Around the world

[GlobalMonkey]

I am new to this forum, very glad to find it. My girlfriend and I are planing to travel around the world for a few years, leaving Colorado in about two years. Except for other preparations, we are trying to figure out, which vehicle to use. We are happy for any input, so far I think diesel is a better choise than gas and it has to fit in a 20 foot container (shipping between continets). Any experiences with a Hummer H1? Reliability? Space?
Thanks, Tomas

 

[Spikepretorius]

Don't even think about a Hummer for a round the world trip.
A Landcruiser is about your best bet.

 

[Scott Brady]

What is your overall budget?
Do you plan on camping or staying in hotels mostly?

Plan on $70-80 per day on average with mostly camping. Much higher while in Europe, but the balance of the world is pretty reasonable. If you plan on staying in motels/hotels/hostels mostly, than plan on $100 per day average for the trip. Then you will have 3-4 container shipments, depending on your route. That will cost another 20-40k, depending on several factors. Then plan on another 10-15k of buffer and incidentals.

Take your budget and subtract above and you will have a good number to use for a vehicle base + mods.

 

[viter]

I think hummer H1 while an extremely capable off-road vehicle is too expansive (relatively), will attract too much attention (more chances getting robbed), will eat lots of fuel, will be hard to find parts for, has quite limited space inside due to the high sitting transmission tunnel, and according to some is not that relaible (though I never had experience with one). however some people have done across-americas trips in them before I believe, but in a group of like 3-4 vehicles, so perhaps that made it safer and easier in terms of spare parts.

This forum sure has a bunch of info to give you more choices than you would like to think about!

 

[GlobalMonkey]

What is your overall budget?
Do you plan on camping or staying in hotels mostly?

Plan on $70-80 per day on average with mostly camping. Much higher while in Europe, but the balance of the world is pretty reasonable. If you plan on staying in motels/hotels/hostels mostly, than plan on $100 per day average for the trip. Then you will have 3-4 container shipments, depending on your route. That will cost another 20-40k, depending on several factors. Then plan on another 10-15k of buffer and incidentals.

Take your budget and subtract above and you will have a good number to use for a vehicle base + mods.

Our budget for the vehicle is $80K, but of course less we spend, more spare change we will have:wings:

 

[Scott Brady]

Do you plan on vehicle camping or staying mostly in motels/hotels/hostels?

That is a vital piece of the puzzle IMO. If you are going to vehicle camp, then my recommendations are totally different than if you are going to mostly motel it.

Are you planning to stick to known/improved/traveled routes or get really remote?

 

[GlobalMonkey]

Do you plan on vehicle camping or staying mostly in motels/hotels/hostels?

That is a vital piece of the puzzle IMO. If you are going to vehicle camp, then my recommendations are totally different than if you are going to mostly motel it.

Are you planning to stick to known/improved/traveled routes or get really remote?

We will split it, some motels or our friends places, but also good amount of sleeping in the truck, camping in remote areas. We do not want to stay only near main roads, we want to get out there. Just for Central and South America we plan good two years, to give you an idea. Thank you so much for your advice, Tomas:camping:

 

[GlobalMonkey]

Test drove today a 2000 Hummer H1 wagon, and for sure will never buy one. We, my girlfriend and I, are 6 feet tall and we both had a hard time to comfortably fit on the passenger seat. The seat was actually great, but no space for our long legs. I also have to agree, that the truck would attrack a lot of unwanted attention in South America. So back to square one. Any opinions on a Chevy Express (cargo van) with a Duramax Turbo Diesel and Allison transmission with Quigley 4x4 (possibly with some Sportsmobile accesories)???:REAdvRockClimber:

 

[haven]

camper

How long do you expect to the camping parts of the trip to last? It's one thing to camp under canvas for a few days, quite a different thing to camp for a month. The level of creature comforts needs to be higher and you'll need more room for work/study/leisure activities if you're camping for weeks.

Try living in your driveway for a couple of days in different vehicles (borrow or rent). And no running into the house for a shower! This will provide tons of information about your camping requirements.

Chip Haven

 

[Colorado Ron]

Our budget for the vehicle is $80K, but of course less we spend, more spare change we will have:wings:

I would look at a 4x4 van of some sort for two people. Vans are nice when you only have two. You dont have to get out of vehicle to get to your sleeping or eating quarters. Thats a bigger advantage than most think about I think. Sure is nice for your girlfriend to be able to make you a samich while your driving! My list would start with a short wheelbase Mercedes van. Can pick one up and do a 4x4 conversion.

Honestly a synchro VW with a diesel and a pop up camper setup would be sweet!

Again, I personally would look for something you could live and stand up in. Diesel!

 

[GlobalMonkey]

How long do you expect to the camping parts of the trip to last? It's one thing to camp under canvas for a few days, quite a different thing to camp for a month. The level of creature comforts needs to be higher and you'll need more room for work/study/leisure activities if you're camping for weeks.

Try living in your driveway for a couple of days in different vehicles (borrow or rent). And no running into the house for a shower! This will provide tons of information about your camping requirements.

Chip Haven

Thank you Chip, we have a lot to learn, before leaving, Tomas

 

[GlobalMonkey]

I would look at a 4x4 van of some sort for two people. Vans are nice when you only have two. You dont have to get out of vehicle to get to your sleeping or eating quarters. Thats a bigger advantage than most think about I think. Sure is nice for your girlfriend to be able to make you a samich while your driving! My list would start with a short wheelbase Mercedes van. Can pick one up and do a 4x4 conversion.

Honestly a synchro VW with a diesel and a pop up camper setup would be sweet!

Again, I personally would look for something you could live and stand up in. Diesel!

Thank you for your advise, do you know who does conversions of Mercedes (Dodge) Sprinter into 4x4? Tomas:Mechanic:

 

[GlobalMonkey]

Suburban It Is

:safari-rig: Decission has been made today, we are going to buy a Subruban for our trip around the world. After visiting with "Colorado Ron" earlier today and riding in his Suburban, we have absolutely made up our mind. It is the truck for us, thanx again Ron.

 

[tamangel]

Suburb build

Good luck on your build and trip..Please keep posting here per your build-up. It will be interesting to see how you do it and later how your trip is going..
One good thing, among many, are the different mods people do and feature on this forum..
Mike