Here's a Unique Van Conversion Where You Can Wet Your Whistle and Chill

One area those creative souls focus on is turning modes of transportation, like airplanes, train cars, and buses, into homes and restaurants. Some vehicles, like the classic Ford Model A, are highly sought after for conversions into stunning hot rods. There was an older model Cadillac that was converted into a prop for the Ghostbuster movie franchise; factory vans are converted into ambulances, and moth-balled airliners are sometimes turned into dining halls.

Other than the occasional transformation of a Model A into a hot rod, none have ever really tripped my trigger until just the other day when I happened upon a once unassuming Nissan van made into a full-service mobile bar. To be clear, this is not just a vehicle with a Costco Kegerator that serves lukewarm, stale tap beer. Oh no, this is a full-service bar-on-wheels run by a Thai master mixologist in the heart of Pattaya, Thailand.

According to the proprietor, who fittingly goes by the name 'Beer,' he purchased the mobile mixology wonder just before Covid hit Thailand two years ago for just 30000 Thai Baht ($814.33) and planned to use the business to put his daughter through school. The mid-80s-ish Nissan van came just as pictured, with the roof cutaway and hinged for easy opening and closing and a large ice chest for chilling bottles of beer.

Once the restrictions were lifted, he borrowed money to stock the bar and chose a location in front of a busy shopping area (the beauty of Thailand is that you can do that without getting shot or arrested).

Beer typically opens at 2 p.m. and closes loses the lid on his special conversion at 2 a.m. In the event that the area is slow, he simply just jumps behind the wheel and goes looking for an area of town that is more lively and opens up!

Opening up involves more than flipping the lid on this Nissan. There are tables and chairs to set up and speakers to the wires; a true mobile turn-key business.

Beer is not a trailblazer with this type of bar by any means. As a matter of fact, they are quite common throughout the capital of Bangkok to the North. However, in Bangkok, Volkswagen buses are the preferred vehicles, probably because they are a bit roomier and much more aesthetically appealing and recognizable to the many tourists the country attracts.

The novel part for an American is to have a cold beer or a cocktail in an outdoor public setting without breaking some goofy city ordinance. There are very few places in all of America where a person is able to do that; Las Vegas and Reno immediately come to mind-not many others.

I am quite sure that the brain trust within the Nissan Motor Corporation did not foresee entrepreneurs transforming any of their vehicles into mobile bars, but it works in a beach community known for outdoor parties.

As far as Nissan vans are concerned, they have been part of the automaker lineup since the introduction of the Datsun (as the company was formerly called) Cablight in 1962, which sported the profile of a cabover truck/delivery van. They were later named the Nissan Vanette and Nissan Cherry Cab/Vanette. In 1978 the Vanette was renamed and exported as the Datsun C20 and later the Nissan C20 and remained in production until 1988 in several variations.

The second-generation Nissan C22 was marketed as the 'Nissan Van” from 1986-1989 and was specially targeted to compete with similar-sized vans offered by Toyota and Mitsubishi. The American market yearned for a larger engine, and Nissan responded by outfitting the C22 with a 2.4-liter engine capable of supporting air-conditioning and highway driving. Because of the tight fit and load demand, the engines were prone to catch fire. Nissan eventually recalled all of the C22 vans sold in the states after 135 fires were reported without any deaths or injuries.

The C22 gave way to the Nissan Quest minivan in 1993, which was discontinued after the 2017 model year.

You do not see many of the distinctive blunt-nosed mid-80s Nissan vans on the road any longer, but if you are traveling in Thailand and spot one, it may well be an awesome mobile mini-bar.