1971 Panina Dream: The SoCal Sleeper
Posted by Austin Nichols on 3rd Nov 2025
Closing out our summer season and heading into the fall, we wanted to share this California sleeper early Bay Window Bus build with you all! This Bus has a rich history and an owner who wanted to build a reliable, fun, and modern Bay Window Bus to travel for work events in the desert.
A quick rundown on the mechanical build listed below
Small Car 2010 EJ25 Drive By Wire Engine: Rebuilt
Small Car T2 Bus Complete Conversion
Hydraulic clutch retrofit: Found here
Ball joint replacement
944 CV joint upgrade
Complete fuel system upgrade for fuel injection
SCP Belt Cover
091 Transmission Swap
Our ambition with this build was to create a reliable highway traveling rig with "as modern as it gets" approach to to the mechanical upgrades. We wanted to give our customer a vehicle that allowed modern service when needed, but retained all of the original charm. We have accomplished this with the SoCal Sleeper.
