Vehicle for Tall Folk

[bamblah]

Hello there!

I am currently in the research phase of this whole vandwelling process, with great need/desire to get to the purchasing phase.

I am 6' 6" tall and as it turns out, that presents some challenges when living in a van, who knew. In addition to my tall ass, my gf and our dog will be there too.

Anyways, my desire is to have something I can stand up in. At 78" my self I figure at least an 80" clearance on the interior ceiling. We want to keep it as a class A preferably, maybe a class B, (not a rv). Something like a sprinter van is well beyond our budget (we hope to spend less then 10k on everything, vehicle and conversion).

In my research I've found the only things that fit are ford E-350 or 450 high roof cargo or passenger vans, pop top vehicles (not my favorite), and shuttle buses. 

Other brands such as GMC savannahs or Chevy 1500s high tops are still too short.

So my long winded question is two fold. Firstly, opinions on e-350/450, good bad and why? Secondly, what other options have I looked over? Many thanks in advance for advice and council on this!

 

[bullfrog]

More people are starting to raise the roofs of school buses. You cut the window posts and insert tubing then weld everything back. I believe there is a school bus resale place that will do it for you. Custom build your own box on a chassis, quite a few were built back in the day “Roll Your Own” is a book showing examples, some used to cut the top off an old VW bus and just weld it on top a school bus to make a standing area. You will still have to use a bubble type sky light in the shower at 80” most likely. Almost any solution will most likely have to be a modification or custom build.

 

[barleyguy]

Doesn't fit the "van" category, but a pop up truck camper, specifically the "Four Wheel Camper" brand, has 6 foot 6 inches of internal height when it's popped up. That might be something to consider as an option.

For full timing, you'd probably need a 3/4 ton pickup to put it on, like a F250 or HD2500. They are borderline for the payload capacity of a 1/2 ton, so personally I'd only do that for occasional use or with not much stuff in it.

https://fourwheelcampers.com/

Another option would be an a-frame pop up trailer like an ALiner. Those are 8 feet high at the peak of the ceiling when popped up.

 

[RvNaut]

I am 6' 6" tall ...................Secondly, what other options have I looked over?

You have my empathy  .. I am 6'4" and I sleep on my stomach some of the time and I have found most beds in vans.etc are not pre-made long enough or positioned to accommodate my length.. I prefer my feet not extend bey9ond the end of the bed... I am also not a fan of the overhang of a Class C... I also have found that Class B and C RV are more expensive than Class A.. which seems odd to me me, but there it is..   so I am going to go with a Class A for space and cost.

Good Luck!!

 

[highdesertranger]

"We want to keep it as a class A preferably, maybe a class B, (not a rv)."

both class A and B are RV's. not sure what you meant by that.

highdesertranger

 

[tx2sturgis]

I suggest you look into converting a box truck or box van, cutaway-cube van, etc.

Many of them have a higher interior ceiling and the length for sleeping N-S will certainly be long enough.

Your stated budget of $10k for the entire budget will limit your choices to older trucks with higher mileage.

Good luck.

 

[RvNaut]

"We want to keep it as a class A preferably, maybe a class B, (not a rv)."

both class A and B are RV's.  not sure what you meant by that.

highdesertranger

I think the is referring to the chassis...

 

[bamblah]

Thanks for the responses. I think I was slightly confused on what the class A B and C meant for vehicles, thanks for clearing that up a bit.

As for a custom job to make a high top roof, that just scares me to be totally frank. I don't have the skills to do it and I've heard the structural integrity of something like that is questionable at best?

We don't want to be pulling anything so that takes the pop up trailers off the list, even though that's probably the simplest solution.

I'll definitely start looking at cut always and box trucks a bit more. My only concern with something like that is how good it would be on service roads and such. I also am not totally fond of the idea of having to get out of the back to get to the driver seat and vise versa, but there are pros and cons to everything. I also wonder how the gas milage will fare on something like that..

The camper on a truck is something we have thought about for sure, I'll give that more consideration. It maybe is the best compromise to have the mobility, height, and be financially plausible.

Here's a picture of a Ford that we are thinking about. Basically a e-350 high top short wheelbase shuttle bus, but I guess as the whole vanlife thing has become more popular these sell really fast and they're value has become inflated in recent years. If we could find one though I'm thinking that'd be the ticket, unless anyone wiser and more experienced could tell me why it's a bad route. If so I'm all ears.

https://ibb.co/mGR7Wzx

 

[bullfrog]

Sounds like you need to experience what nomadic life will be like. I would suggest you rent a Uhaul and go camping for a weekend. Even try car camping with a tent or rent a camper for a few days. Realizing that you will most likely have to live with what ever you eventually choose you need to know what you are willing to compromise on and willing to do to live the lifestyle.

 

[bamblah]

I feel fairly compatible with the nomadic lifestyle. I've been doing it for the last 3 years overseas. Granted that was in apartments, hostels, and the such. Not in a vehicle. I'm no stranger to camping either.

Right now I spend about a quarter of my time living in a parked camper trailer at my parents house. And the rest of the time in a 10x10 cabin in the woods. Small spaces don't scare me, I just need to genuinely fit in them. Not pretend I fit. If I can stand up, and i can fully lay down in bed i feel pretty good about that.

The biggest thing is I just need to be comfortable in whatever space (can stand up, sleep fully extended, and have space to work on the computer.)

Its gotta be mobile enough to take on service roads, nothing off road per say. It must be reliable, and within budget.

The rest is just preference. And making sure the girlfriend is happy too.

 

[bullfrog]

With your budget, not being comfortable modifying vehicles and requiring a walk thru from the driver’s compartment I doubt you will find much if anything available. George of the George and Tioga site was modifying a box truck you might want to look at but he passed away some time back. Other than that the only other way that will meet your height requirement is a custom build or an extra tall cargo trailer, which would have to built out, that I know of.

 

[RvNaut]

I have also looked at the cost of building out something, and it is not cheap. By the time you outfit with items you would have in any RV, you will have spent a decent lump of cash... just the base chassis is going to be $7-15k and that is used and may come with the same issues any other used anything would. You will potentially have less issues on the house side as you build it yourself.... and frankly there are way too many Class A's out there are far cheaper expense. Any decent class B is going for $25k and up and the same with Class C's... if you can find one... but Class A MH's are everywhere and at all price ranges... if one is entering into the world of full time, you will experience mechanical failures.. it will happen... granted a new of anything will mostly be free of devastating issues, but then that is talking $75k and up... If you have the time/place/money to build out a rig in your own time and the funds to acquire a decent base, then by all means go for it... in my case at 61 with some arthritis, getting into a full on rehab isn't in my cards...

Have fun and report back how it all goes.

 

[highdesertranger]

yep I got my cargo trailer with 8ft interior walls. but you said no towing.

what's a service road?

highdesertranger

 

[tx2sturgis]

I think he meant 'forest service road'....

Other than that, a 'service road' is a paved frontage road for a limited access freeway or interstate...and we can assume that is not what he meant.

Yeah, the budget and the 'no-towing', and the physical requirements are sure gonna narrow the choices.

 

[gslanm]

I don't know what they mean by A, B, C. I don't know about 6'6 but I'm 6'2 and I have to go for the high top ram promaster 2500 or something like that. To be honest, I think anything that costs $10k is gong to be very high mileage and going to inevitably have service costs. Even the ones I'm perusing at 23k mileage all goes for around mid $20,000s.

I think people with our height have to just make do. I guess you could look into a truck but for the price of a truck it's going to be very expensive or old. So the high top work vans like a promaster or Ford Transit Cargo is all I'm looking at.

 

[kygreg]

Many step vans have 7 foot ceilings and they would fit in your budget.

 

[bamblah]

what's a service road?

A forest service road, we just call them service roads in washington.

I don't know what they mean by A, B, C. 

I was misunderstanding what that meant in my original post, disregard my original comment about that.

I don't know about 6'6 but I'm 6'2 and I have to go for the high top ram promaster 2500 or something like that.

Yes the only cargo or passenger van that fits the bill for my at 6'6" is the ford e350 or e450 or the newer transits. Looks like the other make and models are about 2 to 6 inches short even on the high tops.

Many step vans have 7 foot ceilings and they would fit in your budget.

I am seriously considering something like this now. The biggest issue I am seeing with something like this is, it would be considered a commercial vehicle right? So registering it as a personal vehicle could be a hurtle? Additionally I wonder how well something like a step van would perform on a dirt or gravel forest service road in the hills.

 

[jacqueg]

I am seriously considering something like this now. The biggest issue I am seeing with something like this is, it would be considered a commercial vehicle right? So registering it as a personal vehicle could be a hurtle? Additionally I wonder how well something like a step van would perform on a dirt or gravel forest service road in the hills.

Maybe not, depends on the state where you are registering it. Call the DMV and ask.

Plenty of smaller RVs can navigate service roads. If you're not in a hurry to buy right this minute, go camping in the vehicle you have, in the kind of place you'd like to camp, and talk to the RV owners you meet.

 

[kygreg]

 

 

(step van comment)I am seriously considering something like this now. The biggest issue I am seeing with something like this is, it would be considered a commercial vehicle right? So registering it as a personal vehicle could be a hurtle? Additionally I wonder how well something like a step van would perform on a dirt or gravel forest service road in the hills.

It's only considered commercial if you use it as such. Some states won't let you register it as an RV, but you can register it as a personal-use truck in most every state. Of course you should call the DMV and your insurance company before buying. In my state of Kentucky they wouldn't register as an RV but personal use was fine. State farm categorizes as commercial, not because I'm doing business with it but because of its size and weight, this raises cost a bit. Mine is $940/year full coverage. as far as forest roads go it is wider than cargo vans which is great but may limit you to better roads. I got a diesel so steep hills should not be an issue. They have much better ground clearance than a cargo van as well.