Why this van

Everyone asks why not a Sprinter.

Fair question. Sprinters are taller, more common in the van-life scene, easier to find parts for if you count RV suppliers. They’re also more expensive, harder to work on if you’re doing it yourself, and they didn’t come in the green I wanted.

The spec sheet

2026 Ford Transit, 148-inch wheelbase, high roof, all-wheel drive. Stock wheels and tires until I wear these out. Factory-installed trailer hitch because I already own a teardrop.

The color is officially Wild Green and unofficially the entire reason I chose this van over three others I test-drove. I’m building this out in a makerspace where half my projects are Army Green ASA plastic. Matching the van to my 3D printer filament was not an accident.

The real reasons

The Transit fit my decision tree: high roof for standing room, length that fits in a standard parking space, all-wheel drive for mountain roads, available in a color that doesn’t look like every other white cargo van at the trailhead.

Sprinters are great. This one is mine.

Next: my workshop is a makerspace, not a garage.