Road Trippin' in a Van

Discussions about other vehicles other than the Vibe & Matrix.
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Meshami
Posts: 43
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2014 1:40 am

Road Trippin' in a Van

Post by Meshami »

Someone suggested I start a thread here about my upcoming travels in a van.

For what it's worth, I own an '07 Vibe, love it!!! I'll be hitting all 50 states, 48 of them driven, in remembrance of my late husband who lost his 2 year fight with cancer at age 40. I would consider taking my Viber, but would be kinda cramped. I plan on staying in zero motels and will be cooking most of my own meals, so comfortable sleeping and a pseudo kitchen is important.

I bought this van for $2500.. I can almost stand up straight in it, just have to tilt my head a bit, I'm 5'6". There is a full size bed across the back that is super comfy. Eight inches of memory foam that is super ahhhh!! Mounted a used desk in there which will be used for cooking and writing. Have a battery jumper pack that I strapped on there that powers just about anything from my laptop, fan, recharging phone and portable dvd player. It also can jumpstart my van or air up a flat tire. I can charge it up through my cig outlet while driving. Also have a small jumper pack that can power any USB device, as well, or jump start a dead battery. Will be looking to add a deep cycle battery under the hood when I sell my RV, hopefully this week. Want to try to rig it up to charge up while driving with the alternator, then powering things needed while not driving.

Still experimenting with the food. I'm usually just a water kinda gal, so I'm okay there for drinks. Have 4 one gallon jugs sitting behind the desk on the ledge below the window and more room under the bed for more water storage. Don't really have to be super cold to drink water, either, I can drink water at any temp. Will be stopping for fresh food often. Chance to walk around, stop and see places, and get fresh food is the goal. I have a one burner butane portable stove that I will cook on, and some nesting pots and pans to cook with, and all the utensils. Paper plates to cut down on washing. Have a squirt bottle with dish soap and a bit of alcohol for cleaning and a squirt bottle with water for rinsing. Plastic dish pans for sinks. Have freeze dried food and can goods so far. Granola bars or oatmeal for breakfast, sandwich stuff or soup should be easy lunches, and dehydrated meals, fresh food, or canned for dinners in the evenings to cut down on eating out.

Have a porta-pottie that doubles as a seat under the desk for when needed. Double bagged, kitty litter, does not smell, take out with trash. People throw away diapers, what's the difference?? Anyways... The shower thing is the hard one. I have a squirt bottle with water and witch hazel mix and wash rags, and baby wipes to refresh. Hair is below shoulders so that's the hard one, have been conditioning myself to not wash it as often, thereby making the oil glands not over produce from constant stripping from shampooing, it's getting healthier as a benefit. I can go about a week before it looks a bit greasy. I have a solar shower setup, just throw it on the dash with water in it to let the sun warm the water then throw hair over a dishpan to catch it, if needed. Would like to figure out a shower set up using the back doors, but haven't yet. There are sooooo many state parks that have showers that are coin operated, along with truck stops with showers, it's probably a non-issue. So far, though, I've driveway surfed at places with showers, so this will be a new experience to overcome. :)

Have only done 2 states so far, Texas and Kansas. When the RV sells, I will have the funds to start knocking down the rest of the states. :) Can't wait!! Although my Vibe looks at me with a sad face when I'm going to the van sometimes, lol.

Here is the inside setup:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7nmwpkqMLXA/V ... C00090.JPG
Meshami
Posts: 43
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2014 1:40 am

Re: Road Trippin' in a Van

Post by Meshami »

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vibrologist
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Re: Road Trippin' in a Van

Post by vibrologist »

That van is some serious business.
Keep us posted.
Vibrologist
'05 Vibe

"It is important to know the difference between 'accurate' and 'precise' even if you are neither!"

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Rayven01
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Re: Road Trippin' in a Van

Post by Rayven01 »

Awesome! I'd love to do this some day but I think I'd have a hard time convincing the wife. ;)
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joatmon
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Re: Road Trippin' in a Van

Post by joatmon »

use the non-clumping kitty litter, which can also be used for traction in ice/snow. The clumping kind hurts rather than helps in ice/snow
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zbyers
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Re: Road Trippin' in a Van

Post by zbyers »

Very nice set-up! You should look into a VW Vanagon. They're fun and if you get a Westfalia, already made for camping. Though a VW is not as cheap to maintain as a Ford! Safe travels!

As for the shower, many people in the VW community use something like what's shown here: http://www.roadshower.com/. Looks as if you could rig something up with a PVC pipe and section of garden hose.
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vibenvy
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Re: Road Trippin' in a Van

Post by vibenvy »

This is a very awesome trip you're heading out on. I just read your intro blog post and I absolutely love what you'll be doing with the HulaJohn dolls in each state! So awesome! I look forward to following your thread here and your blog as well. Safe travels.
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Derf
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Re: Road Trippin' in a Van

Post by Derf »

Fantastic, looks like you are well on your way. Bookmarked your blog, like the idea of a van rather than an RV, easier to get around.
Curious with your current setup, what your final cost will be to visit all 50 states.
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Meshami
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Re: Road Trippin' in a Van

Post by Meshami »

So far, cost wise..

Van: $2,550
Parts: $350
Labor: $320
Furniture/odds n ends: $400 (I had a lot of the inside goodies like heater, cooking items, etc. mattress cost the most)
Total Van, Repairs and Outfitting: $3,620

Texas trip: western Oklahoma to North Padre Island, Texas for 10 days
Gas: $250
Food: $150 (we stayed with family a lot, they fed us quite a bit)
Entertainment: $100
Vet bill: $350 (doggy came down with double ear infections, they took advantage)
Total Texas: $850

Kansas trip: Okie to Dodge City Kansas:
Gas: $40
Food: $30
Entertainment: $60 (entrance fees to Boot Hill and souveniers)
Total Kansas: $130


The rest of the states, who knows. I will be going alone, which will cut down on some costs. I plan on cooking my own food, I can eat cheap. And maybe not do impulse buying like I do when with others. Some states, like Nebraska for example, I'll probably just drive through stopping once (to leave a hula doll), costing just gas.

Cost wise coming up, here is an example: There was a map someone did hitting every 48 states, he estimated it would take 13,000 miles to drive it. 13,000 miles / 15mpg = 866.66 gallons of gas. Gas right now is $2.30 range here. For argument sake, lets say $3 a gallon, gas would cost $2601 for that trip. Course, I can shave off some of those miles he stated cutting out Texas and Kansas, done them already.

Yep, I can cut that down to half by taking my Vibe. :) But, lose a lot of room. I can nearly stand up in the thing. :D Plus, a full size bed at the back and a portable toilet is also telling me the $1300 difference is worth it for that long a trip. I won't be doing it all in one shot, anyways, splitting it up, not sure which place I'm going next, waiting on RV sale to finalize.

Here's a funny. As I live in western Oklahoma, and in tornado alley, we had a rash of storms this past week. Last Saturday was possible tornado and up to golf ball hail. I have 3 things on wheels... my beloved Vibe.. my van.. and big a$$ed RV that is almost sold. All 3 vehicles have liability insurance coverage only. I had a place to put only one thing inside an enclosed building. Guess which one got in?? haha... yup. Vibe won out... Sorry Van Halen and Fanny Mae.. you guys didn't make the cut.
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vibenvy
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Re: Road Trippin' in a Van

Post by vibenvy »

Meshami wrote:I had a place to put only one thing inside an enclosed building. Guess which one got in?? haha... yup. Vibe won out... Sorry Van Halen and Fanny Mae.. you guys didn't make the cut.
:lol:

On a bit of a side note, every time I see the title of this thread, I think of Chris Farley's character Matt Foley on Saturday Night Live who "lived in a van down by the river" :P!
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