Chevy & GMC Vans

Well it is an extension..




Figured when I'm solo, most of the year the van is great but here in West Texas if I want to do any local trips in the summer, something with some climate control would be a big bonus. Wife likes the idea of a shower and potty too.

Figure the van should pull it ok for local trips and for long hauls I'll just pull it with the Dodge/Cummins..

Nice little camper! The van will pull it no problem. The Dodge on the other hand... It'll do it and get 15+ mpg!

Hey Dean,as the snowflakes start to leave the nest,maybe you should start looking for one like it for yourself.

Sweet.

Details and interior pics, please!

1Gary wrote:Hey Dean,as the snowflakes start to leave the nest,maybe you should start looking for one like it for yourself.

Way ahead of you Gary. We are actually thinking of downsizing but not necessarily to that small of one. Although a size I can pull with the Astro may be an option.

We had a 28ft 5th wheel but it was just over kill. We never spent much time in it, it was just a place to sleep. It was also a storage problem and after moving to Midland we sold it. After using the van solo so much lately I decided that more isn't always better and when a good deal on a decent condition used Casita fell in our laps, we grabbed it. Fully loaded it should be under 3000lbs. Hopefully it will tow ok with the van. I plan on some larger tires and raising the axle a little too. They have decent clearance but I think it could be improved. Add some E tires and it should go about anywhere the van will.. Dodge will get the most towing duty though. It used to get 15mpg pulling a 10k lb 5th wheel, I bet it will get closer to 20 mpg pulling the Casita.

Only have one shot of the insides. It a "bunk" model, wouldn't be my choice if we were getting a new one. We plan to do some mods on the inside too.

arlon wrote:Dodge will get the most towing duty though. It used to get 15mpg pulling a 10k lb 5th wheel, I bet it will get closer to 20 mpg pulling the Casita.

Yeah, but come on, pulling the Casita with a Cummins is just going to look silly......

We were at Nehalem Bay State Park a few weeks ago and there was a Scamp/Casita club camping trip that weekend. It was cool seeing so many of those little campers at one time. The van should pull it with no problem. There were a couple of Astros and even several small cars pulling them and they said they had no problems at all.
Have a great weekend all!
Joe

Very Nice...

Well, visiting this old post I was reflecting on the van vs casita usage last year. It seems about even. Wife and casita or me and van. I did a lot of solo trips last year in the van as wife was tied up with other duties. This year I expect to see a shift towards more Casita use and longer trips as a career winds down towards retirement and I start using accumulated vacation time. I'll still use the van a lot I suspect. I'm actually planning some changes for the van to make it more camper and less van.

When I got the van I expected to be hauling people a lot more than I have. It hasn't had more than two people in it since I got it. The rear seats going into storage and the interior is going to get an overhaul. Need to add a little roof storage (mostly for propane tanks), swivel for the passenger seat and a few other minor changes but that will be it. Hopefully I can start getting even more use out of it than I already have. Love to go from 3.73 to 4.11 gears and hi-lo transfer case but will probably just leave it like it is and just use it.

Still haven't pulled the Casita with the van but the old Dodge is getting 20-22mpg pulling the Casita and I can run 70 and pass 18 wheelers on the 2 lane. Doubt the van will ever have to pull that trailer.