We're here in Ellerbe, North Carolina, and we were seriously offered $20,000 on the spot for our van - and this without knowing it is more than just a van.
Yesterday, a newer, white pickup truck pulled up next to Orsuré and me when we had just gotten back in ShaVanda after leaving a store in town. The passenger window in the pickup rolled down and it became clear the woman in the passenger seat wanted to ask us something. Since our van wasn't on I couldn't roll down the window, so I opened our passenger door to chat. The woman across from me asked, "Is that 4×4?" Orsuré and I both said, "Yeah, it is." The woman looked amazed, and a man in the driver seat leaned over and excitedly said, "I'll give you $20,000 right now for it." He may have said $30,000, but it was a bit difficult to hear. Either way, he really wanted our van and was willing to pay tens-of-thousands for it on the spot.
We were struck and stunned. Instead of saying something as simple as, "No," I couldn't really think to say anything. I started fumbling and said something like, "We built it out inside." Clearly that by itself doesn't make any sense, but that's where I was at. As I said that, in my head I was thinking, we have that much money built in to our van conversion, let alone that offer was only about a third of the cost of the vehicle without the cost of our conversion. ... Eventually it was easily clarified that we were traveling across the country in it and not going to sell. Being propositioned to sell ShaVanda was definitely a new experience for us in our travels so far.
Throughout our first two months on the road we have noticed people slow down, take second looks, and stare at ShaVanda. This seems to happen all the time. I won't even begin to imagine what they're thinking. However, about once a week a stranger has come up to us, very impressed by the look of the van, and even asks if the van is 4×4. When we say it is, they are even more impressed.
You can easily tell that our van is higher off the ground than most other vans, so the idea that it could be 4×4 isn't crazy. But if you know a little about vans, you'll know it's really hard to come by a van that is 4×4. Even us, who are actively looking to see other 4×4 vans being driven on the road, we hardly see them. In fact, when we were looking to purchase a Sprinter van, we had the hardest time finding one that was 4×4, but eventually we got lucky. 4×4 vans are so rare today, partially because the only van currently sold in the States that is 4×4 capable from the manufacturer is the Sprinter. (Ford Transit vans can be modified by an aftermarket company to being 4×4 capable.)
Coming across strangers' weird looks about our van is becoming normal. And, when strangers share their admiration and interest with us about our van, I think that's really cool. It's fun to see people's excitement and hear their stories. But, being asked to sell our van on the spot, this was something absolutely new. It even made Orsuré and me begin to ask each other whether we would even want to sell if the price was right. Short answer, being only two months into our journey, we both are too excited for the adventure we're on to even begin seriously playing with the idea of selling. ... All these interactions have got me curious and excited about what other things people will say to us about our van.
ShaVanda sits about 11 inches off the ground.
Here, ShaVanda is winking at you she shows off her 4×4 decals in the back.