Van America Custom Van Build Details – The Van

In case you missed it, we sold our 2019 Winnebago Revel and hired All Advantures (now Van America) to build us a custom van for full-time travel and withstanding snowy, cold winters. If you want to catch up, here is our complete van ownership story:

• Why The Winnebago Travato Was Our First RV
• Why We Traded Our Winnebago Travato For A Revel
• Our 3-Year Review Of The Winnebago Revel
• Why We Sold Our Winnebago Revel
• Discovering Our Winnebago Revel’s Replacement
• Everything In Our Custom Van Build

This article is the first of several that shares in more detail what went into our custom build, including our thoughts after adventuring with it for more than six months.

Let’s start with the base of our build…the van!

What were our basic must-haves?

• 4WD or AWD for conquering snowy and muddy roads.
• A length of 20 feet or less for the most options when it comes to parking, campsites, and generally being able to travel where it would be prohibitive to a larger rig.
• A high roof, so we can stand up straight inside.

What van did we purchase?

A 2021 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter High Roof Cargo Van 2500 with 4WD, a 3.0L V6 Turbo Diesel engine, and 144-inch wheelbase. You can view the brochure here. It’s almost 19-and-a-half feet long.

Why did we choose the Mercedes Sprinter?

We’ve owned a Chevy Express AWD, 2017 Ram ProMaster (2018 Winnebago Travato), and 2018 Mercedes Sprinter (2019 Winnebago Revel).

We loved how well the AWD Chevy handled Lake Tahoe snow and it was capable enough for the dirt roads we wanted to travel. Sadly, Chevy doesn’t make an AWD version anymore. You can find a used Chevy Express with AWD, but it’s a low-roof van by default. Plus, van life products aren’t generally geared toward the Chevy Express. Sprinter-compatible products seem to dominate the market followed by Ford Transit and Ram ProMaster.

We like the Ram ProMaster because it’s cheaper than the Mercedes Sprinter, including maintenance. However, the Sprinter has more guts going uphill, and we travel a lot of roads with significant elevation gain and steep grades. The ProMaster’s ride is a little rough, and while we weren’t shy about taking it on dirt roads, the experience was very jarring. If you don’t intend on driving off pavement, you’ll likely be happy with it. Otherwise, we recommend upgrading the suspension. The ProMaster does not come in AWD or 4WD. If you do some research, you’ll see that it’s not the best candidate for conversion, which is why it’s not an option for us.

We strongly considered an AWD Ford Transit, but over several months, we couldn’t even find one to test drive. In hindsight, we should’ve skipped checking with Ford dealers and gone to an RV dealership. We probably would’ve had more luck finding an RV sitting on the AWD Ford Transit chassis to go for a ride around the block.

The Transit was a consideration because there are more Ford dealerships than Mercedes. Our assumption was that it would be easier to get service. However, a friendly note for others that have assumed the same thing. We spoke to a man in Zion National Park that owns a Winnebago Ekko which sits on the AWD Ford Transit. He was from the Bay Area in Northern California and he mentioned having a terrible time finding a service location. There are a lot of Ford service shops up and down California, but they are not all equipped to handle the size and weight of the Ekko. If you’re converting a Ford Transit or are considering purchasing an RV that sits on the Transit, I’d call around to your local Ford service shops to make sure they can service you.

With all that in mind, we decided the Mercedes Sprinter would be the best fit for us again.

Why did we get a 2021 Sprinter instead of a 2022?

There was nothing intentional about our Sprinter van choice. Build-ready Sprinter vans, or almost any desirable van for that matter, were especially hard to come by with their rise in popularity during the pandemic. When we met All Advantures (now Van America), they magically had two 2021 Sprinter vans with very few miles for us to choose from. We were happy to go with a 2021 even though Mercedes already had 2022s out on the market.

Thoughts about our 2021 Mercedes Sprinter after 6 months

Overall, we’re very happy with our 2021 Mercedes Sprinter. We recently took it on some bumpy roads in Wyoming, and I think the suspension is an improvement over our 2019 Winnebago Revel that sat on a 2018 Sprinter. Washboard and smaller craters aren’t as dreadful. And when we take it in for its first routine maintenance, we will have no issues to report. In our 2018, there was always something albeit minor. Also, we love that the driver and passenger-side doors each have two deep and wide pockets for stashing a Nalgene-size water bottle, snacks, and other items. Not a huge feature, but those storage spaces make a positive difference in our day-to-day lives.

However, here are some nuances in the 2021 that you might not call deal breakers but are helpful to know about if you’re thinking of buying a newer Sprinter.

Driving

Push to start – In case you don’t have experience with push to start, the 2021 Sprinter comes with a keyless fob. The fob must be in a designated spot carved out in a low spot within the dashboard about a half-foot above the floor. Alternately, the fob must be in the general vicinity such as in the driver’s coat pocket or a cup holder. Then, while holding down the brake pedal, you press a button on the dashboard to start the engine. (The same button is used to turn off the engine.)

Sometimes our Sprinter won’t start when the fob is in the correct place, especially when it’s been in it’s designated spot overnight. Occasionally, shaking the fob and putting it back in its appropriate spot resolves the issue, but I usually have to lock and unlock the van using the fob. I find this to be a glaring safety issue. If I’m in a dangerous situation where I need to start my van quickly and flee, those added seconds can be detrimental. And if I have to unlock the van as part of the process, I might be giving a dangerous person access to my van.

I also find holding down the brake pedal to start the van inconvenient. Since we camp and sleep in our van, there’s a bit of prep that happens before we start driving. Seats have to be swiveled back into the forward position and everything must be secured throughout the van for safe travel. I like to start the engine before my preparatory process, so the windshield will have time to defrost if needed, and the engine warms up. Sometimes it’s not easy to reach the brake pedal when all your camping gear is strewn about the front of the van. I just want to insert a key and twist from a standing position.

I also forget where I put my fob after starting the van. This sounds silly and it’s definitely a me problem, but sometimes my fob ends up in a different place while we’re en route. When I start the van, the fob might be in my purse or jacket situated close to the front of the vehicle. However, that purse or jacket with my fob might relocate toward the back of the van during roadside breaks when we leave the engine running. Later on, after I’ve stopped the engine, I have to locate my fob.

I really just want to insert a key into a designated spot on the dashboard, twist, and know my key is always going to be in the same secure place. Maybe I’m just getting old, but I’m failing to see what the keyless fob with push to start is improving.

Acceleration – When you press on the accelerator, there is less of a delay than in our 2018. Turning to join fast-moving traffic from a stop was especially scary in our Revel, going left more so than right. We’d press on the pedal hoping that the van would actually begin accelerating in time to avoid getting T-boned or rear-ended. We really should’ve invested in this DTE PedalBox. While a slight delay still exists in our 2021, I’m less nervous about entering a fast-moving highway.

Also of note, we recently spent several weeks with our new van in Summit and Eagle Counties in Colorado. Our 2021 was sluggish going over Vail Pass on I-70 in both directions and could not always maintain the speed limit. Upon entering the interstate, it was difficult to match the flow of traffic in a timely manner if there was any sort of incline to the on-ramp. We traveled mountain passes all winter in Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, California, Nevada, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. The sluggishness did not catch my attention anywhere else. Unfortunately, I can’t say how our 2018 handled Vail Pass as we never took it there.

Sway – The 2021 still sways like a metronome if the left and right tires are tackling bumps and dips independently. I find it to be less pronounced than our 2018, but perhaps it’s related to our new build being lighter. There are solutions for this, such as those offered by Agile Offorad. We just have to decide if it’s worth the investment based on other van and life priorities.

Parking – To change gears, the 2021 now has a skinny stick behind the steering wheel that protrudes outward on the right side. I’ve gotten used to moving it up and down to shift into reverse and drive respectively. However, park has been an issue. There is a button on the end of the stick that you must depress to put the van in park. On multiple occasions, I have pressed the button and park does not engage. I assume it’s because I’m not applying the correct amount of pressure, but when I think I’ve hit the button, I automatically take my foot off the brake pedal. This has resulted in me rolling the van, fortunately not into anything. I have to be very cognizant every time I park by looking at the display that shows the gear I’m in to ensure I’m truly in park. I really miss the stick shift version in our 2018.

Safety features

Sprinters are loaded with safety features. Many I appreciate such as Blind Spot Assist. A red light appears in the side-view mirrors when a car, pedestrian, or bicyclist is within your flanks. The backup camera in our 2018 was always helpful, and our 2022 now has views covering all four sides of the vehicle. At first, it was a little overwhelming to see so many viewpoints on the dashboard screen, but after I trained my eyes, I was able to embrace their usefulness.

Here are the safety features we don’t like so much…

Crosswind Assist – Our 2021 has Crosswind Assist just like our 2018. When the van senses a strong wind gust, it compensates by applying brakes to the right places to keep you from toppling over and maintaining a straighter course. However, the Crosswind Assist only kicked on two times in the three-and-a-half years that we owned our Revel. When it did, the wind gust was so strong, assistance was highly appropriate. However, in our new van, the Crosswind Assist has already engaged several times when the wind seems manageable by the driver’s own skill. It can be over-sensitive and work against the driver.

Active Lane Keeping Assist – Unlike our 2018, our 2021 Sprinter automatically adjusts our steering if we cross solid highway lines to the left or right of the vehicle. While I see the good intention in this feature, it is one of my least favorite. At times, I need to intentionally cross a highway’s centerline or ride the shoulder to avoid oversized vehicles, pedestrians, cyclists, animals, vehicle accidents, broken down vehicles, emergency vehicles, crazy drivers, potholes, construction zones, and more. When the van steers for me, it has caused us to veer in the direction I’m trying to avoid. I don’t mind if the Sprinter beeps at me as it does, but I don’t want it to drive for me. Plus, many highways have rumble strips to alert me of my sloppy driving, and they don’t prevent me from crossing over lines in the event that I truly need to do so.

Active Brake Assist – The 2021 will also apply additional braking pressure for you if it thinks you’re going to collide into something while reversing. Another thoughtful feature that we hate even more. Sometimes the van sees non-existent objects in low light or when the ground is an odd texture. When I’m reversing while lightly holding down the brake pedal, the Sprinter will apply additional brake pressure to avoid a collision or minimize impact. It makes an awful grinding noise, evoking extreme terror.

Within the first hours of picking up our newly built van, we took it to a campground and arrived at dusk. Kyle started backing up the van into our site, and all of a sudden, he could feel vibration in the brake pedal and a sound that made me wonder if he was dragging a rock. We circled the van trying to find what he hit. Nothing. We shined our phone lights around the exterior of the vehicle searching for damage. Nothing. We checked again when the sun came up. Nothing. We didn’t know what happened until the enhanced braking started happening repeatedly. I have not gotten used to this feature yet. The amount of terror I feel when it happens remains the same. Of all the times this feature has engaged, it has not prevented us from hitting real objects. I think the beeping indicator is sufficient.

Blind Spot Assist – Earlier I mentioned this is a feature I appreciate, but that’s only a half-truth. I like the red-light indicator that shines when someone is in my blind spot. However, I really hate when the van beeps at me when I turn on my blinker and someone is in my “future” blind spot.

Let me explain what I’m calling “future” blind spot. In the midst of changing lanes while holding down my blinker, the Sprinter starts sensing the lane on the far side of the lane I’m entering before I’ve completed my lane change. If there is a vehicle in that far lane within my blind spot, the van beeps, which makes me think that there is a vehicle in the lane I’m currently entering instead. I second guess what I’m doing and abort my lane change which can be confusing to those around me and unsafe.

This isn’t problematic on a four-lane highway, but it causes me to question my lane-changing choices when I’m on highways such as those in Southern California. If you haven’t been, freeways can have more than a half dozen lanes on each side.

There is a way to turn off all the safety features mentioned above temporarily using the dashboard touchscreen, but there is no way to disable them permanently.

Dashboard features

Touchscreen – Like most modern vehicles, there is a touchscreen for controlling features like the built-in GPS, entertainment, etc. I’m just not a big fan. To use it, you must look at the screen which isn’t something I want to do while I’m driving. I prefer buttons and dials that I can navigate by touch without looking. Thankfully, the volume, as well as heating and cooling controls, have manual controls. The touchscreen is also the screen for the Sprinter’s exterior cameras. After too many fingerprints and sun, it’s hard to view what the cameras are seeing.

Defrost – The defrost in our 2018 did an excellent job of deicing the interior side of our windshield in a timely manner, even when temperatures dipped below 0 degrees Fahrenheit. In our 2021, we can be driving it for an hour and the windshield will still have ice on it.

Charging station – I was excited for a device charging station that supports wireless charging and USB-C and 12 Volt connections. However, it’s located on the flat part of the dashboard toward the base of the windshield. When the sun is out, that space is way too hot and causes devices to overheat, so we never use it.

Cup holders – In our 2018, the two side-by-side cup holders were flimsy and really only suitable for one beverage unless they both happened to be soda cans. If you tried to put two tall Starbucks beverages in it at the same time, one of the beverages could not sit upright and their lids would rub up against each other.

In our 2021, the cup holders are no longer flimsy and you get four solidly affixed to the dashboard between the driver and passenger. However, the bottom of each cup holder starts with a narrower circumference and it gets significantly wider toward the top. This means your beverage can tip in any direction and spill while driving if it doesn’t fit snugly. Our Sprinter manual even warns against cupholder use while the vehicle is in motion.

Comfort

Swivel seats – Our 2018 seats were manual, so it was very quick and easy to adjust them for swiveling in either direction. Our 2021 seats are electric, and the motor moves slower than my manual effort. Plus, there are numerous wires exposed underneath the seat in the same place where I must pull a lever to unlock the seat for swiveling. I’m always nervous I’m going to yank on the wrong thing. The lever is hard to see, so you have to feel around.

The seats are otherwise comfortable, and I’m glad they are leather for cleaning up messes unlike our 2018 which had fabric. Our 2021 seats also have butt warmers which can be a nice perk in the freezing cold when you’re waiting for the engine to warm up.

Space around the driver’s seat – If I want to move from the driver’s seat to the rear of the van, there is not enough space without hitting my knees on the corner of the cup holders. I have to move the driver’s seat back if I don’t want to scrape or bruise myself. This might be a non-issue for someone with longer legs that sits farther back from the fuel and brake pedals.

Hey Mercedes Voice Assistant

I really want to like voice assistants, but they almost never understand me, and when they’re listening all the time, it just seems downright creepy. Since we’re full-timing in our van, I’m pretty sure there are intimate moments Mercedes has been privy to. And I’m still scared to think there is an interior camera recording our every move. With the amount of data companies collect on consumers these days and undisclosed peeping, I’m wary when the Mercedes female voice speaks without a prompt.

Did we give our van a name?

It’s not uncommon for van lifers to give their van a moniker. While we didn’t intend on naming our new van, we worked with All Advantures to give it a model designation for paperwork purposes. Kyle and I quickly arrived at “Solitude”. Seeking solitude was one of our main drivers for starting life on the road. While still living in Tahoe, every spare weekend was an attempt to discover interesting places with the least amount of people. We were so touched when All Advantures presented our completed build and we saw that “Solitude” was emblazoned on the exterior above our windshield and on the passenger-side of the van.