4wd Vans

HA, escorts in the backcountry....Hmmm, Maybe theres a business model to think about.

But when its -10F and dumping snow in a backcountry parking lot in Steamboat, there are very few females around. Now hanging out in Las Vegas and climbing in Red Rocks, then sure, I'll load it up with whoever I can afford!

rj-n-foco wrote:I'm pretty sure this is the van Ian was talking about.

Of course, especially since that's me in your picture! That's awesome that you've been able to get the van smogged and up to 15mpg...now I'm even more jealous!

Also, for the record, the trip that picture came from was from a trip to Moab where we most certainly took advantage of the 4x4/lifted nature of the van to get us to some cool spots where we couldn't have otherwise gone. Plus you never have to go "back" to camp because you can just park it wherever the hell you want.

Again, I'd take Ryan's van for $20k any day over an RV.

Portwood wrote:There are plenty of inexpensive used 4wd cargo vans out there...

Really? Where are you looking?

My uncle picked up an old ambulance and is in the process of creating a camper out of it. It's already fully wired with lots of power options from defibulators, lighting, and life support equipment, has beefed up suspension, water supply installed, lots of stainless steel storage cabinets..

something else to look into perhaps.. good luck!

I've been keeping an eye on Sprinters waiting for them to bring their AWD/4wd vans to the states. Unfortunatly that isn't going to happen for another 3+ years.

Ford is bringing their full size Transit to the US this fall. According to their website a diesel is an option. I can't find anything about 4wd though. Dodge is bringing the Fiat van over this fall also. Very little info is out on them though.

Hopefully with the competition someone (I'll cross my fingers for MB) will be offering at least an AWD van with a diesel soon.

Dan Allard wrote:My uncle picked up an old ambulance and is in the process of creating a camper out of it. It's already fully wired with lots of power options from defibulators, lighting, and life support equipment, has beefed up suspension, water supply installed, lots of stainless steel storage cabinets.. something else to look into perhaps.. good luck!

Yeah, these are great vehicles. The problem I've encountered is that there are specialists who buy these up at the auctions, refit them, and sell them back to ambulance services. So it's hard to get into a bidding war with these guys--they always seem to be willing to outbid mere mortals, and the vehicles they don't bid on are dogs.

i have a vw golf tdi. it has no ground clearance. it does great for long drives and little gear, and has hauled five cramped humans + gear and also three humans and three canines + gear. fuel efficient, but SMALL.

i also have a cng bifuel cargo van. it's 2WD, has plenty of ground clearance, and unless you're going rock crawling, i've found that good driving skills, a set of chains, and a shovel will do just fine. also, a build-it-yourself camper from a cargo van is much lighter than a full camper, as you won't take the time/energy/money to add less useful and heavier stuff, and the resulting fuel savings are noteworthy. even with a solar panel on top and a full load of stuff, we're getting about 17MPG highway, which, if you look at the price of CNG, means that it was cheaper to drive the van on the christmas road trip than it was to drive the golf AND there was plenty of room to haul back all our possessions from mom's house and still have room to sleep with the three dogs. it takes a little planning and smartphone mapping to make sure you're on track to find a CNG filling station, but it is pretty cool to drive the camper for less than the hatchback.

ClimbBaja wrote: #1. Sportsmobile does camper conversions, most often with fiberglass pop tops. They market the company so well that people equate 4WD van with the Sportsmobile name. Remember that Sportsmobile is a company that does camper and custom mods, then charges the customer a premium price for it. Sportsmobile orders vans converted to 4x4 from Quigley in Pennsylvania. Then they do the camper conversions in Calif. Quigley only converts new vans from the factory (due to liability issues).

Not entirely true...at least not when I got my Sportsmobile ('04). Sportsmobile did the 4x4 conversion to my van themselves in CA.It is not a Quigley 4x4. I'm not even sure they offer the Quigley conversion anymore at all.

Nice post, ClimbBaja, that's all the info you need right there.

Regarding gas vs diesel, I'm one of those that swear by my diesel. I owned a Ford V-10 and and traded it for a Dodge with a Cummins diesel, and couldn't be happier. Maintenance has been about the same (I do my own oil and filter changes), but the engine costs more up front. I am seeing 30-40 percent better mileage, and so that offsets the additional cost of diesel fuel. The turbo charged diesels really kick ass in a big heavy rig vs gas though, especially at high elevations, you have to drive one to believe it.

You are right though, you have to drive many miles to justify the xtra cost of the engine.

youtube.com/watch?v=lFjoNfU…

JLP wrote:Also, as mentioned, you're pretty much looking at Sportsmobile - legendary for their particle board, cheapo construction and massive depreciation.

Dude, you really have a beef with vans. Did you have bad childhood experience in the back of a dirty no-window perv van?

You don't need Sportsmobile unless you want the poptop. My 4x4 was custom done, most of the interior and furnace etc was custom.

Like was mentioned before, you can start with a 4wd cargo van and build it out as you want it. Or work with one of many smaller conversion companies that do RV style conversions/upgrades or heck sack up and do the work yourself.

My backcountry buddies have pickups with campers and I have had the opportunity to stay in and compare both. I prefer the van to the truck for camping. feels roomier than a pickup camper. The only major advantage I see to the pickup/camper is that you can take the camper off and have a pickup bed to use for hauling and such.

I've had the AWD van and now have the truck/camper combo. The Previa was a super reliable and suprisingly capable vehicle. It held a raised platform for a full size bed and plenty of storage room. The clearance was rarely an issue on fire roads and down in the desert as long as I knew my limitations but I can easily say I never got stuck. Most likely because of its weight, as opposed to the subarus with the awd system. It got good gas mileage too, with a 5 speed manual. The reason I switched to a truck and an ultralight four wheel pop-up camper was option to have a fridge and sink to cook with in cold or nasty weather. The van was fine for cooking outside but too cramped/dangerous for cooking inside. The heater and extra room of the camper are great too. The biggest thing about these two vehicles is the van cost me $3000 and I sold it for that. And the 95' f250 diesel and 88' four wheel camper cost me $7000 total. The diesel gets 14-17 mpg with the camper depending on how I drive it. Diesels do A LOT better if you keep the speed down and accelerate smoothly. Bottom line is you can find very capable and comfortable vehicles for not much money if you're ok with not having something super flashy. They're out there.

You can build out your own 4WD camper van for WAY less than the cost of a Sportsmobile brand rig. If you've got the time, there's lots of posts on the interweb about how to convert a cargo van. If you don't want to do it all yourself, you can have a local van converter/RV place do the insulation, electrical, propane and whatever else you don't want to do.

Another outfit that adds 4WD to Econolines is Quadvan in Portland.

Ian Stewart wrote: Really? Where are you looking?

Google "4wd Cargo Vans"... No really, Im not tyring to be a smart ass. Also there are blogs out there with people tricking them out to live in with sweet results. They are full of great ideas.

Maybe he went with an Earthroamer and the range of his 140 gallon fuel tank has left him far from any internet connection where he would be able to check this thread:

;)

I have to say that I've been very happy with my 4WD Tacoma / FourWheel Camper combo.

2001 Tacoma with FourWheel Camper
I added a custom leaf pack for the rear suspension ($1200) and it was well worth it. It's at least as off-road capable as it was without the camper and the queen-sized bed, 2-burner stove, 5 gallon propane, 12-gallon water tank, and 3-way fridge are quite luxurious on longer camping trips. I get about 17mpg on the highway if I'm keeping up with traffic and can push 18-19mpg if I keep the speed down around 60. I lucked out and found the camper used an in excellent condition for $2k - a great value when you compare it to an outfitted 4wd diesel van. If you have the trust fund to blow on something like that, awesome. If not, and you want to maintain a high level of off-road capability, the Tacoma/FourWheel combo is a good way to go.

Didn't the Honda Element come in a 4wd version? Then do a popen top?

My boyfriend is trying to decide what to upgrade too. For 10 years we've traveled in his 03 tacoma, single cab, with all our gear and two dogs, sleeping in the tent. I just bought an 08 subaru which is great but not for sleeping in:) So... he really likes the new dodge RAM ProMaster to convert into camper style. I, on the other hand think he should go bigger tacoma/camper pop up. The promaster is front wheel drive which freaks me out in the snow and ice, and we can't go on 4whl roads very easily. He thinks it would be cheaper though than the truck/camper combo and he likes the idea of more space/standing room. Any more suggestions would be great or if anyone knows about the new promaster and can provide info. Thanks!

ProMaster Dodge Ram

ProMaster Inside

i used autotrader.com and did a customized search for vans with awd/4wd. worked for me.

Jess,

The front wheel drive on the ProMaster will actually be a benefit in the snow and ice as all the weight is over the drive wheels. I'm on the wait list to go see one when they hit the lot here in Sacramento. I do know they are more square than the Sprinter, giving more area. Not sure how much more usable space it will be though. If/when I get the call to go look at one I'll let you know what I think.

If you're really worried about the snow and ice and can wait a bit, Sprinter is going to be offered in AWD in model year '15 (should be available September '14 as per the dealer). Problem is they are going to be very popular so getting a good deal might be tough.