I transformed my Ford Fiesta into a tiny home after ditching my £150-a-week shoebox flat – now I’m upping my game
A MAN who moved out of a ‘disgusting’ rented flat to convert his Ford Fiesta into a permanent home on wheels now has his sights set on refurbishing a Porsche.
Yavor Dantzarov, 33, has covered 7,000 miles since taking to the road in July 2023 after giving up his home in South London which cost £150 a week.
The HGV driver has put the final touches to his Ford Fiesta home, including carpeting his wooden bed frame and would now like to repeat the process with a Porsche Panamera S Turbo.
“I would like a Panamera S turbo,” he said.
“I will remove everything from inside and make a wooden frame, just like the Fiesta, drill a hole in the roof for ventilation and drive around in my camper with 500 horsepower.”
Yavor said he feels “better than ever” since making the decision to swap bricks and mortar for four wheels.
“I never feel lonely or anything like that,” he said. “I’m just living out of the box.”
He spent Christmas in a “secret location” – a private wood near Ashford in Kent.
Yavor was granted permission to stay there over the festive period by the owner, provided he cleans up after himself.
For Christmas dinner, Yavor fired up his portable camping stove and cooked burgers with chips, mushrooms and coleslaw, which he enjoyed with a bottle of red wine before nodding off.
He said festive holidays are like any other day for him because he does not have a wife or children and does not care for “fancy things” or spending money.
“For me it was the perfect Christmas,” Yavor, who is originally from Bulgaria, said.
Paying £150 per week for the property in Kingston upon Thames, south west London, Yavor decided sleeping in the boot of his car would be a better way of life.
Yavor has spent the past six months travelling around the UK in his converted 2001 MK405 Ford Fiesta, which he bought on Facebook Marketplace for £800 last summer in July.
He had become disillusioned with the cost of renting a studio apartment in the capital, which he described as “honeycomb” living.
Now, Yavor has visited around 100 destinations across the country, spending nights in carparks, at beaches or in woodland, which he prefers.
Most recently, Yavor has been touring the Kent countryside, where he discovered the private wood.
Yavor said: “I found this wood and this guy, who’s around my age, came and asked who I was and what I was doing.
“I said, ‘Nothing, just relaxing under your pine trees and enjoying the view of the stars’.
Yavor isn’t the only one finding a new way of living in his car.
One man in the US revealed he dropped out of college and moved into his van – and it was the best decision he had ever made.
Another woman has told how she was priced out by her landlord so moved into her car, sharing her tips of how to live happily and safely in the vehicle.
Am I legally allowed to live in my car in the UK?
The simple answer is, yes.
In the UK, you are legally allowed to live in your car— just so long as you follow a few rules.
The only requirement is that your car has passed its MOT and is entirely road-legal.
If legally parked, there aren’t rules against sleeping or living in a car.
There are certain circumstances in which it’s not legal to sleep in a car in the UK.
Firstly, you must be in a safe parking spot, not in violation of any parking restrictions.
Certain car parks, lay-bys, and national parks and forests have restrictions on overnight parking, which means you can’t sleep there in a vehicle.
If restrictions are broken, you could be fined or even have your vehicle towed.
Secondly, you must not be above the legal drink-drive limit or under the influence of any drugs, if you intend to sleep in your car.
If over the limit, you could be charged with being drunk in charge of a motor vehicle in a public place, even if you’re not driving.
The ban on sleeping in your car when you’re drunk comes under the Road Traffic Act 1988.