happy owner of GC 600

Hi everyone,

I recently bought a VW Grand California 600 4Motion. We've already spent a few nights in it with the family, figured out what we're still missing, and started making some upgrades.

I've ordered a set of Delta wheels, and the next step is choosing the tires. I'm leaning towards Yokohama because I've heard they're quieter on the road. I currently run BFG KO2s on my Jeep Rubicon, and they're quite noisy. Since things inside the camper already tend to rattle a bit while driving, I'd rather not add even more noise from the tires.

For power, I'll be using two EcoFlow Delta 2 Max batteries, charged both via the EcoFlow charger while driving and by a portable solar panel when we're staying in one place for several days.

I've also ordered a rear drawer system from Van Vagabunden, where I'll store a few Front Runner Wolf Pack boxes, the portable solar panel, and other gear.

I'm also planning to buy a few more accessories, and I'd really appreciate your recommendations for the following:

• Spare wheel carrier for the rear door
• Bike rack that can carry up to 60 kg (preferably mounted on the rear door, as I don't have a tow hitch)
• Interior floor mats (are there any good alternatives to Brandrup? If you bought Brandrup, which dealer did you order from? I was told they only sell through dealers.)
• Insect screens for the rear doors
• Thermal insulation covers for the front windows and the rear door

I'll post some before-and-after photos once the modifications are complete.

Thanks,
Rares

Today I went to my local VW dealer, they had rubber mats in stock for the front area, a 3-piece model. When checking by VIN, the mats should have fit. However, when I went out to the parking lot and put them in the camper, it was like.. they weren't from there, there was a lot of free space next to them.

For those with Grand California, where did you buy the mats for the front area, whether they were rubber or fabric?

Rares, welcome aboard and congratulations!
We are ready for the before pictures now

Sebe said:

Today I went to my local VW dealer, they had rubber mats in stock for the front area, a 3-piece model. When checking by VIN, the mats should have fit. However, when I went out to the parking lot and put them in the camper, it was like.. they weren't from there, there was a lot of free space next to them.

For those with Grand California, where did you buy the mats for the front area, whether they were rubber or fabric?

Click to expand...

I am not sure the mats have changed design since the Crafter facelift and the removal off the handbrake etc so could be part of the issue.

Congratulations, the GC 600 is brilliant....

We purchased from here, https://autix24.de/ they are very high quality, millimeter perfect (at least for the pre facelift), but a little difficult to vacuum clean. We used a spinning brush attachment designed for pet hair and this worked well, but still took a good effort. They manufacture to order so might be worth an email and ask can the fabric be upgraded. Either way I would purchase them again.

Deise13 said:

Congratulations, the GC 600 is brilliant....

We purchased from here, https://autix24.de/ they are very high quality, millimeter perfect (at least for the pre facelift), but a little difficult to vacuum clean. We used a spinning brush attachment designed for pet hair and this worked well, but still took a good effort. They manufacture to order so might be worth an email and ask can the fabric be upgraded. Either way I would purchase them again.

Click to expand...

In the description of the GC600 dedicated set, they don't mention if they are for pre-facelift or facelift. I'll write them an email.
Anyway, thanks for the recommendation; the price is great considering that the mats for the three steps and the trunk are included.

Alexlex85 said:

Rares, welcome aboard and congratulations!
We are ready for the before pictures now

Click to expand...

Hi Alex,

Thanks for the warm welcome!

I still haven’t received anything I ordered, apart from the wipers )
The wheels were shipped from Germany today, so hopefully the trunk drawer will be sent soon as well.

In the meantime, I’m trying to come up with a way to mount the camping chairs, since the original pockets on the rear doors were removed by the previous owner. To be honest, I think I would have removed them myself anyway, so I can properly fit some Front Runner chairs, which fold down smaller than the original pockets.

Hopefully, by the end of August I’ll have finished all the initial modifications I wanted, with the exception of the spare wheel carrier + bike rack. I’m still doing my research to find the ideal products for those. It's not easy to make a decision because they are expensive and heavy (and I try not to add too much weight to the camper because the MMA is already affected in the car's documents by reducing it from 3880kg, which the 4Motion has from the factory, to 3500 kg). So I try to load as little as possible on the camper.

Hi everyone again!

I’m back with a few photos of the upgrades I’ve made so far.

Delta wheels and Loder AT tyres
I chose these tyres because I wasn’t able to get wider ones approved, even though I have the TÜV certificate from the wheel manufacturer. The whole process turned out to be extremely complicated and expensive, and I realised that getting them approved was pretty much impossible. I also couldn’t find any other 17-inch tyres with the load rating I needed.

Electrical upgrades
I’ve made a few electrical modifications, including relocating the main fuse to a more accessible position at the front, as it was originally hidden inside the furniture.
I’ve also added a 2 kWh EcoFlow DELTA 3 Max Plus battery, along with an additional 2 kWh battery. Thanks to the electrical modifications, I now have 230V power available at all the sockets, even when camping off-grid.
I’ve also installed a 1000W alternator charger to charge the batteries while driving.

Storage drawer
I’ve added a drawer in the rear cargo area to make accessing and organising our luggage much easier.

LED headlights
I’ve replaced the standard bulbs with OSRAM NIGHT BREAKER LED bulbs, which are approved for road use in most European countries.

Other upgrades planned before spring:

• An insect screen for the rear area, so I can leave the rear doors open.
• A spare wheel carrier, an electric bike rack and a storage box mounted on the rear door. I found some options I really like from Dutch Van Parts and will probably order them over the winter.

I don’t think I need any other upgrades for now