Started with an empty cargo van shell, 170 wheel base sprinter. So far, I’ve added a bed platform, windows, AC, fan, solar, and currently working on the electrical system with diy lithium batteries.
Plan is full build out with toilet, interior shower, galley, etc. Bikes will be on a slide out tray under the bed.
I sold my pickup truck when I got the van. I’ve always driven a truck, but wanted the ability to camp overnight when travelling to bike races or during vacation travel. The van kind of sucks as a daily driver compared to a truck, but not too bad if you aren’t in the city or have to park in tight quarters.
We love our Element. Its a 2011 with 160K miles. It is my wife’s dog mobile (she competes in obedience and field trials) and I have used it for weekend stage races where I need two bikes and extra gear.
It’s almost perfect. If it were a couple feet longer and drove a little more comfortably we would have bought two. Everyone with an Element keeps hoping Honda will eventually make an electric or hybrid version.
We are searching for an eventual replacement. The small vans are all people oriented and not great for dogs and gear. The Sprinter and big Transits are not good for daily use (as GR notes above). The only soccer mom van we can find with a flat floor now is the chrysler pacifica. It ticks most boxes. Good ride quality, hybrid, awd. But for our use we’re paying for seats and amenities we don’t want.
I really miss having a truck, but my ex kept it since she also kept the horses.
But that’s the rub, we used our truck as a truck all the time. I hauled a half ton of hay every couple of weeks, towed, did everything with that truck. It is almost like working on a farm tractor with most jobs being done with basic hand tools. Now 20 years old, about a quarter million miles, and the right mirror is still duct taped in place from when a cow ripped it off. I almost bought a Jeep Gladiator (the most stripped down base model available) as a do everything vehicle, but just couldn’t do it.
Fully loaded (3 bikes, 2 adults, all tools I can think of including track pump and compressor, spare wheel, 4 pieces of luggage, a toilet, and a full 80l tank of fuel it is sub 3 tones (3.5 tones is the magic number in Europe, that would qualify the car as a truck). That‘s awesome, considering most motor homes of this size are a good 300 to 600kg heavier, without AWD.
Our promaster could almost be a daily driver. If I needed a hauler that could be a DD, I’d get a 136 wheel based Promaster with the high roof. Same turning radius as a Camry.
Re Pick-ups and continuing discussion because fun group of folks here and seems several have same types of interest. Plus, who doesn’t like trucks?
I drove a 1991 Toyota 4x4, extra-cab with the small 4 cylinder motor (22RE) and a bed cap for the better part of 20 years living in four different states. It was the perfect vehicle for that period. Could move stuff, go pretty much anywhere I wanted to on and off road and it was 100% reliable. I replaced it with a new Tacoma with the 6 cyl motor. It was a nice truck but not the same. The '91 had a go do it feel while the later model was more plush and less capable but more comfortable on tarmac.
We bought the Element and my wife loves that box on wheels.
Short of it is I’m ready for a new vehicle and want something capable of doing 2-4 day trips, multiple bikes, light off road. I’d also like it to be medium size for daily driving and electric or hybrid. Simply can’t find the right vehicle.
The newer pickups are more like SUVs with a small bed tacked on. I want an extra cab with a long bed so I can put bikes straight in and also sleep in it when desired. The space lost to Crew Cab seating I want in a longer bed. The Honda Ridgeline is close but the bed is short and the mileage kinda stinks.
In vans, maybe you guys have insight, but am looking for something like a 25% bigger transit connect, decent front seats, 18" or so wheels and AWD. I’ve looked and doesn’t seem like anyone makes that golidlocks size and equipment.
We have a Pacifica that we bought used that has more bells and whistles than we need but it is great in every situation except deep snow. Our seats stay down most of the time but the fact that they come out of the floor in 30 seconds is a great feature. I have not started customizing it for van living yet but I have some ideas.
The prices of just a decent conversion camper van is pretty crazy. Seller’s market right now, wait lists over a year. A winnebago revel is like $175k and they are cheaply built (like most mass produced RV’s). It almost makes those unimog rigs look like a bargain. $300k is a bunch of $ for sure, but those unimogs are serious machines and most of the custom builds I’ve seen seem to be very high end.
I’ve got a buddy who bought one of the storyteller overland vans last year. It was about $150k and the build quality is pretty good. It’s the one van I’ve seen that is somewhat mass produced and reasonably priced, but doesn’t seem like the typical old school RV build quality. If I had liked the floor plan and size, I might have gone that route. You’d spend over $100k building something like that yourself and it would take hundreds of hours of labor. The empty van alone is ~$70k before your start building.
