LMAO I wasn't certain if I wasn't the only one who heard "and even coats!"

John Smith, your words say you're content and have accepted, maybe even embraced your Solo Van life. I sincerely hope that is the case and you continue enjoying your early retirement, traveling, new friends and having no one to answer to but John Smith. I know you never asked for anyone's - especially my! - 2¢ but I'ma give them anyway. (a sad pitfall of posting anything the least but personal to the Internet 🙄🫤 When I read you've decided 10' iss too big and your passenger seat needs to come out for weighing too much, I totally deflated and a wave of defeat and sadness came over me. I had to choke back a sob. I believe you are systematically making yourself smaller, by making your surroundings smaller. I also believe you'll continue finding reasons to go smaller and smaller until you have nothing else to toss or remove...other than yourself. What do you think you'll do?? Now, I'm no therapist or psychologist; I'm not even a student hoping for a career in mental health care. I'm just really good with undertones and reading between a person's lines. That being said, I may very well be absolutely 180° off and if you even see this 1yr later, you're either on your way to an ER because you fell down your step --cos you were laughing so hard.....or you're angry cos somehow your friends saw my reply before you did and you weren't prepared for their concerned questions or angry accusations. Is THAT Why you gave me your grand mom's quilt in return for having you over for supper--ONCE?!? Well, I don't want it! It doesn't go with anything I have and it smells weird. HERE!!" And you are hit in the face with a large wad of admittedly odd smelling quilt, before you're shoved back from the neighbor's RV door, which then slams and locks. Because what you never realized is that so many people have either felt like you or experienced the pain of being left to mourn. And they are familiar with some of the behaviors that most people exhibit while they prepare to STOP. One of these is giving away one's own, very personal &/or prized possessions...like a quilt your grand mom had made by hand. (But considering that this entire interaction was made up by me as a possibility ONLY IF my theory proved true, I take FULL RESPONSIBILITY and apologize for any relationships that aren't strong enough to stand, as well as your probable loss of privacy as the world around you begins discussing you and your van, your mental health and your issues. I promise you won't be the topic of the day for very long before people find something new to rip to shreds or just second guess. I will cross my fingers and hope that whichever way turns out to be truth - your words taken as fact or my theory that there's trouble beneath your friendly smile - i hope you'll tell me which is true and how your life changed (or didn't change) after I replied. Hoping to hear from you as soon as you can take a breather and rest from your full, active life! 💕💕💕

20 yr UPS driver here in the mtns of Colorado. Summertime driving with both doors open was magical.

@@stevekirby6034 Ha! Yeah, it's like some kind of secret almost, a really under appreciated thing that only step van drivers get to experience.

I think that is the best kitchen design I have seen in any of the 'nomad' vans. Love the baskets, the ventilation, and the huge counter space.

And a sub under the desk. I didn't buy them for the van, they were already in my house, and I couldn't part with them.

The van has an 11' cargo box to start with empty. I don't know what the GVW is but the built-out weight is 11,500 lbs and the GVWR is 14,140 lbs. The ceiling and walls have 1.5" and the floor is 3/4" rigid insulation. Drawers are just DIY and the bed is simply a mattress that flops onto the floor. The van maneuvers extremely well in the city but I never do any stealth parking, remember these step vans are very wide, so keep that in mind. I hope that helps.

@@chapter4travels Thank you. info is greatly appreciated. A terrific conversion.

Thanks. The walls and ceiling are made of the same shiplap boards. I added the rope reveal on the ceiling for more of a linear feel. My Freightliner has the 4.3L Mercedes 4 cylinder and I've been on some mountain climbs where I wish I had your engine. lol. I just have to be content at 55 mph in 4th gear on the Alison. The extra width these step vans have over cargo vans makes all the difference in the world as far as living space goes. What we give up is ride quality while driving.

Thank you from sunny California. What are your daily temperature swings from nighttime low to day time high? Here it's been low 50's to high 70's.

Great choice! Lol

These are 19.5" wheels, I've never seen anything larger on a step van, especially on a class 2, light duty truck. Someone else suggested that it made room for ice and snow to build up and still not bind the tire. I didn't think so.

Is this your theory or do you know it for sure? I had a rear tire blowout a few months ago with no damage to the fender well. Scared the crap out of me, and nearly lost control of the van. I went ahead and replaced both rear tires, they were the same age.

@@chapter4travels no its not gonna cause a blow out. Depending on how bad it is I've seen the tires blow holes through the floor.

The funny thing is my van came with a wall separating the cab area and the back. It was the very first thing I removed. It opens up the whole space and brings in all the natural light from the front windows. Again, enhancing the bright open feeling of the space. Some people like to keep it for "stealth" reasons, but I don't care a bit about stealth.

All step vans are wide, a very good thing for a floor plan but harder to maneuver. However, they have a very tight turning radius, tighter than a cargo van like a Sprinter.