Road Trip USA: “In a Van Down by the River”
The other day I eived an email from Markus at “In a Van Down by the River”. That’s right, the name of his blog is “In a Van Down by the River”. The blog is about Markus and his girlfriend Angela’s upcoming trip around the continental US in a custom van. Currently they are just looking for a van, which they will then convert into some kind of living quarters, and drive it around the continental US, to really see America, one roadside diner at a time.
As I looked over their site, which is still very new, I was struck by the beautiful simplicity of the idea. It isn’t even an original idea, people have been cruising the US in camper vans and VW mini-buses for decades. However, for most of us, the idea never becomes a reality.
Practicalities
I have long wanted to take a multi-week roadtrip across America. The problem is that when you add up fuel costs, food, and the real kicker – accommodations, a trip across the US can cost a small fortune. Hotel accommodations can easily cost $100 a night, so over a short 3 week trip, you’ll find yourself spending over $2000 on just hotels.
This is where the beauty of the van comes into play. With your own van, customized with a bed you can completely cut out hotel costs. Throw in some electrical cooking appliances, a TV, and your laptop, and your van can function as a bedroom, kitchen, living room, and office.
If you don’t actually have a van, as most of us don’t, you simply do what Markus and Angela are doing, buy one! Why not? You buy a cheap van, put 10,000-20,000 miles on it, depending on the length of the trip, get the oil changed a few times, and you can turn around and sell it after the trip. According to Kelly Blue Book, the van won’t depreciate by more than a few hundred dollars (assuming it’s already a few years old). Below I have charted the Kelly Blue Book reduction of value for one “van” option: a 1998 Toyota Sienna (one of the more reliable mini-vans on the market), starting at 90,000 miles:
| Miles | Value | Depreciation from 90,000mi |
| 90,000 | $4,635 | |
| 95,000 | $4,535 | -$100 |
| 100,000 | $4,310 | -$325 |
| 110,000 | $4,110 | -$525 |
In this example, the vehicle will only lose $525 in value after adding 20,000 miles. Please note that the Toyota Sienna is just an example. You certainly don’t need to take the “soccer mom” approach to touring America if you don’t want to. An SUV, full-size van, truck, or even retro VW bus would all work, and have similar depreciation trends for sales after the journey.
You still have to consider fuel costs and food, but if you move slowly, and cook a lot of your own food from the van, these don’t have to be much more than your average daily cost of living. Overall, I think Markus and Angela have a great idea here. They are going to see more of America than most US citizens do in a lifetime, have an adventure they will remember for a lifetime, and do it all for a very low final cost.
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