i’m sure i’ve seen one that slots into a bit of ali profile riveted to the side of the van, then 2 poles and guys.
be up for making as much of it as possible.
got handy 6mm roofrack mounts i can attach to to save riveting something on. got a good strong tarp.
got sticks and rope etc.
got a nifty attachment system?

Funnily enough, just discussing DIY canpoies with the Mrs. They are about £130 to buy (for caravans, probably same for vans) which strikes me as a ripoff. We already have two poles we use for camping, so we’d need to buy awning beading (cheap) and some PU nylon (also cheap on ebay).

There’s a fair bit of technique though to sewing the PU nylon – you have to know what you’re doing, but tons of info online about it. But all in I reckon you could do it for £20 plus poles.

If I were you I’d get hold of a bit of caravan awning bead track. I needed a replacement section for a caravan, so I went to my nearest caravan breakers and they sold me loads for cheap (unlike the rest of the stuff they sell!) You could glue it on with something like this, which is absolutely bonkers strong:

If you attach to roof bars then rain will still run down the side of the van.. unless you have guttering..

I’ve got some of THIS on my van, secured with Sikaflex. You can buy the appropriate 6mm edging strip to sew onto your tarp. Should be fairly easy to knock up.

Something like this?

https://stitchesandsteel.com

We just cannibalised an old tent. URL=http://s3.photobucket.com/user/sjf99/media/Brittany%20September%202015/4BE3D4A0-5705-4BC6-8243-041941FD5DF9_zpswgkcztyf.jpg.html][/URL]

thanks everyone, food for thought.
i’ve clocked the rain issue, but i live somewhere where if it’s raining, we’ll not bother going. it’ll be for shade mostly.
i reckon i’ll buy some additional hammer-in eyes for my tarp,
screw bolts into roofrack mounts and just hook them over.
it’s just a shitty old scudo we’ll not be keeping for ever anyways

Look for reimo multirail

You can buy a simple Awning or make your own sewing a cord into a hem on one side, eyelets at the non piped corners to take tent post spikes.

http://www.camperworks.com/shop/rails/reimo-multirail-awning-rail-for-vw-t5-t4/

The reimo charly is their simple sun shade

Look at this on eBay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/231864377918

If you wanted to do it cheaper than that go to your nearest window frames Co and look through their profiles for something with a tight C shape.

That place I linked to do an awning rail for £25