Sprinter vs. Transit vs. Promaster PLUS 14 more campervan conversion platforms

All right, here we go. Welcome to Homeroam. We just bought a van to build out into a camper. We spent a lot of time considering which van platform to build on, so today we're going to go in-depth on all the options out there and the factors that led to our decision. First, we'll go over the big three, full-sized high-roof vans that can be bought new in North America. Next, we'll look at some more compact options, and finally we'll review some discontinued and imported models. Overall, we're going to evaluate 17 different vans, so we better get started. Once upon a time, living in a van down by the river was considered something negative, but over the past decade many people have embraced van life so much that it's become a meme. Whether full-time or part-time, by choice or out of necessity, living in a van gives you a level of freedom and independence that no other living situation can match. Now, if you're looking for luxury and want a full condo on wheels that you can stand up in with headroom to spare, there are three main options. The Mercedes Sprinter, Ford Transit, and Ram ProMaster. All three of these are available in high-roof models that give you at least six feet of headroom inside. Let's start with the most popular, the Mercedes Sprinter. This is the classic van life flagship model that many aspire to. It has a premium look and feel, the Mercedes badge, and unlike the other two has a diesel engine. This has some benefits and a few drawbacks. It's very fuel efficient and lets you tap into an onboard source for diesel heaters. However, for many model years the emissions control system was known to have multiple issues and has been involved in a recall and even a massive lawsuit where Mercedes was forced to repair it and compensate owners. All the repair work is specialized and expensive. Most work needs to be done by dealerships or certified repair shops. In fact, we heard that in all of Baja, Mexico, there's pretty much only one company that works on Sprinter vans. Reliability is a common problem with modern diesel engines, along with the need to constantly refill with DEF, diesel exhaust fluid, which can be difficult to find in some remote places. Until recently, the Sprinter was the only high-roof van offering true four-wheel drive, but this has since been downgraded to all-wheel drive on newer models. Nonetheless, it's still a great option for camping in rough terrain. It's available in three different lengths, 19.5, 23, and 24 feet, and three different heights, 8, 9, and 10 feet, giving lots of configuration options. Interior height on the high-roof model is 6.5 feet. Despite the popularity and allure of the Sprinter, some van builders have switched to a more basic gasoline-powered van, the Ford Transit. These generally have cheaper repair costs, although the optional EcoBoost engine is turbo-boosted, and thus more complicated, less reliable, and a little bit more difficult to repair than a non-turbo engine. Some people have also commented that they prefer the seating position and the driving feel of the Transit over the Mercedes. Like the Sprinter, it's available in rear-wheel drive and also features an all-wheel drive model, more suitable for off-road use or driving in harsh winter conditions. It's available in three lengths, 18.5, 20, and 22 feet, and three heights, 7, 8.5, and 9 feet. The interior height on the high-roof model is 6.75 feet. Camera's blowing around. I think there's more rain coming in. I better hurry. Finally, we come to the Ram ProMaster. It's arguably the most plain vanilla of the three full-height cargo vans. It has a very boxy frame that some people have referred to as ugly, but this actually contributes to one of its key advantages. It has by far the most interior build space of the 20-foot long models. The buildable footprint is 144 by 74 inches, or 74 square feet. That's 18 inches longer and 6 inches wider than the 20-foot Transit that only gives you about 60 square feet. The 20-foot long Sprinter, meanwhile, comes in at only 56 square feet of buildable area. Most of this extra space in the Ram is due to the seating position, engine placement, and lack of a rear drive shaft. Speaking of which, that means the ProMaster is only available in front-wheel drive. There is no all-wheel drive version. There's also exactly one engine option. The six-cylinder, non-turbo Pentastar engine is used in a wide range of Chrysler, Dodge, and Jeep vehicles. They're very common, relatively reliable, and generally inexpensive to repair. The ProMaster can be configured in three lengths, 18, 20, and 21 feet, and three heights, 7, 8, and 9 feet. The high roof model has an interior height of 6.3 feet, and as you can see, this is what we ended up choosing. We are wary of not having all-wheel drive, and that choice may come back to haunt us on a beach in the future. Realistically though, 95% of our driving is on paved highways, and most of the rest is on groomed gravel roads, and we rarely do proper off-roading. This choice will limit how far off-road we can go, but on the flip side, keeping the length below 20 feet will make it much easier to navigate urban settings, park in any regular parking spot, and make moochdocking in friends and family's driveways much easier. We're not going full stealth with this build, but a boring white cargo van with some solar and a fan cover draws a lot less attention than a 25-foot travel trailer with a four-foot slide. In the end, the interior build space, low ownership cost, and overall practicality of the ProMaster won us over, but enough about us. At the beginning of this video, I promised to show you some cool van platform alternatives outside of the big three. First, let's explore some compact vans. If you can make do with less than six feet of ceiling height, you may want to check out the Chevy Express aka GMC Savannah. It's a solid proven platform that's been around since 1996 and can often be found used for a good price, but keep in mind you'll be limited to an interior height of about four and a half feet. Aftermarket high roof conversions can bring that up to over five feet, but most people won't be able to stand up straight in this van. Another compact alternative is the Ford Transit Connect with interior height configurations available from three and a half to just over four feet. You won't be walking around inside, but can easily fit a bed and a rear pullout kitchen. The Ram ProMaster City is another choice in this class with a roof height of about four feet again. Finally, the Mercedes-Benz Metris is a similar van with a slightly taller roof that gives around four and a half feet of clearance. So the bad news is that three out of these four compact vans have been discontinued as of 2023, but the good news is that a bunch of them will be coming off of lease soon and probably available for a good price. The weather is really not cooperating with me today at all. Supposed to be nicer than this. All right, where was I now? The Chevy or GMC van is still for sale as of the 2025 model year. This segues nicely to the next few vans, all of which have been discontinued. First, the Nissan NV Cargo van was a very strange looking vehicle that looked a bit like they took a pickup truck and just kind of bolted on a mismatched frame. It was known for reliability and the high roof versions had lots of space for a camper conversion. They never sold very well, but you may be able to find a handful here and there if you look hard enough. They use the same drivetrain and engine as the Nissan Titan, so in theory shouldn't be that difficult to repair and find parts for. But given they were so unpopular and discontinued in 2020, maintenance may become more difficult over time. The Chevy Astro or GMC Safari was a small van built from 1985 to 2005 and makes a great budget conversion platform. Interior space is limited, but they have a reputation of being nearly indestructible and their popularity means there are still lots of parts and people who know how to repair them. The Volkswagen Eurovan aka Transporter or T4 was sold from 1990 to 2004. It became a very common platform for camper vans in both Europe and North America and many can still be found on the road today. The Dodge Ram Van or B platform was sold from 1971 to 2003. I remember back in the early 2000s I nearly bought a road trek camper van built on this platform but decided against it thinking it was too expensive to live in a van when rent was so cheap. At the time my comfortable one-bedroom apartment in Waterloo, Canada cost $600 a month. How times have changed. Fun fact, the Dodge Ram Van was succeeded by today's van life leader the Mercedes Sprinter and not the Ram Promaster. The Promaster is actually a rebadged Fiat Ducato. Next up the Ford E-Series Van was another popular conversion platform that's been around since 1960. They were officially replaced by the Transit in 2015 but are still built as cutaway chassis for commercial upfitters. Being such a popular platform they can often be found for a good price and you'll never have trouble finding parts or mechanics who can work on them. Now we're moving into some of the more obscure options. The Toyota Sienna is a minivan that started production in 1997 and is still sold today. There's not a lot of space for a buildout but if you're looking for a small reliable platform that's available in all-wheel drive this is a solid choice. Another Toyota product the High Ace is a slightly larger van that isn't sold in North America but models 25 years and older can be imported. They're reliable and have a nice boxy frame that makes it suitable for micro camper conversions. Along similar lines the Mitsubishi Delica is a small four-wheel drive van that's become popular for import and camper van conversion. Once lifted and fitted with larger tires it becomes a very capable off-road vehicle. The Nissan NV200 is another small van available in four-wheel drive that shared a badge with the Delica in Japan from 2011 to 2019. It was sold in North America from 2013 to 2020 but never did very well. If you can find one it makes for a reliable compact platform. And last but not least probably the most obscure conversion platform I could find was the Suzuki Everyvan. This is a very small van sold mostly in Japan, China, and India but of course some enthusiasts have imported and converted them into cute little micro builds. And that wraps up the full list of 17 potential camper van conversion platforms. I did a lot of research for this video but I'll bet I missed a few so be sure to let me know which ones I forgot in the comments below. It is like really raining now. And of course don't forget to subscribe to continue to follow our transition from RV life to van life as we build out our brand new currently very empty 2025 Ram Promaster. See you soon. See you soon. See you soon. See you soon. See you soon. I wish it wasn't raining so much. Make sure you don't miss the next video by liking, subscribing, and turning on notifications. Oh and don't forget to check out our website and sign up for our weekly email blast. Thanks for joining us and we'll see you in the next one.