Today’s RV review is of the unique collaboration between Winnebago and Adventure Wagon on what can best be described as a Class B RV canvas. This is an unusual pairing of two RV companies to produce a rather unique collaborative product.
Portland, Oregon-based Adventure Wagon is a company that offers kits that can be installed in either a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter or a Ford Transit van. These kits can include insulated wall panels along with metal tracks to which you can attach various things to turn a work van into an RV of varying degrees of completion.
The way this works is that you can get one of the kits from Adventure Wagon and have it professionally installed, or even install it yourself. But this collaboration between Winnebago and Adventure Wagon means that the kit is installed by Winnebago. There are actually reasons why you’d have some advantages in this type of collaborative build.
Adventure Wagon kits
At the most basic level, Adventure Wagon’s kits are wall panels and metal tracks. Behind the wall panels is insulation, so it’s not just your basic workaday van any longer. But it’s also not so far removed from this that you can’t use it as a work van or to help your friends move.
Yeah, like that’s going to happen. You know you want to show your friends the van fully configured as a camper and never ever, not ever, tell them that it can go back to being an empty van. That’s what U-Haul is for.
Once you’ve installed the wall kits with the mounting tracks, you now have a ton of choices. You can get a bed, cabinets, storage compartments, seats, and just about anything you can imagine to turn the van into a proper camper.
Overhead soft shelves in the Adventure Wagon
There are also overhead soft shelves that are touted to hold 100 pounds each. These soft shelves are really nifty in how they’re configured. They are much less likely to rattle down the road like that lumber core you’ll find in many RVs. There are zip-open fronts with Velcro strips to hold them open along with a variety of pockets and spaces.
The nifty thing about all this is that should you decide a shelf or cabinet would be better in a different place, that’s not an issue. Essentially, you can just disengage the item from the tracks and move it yourself.
And should you need a van with several seats to move your brat pack around, you can have that during the week. Then, when the weekend rolls around, now you can add a bed or a sink or a toilet or all those things.
You might leave the seats in, or take them out. It’s a pretty great package. With some caveats.
What the Adventure Van is not
Because the pieces can be installed and removed or moved, there are limitations to all of this. One of those is that there are no holding tanks in this rig.
So if you want to have a toilet in the rig, then you’ll get a portable toilet such as this one that I reviewed a while back in my portable toilet review spree. I actually like those, and that is a component of a project I’m working on.
If you want a sink with plumbing, there’s a cabinet that they sell and it incorporates this Dometic water system in it along with a collapsible sink.
Your refrigerator is going to be one of those 12-volt coolers, which I also like because they can be used for so many things. Mine is currently on my sun porch full of craft beer since it’s not doing RV duty. But I’ve also used it for really big Costco runs.
Power in the Adventure Wagon
If you’d like power there is a choice for that, too. And I like it.
There is a large portable EcoFlow power station available. This EcoFlow system has the advantage of also being portable. You can replenish it with portable solar panels or, if you have shore power of some sort, you can utilize that. The one offered in this arrangement is the EcoFlow Delta 3.6Kw unit. This thing is big enough that it actually has a couple of wheels and even sports a 30-amp typical RV output. Wowsers.
But the only power system integrated into the van is the one integrated into the van—meaning you have the van’s 12-volt engine battery. You can get an optional high-performance ceiling vent fan, but you darn well better be sure you don’t ventilate yourself into a call to the local roadside assistance company. Perhaps you’ll really, really want to have one of those portable jump starter gadgets.
Also, if you want air conditioning, this is something you’re going to have to go shopping for. There are an increasing number of portable air conditioners that I’ve seen van lifers using, and their perceptions of these seem to be getting better.
Why this particular choice?
There are actually some big advantages to going this route. Since there is the flying “W” on the outside and this is effectively built by Winnebago, you may find that it’s much, much easier to convince an insurance company to cover this vehicle than other van builds.
While there isn’t a lot to go wrong with this rather simple build, it’s still an RV. So you have the coverage of Winnebago as you adventure around. However, I know there are probably very few of us that put any faith whatsoever in the warranty from any RV company.
What an unfortunate statement about an entire industry—yet one that’s so fitting.
Further, you have the RVIA certificate. While I think this is wholly worthless in the real world, there are RV parks that require that you have one of these on your RV. They claim that it’s for their insurance company. But despite the absolute lack of value of this sticker in the real world, it could mean the difference between an RV park letting you in or denying you.
As someone who has considered building a custom trailer and is still working on another project, I can tell you it’s easy enough to fake this sticker sufficiently that the teenage front desk manager at any RV park will be fooled.
But your insurance company might care and this comes with one of those.
Conclusions
There may be enough value in the names on the outside of this rig that the MSRP of the base model, which is $153,459, can be justified. Know that your local RV dealer may have this at a lower price, as I’ve just shared the list price. Then, again, if these are popular enough, they may jack up the price, too.
The Winnebago version comes with all the things I mentioned above: the portable power station, a second alternator to juice everything up, lighting, a high-performance vent fan, the toilet, sink cabinet with the Dometic Go Hydration Jug system, the bed, and all of that. So even out of the gate, it’s ready to go camping. Also, Winnebago includes a number of those overhead canvas storage bays.
Another advantage to going the Winnebago route is that you can get this in two lengths: either the 144-inch wheelbase with a total length of 19’7”, or the 170-inch wheelbase that stretches to 22’11”. There are also options for four-wheel-drive, if that’s of interest. So, there are a number of choices.
Buy the kit from Adventure Wagon
However, if you like this van a lot but are thrifty, you could always just buy the kit from Adventure Wagon and then install it yourself or have that done by a local company authorized to do the installation. The advantage of doing this would include that you could bring a used van. You also would not be forced to have the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter as the base along with the price of Mercedes-Benz maintenance and repair. Adventure Wagon does make the kit for the Ford Transit, as well.
There are other companies doing these kits, as well, including Wayfarer Vans, whom I spoke with on this podcast. I really like the way they do things and, as mentioned, you can fake the RVIA sticker pretty easily. However, that may not be enough for your insurance company to cover the vehicle as an RV and that, too, is a serious consideration.
One of the big deal breakers for some buyers is going to be the fact that there is no shower in this rig. Now, you could easily get one of those portable RV showers and one of these Privy Bivy tents and that would work in some places. There are also RV parks with shower houses, of course, and some RVers who travel a lot just use a gym membership for the showers.
The bottom line
The bottom line is that you could have a full-on camper for the weekends and a van for transporting your people or even for work during the week. Imagine if you emblazon this with work-relevant stickers you might also get a tax write-off to boot. There aren’t a lot of RVs that can make this claim.
Also, don’t listen to anything I say regarding taxes. I’m about the last person you’d want to take that advice from.
But I’m pretty intrigued by a very reconfigurable machine that can go camping, go to the hardware store, and potentially get my tax bill lower.
More about these RV reviews
These RV reviews are written based on information provided by the manufacturers along with our writer’s own research. They are based on information from a single unit and may not reflect your actual experience. Shop your RV and dealership carefully before making a buying decision. We receive no money or other financial benefits from these reviews. They are intended only as a brief overview of the vehicle, not a comprehensive critique, which would require a thorough inspection and/or test drive.
Tony comes to RVtravel.com having worked at an RV dealership and been a life long RV enthusiast. He also has written the syndicated Curbside column about cars. He also works closely with a number of RV manufacturers to get an inside look at how things are done and is a brand ambassador for Rockwood Mini Lite with his wife, Peggy.
You can also check out his RV podcast with his wife, Peggy.
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Don’t seem like much in it for $153,459.
Exactly. Take that work PICKUP TRUCK you already have and slap a slide-in camper in it, that actually has amenities like a furnace, water system, toilet, A/C, etc, for 1/3 or less of the cost. If you don’t have the pickup, buy one and the slide-in and still be way ahead.
And that price is for the RWD model, not the 4WD model! Plus no cooktop, no convection-microwave, no gray water storage, no table, and no solar panels (not even wiring for a portable panel) to recharge the Ecoflow. Pretty bare bones for that price–is the RVIA sticker and flexibility really worth it?
Thank you, Tony! 🙂 Interesting and surely the sweet spot of enough potential customers for Winnebago to go this route. But, nowhere enough self-indulgent aspects to suit DW, let alone me. 😉 Safe travels and thanks again! 🙂