What is the Best Van for Van Life?
The short answer is; anything with four (or more) wheels that isn’t leaking, and doesn’t shower the ground with rust when you touch it. There are a huge number of different vans to choose from, especially if you’re looking at older vans as well, and of course your ‘van menu’ will change depending on whether you’re based in Europe/ Australasia or North America. Every vehicle has the potential to be the perfect one for you, so we created the infographic below to help guide you along. If you would like more information on how to choose the right van for you, then keep reading after the infographic, and you will find a more detailed breakdown of each category.
Question #1 – Occupancy
How many people/ pets does the van need to seat, sleep or accommodate?
1-2 People – You’re in luck, almost any van will work for you. As you keep reading, the questions below should help you narrow down your choice.
3+ People – You can definitely still accommodate the whole family in a van, as most have the option of adding a bench seat behind the front seats. Of course that does decrease the space available for a kitchen/ sofa, so it will require some creative thinking. Depending on your answers to the questions below, you may also decide that a large vehicle such as a school or a transit bus would suit you best, and then the sky is really the limit.
Pets – If you only have one or two small dogs (mini poodle, pug, terrier etc), then the above calculation doesn’t really change all that much. However, as soon as you add a larger dog or dogs into the space, you need to think about how much floor space they take up, and where they can go to be out of the way when you need to access the kitchen cupboards. In practice this might mean that you would feel the need to size up from a MWB van to a LWB van. For example instead of a 144” Sprinter (L2), you would need to opt for a 170” (L3) Sprinter.
Puzzle Patience – I’ve added this as a completely separate category, because it plays a huge part in the size of vehicle that can work for you. By ‘puzzle patience’ I mean how willing are you to have to set up and take down/ move things around. For example, are you ok having a couch or dinette that turns into your bed, and has to be set up and taken down every day? The only right or wrong answer is your own personal preference, but make sure you are truly honest with yourself. Personally, we have a very low ‘puzzle patience’, so we opted for a fixed bed, and couch.
Question #2 – Full Time / Part Time
How long will you spend in the van? Is it for weekend trips, weeklong trips, or full time van life?
Full Time – If you plan on living, and working in your vehicle full time then your space needs are going to be greater, because it’s your tiny home on wheels. It also means that you need the space to have a proper indoor kitchen, as you won’t be eating out all the time, and depending on the country you’re travelling in, the weather won’t be conducive to outside cooking all year round. You will also need to think about how you plan on working from the van. Some people are ok sitting in their bed with a laptop, and others need a proper table where they can fit a keyboard, and mouse.
Part Time – If you’re only using your van for travelling part time, then your choices can be a little different, and you may choose to prioritise some aspects more than others. For example, if you need your camper to double as a daily driver, you may not want to have a high roof van. This is especially the case in Europe where the majority of underground parking has a height restriction of 2m. In that case you may choose to opt for something like a VW California, which has a pop top roof giving you the option of sleeping up to four people, or if you’re not a fan of making the bed, you could simply leave the couch as a couch, and only use the pop top bed for sleeping.
Question #3 – City vs Country
What kind of travelling do you want to do? Is it about getting into nature, or is it about seeing small cute towns, or even both?
If you love the hustle and bustle of cities, or want to explore every cute village you pass, consider buying the smallest possible van that still fits you. This is especially the case for travelling in Europe where the streets were originally designed for a horse and carriage, and driving a big van through tiny crowded city streets is a fantastic way to gain some trendy grey streaks in your hair. Another consideration is that a lot of European towns – especially in France – will have restrictions on vehicles over 3.5T entering the centre.
If on the other hand you prefer waking up to the smell of manure in the morning, and crave the peace and quiet, then you can get away with a larger vehicle. That being said, if you plan on driving along rough roads to get to the most remote spots you still want to minimise your length to avoid getting stuck on tight corners, and make sure that you have a decent amount of ground clearance. Once again the considerations will be different depending on whether you’re travelling in Europe or N.America. If you’re only planning on travelling in N.America you can get away with a much larger vehicle. For example a 35’ (10.7m) School bus will still fit in a typical US or Canadian parking lot if you pull through two spaces.
Question #4 – Money
What’s your total budget, including any potential conversion/ upgrades?
Although it’s fun to look at the $100,000+ van conversions on Instagram, you absolutely do not have to take out a second mortgage to afford van life. Of course the more money you have, the fancier your vehicle can be, and you can have a professional build it out to your exact specification. Nevertheless, a limited budget can actually be a blessing as it will force you to be more creative, and really focus on the most critical parts you need for your life on the road.
If money is tight, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend getting a loan to buy a new van. After all, even a converted van is still a depreciating asset. Instead focus on buying an older but reliable van, this may mean compromising on some aspects of your wish list, but in exchange you will be debt free. In Europe where the ‘modern’ van has been in production for almost 25 years, there is a huge used market for vans of all different sizes, and prices, as long as you are able to drive a manual transmission. Naturally some models have become very popular in the last few years, and have consequently gone up in price, but there are still plenty of others to choose from. You can also look at the older Mercedes vans – such as the T1, T2, and Vario – they are beginning to grow in popularity, and as long as you take care of any rust quickly, they are known to be reliable vehicles.
In N.America, where until 2014 with the introduction of the Ford Transit, the Mercedes/ Dodge Sprinter was the only modern van for sale, the market is definitely more limited. In exchange there are a plethora of other options that you can buy with a limited budget. For example, the Ford E Series and Chevy 2500 vans can be had for very little money, and are tough vans built on a truck chassis with a huge amount of customisations available on the aftermarket. You can also buy shuttle buses, old ambulances, or even school buses for less than $10,000.
If you have a fairly average budget, then you will find a good selection of used vans for sale in both N. America and Europe. In N.America you could look for a used Ram Promaster (Fiat Ducato), Ford Transit or Mercedes Sprinter. In Europe you can look for a used Fiat Ducato, Citroen Jumper, Peugeot Boxer, Opel Movano, Renault Master, Ford Transit, VW Crafter, MAN TGE, and the Mercedes Sprinter. Regardless of continent, the Sprinter is always going to be the most expensive, and the Italian/ French vans will typically be cheaper.
Even if you have a good budget, you don’t have to run out and buy the most expensive van you can afford. You could choose to save money on the vehicle purchase, and instead have a better power system for example, or simply be able to finance your travels for longer. No matter which vehicle you choose, make sure to have some money left over in your budget for emergency repairs, as even the most reliable van can break down.
Question #5 – 4×4?
If someone tells you that you can’t, do you immediately want to disprove them?
I suspect that 4×4 is probably at the top of every single vanlifers wish list, it certainly was for us. Most of us dream about camping in the most remote spots possible whilst having all the comforts of our tiny home with us. In the end we ended up getting a van without 4×4 or AWD, and that will probably be the reality for most people, as 4×4 vans such as the Mercedes Sprinter are both scarce, and costly. Even without 4×4 we’ve still tackled steep dirt roads, driven through soft sand, and snow. There’s only been one occasion where we felt that 4×4 would have made a difference, and that was when we had to stop in the middle of going up a steep hill that was slightly iced over.
Even if you have the budget to buy the most capable expedition truck, you still need to ask yourself if you will really use those capabilities. If all you want to do is explore historical monuments, and cities in Western Europe, then a 4×4 system is completely unnecessary, and the extra money you spend on the acquisition, and increased fuel consumption could be better spent elsewhere. A 2wd vehicle can still take you to a lot of remote places, and if you carry some basic recovery gear with you, such as an air compressor, shovel, and traction boards you can realistically get yourself unstuck in most situations. If you try hard enough, any vehicle can get stuck, but the benefit of a 2wd vehicle is that you’ll get stuck a lot sooner, which in turn means that it will be easier to recover yourself.
If your heart is still set on a 4×4 vehicle then there are still some options available to you at different price points. In Europe, there are a number of small vans such as the Volkswagen Transporter and the Mercedes Vito that are available with AWD. In N. America the easiest way to get a tiny home 4×4 is to buy a pick up truck, and then a truck camper that slides into the bed. In certain cases you can also convert a 2wd vehicle to 4×4, but that is a fairly dense topic, so I will do a deep dive into the different conversion options in a separate article.
To learn more about how to buy the right camper for you, take a look at our article on 7 lessons learned buying a camper van.
