>>2000933>Got any advice?Size isn't the problem, the van is simply a place to sleep and chill. The problem is the platform your doing it on. These vans are 60 years old now and horrible. Electrical is shit, motors are shit, frame at this point is gonna be shit, etc. You'd be much happier buying a vehicle that is newer. Many people use trucks with canopies on the back, but from personal experience, its pretty unpleasant and trucks are not cheap now-a-days.
Since any van that is going to be in working order is going to cost nearly 20k+, I'd recommend buying something that would be a more reliable rig. I personally just got a brand new Subaru Impreza Hatchback that seems to be more than fine for car-camping/van life if needed. The good thing about the Subaru is, it only costed 23k new for a base. For AWD and a warranty, you cant beat that price.
If you want something that is going to have practical use and wont cost 3k-7k a year to own, I'd recommend checking these options. All new so warrenties and hassle free
- Subaru Impezza hatchback (AWD, 20k new Base Model) (Can sleep me and im 6 foot)
- Subaru Crosstrek (AWD, 23k base)
- Ford Transit Connect (27k net new)
- Ford Ranger (27k net new + Canopy/Camper 1k-5k)
You could always get these a few years older with warrantees too and save 2-5k. Subaru is very good at pre-owned cars
If you REALLY want to 'also learn mechanics', you cannot go wrong with a 22r or 22re toyota truck from 1980-1991. But to be honest, dealing with the rust, parts, boomer tutorials on youtube, etc, gets annoying. I had a 1991 Nissan D21 pickup and manNnnn, its a simple truck, but HOLY fuck was it annoying. Even my 15 year old Toyota Tacoma was shitting out to age.
I get that you have dreams and asperations of being a cool hippie and explore, but it comes with some serious problems. Not everything is like you see on youtube with #VanLife. Those people purposefully lie about how great it is to attract viewers in.
