The whole van life craze is still going strong, but if you aren’t the kind of person who can just go buy a brand new Mercedes Sprinter and drop another fifty grand modifying it with all the gubbins you need to live in it, there are much less expensive options available to you. If you’re looking for the authentic livin’-on-the-road experience, you’d be hard pressed to find a more genuine article than this 1977 Dodge B300 Quest. And instead of a couple hundred thousand dollars and a cramped interior, this bad boy is the size of an efficiency apartment in Manhattan and will run you about one month’s rent.
Based on the Dodge Sportsman B-series van, this Quest has a whole lot of funk going on for the $3,200 asking price. I don’t know what engine or transmission is in this thing, but the B300 was available with a 360 small block (most likely), or a 400 or 440 big block. B300s were sold with a manual transmission as standard, but this one has the optional three-speed 727 Torqueflite automatic. At best this thing is getting 7 or 8 miles per gallon on the highway, so the money you save on buying the thing will have to go to fuel. And drugs.
The seller says this van, with 44,000 miles on the clock, “runs and drives, starts right up.” They also claim that the van has a new fuel pump and drive shaft joint. It’s in very good condition. “As far as furnace water tank solid inside no leaks at all,” continues seller. That is, sadly, all the information they give on the van, but what more can you ask when the price is a mere $3,200.
Honestly, the interior of this big pig isn’t as bad as you’d figure for a nearly-50-year-old RV. It could definitely use a little cleaning, as there are bits of trash everywhere. And the laminate flooring is peeling up, though it looks like the seller is including a box of new flooring with the purchase.
So, where’s the first place you’re going when you pick up your new house on wheels?