Not A van, MY van

The story of how I went from a $22k 1973 VW Westalia to a $5k 2008 Ford Econoline.

People of Interst:

Robert - Tufts friend/car guy

Jenn - Hometown friend

Cost:

Unused train ticket - $110

Van - $5,000

1973 VW Westfalia

Pros and Cons

Let's start with the pros. The bus was a gorgeous. New turn signals were added while keeping with the style of the original bus. Freshly painted. Beautiful inside. I am a sucker for plaid, you should see my closet. The pristine vintage flare really got me hooked, but the price tag that came with it... yikes.

Speaking of price (they wanted $22k which I was able to negotiate to $20k), I'll tell you about the other draw backs.

• Manual - I don't know how to drive a stick, though I want to learn.

• 1973 - Yes, it is a VW and their engines are made to last, but it is still a 50 year old car.

• Not a camper - It only had a bed, no kitchen or table. I didn't realize that until I started looking at other vans.

• Low roof - Preferably I want a van that I can stand inside.

I was really gung ho about buying this bus. I am not the best decision maker, so if it is a big decision I try to jump in quick so that I don't back out. The problem was, 20 grand was a little steep for someone who just graduated college and does not have a job. I asked my parents for a loan for half the cost, but they just laughed.

"I will not support this idea, so if you are waiting for my approval, it is not going to happen. Just do it. And when you break down a mile from the house, I will let you come back home, but I will say 'I told you so.'" -Mom

Since I am not a car person, I sent a some pictures to Robert along with the page long description of the van and its renovations. He said it looked fine, but did ask me some hard-hitting-really-makes-you-pause-and-think-questions about why this van. Why not look for another van?

He sent along some links to VW campers being sold on ebay. It was mostly so that I could do some price comparisons with other restored VWs, but quickly fell in love with the next option. Like I said I am a person who gets very excited about things, but can easily be distracted by the next shiny - SQUIRREL!

Ultimate Decision: Too expensive, not a camper

1977 VW Vanagon

Pros and Cons

First off, this one was a camper. It had a sink, folding bed and swivel table. The yellow was a bit jarring, but after staring at it, it started to grow on me. You know, VW calls this color marigold yellow. My mom loves marigolds so we had some in our garden, I didn't believe it at first, but that yellow really is the hue of marigolds, though on a small flower it isn't so abrasive.

Ok, back to what else I liked. The plaid, obvi. I liked the yellow-green combo. I loved the swivel captains seat. That's awesome. I really liked the pop top roof for two reasons. One, there was a second bed on top, maybe I could keep that one made and keep the lower one folded. Two, it would have allowed for me to stand inside while cooking, but also, when it was popped down it could be more stealthy. Or at least as stealthy as a bright yellow hippy van could be.

This one had a lot more functional pros than the first one I saw on the side of the road. It was also nice that it only had ~100k miles. (Haha, "only" 100 thousand)

Cons

• Located in California - For those of you who don't know, I am in New York.

• At auction - It started at $15k, but it still had 8 days left. It eventually sold for $21k.

• 1977 - Still old, but newer than the previous.

• Manual

Ultimate decision: Too expensive, and too far away (though I did consider flying out to Cali and starting my road trip there)

Reflection

After not buying these two, and some others which were on my mind for such a short time that I didn't even bother listing them, I decided to really think about the "deal breakers" for my van. What are features that I absolutely need?

1. <$15k - This was the most important. I needed a vehicle that was cheap but wasn't going to break down that second I drove it away. Eventually the number went down to 10k (after I stopped looking at VWs).

2. Camper - I wanted a bed, table and kitchen if I was going to live in it.

3. High roof - I am not the tallest person, but I still wanted to be able to stand inside the van when I cooked or whatever.

4. Soft cap of 150k miles, hard cap of 200k miles - Since I only planned to be traveling for a year, it would be alright if it had 200k miles already, and I could run it into the ground.

1982 VW Westfalia

Pros

• Full camper

• Can stand

• $10k - I was able to reduce the price from 11.5k to 10k

• Rebuilt Subaru engine with ~90k miles on it - might be easier to find replacement parts for 2009 Subaru engine than a '83 VW

• Really cool upholstery - even though it isn't plaid

Cons

• Needed new tires

• Small tear in pop up

• No longer looks like a hippy van :(

• In Idaho

I had a short email exchange with the seller, told him I would take it. Even started planned a route that started in Idaho, went up through Montana, then west and down the coast, eventually making my way back to Long Island by Thanksgiving. I looked up shops nearby of where I could get the tires replaced, and started looking for flights to Jackson, WY (only 45 min from where the guy was).

A day later I rescinded my acceptance, because I had found another van that was closer and cheaper.

1999 Ford Econoline 350

No pictures, sorry.

Pros

• $6.5k - and for an extra grand he would throw in the spare camping equipment stuff like a portable heater, portable shower and other things that I can't remember anymore.

• Rhode Island - I could pick it up and drive to Boston to visit friends.

• 1999 - only 20 years old, not so bad.

Cons

• Can't stand - considered cutting the roof and putting a VW pop up frame.

• Not a completed conversion

Outcome:

Buckle up, this is a long and bumpy ride.

I was in the process of arranging to make a deal with the guy from Idaho, but the man stopped responding. He had been so quick to write back originally so when he had not responded in more than 24 hours after I said I would buy it, I continued looking into alternative options. Something cheaper, closer, safer (meaning with airbags, which were no compulsory until 1998), and an automatic if possible.

I couldn't sleep, so I had been up browsing campers since 1 am. Around 4 in the morning I found a half converted camper in Rhode Island. I contacted the guy and he got back to me within minutes. "" I liked this guy already. We chatted a little more about the van, and by about 5 am I decided I was going to buy it. One problem: It's in Rhode Island, about 3 hours away. I couldn't drive there because I would be driving the van back. I tried to get some friends to come with me, but its hard to convince someone to give up their Saturday to drive to Rhode Island to pick up a used van.

For those of you first time car owners, you know how annoying insurance can be. Well I spent a few hours searching around for the best insurance which any way you spun it was going to be around $2,000 a year for a young adult first time car owner. I now get emails from all the companies trying to get me to buy their insurance. Also, if you want to get car insurance, you have to have a driver license (obvi, but you don't need to have valid license to register a car funny enough). Well my driver's license was expired since I just turned 21 a week before.

Ok, fine I will renew my license then get insurance. Side note, you have to have insurance to be able to register a car, so I guess, in a way, you do need a valid license to register a car, cuz you need it to get insurance to be able to register the car... sorry, off topic. The problem was, I couldn't renew my license because my most recent eye exam was from over a year ago.

In the end my parents and I agreed that they would add my car to their insurance and I would pay them whatever the increase was only $400 a year. A lot better than $2,000. I also decided that I would take a train (I took the midnight train going annnyyyywhereee, well actually Rhode Island), get to the guy ~6, make the deal and be on our way.

The insurance/license/eye exam was the first thing to go wrong. But wait, there's more. Now that I had insurance I could drive the van from RI to NY, then register it when I got home. Yes, technically that might not be allowed, but I wasn't sure how else I was going to register a car that I did not own yet that still resided in a different state.

I went to the bank to get a cashier's check, and it went a little something like this.

*Note: I hade to go to the bank 2 towns over because the branch in my town is closed due to Covid.

Me: Good afternoon, I'd like to make a cashier's check please.

Teller: Alright, my I have your debit card?

Me: *hands over card*

Teller: *looks at card, then at me* You know this is expired, right?

Me: Oh yeah, and I need a new debit card.

Teller: Ok...

Me: *smiling through my mask*

Teller: Well, one should have been sent to you about a month before this one expired. You just need to activate it.

Me: I never got it.

Teller: Alright, you can order a new one through the app. I can still do the cashier's check. May I see your ID?

Me: *hand over my driver's license* My license is actually also expired. I just turned 21. They expire when you turn 21.

Teller: ...

Me: The DMV said it is still valid though since they are not open for people to come in a get new ones.

Teller: Well I'm sorry we cannot accept this.

Me: Oh.

Teller: Do you have another form of ID?

Me: I have my school ID.

(Mind you, at this time the bank has technically been closed for about 10 min, and I know she just wants to go home.)

Teller: That won't work. Do you have a passport?

Me: Yes, but it is at home.

Teller: Well do you have a picture of it?

Me: Yes! *Pulls out phone and rapidly scrolls through photos to find picture from two years ago.*

All the while I am making small talk and telling the woman how I need the cashier's check because I am heading to Rhode Island to buy a car, yada yada yada. Finally I get to the photo I am looking for only to realize it's a phot of my old passport. My old expired passport.

Me: Oh, well this is expired too.

Teller: *tried one more option using the banks app through my phone, but it doesn't work* I'm sorry, we can't help you today. We open tomorrow at 10, you can come back then with your passport and we can get this all worked out. Have a nice day.

Me: Thanks for all your help.

Serious shout out to the bank teller who was helping me that day. She was truly amazing. Never once got mad, or if she did, hid it very well.

I texted with the RI guy and explained my predicament. He agreed that I can come later in the day. So Saturday morning I am at the kitchen table, passport in hand, ready to go to the bank, then catch a 12 o'clock train, when my dad comes in. We had a heart to heart about the whole thing. He does not support the idea of frivolously spending money on a junk car.

"All they did was add a platform. You could do that. Don't give this guy an extra thousand dollars just for that. Why don't you just find a van you like and build the inside yourself?" -Dad

That, along with my mom's saying "If two things point against something, you shouldn't do it," made me decide not to go to Rhode Island. I told the guy that I was still having issues with the bank and that he should give the car to someone else.

I felt pressured into it. In less than 24 hours I had found the car a was ready to get on a train to buy it without having even looked at it. I went back to the hunt of looking for the "right camper" but this time with the idea to buy a cargo van and build out the inside.

2013 Sprinter

Pros:

• Great resale value - even if the upfront cost was more ($12.5k)

• Tall

• One of the more commonly used vans for conversion

• 100k miles

Cons:

I think the pictures say everything. There was also graffiti (on the inside of the cab) that I prefer not to post a picture of here. It was clear that the car had not been taken care of.

It was annoying because I drove an hour to go see it, and from the moment I got there I knew I wasn't going to buy it.

2008 Ford Econoline 250 (high roof)

Stats:

• ~150k miles

• $5.5k (which I got down to 5k buy paying in cash)

• clean title, no accidents

• I could almost stand, but it had a dropped ceiling that when removed would add another 4 inches or so

• Drove well

• Left front blinker was out (realized after I bought it since I made only right turns during test drive)

• Missing driver side sun visor

• Missing dome light (both cheap/easy fixes)

• Only had one back seat

• Used to be an ambulette (cool)

• Intermittent dash board (story below)

The car was in Brooklyn so I took my friend Jenn (one of the most badass people I know) to come with me. It was also for moral support and negotiation tactics. Took the car for a short test drive. And told them I would buy it. We found a bank nearby and I took out $5,000 in cash, I had gotten my license renewed by this point, but only had the paper print out. They accepted it. While my friend was parked, a delivery truck double parked and trapped her car. Ah, Brooklyn...

We went back, paid for the car. I got the title (just a sheet of paper) and we drove home (in Jenn's car, I would pick up the van later). Side note: if you want to get a deal on a car or something, pay for it in cash. Since it is untraceable, the company can (illegally) not report the income, and therefore not be taxed on it.

By NY law, when a company sells you a car, they have to get it inspected, so the next day they got it inspected. They even replaced a broken window motor, very kind of them.

I went home and started in on the insurance and registration.

A few days later, my mom had business in Queens, so I went with her and had her bring me to the van so I could drive it home. She was running late for a job back home, so she left me in Brooklyn. My phone was at 5%. What could go wrong?

I picked up the car and drove it off the lot. Less than a mile out, the dashboard and radio cut out. Just off. No sound, no speedometer, no fuel tank indicator. Luckily I was not on the highway yet. I pulled over and called the guy. He said to come back and they would fix it.

I drove back, but by then the dash had come alive again, though my phone was now dead. I tried to get the problem to replicate, but it wouldn't. Apparently this is a fairly common problem for 2004-2009 Econolines. We drove it to a shop. They cleaned the wires, and the guy said that if it happens again to bring it back. I has happened since, but it is a $100 fix that I could probably do one my own. It is just replacing the cluster. I got directed to a gas station and the highway, then was on my way. I was now officially a car owner (and I had the car, even if it technically wasn't registered yet).

I later realized that I was in the Russian part of Brooklyn, so with a name like Pavlovich (Croatian not Russian), you have automatic respect. That was probably why they were so kind.

Websites

If you are interested in buying your own camper, I would recommend these websites:

ebay

craigs list

samba

conversion trader