Saying HI!

[Tessa0717]

Good morning everyone!  So excited to be here! 

I'm just beginning my search for a van to drive cross country and live in full time. So many options and I'm hoping you can help guide me. I have looked at everything from Ford XL to used dodge turtle top vans.

Most Important: I will be living in the van by myself and full time. I will be traveling/staying in everything from National Parks, BLM land, campgrounds, and the occasional walmart parking lot if necessary. Here is my list of must haves as I need to be as safe, homey, and convenient as possible:
Must be able to stand up in it
Indoor cooking, small sink, fridge
Room for at least a full size bed (fold up is fine)
A table/work space area

Vehicle Budget $5kish. Going through a dealership is not an option since my budget (and credit) are so low. I am looking at FB market place. I will be putting pretty much every penny I have into this project so need to leave $ room for the interior build.
i can build most of the interior myself (will have some help with this)

Do I go for: 
An older (1990-2010)  mid/high roof Dodge turtle top, Chevy G20, Ford camper/passenger van: usually has electric, ac, etc ready to go and are usually livable as is until I can fully convert.
Or convert something with a commercial feel: Ford XL or econoline and retro fit from there.
Skoolie? In love with the look and concept 

Which of these have a the smoothest ride? 
Inexpensive mechanical repairs (way out of my league haha)
Gas vs. diesel? 
Anything else I need to know?  

Thanks so much! So excited to be here

Tessa

 

[RvDreams]

Welcome Tessa0717 to the CRVL forums! To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips, Tricks and Rules" post lists some helpful information to get you started.

Most of our rules boil down to two simple over-riding principles: 1) What you post should provide good information (like your introductory post), and 2) Any response to someone else's post should make them feel glad they are part of this forum community.

We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[Tessa0717]

Thanks so much for the Welcome!  I will check it out!

 

[bullfrog]

Finding a standup van in good enough mechanical condition to drive across the country for $5,000 that you can't do repairs yourself on is in my opinion going to be almost impossible. It might be possible to find a vehicle for that that you could camp out of in a tent which would allow you to stand up in but you would have to sleep in the vehicle with no tent when at Walmart. Putting every penny into a project usually means loosing everything the first time something breaks as you can not afford to get repaired and most garages are charging around $100 an hour labor not to mention parts. You need to have an emergency fund or plan B good enough to be able to replace or at least survive a total loss when on the road. It is still possible to work and travel nomadically without an expensive rig but compromise is usually necessary. Many seasonal jobs furnish housing. Buying a reliable vehicle for traveling between seasonal jobs might work for you and allow you to build up you funds while getting to see new places. Welcome to the forum!

 

[user 423]

Vehicle Budget $5kish.

It's very unlikely that you will find a reliable van with anything close to the features you desire for that amount.

Because of the popularity of van living (and now the housing uncertainty), in most areas of the country prices for vans, especially high-top vans, are inflated.

Old vans can quickly turn into money pits unless you can do your own repairs. A transmission rebuild can be $2500-$3500. To replace a fuel pump it's $700-$1000. So you will need a sizeable emergency repair fund.

Your best bet is to save a decent amount and take your time and buy the newest, lowest mileage regular van you can find and then do a "no build" build. Take a look at some of the threads on the forum to see what I mean by "no build".

Welcome to the forum!

 

[user 37446]

How tall are you? Mid top G20's are for like 5'3". You will be uhh, "fortunate" to find a decent taller top van in good running condition for anywhere even close to $5K.
I'm in the Central-South and there's nothing but standard conversion vans, some mid-top (but like I said you have to be short) and they almost all are going for $6-9K if any good.
Peeps have caught onto the popularity, a lot of CL ads now say "van life" as a possible use so they have been priced to take advantage of the "fad".

Stay away from diesel if you don't know anything about it and don't work on vehicles.

I looked on CL in Atlanta, Memphis, Shreveport and Little Rock and this is the only conversion van under 5K listed:

(Memphis)
2004 Recency Conversion Van $4700 Obo - $4,700

© craigslist - Map data © OpenStreetMap
2004 chevrolet express van
fuel: gas
odometer: 230000
title status: clean
transmission: automatic
Up forsale nice Chevy conversion Van new trans fully loaded 19"Tv new tires bed beverage coolers 901 21 6 7763 thanks for looking

***Note it only has 1 picture which is a "yellow flag". Most any legit seller will have way more pictures. And a new tranny? Cmon'... Could be a scam.

 

[vgilbert]

Hello,
Just a word of caution on used commercial vehicles such as shuttle bus, school bus, box truck, etc. 
Make sure you can get insurance on the vehicle before you buy. You may have to get the title converted to personal use before you can get insurance unless of course you already have a commercial auto policy.
Conversion requirements vary state to state so check with your local DMV and current insurance company.
God Luck
God Bless