TCO: why we deciced not to get a Sportsmobile (yet :-)

[John E Davies]

He just bought a Newmar motor coach; 37'. Bigger than most places I live, with everything (and duplicates of everything). Tows the Tracker on a flat bed ($2500); the motor coach (with 21k miles) cost $87k. So for less than the price of a new SMB he's got a second home (BTW, it costs LESS to insure than my SMB! and gets 8 MPG to pull all that weight) and an offroad worthy vehicle. They park it out off dirt roads at Rasor Rd, Spangler or Jawbone in the Mojave, or Utah or whatnot and fourwheel and motorcycle all over the place. Like stay at Moab, throw a tent into the Tracker, and do the White Rim.

That is one way to do it, but it comes with a ton of limitations .... plus you have to accept the fact that you won't be able to take that big bus anywhere on forest roads, or over those cool unmaintained Colorado passes. If you want complete freedom of travel, the rig has to be nimble with decent clearance and 4wd.....

John Davies
Spokane WA USA

 

[robgendreau]

Take those CO passes as an example. You park the RV down in Silverton and do all of them in your toad, which because it isn't built to sleep in, has much better 4x4 performance. Maybe there's a few way up there campsites you wouldn't be able to overnight in, but with a more nimble 4x4, ATV, UTV, motorcycle or whatever you see the same territory...and maybe even pack tent and stay overnight. Instead of your "home" being back in Spokane it's now in Silverton for a few weeks, so no long drive back either. Which is probably why more weekenders have the vans, and smaller vehicles, and the retired guys have the RV/second homes.

Me? I'm realizing that I like the 4x4 van because I like where it allows me to camp, and don't really care about driving marginal roads for the sake of driving marginal roads, which is kinda what my big bus RV friends are liking.

 

[John E Davies]

Take those CO passes as an example. You park the RV down in Silverton and do all of them in your toad

It's all about if you want to set up a base camp and drive circles around it for a few days, or meander through an area and out the far side. I much prefer the latter. I hate back tracking to a home base. I did that for many years when riding dirt bikes in the mountains. It gets old and it burns up a lot of extra gas and time.

I would still carry a lightweight vehicle to act as a toad - say a sub-250 pound dual sport like a Husky TE-310, or even one of the new e-bikes like the Zero FX 5.7 - for running short errands, exploring a tight side track, or driving out for help or parts if I got seriously broken down.

John Davies
Spokane WA USA

 

[robgendreau]

The e-bike is a very interesting idea. The Zero FX, eg, has swappable power packs; put them in your vehicle for regular power and then swap 'em in for a ride. Only weighs about 250 lbs. Not sure if that's possible, but mebbe. Not sure how many volts those packs use; they're about 2.5 kW though and I imagine it's way higher than 12v....

 

[medicfernando]

Its all in what you want. You can easily get into a great used SMB for under 20,000 or less even depending on how old you want to go. In Salt Lake right now, there is an early 90's model for well under that. Point being, if you want one , get one. Use it, enjoy it and dont worry about what you could do better or worse in another vehicle. We have a 2003 7.3L diesel 4x4 conversion that averages 18 MPG, will go just about anywhere and when we get there, camp is setup in about a minute. It is not a hardcore rockcrawler by any means but will go anywhere where I would take that large of a vehicle. Purchases like SMB's should be well thought out but vehicles like that, that are not necessary and are a complete luxury are very visceral. I had always wanted one, we saved for a while and bought one. No regrets. Bottom line, if you want one, find a good one and buy it. Dont overthink it because you can always find a million more reasons to not get one than to get one. Cheers all!

 

[davebsmb]

Guess I'm one of the few who made a big mistake buying a new SMB but for what ever reason haven't felt the pain yet. Yet if it wasn't the SMB, it would have probably been a big diesel pusher, a new bass boat or a Jeep Brute; heck maybe all three I applaud anybody that finds a good deal or those who just purchase what they want no matter the cost. The same can be said about any piece of equipment on your rig. If I couldn't afford my van I wouldn't have bought it in the first place. Just getting out there and enjoying the world is enough for me.

 

[haven]

If TCO was the only criterion, we'd all own 25 year old Land Cruisers and Jeeps. The depreciation on a new-ish vehicle is frightening.

 

[steelheadbum]

SMB's are damn nice rigs but when I decided on purchasing one it was BadgerTrek.com that help me decide on building it myself. With all the problems that they had on their new SMB I figured it could be built using better quality materials for a fraction of the price. I originally had planned on finding a 2002-2003 E350 7.3 with under 100k from the west coast and have Ujoint do the 4wd conversion, but while searching I found my 02 EB350 7.3 on thunders garage and it was local. I paid 28k the way you see it

Since I have added poptop converaion ,

Nerf bars/ ladder puts my new total 40k
and have given Van Specialties deposit on interior conversion fig my total otd will be only 53k.
Buck
The Redneck Mexican
2002 E350 7.3 PSD 4x4 8inch lift pop top conversion....

 

[gvb40]

Sportsmobile or not.

So far I have owned 3 Westfalias, Chev Silverado 4x4 with pop top camper, a Tacoma 4x4 with Four Wheel pop top and now a Sprinter 2x4 SMB conversion which I have had since 2010. None of the rigs had a shower except the Sprinter. None of them got 22mpg like the Sprinter and none of them were anywhere near as comfortable to live as the Sprinter. The Sprinter was purchased used for $20k with 22,000 miles on it. The SMB conversion cost $ 30k making a total of $ 50k. That's half of what some persons on this forum have quoted the cost of a SMB. I have been all over the place with my Sprinter, out of the way boon-docking in the Sierras, Colorado, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, New Mexico, Arizona and Nevada. It would be nice to have four wheel drive but I have yet to be in a situation where I needed it. With only 75 thou on the speedo the diesel just keeps ticking along. I just had GtRV
put in a water tank where the spare tire used to live. So I now have 53 gallons of water on board. SMB's build has worked out just fine over the years with only a few minor glitches. Were I to do it over again I'd probably have GTRV do the build only because they are less than an hour away from me.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that it is possible to have a getaway vehicle without breaking the bank. And one with all the creature comforts that make a long road trip pleasant.

 

[El_jefe_83]

After Reading this Thread, I still want one. But I'll shop around until I find the right one. Leaning more toward building it myself. Great Opinions all around!

 

[El_jefe_83]

SMB's are damn nice rigs but when I decided on purchasing one it was BadgerTrek.com that help me decide on building it myself. With all the problems that they had on their new SMB I figured it could be built using better quality materials for a fraction of the price. I originally had planned on finding a 2002-2003 E350 7.3 with under 100k from the west coast and have Ujoint do the 4wd conversion, but while searching I found my 02 EB350 7.3 on thunders garage and it was local. I paid 28k the way you see it

Since I have added poptop converaion ,

Nerf bars/ ladder puts my new total 40k
and have given Van Specialties deposit on interior conversion fig my total otd will be only 53k.
Buck
The Redneck Mexican
2002 E350 7.3 PSD 4x4 8inch lift pop top conversion....

NICE RIG!!!!

 

[ujoint]

We just finished this one, great example of what can be done with a nice used rig. 7.3, he got out with 125k, sent it to SMB Indiana and then to us for the 4x4 conversion and some goodies. Not mine so I don't know the total investment!

 

[gvb1940]

Couldn't have said it better myself.

 

[gvb1940]

And now I'm selling it and getting an XP 1 on a 2015 Ram one ton.

 

[gvb1940]

So far I have owned 3 Westfalias, Chev Silverado 4x4 with pop top camper, a Tacoma 4x4 with Four Wheel pop top and now a Sprinter 2x4 SMB conversion which I have had since 2010. None of the rigs had a shower except the Sprinter. None of them got 22mpg like the Sprinter and none of them were anywhere near as comfortable to live as the Sprinter. The Sprinter was purchased used for $20k with 22,000 miles on it. The SMB conversion cost $ 30k making a total of $ 50k. That's half of what some persons on this forum have quoted the cost of a SMB. I have been all over the place with my Sprinter, out of the way boon-docking in the Sierras, Colorado, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, New Mexico, Arizona and Nevada. It would be nice to have four wheel drive but I have yet to be in a situation where I needed it. With only 75 thou on the speedo the diesel just keeps ticking along. I just had GtRV
put in a water tank where the spare tire used to live. So I now have 53 gallons of water on board. SMB's build has worked out just fine over the years with only a few minor glitches. Were I to do it over again I'd probably have GTRV do the build only because they are less than an hour away from me.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that it is possible to have a getaway vehicle without breaking the bank. And one with all the creature comforts that make a long road trip pleasant.

And now it's for sale as I'm getting an XP1 camper on a 2015 Ram one ton