I can't decide on a VAN or a TRUCK, input please

[KithlessKid]

Title says it all, but I want to give you guys a little bit more info.

I'm Canadian and on the east coast, I'm currently! 23 years old and female.
I have a cat that I plan to take with me because he's very attached.

I honestly just want a few things from life and one of the biggest is to train and compete/explore with a dog. So that's my biggest concern is making life comfortable for my animals.

When I see myself in the future I see myself driving a truck in all honesty and I know that they are gas eaters, I just want to be able to drive out into the woods easily.

My budget for the vehicle and add ons ranges around 5k-7k


So here's where I'm conflicted-
Van - all over would be cheaper, can just buy it and build it up, pretty stealth, cat would be in the same area as me so I imagine less stressful.
All one piece, so I won't have to get in and out.
Cheap to buy.

The negatives of a van - would have to buy a camper most likely as I'm really inexperienced with building. Also noticed a lot of the work vans are pretty gross.
I have no idea how to do insulation but if I did this would probably be a positive.

Truck - Would satisfy my dream of owning a truck and a dog.
- Separation of camper and truck may allow me to do work like recycling/garbage moving/moving in general for coin.

Negatives being-
Separation from cat so when I'm driving my cat is in a different space as me which I feel like would be more stressful.
-Gas, gas, gassss.
-Separation from camper and truck means I'll have to get in and out.

Please, wise full timers, give me your input.

Edit: forgot this, my plan is to go from the east coat all the way to BC for some education, then I'm free as a bird to go wherever I want. I think maybe working at campgrounds/ect that have dogday cares is a tentative plan. I really want to do competitive dog work though.

 

[cyndi]

I traveled as a competitive dog handler for several years. You don't say what type of competition. My focus was working dogs (herding and schutzhund)

If you're traveling with high drive dogs you're going to need space for kennels.

Traveling with any dog requires monitoring their traveling environment.

Are you thinking truck with slide in camper or travel trailer? I'm thinking a slide in which is going to be a tight squeeze for a kennel.

A van covers all your bases.

 

[kyonu]

IMO, follow your dreams. If you are letting a cat and dog get in the way of owning a truck and dog, then should you be owning a cat AND a dog? No negativity here, just curious!

Also consider this: Though a van would be hard to build up for you, it would be a very nice project. You can build it to YOUR spec, and it drives much like a truck does. It MAY use less gas depending on the Van, and it would be much more cozy and roomy than a truck and camper (unless you do a tow camper...)

A truck is multi-functional of course, probably better range and off road capabilities, but unless you're towing, you're losing out on a lot of room.

It's really up to you, but if you prefer the cat over your dreams, then I highly recommend the van. Unless you get a large tow camper with the truck, that cat will be miserable. Cats are designed to move around!

 

[KithlessKid]

IMO, follow your dreams. If you are letting a cat and dog get in the way of owning a truck and dog, then should you be owning a cat AND a dog? No negativity here, just curious!
It's really up to you, but if you prefer the cat over your dreams, then I highly recommend the van.

I got the cat four years ago, had I known just how important dog training and interaction would have been I'd never have done it. But he's my baby now and we've been through hell and back together. He's been in really small spaces before and is an indoor cat. He's also super friendly and doesn't spook too easily.

I keep circling and thinking I maybe closer to a decision then I get knocked back away again haha. I mean, just your opinion, do you think it would be reasonably to leave my cat with someone when I go across country, then come back and pick him up when I'm traveling less (still would be traveling, but not straight through.)?

I'm going to spend a lot of time de-sensitizing him slowly. If my efforts don't work and it stresses him out I'll rehome him no matter the amount of tears I will shed. but I'm trying really hard to keep my little family together. (I had to rehome my dog last year and I still get teary eyed. I'm one of those people that get really attached to people/animals are people to me, just not humans. .)

Thanks for your input!

---

I traveled as a competitive dog handler for several years. You don't say what type of competition. My focus was working dogs (herding and schutzhund)

If you're traveling with high drive dogs you're going to need space for kennels.

Traveling with any dog requires monitoring their traveling environment.

Are you thinking truck with slide in camper or travel trailer? I'm thinking a slide in which is going to be a tight squeeze for a kennel.

A van covers all your bases.

cyndi

I would really like to talk to you more! The reason I didn't say which kind was because I'm basing it off the dog I'd get, GSD have been my favorite for years. Having one that's bonded to you is an experience I cannot convey fully into words. If I'd get a mix of a GSD (GSDXHusky is usually what I pick out) I'd probably be doing less competitive stuff and focus on bikejoring and working in daycare (I found that breed to be excellent in helping my manage a pack)

The other dog I was thinking is an ACD. I've known a full and they are hilarious and hard working IMO. I'd be doing just tricking and stuff if that was the case.

I worked out a van design, with the bed in the back, food storage, then cat and dog kennel grouped together. Insulation for both kennels and a cooling matt for the bottom.

 

[Almost There]

I'd suggest the van for some of the very same reasons that you've already thought of:

- room for the kennel for dog and a carrier for the cat.
- ease of entry to and from living quarters. No going out in the rain!
- better gas mileage.

AND a whole lot more useable interior space.

Yes, you'll have to look a little harder to find one that's not been used as a work truck and beat to death but they are out there. When you're looking expand the search area as far as you possibly can. When I used Kijiji I had to search each of their divisions/areas separately...pita I know but working within their parameters I managed to find my van only 3 1/2 hours from me.

As to building the interior, there's so much information on here that's free for the reading. You can make it as complicated or as easy as you want. For example - insulation - if you can handle a pair of scissors, a tape measure, adhesive tape and maybe a caulking gun, you're good to go. I'm sure that more than one of us is willing to mentor you although getting advice from several and then picking your answer works too.

You don't have to do a lot of carpentry if you don't want to. Several of the members here have used store bought units and simply anchored them in place. Me, I'm a big fan of some of the VHB (Very High Bond) tapes out there that will hold anything in place!!

As to getting out into the woods, a van doesn't give you quite the ground clearance that a truck generally does although the heavier models of vans give you quite a good clearance. I have no qualms about taking my Savana 2500 out on logging roads. I figure anywhere it can't go I probably shouldn't be taking it anyways... If you really want to go and do some severe off-roading then you'll need 4WD and outfit it with extraction devices. I love a saying I heard about the difference between 4WD and 2WD is how far you can go into the bush before you get stuck.

Good luck and welcome to CRVL.

 

[KithlessKid]

As to building the interior, there's so much information on here that's free for the reading. You can make it as complicated or as easy as you want. For example - insulation - if you can handle a pair of scissors, a tape measure, adhesive tape and maybe a caulking gun, you're good to go. I'm sure that more than one of us is willing to mentor you although getting advice from several and then picking your answer works too.

You don't have to do a lot of carpentry if you don't want to. Several of the members here have used store bought units and simply anchored them in place. Me, I'm a big fan of some of the VHB (Very High Bond) tapes out there that will hold anything in place!!

Thank you very much for your reply.

Is insulation really that easy? I really kind of like the idea of getting my van, parking her, then just working on her daily. That sounds like a lot of fun!

How much did you pay for your van? What's your opinion of how many kilometers that they should have?

As for the inside, all I want is a bed, storage, somewhere to prepare food, and room for my pets to be comfortable! (potties for me and the cat, dog crates and kennels)

I know a lot of it is touch and go to see how you fit in and how vandwelling works for you, I'm just trying to get every lined up as best I can.

 

[Almost There]

Thank you very much for your reply.

Is insulation really that easy? I really kind of like the idea of getting my van, parking her, then just working on her daily. That sounds like a lot of fun!

How much did you pay for your van? What's your opinion of how many kilometers that they should have?

As for the inside, all I want is a bed, storage, somewhere to prepare food, and room for my pets to be comfortable! (potties for me and the cat, dog crates and kennels)

I know a lot of it is touch and go to see how you fit in and how vandwelling works for you, I'm just trying to get every lined up as best I can.

Understanding insulation isn't all that hard. There's some definite do's and don't about it. Don't use the pink fiberglas insulation, skip the spray in foam.

The first layer is a radiant barrier that will keep the inside cooler on a hot day (important for dogs and cats), it needs an air space between it and the sheet metal. Bubble wrap is a favourite for that. It can be simply glued to the metal - use a glue that won't come undone in the heat. Glue the reflectix to it, tape over it with metal tape - don't use your good sewing scissors for that job... and voila, first layer done.

The second layer of foam insulation that comes in sheets.

Yes, it takes some figuring to figure out the layout so that you're not wasting lots of material so you can sharpen your math, logic and geometry skills while you're at it...

Oh, and as a fellow Canadian, get your passport if you don't already have one. Stuff like reflectix, I priced it at Home Depot on both sides of the border - stupid expensive here - $112.00 Cdn for a 48" X 50 FOOT roll, $129.00 US for a 48" X 100 FOOT roll. Guess where I'm shopping... Good thing I know where to find free campsites to kill my 48 hours for my $800.00 duty free allowance. Oh and shipping to Canada is also stupid expensive. I use Kinekpoint outlets to ship inside the US and pay them $5.00 to hold my parcel for me to pick up. I'm 6 1/2 hours from the border, you probably way closer, so I order a bunch of stuff at one time to make the gas bill vs shipping charges cost out better.

I bought my 2002 GMC Savana 2500 in September. It seriously had been owned by one little old man who used it to haul his Airstream. I lucked out because it already had the high top I wanted on it. That would have cost me a week's vacation and maybe $2,500 US to put it on. The van only had 100,000 km (62,000 miles) on it. I paid $3,500 for it and expect to put a couple of thousand into bodywork, new tires and a thorough mechanical inspection. First thing it needed was a new battery...sigh!

When you find something you think you might want, you can run it through here:

http://www.canadianblackbook.com/?gclid=CP74noG2_cICFcpDMgod8mkA-A

to get an idea of what it's worth although after all the looking I did, I became pretty good at ballparking it.

Ideally you want a van that is as new as you can afford (save some money for registration/tax/inspections and immediate upgrades), with as low a mileage as you can find. It's always a toss up - too low mileage means that it's been sitting and will likely need extra maintenance, too high and it's been beat to death. I stayed away from commercially used vans because they don't regularly change them out until the owner knows that something big and expensive is about to go kablooie. Also, a small business (as opposed to fleet) doesn't likely do as much regular maintenance on the vehicle.

Take your time, it's not something that it's wise to rush in to.

And yes, it's way fun to build your own interior and do it the way you want to.

 

[Suanne]

First, I want to say welcome to the forum KithlessKid!

Next, here's an idea you might try in order to figure out how much you can fit into your chosen vehicle:

Find the interior measurements for the living area of the vehicle you are considering. You can find these dimensions online with a Google search. Tape it out on the floor (in garage or house or driveway). Find the measurements of the things you want to take -- "bed, storage, somewhere to prepare food, and room for my pets to be comfortable! (potties for me and the cat, dog crates and kennels)." Cut their footprints out of cardboard. For example, if a bed takes up 26"x72", cut and piece together some cardboard that size. Do the same for all of the other items you mentioned.

Now, using the taped-out area, see how you can fit it all in and still have access to everything that you'll need when you'll need it. Hopefully this will help you see if a van or a truck is better fit.

Suanne

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

Id go with a truck and pull behind camper. all the room you need and you can drop the camper and use the truck. You can put a topper on truck and use bed for animal kennels/crate. Down sides are mileage (none of these, even the van, have good mileage btw), finding big enough parking, and zero stealth.

 

[Willy]

I have a '92 extended cab F-250 4x4 (351W, 4 spd auto) with a 9 1/2' slide in camper, hauling a gawdawful amount if stuff, and I'm getting 10-11 MPG (US gallon) driving through the mountains. Had better gas mileage, but I think the FI water temp sender is biting the biscuit. Aside from having to walk around to get in the cab (can slide through the rear cab window from the camper in an emergency) it has, effectively MORE room than a regular van.. even a hightop. That being said, a 4x4 full sized van w. a hightop would probably do me fine. ..Willy.

 

[cyndi]

My PMs are always open