osinrider04
Observer
This is a 2005 Chevy 190 Versatile Roadtrek with the 6.0L V8 motor. Up until I purchased it in 2022, it had lived its entire life in Southern California. I bought the van sight unseen and shipped it to Virginia to begin my process of upfitting it and modernizing for how my wife and I intended to use it. When we purchased the van, it was completely stock. All of the modifications done were purposeful and enhance the greatness of the quality of these vans from Roadtrek. I have about $20,000 in upgrades in this van when you consider the cost of quality paint, suspension, and steering components.
Located in Fairfax, VA 22030. It has roughly 113,000 miles currently. I just drove the van for 30 days straight across the entire United States and Canada traveling over 7,500 miles (the for sale pic is from that trip in Zion National Park). It was great on that trip and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again. Everything functions as it should: fridge, generator, microwave, heat pump/AC, propane furnace, AND propane stove. Just before that trip the van had a true 100k mile tune up to include brakes, fluids, spark plugs, spark plug wires, rear diff fluid, transmission fluid, etc.
Here is a list of most upgrades performed on the van:
Full body repaint to address the OEM white chevy paint issue.
Sanded entire van to bare metal, primed, and painted at professional paint shop.
5" WeldTec Designs full lift kit. This includes full rear leaf springs, new front knuckles, spacers, and shocks.
The rear shocks are custom-valved Fox Racing and the front are HD Bilsteins.
Hellwig solid front sway bar
Roadmaster reflex steering stabilizer
Pepwave Peplink dual SIM Internet and wifi router (cell tower internet)
Weboost cell booster to amplify the Pepwave to maximize speeds
200 watts of flexible solar panels with MPPT charge controller
2 brand new Lifeline AGM RV batteries (200 amp hours)
Front sumo springs
Custom fitted rear sumo springs to work with the lift kit
Maxx Air fan 7500
Brand new windshield
All crank out windows replaced with plexiglass to prevent broken hinges/window failure (common roadtrek design flaw)
Super bright LED offroad lights on dedicated switch
Magnetic mosquito screen to side barn door
Clear headlight housings with LED driving bulbs, indicator lights, and fog lights
Bolt on VanTech Custom roof rack (not seen in photo)
33" All Terrain tires mounted on factory wheels. Factory wheels coated in plastidip to preserve original finish for those that want the aluminum look instead of black
Custom modified OEM spare tire holder for full-sized spare (5th) tire
Custom designed LATCH system for child car seat. Designed and welded brackets to fit within the wooden frame for one of the captain's chairs to allow for a car seat to properly secure.
The van is 2WD as I didn't see the utility in converting a van this big to 4x4. I have taken it on several trips down forest safety fire roads and it does great though. The only thing I would potentially add is a rear locker if you wanted better traction. The van does have 2 flaws on the interior. At the beginning stages of modifications, I noticed the original air vent seal had failed and water stains appeared on the white ceiling. I promptly replaced the old fan with a brand new Maxx Air vent. Luckily I caught it quickly but there is residual discolor of the white ceiling. I'm told there are ways to return the color to normal but it doesn't bother me. The other flaw came to me from a previous owner. The interior fabric where the walls have curves had started to split. Previous owners tried to use some kind of compound/putty to reseal the split fabric. My next project for this van was to remove the interior pieces effected and simply put on new fabric. Very easy job but I haven't had time to do it yet.
Evap sensor just came on as I have to replace the sensor above the gas tank. I'll have this done and the dash light cleared before purchase!
Located in Fairfax, VA 22030. It has roughly 113,000 miles currently. I just drove the van for 30 days straight across the entire United States and Canada traveling over 7,500 miles (the for sale pic is from that trip in Zion National Park). It was great on that trip and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again. Everything functions as it should: fridge, generator, microwave, heat pump/AC, propane furnace, AND propane stove. Just before that trip the van had a true 100k mile tune up to include brakes, fluids, spark plugs, spark plug wires, rear diff fluid, transmission fluid, etc.
Here is a list of most upgrades performed on the van:
Full body repaint to address the OEM white chevy paint issue.
Sanded entire van to bare metal, primed, and painted at professional paint shop.
5" WeldTec Designs full lift kit. This includes full rear leaf springs, new front knuckles, spacers, and shocks.
The rear shocks are custom-valved Fox Racing and the front are HD Bilsteins.
Hellwig solid front sway bar
Roadmaster reflex steering stabilizer
Pepwave Peplink dual SIM Internet and wifi router (cell tower internet)
Weboost cell booster to amplify the Pepwave to maximize speeds
200 watts of flexible solar panels with MPPT charge controller
2 brand new Lifeline AGM RV batteries (200 amp hours)
Front sumo springs
Custom fitted rear sumo springs to work with the lift kit
Maxx Air fan 7500
Brand new windshield
All crank out windows replaced with plexiglass to prevent broken hinges/window failure (common roadtrek design flaw)
Super bright LED offroad lights on dedicated switch
Magnetic mosquito screen to side barn door
Clear headlight housings with LED driving bulbs, indicator lights, and fog lights
Bolt on VanTech Custom roof rack (not seen in photo)
33" All Terrain tires mounted on factory wheels. Factory wheels coated in plastidip to preserve original finish for those that want the aluminum look instead of black
Custom modified OEM spare tire holder for full-sized spare (5th) tire
Custom designed LATCH system for child car seat. Designed and welded brackets to fit within the wooden frame for one of the captain's chairs to allow for a car seat to properly secure.
The van is 2WD as I didn't see the utility in converting a van this big to 4x4. I have taken it on several trips down forest safety fire roads and it does great though. The only thing I would potentially add is a rear locker if you wanted better traction. The van does have 2 flaws on the interior. At the beginning stages of modifications, I noticed the original air vent seal had failed and water stains appeared on the white ceiling. I promptly replaced the old fan with a brand new Maxx Air vent. Luckily I caught it quickly but there is residual discolor of the white ceiling. I'm told there are ways to return the color to normal but it doesn't bother me. The other flaw came to me from a previous owner. The interior fabric where the walls have curves had started to split. Previous owners tried to use some kind of compound/putty to reseal the split fabric. My next project for this van was to remove the interior pieces effected and simply put on new fabric. Very easy job but I haven't had time to do it yet.
Evap sensor just came on as I have to replace the sensor above the gas tank. I'll have this done and the dash light cleared before purchase!
