macman58

Radin2son, you make good points about the size of Van. And you're right--NV is much different beast than Frontie or Pathie. I obviously need to clarify for myself whether I'm looking more for Campervan setup or off-road adventure with rooftop tent instead of van for primary sleeping quarters.

Thank you, everyone for your helpful feedback. My follow up question is has anyone taking their RWD NV off road (I've scoured the 4 x 4 links) and if so, how did it handle? I think I would want to take mine more on fire roads than baja beachfront, and would consider larger, AT tires. I've driven on lots of fire roads with 2wd cars, front and rear drive, and other than an old Lexus LS400 that I took up a nasty section of fire road near Hetch Hetchy, I've never had any regrets. Being on a truck based platform I'm guessing the NV would be some what rugged? I'm not looking for a big time off roader, but I'd like to get to some trail heads and lakeshores via fire roads. I would prefer NV over a Frontier or Pathfinder, and think it would suit my needs. Any experiences you can share are appreciated.

Radin2son, thanks for that Sportsmobile listing. That looks sweet. Very similar to my 2003 Eurovan Weekender. That rig would certainly fit what I'm looking for.

Jonathan, and anyone else who might be able to provide input: when you take the seats out, is the floor surface suitable for sleeping on? I'm wondering if I could put cargo mats down to smooth out the bumps? I envision using this Van mostly as a two-seater with empty cargo space, with the option of using the extra seats when necessary. Will that work, or do I need to go the Cargo Van route? thanks for any input.

Thanks for the input, Jonathan.

I've been contemplating for quite some time now getting a Nissan NV 1500 cargo van, to be used primarily for camping, hauling the kayaks and bikes, etc. Most of the time, it will be me and maybe one other person. However, I do have two kids and my live-in girlfriend, so I was thinking I would have a 3-seat bench added to the back of the van, which would fold out to a sleeper (Van Conversions, Portland), and also a window on the sliding door. Totaling about $4k in after market costs. Now, however, I'm rethinking the idea of getting a NVP, and taking out all the seats when I'm traveling only with one other passenger--opening the cargo capacity to allow for sleeping inside--and using either the rear bench or the seats directly behind driver/passenger when I want to travel with my kids in tow. Advantages of cargo van: cheaper, by about 10k, on average, minus the $4k or so I will have to spend to make it passenger worthy. More ability to haul toys. Could likely sleep four inside the van, with the fold-out bed and either air mattress or a couple of cots. Advantages of NVP: passenger air bags, air conditioning, windows already in, quieter interior, flexibility of hauling big parties should the need arise. I've also been leaning towards the V6 just because I'm coming from a Honda Accord that gets 30 mpg on highway, and the idea of getting half of that, or less, pains me. However, should I opt for the NVP, with its additional weight of about 900 pounds over the Cargo, I'm thinking maybe the V8 would be the way to go, as it might get pretty similar gas mileage to the V6 while having more oomph. Any thoughts? Thanks! First-time poster who is very excited about possibility of joining the ownership ranks.