Should I trade my Taco for a van?

Hi all,

I have a '98 pre-runner I've been slowly bringing back from a few years of neglect. I love the 6-cylinder power, road manners, and the seated/driving stance vs my old first gen Honda Insight (3 cyl hybrid). However, the way I've used it recently has me thinking I'd be better off in a small utility van:

• Moving apartments in the rain (van keeps things dryer without the need for excessive strapping)
• Dirt-bagging with my mountain/road bikes (safety of my cycles, and a place to sleep that's not as exposed as the truck bed)
• Moving heavy furniture for a friend (lower load step would have been nice)

The taco was a clear winner in weight capacity, ground clearance, and separate cabin/bed areas when I was hauling a lot of manure and firewood for gardens and wood stoves, but I no longer have those problems.

Has anyone made the switch to a van? Which one? Did you switch back? Why? Obvious downsides to light vans:

• Lots of windage all the time
• Lower seating position
• Generally less power/clearance/towing capacity
• Lack of rear visibility/cool open rear window
• Kind of pervy (though my old diesel Econoline was pretty sweet)

Probably a weird place for this question on a Tacoma-enthusiast board, but looking forward to everyone else's experiences and didn't find similar questions on the forum.

 

Should I trade my Tacoma for a van......Whhaaattt.

 

Thats a negative ghost rider

 

TBH, vans are practical AF. Also TBH, vans are gay as shit

 

Obviously it doesn't help with the loading height problem, but maybe look into getting a topper instead of trading for a van. That'd meet all of your requirements for keeping things covered, a place to sleep, etc. And if you need to haul a load of manure or something bulky just pull the topper off. The aluminum ones are light enough for one person to handle without too much difficulty.

$.02

 

why not keep the truck and have the van for when you need it?....just curious

 

No

 

Nope!

 

moto style vans: cool

me being able to drive one regularly

 

Only if it’s a 4wd sprinter

 

I had a 92' e250 work van while I was building houses, and loved it. I had all my tools, and could still haul lumber up to 10' inside. I would get another van if I went back to building.

But that's all it was, a work van.

 

Just get a hard top*

 

I would vote put a shell on it and truck camp.

Several of my friends have vans ranging from Chevy Astrovan all the way to built Sprinter. They are pretty rad, but they have their compromises. Here are the things I have learned / experienced:

1. Location: Out west it is better with BLM land, but a truck with shell can allow you to "ghost camp" in places you can't / shouldn't. I know a few cops/rangers out here in Utah that specifically target vans first when the sun goes down for #vanlife reasons.

2. Terrain: Some vans are great and can basically get anywhere a stock tacoma could get. Others, like sprinters are limited to fireroads basically. You can get a 4wd high clearance model, but they are $$$

3. Creeper factor: Most vans, especially ones used by dirtbags, start to fall into the "Uncle Rico / Stranger Danger" category. Sprinters tend to avoid that category most times thanks to IG. Also, most chicks you meet would NOT be down to clown once you say "lets go to my van" unless they are a similarly aspiring dirtbagette.

4. DD compatibility: Vans, esp loaded with stuff, tend to be really tippy. Driving my friend tall roof sprinter feels super sketchy after driving my tacoma.

I'm really in the same boat as you, esp the bike security part. I decided to compromise, and honestly am SUPER happy with how my setup turned out. I am kinda thinking about making a bigger bed rack and having a local upholsterer make a canvas "shell" around it so I could keep stuff out of public eye, but otherwise, I think I got it set.

 

Yup - I've been looking. Hard to find something tall enough that I don't have to take wheels off and shuffle the bikes in to fit. Any suggestions? I'm also looking at building something out of ply and epoxy as an interim-step to see how I like it, and am following a few threads. But I think you're right that that is definitely something to try before jumping off the truck wagon completely. 5,000 lb towing capacity vans get real bulky. Thanks for the advice!

 

For me, now, two vehicles just seems like overkill when one would do. I work at home, and do most of my commuting/grocery-getting/errand-running by bike, so sometimes the truck goest two weeks without me touching it. If I had another vehicle, I'm worried it might be months! Plus taking on the extra insurance, parking, and general upkeep of another, very similar, vehicle seems kinda burdensome to me now, especially as I'm planning to move again in a few months.

 

Keep the Tacoma!!!

 

That's a great setup! Do you have any worries with rain or theft though with the bikes exposed like that? I was biking up in the Catskills for a couple of weeks, and two days of rain had me battling rust and re-lubing everything. Bit of a pain.

The DD-aspect is what I'm most concerned about. The Tacoma is easy to take out for a spin and pretty easy to park. In comparison, I've had an old Westfalia and an Econoline. The Westfalia was anemic and no fun to drive, the Econoline was solid and never felt tippy, but it guzzled diesel and was a pretty non-sensory driving experience. My van experience has basically been great utility, but lose everything else that makes having a vehicle worthwhile, so I'm concerned!

As for the creeper factor - definitely an issue. I've lost all self-respect though with weird living situations after sailing around the Keys and Bahamas on a 28' sailboat for six months. You'd think it would be a good line, but apparently there's a big difference between having a boat and living on one ...

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/BVIQBQeDStf/?taken-by=cityoverlander

 

Moar details on your bike rack setup?

 

It’s a no from me.