Tiny Home Meet Mini RV

As a former automotive interior design engineer and practical, green-minded couple, we despised the look and feel of RVs and campers, and hated the paltry low MPGs and the hassle and expense of operating (gas), using (campsite fees for electric/water hookups), and storing them.

Our solution: buy a small van and customize it ourselves so it could double its usefulness as an everyday vehicle and a mini RV or mini campervan.

A mini RV is not for everyone, but could it also be the ticket for you? Let’s see. We’re list people, so start by weighing the pros and cons.

AnswerVanswer is reader-supported. When you buy using Amazon links on our site, we earn a small commission. But don’t worry, the price you see does not increase at all and our reviews will always remain 100% honest. Learn more.

Pros

Keeps Us Nimble

We can zip in and out of amazing places without worrying about hitting anything. If we see an amazing sunset or wild animals, we can easily pull over and enjoy them, not worrying about tight turns or blocking other cars. We didn’t want to haul around a trailer and not be able to take it on every remote, winding road that called to us.

Gets Great Gas Mileage

Big class A motorhomes get roughly 8-13mpg at best; converted Sprinter vans typically get roughly 14-18mpg. Our Ford Transit Connect Wagon gets 26mpg in the real world: up and down mountain passes, city, highway, wherever the wind blows us! That’s twice as nice at the gas pump and Mother Nature appreciates it, too.

Lets Us Practice Minimalism

We really liked the challenge of living with less on the road. We’re backpackers at heart, so know how little we really need to be content.

Fits in Our Garage and Is Versatile

We didn’t want to pay to store another contraption that sat idle most of the year…AND renew tabs and license plates annually, AND insure it, etc. This van is our family’s ONLY vehicle, although for most people it will probably be their second. We can haul lots of stuff in it, which we need to do for our business. When we’re not on the road, we can quickly remove some of our modular furniture and use the van to haul plants, 4×8 sheets of plywood, bikes, etc.

Cons

Forces Us to Be Minimalists

You can’t take everything and the kitchen sink with you (and maybe not even that). Sure, we would love a kitchen sink, microwave, shower, toilet, etc. But truthfully it’s not much of a sacrifice to live with a bowl, camp stove, campground showers, and public toilets. Check out our Van Build page where we discuss this in detail.

This is No Gourmet Food Truck

Because of our small van, we have a small fridge, which means hitting a grocery store every few days, although we were used to planning for a lot of simple one pot meals without cold ingredients from backpacking trips, so this is still a major improvement. We often freeze extra servings of our favorite meals at home to have on the road over the first few days.

You Gotta Keep It Movin'

We only have one battery so far, and because we move around a fair bit between locations, we decided not to install solar but charge from our alternator. This means we hit the road every 3-4 days to charge-up. That fits our on-the-go personalities just fine, but if your idea of nirvana is 10 days parked in one spot you will want to consider solar and/or a second battery.

A Chance of Intermittent Showers

We try to get a shower every few days (if you thought “ew, gross”, get over it and look up the history of bathing and you’ll find that a weekly bath on Saturday night was the norm not that long ago). In between, swimming or a warm pot of water with a washcloth and bar of soap makes us feel human again.