Yup, that's the closest I've seen for a while in the US. It seems to be more common in Europe, probably because Europe would not be big fat RV friendly. I assumed it would be an aftermarket company that would offer it, even the Westfalia was only sort of factory.
I think building a modern VW camper out of the low roof, short body Transit would be a really fun exercise.
My biggest issue with motorhomes is where they can't go. And why do people want to poop and eat in their car the moment they start sleeping in it? I'd be happy with beds, some storage, a proper 12v fridge, an awning and a camp stove outside if needed. I can use someone else's bathroom, I don't need to carry one with me.
I think I could get anywhere I wanted to go in North America with two wheel drive, decent tires and a limited slip. You get stuck, you dig out.
My wife feels very strongly about "no pooping in the kitchen" 
We have a little chemical toilet and a pop-up shelter we can take with us if we're far off the grid and don't have access to facilities. Fits in a rubbermaid bin with a locking top. Haven't had to use it yet though.
Cooking inside is nice if it's not ideal weather. For example, when we were at Pikes Peak a few years ago the race got paused for a hailstorm. We went into the van and made hot chocolate and s'mores over the stove, then cleaned our dishes and hung out. The parking lot was cheek to jowl, there was no place to set up an outdoor kitchen. We also camped in Ouray, CO in January last year, it was not outdoor eating weather. A little galley (gas burner, sink) fits nicely on top of a set of cupboards so you don't give up much room to it.
Agreed on 2WD and decent tires. Anything that needs more than that is going to be sketchy when you're in a vehicle with a high CoG anyhow! Our VW doesn't even have an LSD, it's never had a problem.
mazdeuce said:My biggest issue with motorhomes is where they can't go. And why do people want to poop and eat in their car the moment they start sleeping in it? I'd be happy with beds, some storage, a proper 12v fridge, an awning and a camp stove outside if needed. I can use someone else's bathroom, I don't need to carry one with me.
I think I could get anywhere I wanted to go in North America with two wheel drive, decent tires and a limited slip. You get stuck, you dig out.
Its definitely a trade off. We have a bathroom in ours, but its just sitting in the corner, so not so much wasted space. At 2am when I need to pee, I think its pretty handy....
Also being in the PNW, cooking inside is nice sometimes. We have a camp stove to use outside as well.
That being said, you can stuff them a lot of places people normally wouldn't take them. Good tires, going slow, and spotting will go a long ways. As does a sturdy roof if your tall..... Lots of branches!
The seats in the transit clip in, right? It seems like an enterprising person could come up with a way to use seat clips to hold down cabinets/beds. Beds for camping. Seats for hauling extended family for visits. Everything out for Home Depot runs.
I slummed around South Florida in the 70's with my newly-divorced Dad in a VW camper van, no pop top, no AC, no top speed to speak of, and unlimited fun. Let me tell you, Key West then was a completely different adventure than it is now.
These days I don't camp for recreation, but I do find it convenient to stay in the paddock on track weekends. I don't want a camper, but a Transit van could keep it on the down low with a minimum of work.
mazdeuce said:The seats in the transit clip in, right? It seems like an enterprising person could come up with a way to use seat clips to hold down cabinets/beds. Beds for camping. Seats for hauling extended family for visits. Everything out for Home Depot runs.
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alfadriver said:JBasham said:Are they worse to cruise around in than an F150? Somebody please tell me a Transit cargo would stink as a daily driver in bumper-to-bumper traffic. Then I can put it out of my mind.
Worse is relative.
Personally, I don't like sitting and driving a transit van vs an F150 ( and I don't like F150's). Just not as comfortable. You have to try it to see what I'm talking about. And I know that a small Transit based RV would be really a nice package.
Anyone willing to spend 40K and wanting something that rides and drives nice and is a spiritual successor to the Westfalia should really take a look at the Metris. Turbo, tows 5k, gets mid 20's. Lots of pop top installers are starting to outfit these.
HFmaxi said:alfadriver said:JBasham said:Are they worse to cruise around in than an F150? Somebody please tell me a Transit cargo would stink as a daily driver in bumper-to-bumper traffic. Then I can put it out of my mind.
Worse is relative.
Personally, I don't like sitting and driving a transit van vs an F150 ( and I don't like F150's). Just not as comfortable. You have to try it to see what I'm talking about. And I know that a small Transit based RV would be really a nice package.
Anyone willing to spend 40K and wanting something that rides and drives nice and is a spiritual successor to the Westfalia should really take a look at the Metris. Turbo, tows 5k, gets mid 20's. Lots of pop top installers are starting to outfit these.
And for that complete experience, they rust almost as well as the old Westfalia's
The Vanagons don't rust very badly. The bay window buses, well...
One note about the Vanagon Westfalia - they're ridiculously comfortable to drive. I think it's because the seats are so high, your legs hang down instead of going forward. It's like sitting in a chair.
Anyhow - I looked up the Metris. Looks like you don't have to settle for a spiritual successor, Westfalia actually converts them. The interior has a cool art deco kind of look to it. Looks like they don't do an upstairs bed - most people I know with Vanagon Westys sleep upstairs - but that just looks great. Same basic layout as the Vanagon conversion.
http://www.westfalia-mobil.net/en/modelle/marco-polo/marco-polo.php
The Metris intrigues me, both as a camper and as a work van. IMO it's the best looking of the lot, it's at a decent price point, it's specifications are solid, and its big brother has a very good reputation. The only thing that concerns me much is that I've heard of snooty Mercedes dealerships lacking enthusiasm to deal with the things.
They are just confused. It's not as nice as a normal car but not as work as a sprinter so they are getting families looking for a minivan that can tow to people looking for places to camp and drive everywhere vs just airport shuttles and plumbers like they were expecting. That coupled with poor roll out and zero sales training. Still a good vehicle though.
Terra camper has upstairs sleeping. http://www.terracamper.us/
In reply to HFmaxi :
Excellent tip! Thanks very much, it has me thinking hard.
I'd never noticed the Metris before. Holy Carp that thing is neat! Are they front wheel drive in that chassis?
Just to fuel the want, there are several top-spec passenger versions on autotrader right around 35k miles for under $21k. If I bought one of those to tow the boat and haul the bicycles my wife might divorce me though.
They'd look so cool with a good set of aftermarket wheels and good rubber. Like the HiAce I could never buy stateside.
EDIT: Yeah, like that -
DOUBLE EDIT:...or that -
Can you even get a metris in the US? I've never ever seen one
In reply to Jaynen :
Yes, they're available here but advertising is non-existent. I actually had never heard of them until I had to take one apart for work.
It's literally not even on the MBusa website
Looks like vans have their own site only. and it only comes with the 2.0 4 cylinder
https://www.mbvans.com/sprinter/shopping-tools/build-and-equip#/model/model/metris
It has much more volume than the small Ford or Dodge. Sits nicely in the middle ground between the big stuff and the little. I'm liking what I read about it - a lot.
edit: Nuts. My local MB dealer doesn't want to have to deal with blue collar types. It's a deal breaker if we've got to drive a significant distance for service.
I've looked at the Metris and I like them. The lack of an AMG version bothers me.
And since I have no place to put my latest thought but here, yesterday I saw an older Chevy cutaway van where someone had creatively mounted a 3-4 foot low top semi sleeper to the back of the cab. They were still working out the shortish cargo space behind the sleeper but they absolutely had enough room for a short bed or a 5th wheel hitch. So now that's got me thinking.......
I've seen some of those type of rigs as custom trailer pulling/horse trailer haulers.
In fact people seem to call them haulers?
mazdeuce said:My biggest issue with motorhomes is where they can't go. And why do people want to poop and eat in their car the moment they start sleeping in it? I'd be happy with beds, some storage, a proper 12v fridge, an awning and a camp stove outside if needed. I can use someone else's bathroom, I don't need to carry one with me.
I think I could get anywhere I wanted to go in North America with two wheel drive, decent tires and a limited slip. You get stuck, you dig out.
I'd say it depends a bit on the kind of camping you plan to do and how stealthy you want/need to do it. For me, it will need to accommodate "the Five S's."
My goal has been to build a van for traveling to mtn bike races. I may be leaving after work and driving part way to the venue until I need to sleep. When I get to these locations, there often isn't any facilities beyond maybe some nasty porta-johns, so a place to sh1t is required. Usually no showers are available at these venues, and events are rain-or-shine, so anything outside may not work all the time. My race bikes cost a multitude more than a Challenge car, so inside storage is a priority. I also want the van to not give any overt clues as to what is inside (stealth).
I have some ideas about how to make all of this work using a average conversion van since they tend not to look so much like RV's. While I love the added space of a Sprinter or a Transit, they pretty much scream "this is a RV!" when owned by regular consumers. We'll see how it goes once I acquire a van and can start building.
@Ian F sounds like you need a boxtruck to convert and they are cheap as chips
http://www.motoiq.com/MagazineArticles/ID/2425/The-Ultimate-No-Budget-Racecar-Transporter.aspx
In reply to Jaynen :
I've thought about it, but box trucks tend to fail the "stealth" criteria.
They are so everywhere not many people would think it was an RV
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