Do any of these converted van mods consider weight or crash testing? There's a bunch of tile (maybe they're fake?) above the sink. That seems like a nice touch aesthetically but probably unnecessary weight. Also, pieces of wood or other facades on the wall could become projectiles in a crash. Perhaps nobody should be sitting anywhere besides the front two seats while the van is moving, but that means the van can only carry 2 people safely.
- It's all enclosed spaces,no communication to the driving cabin, so no "flying objects" should reach there.
- No certification necessary. That means it's considered "load" strapped to the chassis, and then, nobody can be sitting in the back while moving. Passengers can only seat in the cabin.
Edit: Also, it's a product for L2H2 size and bigger vans. I think some of them, specially if the cabin and the load space are separated by a wall, have three seats in the front.
The major companies who make RV have a standards body that they in theory build to their standards.
Additionally the van maker publishes an “upfitters guide” which explains what you can do and how to do it safely.
The more professional custom van builders will take their complete rig to a truck weighing scale before using / selling.
In general the camper vans are a lot safer than the big busses (class A) or regular RV (class c). The shell of the van and the front seats have to pass some safety ratings.
With the class C being made mostly of plywood, they usually just blow up when they are rolled over.
I did a lot of research on this before purchasing a Winnebago van. They seem to take safety a bit more seriously (ie the back seats are tied into the chassis and are from a known bus seat manufacturer).
That is in line with most campers. The market is dominated by rich retiree couples as young families usually cannot afford a camper van. As a result, most models are designed for exactly 2 inhabitants.
It looks like the wall with the shower creates a barrier between the cabin and camper portion. So stuff flying around the camper wouldn't be able to get to the cabin.
I know a guy who grew up in a van - 8 kids, father working odd jobs as they traveled America for 14 years, and the kids slept kneeling with their heads on the benches.
I wouldn't wish a life like that on anyone, and wonder if current housing prices won't push towards that.
these are definitely too cramped for anything more than a couple and probably a fit couple, chubbier ppl like myself will feel quite snug.
However, there are nice tiny homes you can hook up to a truck and are nearly as mobile with a lot more space and amenities. I wouldn't mind buying one for my wife and I and hooking it up to another for the kids rooms and play area. Similar idea could be done with container homes and earth bag homes. Those options could be done for 5k to 20k plus cost of land and running utilities.
I think people need to stop thinking of homes as status symbols, luxury, or investments and think of them more in the vein of utility, what's the bare minimum we need to support our lifestyle in comfort not luxury just comfort.
Reminds me of a very well done blog linked to me recently, where the author described building a simple house for his family, and it was small - only 2,000 sq ft.
You don’t need to drop to a 100sq ft house, but 2k is also quite large, even if you can use all the space.
New construction is like new cars, only relatively "well off" people buy new, so you can end up where there's an entire under-serviced market because the only people who buy X are people who buy used.
