Words: John Gunnell
Mike and Jim Ring are nationally known for building resto-mods. When a friend said there was a vehicle they should buy at a classic car auction, the Ring brothers said to buy it. Their acquisition was a ‘72 Winnebago motorhome which couldn’t make it back to Wisconsin without repairs. It was full of junk and needed lots of work. The brakes were shot and had to be repaired out west for a proposed drive home, but the Winnie wound up being transported home.
Once the RV was home, Ringbrothers stripped it and started an amazing project to turn it into a Rat Rod RV with a $27,000 1,000-hp Wegner Motorsports engine, a 480LE automatic, 32-sec. 0-to-50 performance and a Tiki Bar interior.
The theme of their “Happy Camper" was to create a party on wheels with an aircraft motif inspired by World War II bombers. They wanted to keep the Winnebago looking as it did at the auction on the outside, but with upgraded mechanicals and an interior with everything from leather seats to neon signs.
Engine goodies included a Stealth 340 fuel pump and Stealth fuel cell. MSD kicked in a self-tuning Atomic EFI system for engine management and fuel delivery. A Multiple Spark coil kit and Super Conductor wire set were used as well.
Casey Wegner of Wegner Motorsports built a torquey 6.0L-based LS motor for the Winnebago. The MSD Atomic EFI system with ignition coils and wires was installed and the engine prepped to bolt into place. The floor of the RV couldn't support an engine hoist and there wasn't enough room to bring the hoist in from the front, so Jim and Mike used a Caterpillar tractor.
The boys added a BeCool aluminum radiator with integrated overflow tank to keep the new engine running nice and cool, even when driving a Happy Camper with the aerodynamics of a brick. Jim and Mike topped off the transmission, differential and engine with Royal Purple Synthetic Oil.
After it was completed, the Winnebago was taken on the Hot Rod Power Tour, during which time it crossed major sections of the country at highway speeds. Mike told the crowd at a SEMA press conference that he was always afraid the windshield might blow in when they drove at speeds no Winnebago was ever expected to go. Fortunately, that hasn’t happened, at least not yet.
What did happen on the Power Tour was that the boxy hot rod became a party on wheels. In one video, a commentator pointed out that there was a bigger crowd around the motorhome than around the traditional hot rods. In fact, the Happy Camper was such a hit that Ringbrothers wound up displaying it in the Prestone booth at SEMA. So, now it’s a cool ride sponsored by a company that keeps lots of cool rides cool. How cool is that?