A couple from the Netherlands park their self-built motorhome in the Marina Rünthe. The highlight is the built-in garage with vintage car on board.
They are sure to attract attention when Dutchman Jacob de Greef and his wife Florie de Greef-Gijsen drive onto a parking space for motorhomes. That's what happened to them when they stopped for two nights at the RV port in Bergkamen in mid-May.
This is not only due to the red color of the vehicle. Car and trailer together are about 15 meters long. The reason: part of the caravan is a kind of garage. Well packed in it stands a Goggomobil. As soon as the tractor is unhooked, the trailer can be opened to the front and the Goggomobil can drive out. The couple is on their way to Lennestadt for a meeting for enthusiasts of such small cars built in the fifties and sixties.
Motorhome self built
They come from Tricht, about 40 kilometers south of Utrecht. It's practical that they don't have to make the entire journey directly in the Goggomobil, but can transport the small car in the camper. "The car has to come along," was important to de Greef when he wanted to get a motorhome about 14 years ago.
Since such a vehicle was not available for purchase on the European market, he decided to build one himself according to his ideas. "It all started with a piece of paper," he says. He spent four years planning and building it together with a company.
At 2.20 meters, his mobile home is relatively narrow, de Greef says. However, two elements behind the garage can be extended electrically. This allows the two Dutchmen to widen both the front sleeping area with bed and the rear living area with seating area and have more space.
A small bathroom with shower and toilet was also important to de Greef when developing his motorhome. But space is limited despite the size. The solution: In just a few simple steps, the toilet and sink can be turned into a shower. To do this, de Greef turns the sink over the toilet. A plastic wall is attached to the back of the sink, which protects the toilet from flooding after it has been converted into a shower.
There are also many details, such as a folding table or drawers on the outside, or a mechanical latch on the ceiling-high refrigerator to prevent it from opening while the car is in motion. "He can't sit still," Florie de Greef-Gijsen says of her husband's work.
But she herself is also involved in the work on the vehicles. For example, the trained tailor sewed the seat covers in the Goggomobil herself. Her husband, on the other hand, has already embarked on a next project. In the workshop at his home, de Greef is currently working on a Trabant from the early 1960s. It's quite possible that the Goggomobil will soon have to share its unusual garage.
With the visit of Mr. and Mrs. de Greef, the mobile home harbor has been enriched by another curiosity. Groundskeeper Detlef Göke has The mobile home port is richer with the visit of Mr. and Mrs. de Greef around a further curiosity. Groundskeeper Detlef Göke has collected such stories and now published them in a book about campers.