We bought a van

The stars align

There is something about these things that has always drawn my eye. Whether its the pop-top, iconic body, or inhernet ruggedness I have longed to call one my own for some time. Often times a vehicle in my price range will be a rust bucket that doesn't run. When I first stumbled upon this beauty it had a steep price of nearly 12k.

For one reason of another, my brother noticed a price drop of about 4k two weeks later. That is when I knew we needed to move fast. I was tuesday when I called the owner to see if I could come take a look, and made sure to schedule as early as possible. I gave the owner my word that if the van could start up and drive I would gladly take it off his hands.

Early saturday morning

my father and I arrived in Philly to take it for a spin. It had just started to drizzle and the cool fall weather was beginning to set in. After meeting the owner, and getting a full tour of the van and a demo of all the amentities we took off down Columbus avenue and into a large parking lot where we switched drivers. Having never driven stick, this was my dad's time to shine and assess whether everything felt good with the van.

Back at the owners house

We ran through the various improvements still needed and noticed a few critical things that needed to be addressed. Namely, the heat and defrost was no longer working, there was some mild rust on the body as the ad alluded too, and I had the gut feeling that the van was going to need some serious work.

I made a fair offer

for the van deducting for the various improvements we knew it needed and the work it would take to spruce it up again. I was fully prepared to walk away and wait indefinitely for something in my modest price range. Luckily we were able to agree on a price and my journey into van life began

The ride home

included stops in south philly to show my brother, and a stop in south jersey to show my girlfriend. After a ride down the scenic rt 70 the van reached its new home