjoying it a lot!

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

Also, I will have a video coming up of me taking all the rust off the wheel wells, good times haha

[@PeterKruseMusic]

@@itsaguntherthing9285 Cool! I literally just bought my Mazda 5 (2009) today. I'm excited to build my camper van! I used to have a Honda odyssey van, which was also nice. But I like the gas milage in the Mazda 5

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

Peter Kruse that’s awesome! Have fun!!

[@WhileAwayWithUs]

What year is your Mazda5? How tall are you? And finally do you sleep diagonally or straight from front to rear? Me and my husband are about to embark on a 3-6 mo US road trip and thinking about a Mazda5

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

Hey! It’s a 2006, I am 5’6”. I sleep front to rear. I have a few videos showing this if you want to look and see. Have a fun trip!!

[@marisa2551]

Hi there! I want to convert my Mazda5 into a no-build mini camper for an upcoming road trip. I would like to remove just the bottom part of one of the middle row seats (the part that flips up) to free up that valuable space. Do you think it can be done? I searched but only found videos on how to remove the entire seat. I want to keep the rest of the seat intact so it will still fold flat and serve as my bed frame without having to build anything. Thanks!!

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

Hey! So after going through all the trouble of building the bed platform, I did some research and found out that if you remove the headrest, the seat folds down completely flat. No need to remove the seat at all. If I understand correctly though, you want just the part you sit on removed, I haven’t looked closely enough to see if that can be done while keeping the functionality of the back rest. I would assume you need the seat to hold the backrest in place. Removing the seats is super easy, all you would need to do is put some plywood down and 2 legs maybe 3 and you have a flat surface with storage underneath. No need to build a big bed like I did. Let me know if this helps. If not keep asking questions I’ll try to help! Good luck!!

[@marisa2551]

@@itsaguntherthing9285 Thanks for replying! Correct, I don't really want to remove the entire seat because I like the way it folds down flat. But the part that flips up is taking up space on the floor that I would like to use for a cooler. Were they easy to reinstall after your trip?

[@jeannettepeterson2463]

Are ya coming to see me now? I'll meet you at the Grand Canyon! 💖

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

Oh man that would be amazing!!

[@carissastrabley5558]

What are you going to use for the mattress??

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

A foamy, hopefully doubled up.

[@captaindrywall]

please , how long in inches from back door to back of front seats? thank you

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

I will check when I get home! I can’t remember off the top of my head. :)

[@captaindrywall]

I just discovered the Mazda 5 today the best gas mileage mini van. Wait how can I discover the 5 if it were already there?

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

John Leitaker haha it’s a great vehicle!!

[@itsaguntherthing9285]

It is 67 3/4” long. :)