4wd, Awd or 2wd w/locker???

[rruff]

Well... That really depends of how intense the build is.. I would prefer a base platform (probably awd) to work from.

Not that long ago I was looking at vans too, and 4wd or AWD didn't make sense. Based on my 13 years of living in and traveling all over the west in my 2wd PU, I think you'd be fine with 2wd... especially if you do the mods I mentioned earlier. I was alone, no phone, nobody knew where I was. My recovery equipment was a tire pump and a rope. If I got stuck, I always got unstuck on my own. No problem finding beautiful remote locations where I wouldn't see another human. Based on what you said you wanted it for I think you'll be fine. Mechanical breakdowns are more likely to leave you stranded, and 4wd isn't going to help with that.

 

[RJ Howell]

Not that long ago I was looking at vans too, and 4wd or AWD didn't make sense. Based on my 13 years of living in and traveling all over the west in my 2wd PU, I think you'd be fine with 2wd... especially if you do the mods I mentioned earlier. I was alone, no phone, nobody knew where I was. My recovery equipment was a tire pump and a rope. If I got stuck, I always got unstuck on my own. No problem finding beautiful remote locations where I wouldn't see another human. Based on what you said you wanted it for I think you'll be fine. Mechanical breakdowns are more likely to leave you stranded, and 4wd isn't going to help with that.

The make or brake for me is the muddy 2-track roads. I can re-call a few times in the old P/U being stuck in the mud.. I'm leaning towards Awd and adding a rear locker. The advice passed on the transfer case is also intriguing. If I find a 2wd that's just too hard to pass up, I'll probably pull-the-trigger now that you folks have confirmed what a locker can do for it.
I watched a Youtube video yesterday of some folks challenging soft dirt and hills (and some ditches I'd never do) with a 4x4 Tacoma and a 2x (w/locker) Tacoma. Was rather impressed how well it kept up!

 

[rruff]

The make or brake for me is the muddy 2-track roads. I can re-call a few times in the old P/U being stuck in the mud..

Mud is certainly a consideration. My solution for that was just to avoid it (mostly). Since I was in the west it was easy to do; not much mud in the desert in winter, and in the summer it's pretty dry if you stay away from places that have monsoon season. I was also never dead set on getting to a particular spot on the map. And it's good to pay attention to how hard it would be to get back to civilization if it *does* rain. The "out" route (back to town) should always be less challenging than the "in". Just common sense stuff. You can get massively stuck in mud with 4wd too if you aren't careful. You'll also have a lot of weight on the back wheels, so it isn't like driving an empty PU or van.

You can also build or buy a camper and mount it on a truck it you want good offroad 4wd capability. Seemed more sensible than modding a van to me.

 

[RJ Howell]

Here in the Nor'East its rain, mud, snow or ice.. LOL With the occasional dry sunny day. I do jest a bit with this..

I chuckled a bit when you wrote "You can also build or buy a camper and mount it on a truck it you want good offroad 4wd capability".
Some a bit bigger than this I assume..

.

That was a construction process I tested and do like! If I ha known how well it worked, I would have gone bigger!
Two things I learned about camping with this. I don't like driving my home and having to exit and re-enter my home. If I'm always going to carry the weight, I want access to it all. Van. Secondly, the P/U platform is too restrictive to design. Once you separate the driving section and the living section, valuable space is lost.

Just me, but I think I rather drag a camper then haul a P/U bed camper. Then comes the Van!

Love the input! Thank you

 

[Choff]

We have a 2005 GMC Savana AWD with the G80 rear diff (Eaton "gov-lock" auto-locker) ,
gone through some deep snow with this stock factory setup.
213,000 Miles, DDriver