The new Sprinter Van has now completed its enhancements to make it a fully qualified “Toad.” In the parlance of the RV folks that is the car you tow behind your motor home so that you have transportation when you get to your destination. Many of the Jeep brand vehicles are popular toads because many of them are towable without modification. We have seen everything from Smart Cars to Hummers behind motor homes. We have even seen Sprinters made up as motor homes towing a small car. Winnebago uses a Sprinter chassis for one of their class “B” motor homes. A person in one of the RV forums discussed the possibility of towing one of these class “B” motor homes behind his 45foot behemoth. I have come to the conclusion at the end of our project that we have been sailing in some uncharted waters.
This week, however, with the installation of the driveline disconnect, we have completed the project. Indeed to prove everything out, we immediately hooked the Sprinter to the back of Arcturus and towed it to Quartzsite, AZ. Yuma to Quartzsite is almost 100 miles. The trip was uneventful.
Just to back up a bit and explain how we got to this point. A little over nine years ago we headed out on this adventure called retirement. Our first RV was a Honda Civic, “Little Blue.” We went as far east as Illinois to attend the eastern version of the reception for Neil and Renee’s wedding. (The wedding happened right in the middle of selling our house and moving my shop into a red Haulmark utility trailer.)
The next thing we did was a five week “Honeymoon cruise” in our 23 foot sailboat, “Regal Jug.” That used up August and half of September. We then bought “Arcturus,” a 34 foot motor home, a so called Diesel pusher, in September of 2004. For the next seven years we toured the country including Canada and Alaska with Arcturus, the red trailer and a bicycle to get around with. That worked fine until April of 2011 when I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s, and we started driving tandem so we could have the Honda with us for doctor visits.
The Honda and the red trailer are both sold and the Sprinter is our “do everything van.” It even has a bench that opens out into a platform for an air mattress. It will function as a “Weekender,” when we get the urge to get away for a couple days.
The following is a photo gallery of the Sprinter project.