hyperboarder
Adventurer
I have a pretty random vehicle history. I tend to be an opportunistic buyer, perusing Craigslist when the mood strikes and occasionally buying something I stumble upon. It happens probably every 18-24 months with more planned vehicle purchases interspersed in there as well. This has led to a number of vehicles over the years, but only a few stick out as memorable. My TJ Wrangler, which was the first vehicle I really modified. My Outback XT, which was arguably the most well rounded vehicle I've ever owned. And this old, basic 92 E250, which was purchased ~12 hours after finding it on Craigslist.
Backstory; Some random night in 2012 I was poking around Craigslist and found an ad for a Motovan. 92 RB E250 setup for hauling a pair of dirtbikes inside with mileage that made me do a double take (42k). I emailed the seller, who was quick to respond, but told me I'd have to meet him and the 50 or so contractors that had already emailed about the van in a grocery store parking lot the next day. I responded and after promising I would be using the van for the same purpose he had built it for, he agreed to give me an early look and first right of refusal. I rode my DR650 down the next morning and after about 3 minutes of looking, went to an ATM to get him a surprisingly small amount of money. A few hours later it was in my driveway:
It was originally owned by StorageTek in Louisville, CO as a campus vehicle. When they were purchased by Sun Microsystems, the seller had purchased this van at auction (for an even more surprisingly small amount of money than I paid him), ripped out the racking, threw insulation and pegboard on the walls, a truck tool box in as a wheel chock, and used it a few weekends a year for hauling his bikes to the track. It was mechanically sound but spartan, no cruise, no AC, manual everything, and a collection of random dents with a bit of rust here and there. All in all, not a bad starting point.
My original modification set was small. I moved the box forward a bit to accommodate slightly bigger bikes with the intention of fitting my DL1000 in there from time to time. The first time I tried to load it I ended up dropping the bike on top of myself inside the van, so that has never actually happened. However, my former DR650 and current WR250R fit quite comfortably. I also added a seat in what would be the middle/3rd row position and replaced the stock stereo with a simple Pioneer bluetooth unit and Infinity speakers. That was about it for a few years, it served it's purpose as a moto hauler, building material getter, general utility vehicle.
Backstory; Some random night in 2012 I was poking around Craigslist and found an ad for a Motovan. 92 RB E250 setup for hauling a pair of dirtbikes inside with mileage that made me do a double take (42k). I emailed the seller, who was quick to respond, but told me I'd have to meet him and the 50 or so contractors that had already emailed about the van in a grocery store parking lot the next day. I responded and after promising I would be using the van for the same purpose he had built it for, he agreed to give me an early look and first right of refusal. I rode my DR650 down the next morning and after about 3 minutes of looking, went to an ATM to get him a surprisingly small amount of money. A few hours later it was in my driveway:
It was originally owned by StorageTek in Louisville, CO as a campus vehicle. When they were purchased by Sun Microsystems, the seller had purchased this van at auction (for an even more surprisingly small amount of money than I paid him), ripped out the racking, threw insulation and pegboard on the walls, a truck tool box in as a wheel chock, and used it a few weekends a year for hauling his bikes to the track. It was mechanically sound but spartan, no cruise, no AC, manual everything, and a collection of random dents with a bit of rust here and there. All in all, not a bad starting point.
My original modification set was small. I moved the box forward a bit to accommodate slightly bigger bikes with the intention of fitting my DL1000 in there from time to time. The first time I tried to load it I ended up dropping the bike on top of myself inside the van, so that has never actually happened. However, my former DR650 and current WR250R fit quite comfortably. I also added a seat in what would be the middle/3rd row position and replaced the stock stereo with a simple Pioneer bluetooth unit and Infinity speakers. That was about it for a few years, it served it's purpose as a moto hauler, building material getter, general utility vehicle.