I’m actually thinking about buying a cargo van.

[skyler_2010]

Check out talon sei on youtube. He is currently living in his van traveling the country

 

[Nickofthewoods]

And just like that all the thin mustaches come out of the woodwork to show off their stabbin' wagons.

I have seen some cool looking GMC Safari 4x4's but unless you go the hippy route and get a Volkswagen it's gonna feel weird driving through School Zones. Just sayin..

 

[Billy Goat]

This is sending me down a worm hole. Pretty interesting. I thought it was only the Quigley vans that were much option for off road camping. 2" lift and you can run a 34-35" tire on the sprinter.

 

[LookinforDirt]

This is sending me down a worm hole. Pretty interesting. I thought it was only the Quigley vans that were much option for off road camping. 2" lift and you can run a 34-35" tire on the sprinter.
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Minus the windows and black paint that is a heckuv a hunting/recreational rig right there. 4WD definitely opens up options to you and can allow to go farther in snow and muddy wet conditions. 2WD gets you to a lot of places too. I guess it depends how often you’ll need to push those limits. A standard length and height cargo van with the Quigley or Quadvan option isn’t a lot of money when looking at what full size 4WD pickups cost. when I do another van in 6-8 years years I will likely look at the 4WD option. But I can do a lot right now without it. Also, a locking differential of some type will fill a lot of off-road needs and be much less expensive than a 4x4 upgrade. Something to consider at least.

 

[Billy Goat]

Minus the windows and black paint that is a heckuv a hunting/recreational rig right there. 4WD definitely opens up options to you and can allow to go farther in snow and muddy wet conditions. 2WD gets you to a lot of places too. I guess it depends how often you’ll need to push those limits. A standard length and height cargo van with the Quigley or Quadvan option isn’t a lot of money when looking at what full size 4WD pickups cost. when I do another van in 6-8 years years I will likely look at the 4WD option. But I can do a lot right now without it. Also, a locking differential of some type will fill a lot of off-road needs and be much less expensive than a 4x4 upgrade. Something to consider at least.

I suspect in a few more years 4wd fleet vehicles will be available.

 

[Maki35]

I think a AWD/ 4x4 van would be a great choice for an outdoors man. Add a trailer hitch cargo carrier and take a dirt bike/ bicycle with you.

 

[Brendan]

I've been thinking about one of these for years. I'd love a sprinter, but leaning towards an AWD Transit and haul a trailer with an ATV.

If you want to go slightly older-school (and cheaper / used) check out these guys' conversions:

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They put a 2" lift and some better tires on a transit if you check out their photos.

 

[Beendare]

Lots of good conversions on Youtube...and I would second the foam insulation, thats a must.

 

[tdot]

This is sending me down a worm hole. Pretty interesting. I thought it was only the Quigley vans that were much option for off road camping. 2" lift and you can run a 34-35" tire on the sprinter.
View attachment 219263

It's pretty easy to lift the Sprinter and make it look as hardcore as your credit line will allow. But, it takes some serious work to even get average articulation from the suspension. The 4x4 system is only ok. It's not a jeep or even a decent 4x4 pickup. As long as those limitations are understood, it's a sweet rig.

I've gotten my 2wd into some pretty dumb locations without incident and I've not seen a 4x4 Sprinter go anywhere too much further. They have the advantage in mud and snow, but they aren't crazy off-road machines.

 

[22lr]

Tons of adventure vans up in Alaska. I have no first hand experience with em, but 95% of em are Ford E350s with a 4x4 and lift kit.

Alternative and cheaper option (if you have a truck) is buy a small cargo trailer and set it up how you want. While cheaper upfront, they are also way cheaper on maintenance and insurance. You can lift em for next to nothing, and with a little insulation they make dang good improvised campers. But this is just me, I already have a truck so I wouldn't buy a van for just this. I'm also pretty cheap... so...

 

[Conroy]

A buddy of mine is a partner in a company called Boho Vans. They were on Shark Tank and got a deal with one of the investors. They make vans that people travel around and live in. Most of their customers are instagram influencers and granola types. If you look at their site though you can see they do some cool stuff with cargo vans. www.boholife.com

 

[BroodBuster]

Adventure Vans are the new Subaru here in the NW. Tons of them here even in DT Seattle. I found myself in the middle of a bass tourney last spring and I was the only one in the camp without a van. Some are remarkably awesome!!

If it has WiFi make sure you name it “FBI Van 3” or “NSA domestic intelligence Van 6.” Helps keep away the riff raff when sleeping in the Walmart parking lot .

 

[Billy Goat]

It's pretty easy to lift the Sprinter and make it look as hardcore as your credit line will allow. But, it takes some serious work to even get average articulation from the suspension. The 4x4 system is only ok. It's not a jeep or even a decent 4x4 pickup. As long as those limitations are understood, it's a sweet rig.

I've gotten my 2wd into some pretty dumb locations without incident and I've not seen a 4x4 Sprinter go anywhere too much further. They have the advantage in mud and snow, but they aren't crazy off-road machines.

Most of my experience I'm fine in rwd, it's the ground clearance that is the issue, hence a lift with larger rollers. Of course the one time it rains on that red dirt mountain snot your wondering if 4wd can get you out. If I need to choose I'll take rwd and a winch over 4wd.

 

[Wallace]

4x4 vans have been around forever. I was in the market for one a while back but ended up with a rare Land Cruiser because I have an addiction to that line of vehicles.

There are several Facebook groups for 4x4 vans, from what I've seen that's the best place to find a good deal on one. Quigley is the main company that does 4x4 conversions. I'll likely get one in the future when I can justify it.

 

[mdkelley]

had a conversion van for several years, the wife and I modified it into a camper. We got rid of it due to the low roof height (couldn't stand up) but both loved the rig. It was perfect since you can drive it pretty easily anywhere (in town I mean, vs a big RV or travel trailer) and crawl in the back to sleep. We took it down quite a few two track roads without issues. 2wd, good tires and some offroad driving experience go a long way. You can get recovery gear to get you out of a bad spot pretty easily as well (a good 48" jack, winch, shovel and the panels/planks to throw under the tires) The cargo trailer idea posted above is a great idea and a cap on a 8' truck bed works well too, just can't haul dirt bikes inside (would need a trailer). We are going to get a pop top slide in truck camper and an enclosed 14-16ft. cargo trailer as our next adventure rig.

Like someone said, after owning your rig/setup for a while you will see what works best for you. We loved our van but we needed more room since we both now work 100% remote. Also, on crappy/rainy days the van felt cramped to the wife but if you are alone you probably won't have that issue. The truck camper + cargo trailer converted to office space will be a great setup and the 4x4 truck will allow us to get into any places we would care to go, I proved that this elk season in the idaho mountains!

There are a ton of really nice 4x4 or adventure vans out there, you can spend days just looking at pics and reading about them. The costs to customize can add up quickly though. If I were single and was going to live out of it more than 50% of the time I would have a high top van, insulate it, roof racks and either build a drop down bed on one side or use my disc-o-bed xxl outfitter cot for sleeping. Add in a little buddy heater for the cold days and a roof vent for the hot days and life would be good! If I was just going to use it for weekend trips, and week long excursions I would get a 4x4 truck with a cap on an 8' bed, with racks on top, and decent tarp to setup over the back end for rainy days. There are quite a few cool truck bed buildouts online also. Good luck with whatever you choose, you will have fun either way, I have had both setups. To me, it would just depend on if I were going to live in it or just use it on weekends and short trips etc. A decent 4x4 truck is just more useful to me as a daily driver and to get back to the good hunting and fishing spots, but a van would win for living out of for sure.

EDIT: If you need the van to store your bike and kayak in (live in an apartment or don't have a garage etc.) a van would probably make more sense even just for weekend warrior stuff since you have room to leave that stuff in there and lock it up.

 

[JLane330]

I love having a capable 4WD van. I've spent weeks camping in it during hunts (especially January hunts when it's a mud-pit and a tent would be just about impossible to set up), tow my boat and beach launch, use it for mountain biking, etc. It's a great platform for that stuff. I built mine back in 2010 in my driveway before vans became a thing again. It has a D60 up front, ARB lockers front and rear, NP205, Duramax, etc. I don't think a smaller version would do what I want/need, although they do seem to make good campers. One day I'll cut the roof off this one and put a Sportsmobile like pop-up penthouse on top. It needs some airbags in the back too...

 

[The Ri Guy]

Adventure Vans are the new Subaru here in the NW. Tons of them here even in DT Seattle.

I swear I see 2-4 a day now in Kirkland, IDK where they came from all the sudden but there are A LOT of them!

 

[caesAR15]

pretty practical really. i would consider an engine large enough to pull a trailer.

as a teenager i had an 18 ft van body on a truck that had an 8x8 camper in the front half and room for 4 horses in the back half.

you can make one into a small motor home with little work.

Pretty much my thought as well.

DO IT, OP!

 

[Squamch]

Check out j5customvans on hipstergram for some slick interior ideas. He's also a fantastic fabricator as far as 4wd conversions, or anything else 4wd related.

 

[rayporter]

cargo truck is what i am thinking. a 8 ft wide by 10 or 12ft long box with a deck over the cab. several could live out of it. a deep freezer could hold meat. heck even an atv would fit.
a battery and an espar heater and you could go for weeks.

as soon as my back heals i am installing an espar heater in my horse trailer.