The Saga Begins or How We Found the Van

March 2010 - Ben and I are out for a bike ride on our new tandem. We pass the Dodge Dealership. Hmmm.... They have a Sprinter Van parked in the lot. Ben has always wanted a Sprinter Sportsmobile, but will the tandem fit in it? We stop and they let us try to put the bike in the back of the van. It doesn't fit across the back, where we had planned on mounting it. Now what? The thinking begins.

Late March 2010  -  I think I've solved the bike problem. We could put the bikes on the floor and mount a bunk bed over the bikes. The only problem now is the $40,000 for the van and the $30,000 for the conversion. It will take many, many years to save that much money.

Spring Break, April 2010 - What about a used van?  We could do the conversion ourselves.  We would need a bed and a fridge might be nice.  Many people have done this and there are examples of how-to on the internet.  

I start looking on the internet. There aren't a lot of these vans out there for sale.

We find one at a dealership in Blair, NE, near my family with 220,000 miles on it. It won't start.

We find one in American Fork, UT with 152,000 miles on it. It was filthy, smelled funky and has two lights that won't go out. First, the glow plug light, which is a $400 fix for new glow plugs. Also the SRS light which the car dealer says is on because of a leak in the windshield he will get fixed. We get home and find that really the SRS light is Safety Restraint Systems. The airbags have been deployed and not fixed properly.  We do NOT want that van!

We find one in Draper, UT. It's a little more than we wanted to spend, but it's only got 70,000 miles on it. When we go to see it, we discover that it has been used for a landscaping van. It has carried the fertilizer tank. The smell permeates the van. It drives well, and Ben is VERY excited. The man comes down $2,000. We buy the van.