Van Life vs Truck Life

[JefferyGT]

I see.... You are trying to convince your sugar momma that a 85k used Raptor is what you need!
Nice. God speed.
Enjoy!

 

[Turbo_lander]

I recommend towing a small to medium trailer. You can get to a campsite that is reasonable, unhook and go in to town. It has a fridge that will keep food cold while running on propane for weeks at a time. It will have all your belongings: clothes, dishes a decent mattress, etc. and it will be yours, as opposed to using AirBnB items. With a van, if you camp you have to tear down to go exploring. With a trailer you simply disconnect and head in to town. A Raptor will allow you to explore trails that most vans can not. And, it's much more comfortable than you would think. Get some nice seat covers in the back for the dogs and you're set. I have enjoyed AirBnB, but it's nice to have your things on multi-day or multi-month outings.

Yeah this has crossed my mind too but at the point I feel like the van would be a similar set up but in smaller (yet bigger inside) package.

 

[Turbo_lander]

Ford Transit tall vans have a better reliability record than the Sprinter. You can even get them with the 3.5tt motor or diesel.

You will need to modify rear suspension on a Raptor to haul all that gear.

I have considered those too! It is still in planning phase so I have time.

 

[TurboTJ]

I have been trying to figure out some of these answers ever since I got my Raptor. We have two German shepherds that we travel and camp with so we have the same constraints.

My ideal solution would be the tent topper. Dogs go in the truck bed, preferably on a decked storage system. You enter the tent through the bed so they aren’t far from you. However, it won’t fit in some garages which is a deal breaker for me. Dogs can travel in the bed when you want and be secure leaving the back seat open. Gives you tons of storage but you will need to increase rear spring stiffness. Also, if you’re modifying the suspension and adding weight, it may be worthwhile to look at HD trucks since you’re watering your Raptor down some. Even with the weight of gear, tent and whatever, I guess you’ll still be better offroad than a TRX.

AT Habitat Truck Topper Specifications + Options

Materials Specifications List: - Insulated aluminum composite panels- Nemo Equipment Habitat Tent: Wax impregnated fire retardant cotton/poly canvas- Stainless Steel hardware- .060″ 5052 CNC formed aluminum- Base weight: 340 lbs- Roof weight capacity: 350 lbs- Cantilever Bed loading capacity...

atoverland.com

My second favorite option is a trailer. Probably an adventure trailer with just a RTT, power, water, stove, batwing, etc. Then you can setup base camp and leave. You don’t have to mod your Raptor’s suspension so you can still have a lot of fun in the dirt. Drop it off at the Airbnb where ever you’re staying and still have your Raptor for a DD.

 

[Badgertits]

FYI I also heard Ferrari life is pretty dope....

 

[GCATX]

I would trade the Raptor in on one of those new 3.0 diesel 4x4 Suburbans, if you can find one. No way I would travel around in a truck with a wife, two big dogs and all my earthly possessions. And a van is just weird.

And not that you asked, but I also would not sell the house. I would turn the house over to a property manager and turn it into an income and long term investment. Then when you sober up, or get divorced from being handcuffed to your wife, you can sell it for more than it's worth now, or just move back in, whatever. Inflation is upon us anyway. House goes up, cash goes down. When you come back, you might be priced out of the market.

Just my thoughts.

 

[al415]

Hello,
I had a built Sprinter 4x4 and now DD a Gen 2 Raptor (2019). I went cross country a few times in each.

Based solely on the framing of your original question, the Raptor is the better choice. It’s a vastly superior daily driver and cross country vehicle.

The van wins when it comes to stealth camping in urban areas. Or when you’ve been driving all day, don’t have a camp site or Airbnb nearby and want to pull over and get some z’s without any setup or security concerns.

My sprinter was a high roof variant and there were roads (and trails) it couldn’t go down, due to its height. If you had asked about going full time in the vehicle (and taken Airbnb out of the equation) I’d go van all day. But for a rapid / comfortable cross country rig, with only occasional camping, I’d stick with the truck.