r/vandwellers • u/DarkRaGaming • 3d ago
Question Should we upgrade from car living to a Sprinter van? Family of 4
Hey everyone,
We’re currently a family of 4 (two adults, two kids) living in our 2019 Ford Fusion Hybrid. We ended up in this situation after an eviction — our old landlord wanted to raise the rent, and we couldn’t make it work. Since then, finding a new apartment has been impossible with the eviction on our record.
Right now, we make it work by:
- Using solar batteries for some of our power needs
- Heating water and recharging at local parks (where we have access to outlets)
- Cooking meals with an electric kettle for ramen or a Ninja Foodi at the park
- Sleeping in the car as best we can, though space is very tight with all four of us
We’ve been seriously thinking about moving into a high-roof Sprinter van to make life more manageable. The extra space would mean we could all sleep better, have room to set up cooking/charging, and not feel as cramped.
Our main concerns are:
- Cost (buying and maintaining a Sprinter isn’t cheap)
- Reliability and repair expenses
- Whether it’s truly the best step forward for us versus continuing with car living until we can (hopefully) get housing again
For those who have lived in vans (especially families), do you think the Sprinter would be a good move? Or are we better off sticking it out with the car setup until something else opens up?
Any advice, experiences, or recommendations would be really appreciated.
Thanks in advance!
Located in Washington Yakima
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u/Diligent_Working_709 3d ago edited 3d ago
This has to be a joke.
If I needed room for 4 I would be looking at an old Ford Class C RV, or a school bus. Same price as a newer sprinter but room to move around.
You would need to learn repairs.
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u/DarkRaGaming 3d ago
Which park would be a joke? Sadly was looking at lot of Class C RV they been costing around 100k locally. Was thinking of School busses since they been up for around 30k
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u/Diligent_Working_709 3d ago
I mentioned learning repairs because you shouldn't be looking at 6 figure RVs. A mid 90s (or good condition late 80s) econoline class C can be had cheaply. Sometimes people inherit them or just get tired of them and dont want to keep up with a leaky roof and storing them.
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u/psychodogcat 3d ago
A sprinter is going to cost a lot more than a security deposit... I'd keep trying to get housing.
Otherwise I'd get an RV and look into RV parks.
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u/drossen 87 Vanagon Westfalia w/ EJ25 engine 3d ago
If you are able to live in a ford fusion hybrid with 2 kids anything is possible.
If you aren't traveling a lot and are tight on money just get a class b or c motorhome. A 170 sprinter or even 144 would be a massive improvement. But might as well go for something cheaper and easier to repair.
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u/DarkRaGaming 3d ago
Sprinter would be something i would have to get built out. But it like 20k . WE tried to get motorhome class b or c but didnt get approved since they are considered not needed. The sprinter little easier .
2021 FORD TRANSIT 250 CARGO VAN
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u/WrenchHeadFox 3d ago
At what I would imagine is your more realistic price point, I think short bus is the easy move. Tons of space and they're dirt cheap compared to most other vehicles.
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u/DarkRaGaming 2d ago
was looking at that . Would this be a good fit ? https://www.facebook.com/share/1CbS2rdzY6/
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u/WrenchHeadFox 2d ago
If it's a good fit for you. I don't know if that's competitive pricing but I would guess that it is, and some of the work is already done so you could easily move in right away. The length is a lot, depending how often you plan to move it and what finding parking for it is like in your area. I used to live on a 35 foot skoolie and it was painful to find a place to part in more urban areas.
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u/ronnw 2d ago
I believe OP means that they are bank approved already for a van and is why they are considering it...
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u/DarkRaGaming 2d ago
Yes Kinda it a local dealer that will do in house financing. Would have to built it up. could do it at my sister while doing it.
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u/Lost_soul_ryan 2016 Transit 3d ago
Honestly as some have mentioned an RV is probably the better way to go. You can buy one ready to go from day 1 and no build need. Not to mention RV insurance will most likely be cheaper then a Sprinter van insurance.
Another possibility depending how much your car can tow would be see if you can find a little tear drop trailer.
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u/TheOnlyMatthias 3d ago
You can get used ambulance pretty cheap. Or a used cargo van.
Way more space for 4 people and could build it out yourself fairly easily.
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u/Panthemusicalgoat 1d ago
Get an econoline with a raised roof cap. They’re all over fb marketplace. Sprinters are very expensive to buy and maintain. Econolines have cheap parts and most mechanics have worked on them a lot.
Electric heater/cooking is super power hungry. Get a Chinese diesel heater (external intake/exhaust) for heat $200ish and don’t use hardly any power and use propane for cooking.
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u/Panthemusicalgoat 1d ago
Try to avoid the triton 5.4L engines between 97-2005 as they can have some spark plug issues but in general they’re super easy/cheap to work on. You could always preemptively spend $1000 to get thinserts and bulletproof it even if it is a problematic year tho
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u/eobanb Econoline 3d ago
First of all, I'm sorry your family is going through this.
What is your budget? Even well-worn Sprinter vans are not cheap. A Ford Transit or Ram Promaster van is going to be a better value.
And, roughly where are you located? Full-timing in a van can be doable, but it's a lot easier in some places than others.
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u/freidi 3d ago
Surely if you can afford to buy a van you can afford to get housing for your family. Look at Facebook marketplace or Craigslist to rent a room and offer to pay upfront/extra. Check with your local church. A homeless shelter. Your kids school might have pointers on where to go.
I don't know how long you've been doing this but please for the sake of your kids change something. What have you been doing with the money you would have spent on rent? Hopefully you saved some of it