And no way am I spending $50K+ for 4WD Sprinter...especially after reading that the emissions system is a $12K repair when it is out of warranty.
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Also Sprinters are ginormous. I swear you could park a Suburban
inside a Sprinter. What private owner needs a vehicle that big?
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Be nice if Ford offered the Transit in 4WD like they do in Europe. I can find a basic T-150 short wheelbase low roof Transits around $25K all day long...4WD option on the F-150's is around $4000. 4WD van around the $30K mark sure would be nice. Lots of cargo area, toss a back seat in there for when you need to haul more than 2 people. Be super versatile over a pickup or SUV.
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I keep seeing these newer generation slab-sided vans on the road but I don't hear much about them. You would think they'd make worthy ExPo platforms given their shape and cargo capacity. I pulled up next to a Nissan NV2500 the other day - uglier than hell but I couldn't help but think those vertical sides and squared off back would make it easy to haul a LOT of gear in them. Chevy and Dodge (Ram) also seem to have a new generation of vans but I don't see them being marketed to anybody other than businesses. Seems to me there's an opportunity there for a modern version of a Sportsmobile or something similar.
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IMO the key to making a van a viable overlanding vehicle for typical US suburban dwellers is that it has to be able to carry passengers in a comfortable and efficient way, and then you have to be able to transform it into a utility vehicle. To me that means windows along the side, at least to the mid-line of the vehicle if not all the way back (I'd prefer all the way back, I don't need a "free candy" van.) It also means passenger seats that can either be easily removed by one person, or that fold and stow so as to make room for cargo.
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Modern vehicles seem to be able to do the one (carry passengers) or the other (carry cargo) but not both. I don't know why that nut is so tough to crack when there used to be dozens and dozens of vehicles that could. I don't know if maybe safety standards for passenger seats have become so stringent that the only way to get them to pass is to make them weigh a few hundred pounds, or if we've simply gotten so used to soft, comfortable, wrap-around seats that a simple bench seat won't do.
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If I was to guess I'd say it's not so much that modern auto makers
CAN'T make a vehicle that will haul both passengers OR equipment, but rather that there's just not enough of a market there to justify them spending the $$ to come up with a workable solution. As a business decision that makes sense but for those of us who remember the days when you could unbolt the seats from a van or Suburban and use it to haul a motorcycle, it kind of sucks.
) has Sprinter crew van, while big it is the best of both worlds. Came with a rear passenger seat and side windows, with still amble storage behind the rear seat to haul bikes and gear, plus it gets a solid 25 mpg (price aside) What I like best about it was really no wider than a new Tacoma and being able to change into trail gear out of site at the trail head.
