Family-Friendly Camper Van Makes Tiny Living Luxurious, Features a Sophisticated Design

What we have here is a 2022 170" Extended Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 3500 converted by Custom Crafted Vans. This Boise, Idaho-based company was founded by Sara and Alex James – we've previously featured some of their creations here on autoevolution.

They specialize in building custom camper vans that, as they describe, "are not only functional but also beautiful and comfortable." This rig was designed as a family van for Sara, Alex, and their two kids.

Before we take a look at its interior, I'd like to check out the exterior features. First, the vehicle rides on duallies at the rear, which are designed to support the extra weight compared to a standard 170" wheelbase Sprinter van.

This rig is a 2WD, although you might believe it's a 4WD at first sight since it boasts a Van Compass 2-inch suspension lift kit. Custom Crafted Vans also upgraded the rear leaf springs and replaced the rear shocks. Furthermore, the vehicle rides on matte black Method wheels wrapped in Falken Wildpeak all-terrain tires.

The rear bumper, front bumper, grille, and plastic panels were covered with a truck bed spray to prevent rust from forming and provide an extra layer of protection against scratches. Moreover, the roof was also covered with color-matched truck bed spray to prevent rust. Then, they added an Aluminess double loop, low-profile roof rack holding 320 W solar panels – you'll have to use an Aluminess ladder on the driver's side to get on top of the vehicle.

Sara and Alex installed four windows: a T-vent and three OEM flat glass ones. They're all covered with ceramic tint, designed to offer additional protection against heat and UV rays.

The exterior accessories don't stop there – this mobile home is fitted with a light package consisting of Baja Design light pods on all sides of the van, as well as two grill-mounted LP4 lights and a 30-inch (76-centimeter) light bar from the same company. Other notable features are a powered 12-foot (3.6-meter) awning with a wind sensor and running boards.

Pop the main door open, and you'll be greeted by a superb interior. Many aesthetic elements come together to form it. You'll notice a lot of white oak touches, such as the ceiling window and door frames – they're all covered with a Rubio monocoat wood protector that also gives more of a white finish.

The ceiling is made from white oak slats with a grey backer board matching the van's tones. Since there's a lot of wood inside, Sara and Alex didn't go for the typical wood flooring and instead chose a Lonseal marine grade sheet vinyl flooring with a neutral tone.

Sara and Alex devised an open layout for this van, meaning the driver's cabin isn't separated from the living space. Dead ahead of the entrance, you'll find one of the distinctive features of this rig: a double bench seat complete with seatbelts. This isn't something we haven't seen in vans before – but what makes this feature special is that it's mounted on a swivel base. So, you can turn the seat to face the driver's cabin or swivel it to the side to create more walking room.

The driver and passenger seats can also be swiveled to face the inside of the van, thus creating a seating space for four people. You'll also find two storage spots in this area: an overhead cabinet above the double bench seat and a headliner shelf above the driver's cabin.

Next, we have the kitchen, located on the passenger side of the interior. It features an 8-inch (20-centimeter) deep farmhouse-style sink with a brass gold faucet, Corian solid surface countertops and backsplash, a 49-liter (13-gallon) Isotherm fridge, and even a 55-liter (14.5-gallon) drawer freezer. For storage, you'll find two spacious overhead cabinets, three sizeable drawers, and a cabinet.

One of the cool features of this van is a stereo system. It's made up of a speaker on the side of a kitchen cabinet, a speaker integrated into the cabinet above the seating area, and two additional ones at the rear.

Opposite the kitchen, Custom Crafted Vans devised a wet bathroom. I love its design, boasting a custom tile shower pan, a large grey vinyl tiled wall, and a single wall with blue tiles that continues down into a bench housing a urine-diverting toilet. These touches go perfectly with the shower's brass gold fixtures.

Walk past the bathroom, and you'll notice a floor-to-ceiling unit with large closet space, the side-out freezer I mentioned earlier a cubby, and an overhead cabinet. The latter feature houses the camper van's control panel, which comprises a touchscreen display controlling the power system and various switches.

The rear part of the interior is occupied by a sizeable U-shaped lounge with a large bamboo table in the middle. There's enough space to seat at least seven to eight people comfortably. What's more, plenty of natural light shines through two massive windows on the sides.

To make the space even more efficient, Custom Crafted Vans installed a HappiJac bed system that can be adjusted at any height you want. Furthermore, the lounge's table can be lowered to create another sleeping space – this is where the kids will sleep.

Sara and Alex even managed to leave a small storage space underneath the rear bench in the form of a cabinet. The other benches house the van's utility systems (water and electrical).

The power system's highlights are two 270 Ah BattleBorn batteries, a 3,000 W inverter/charger, two 30-amp Orion DC-DC chargers, and a solar charge controller connected to the 320 W panels on the roof. So, you can rest assured this mobile home has enough juice to allow you to go off-grid worry-free.

Overall, this camper van has an excellent balance between functionality and aesthetics. It features an efficient design, off-grid and light off-road capabilities, and a design you'll be pleased to see every time you wake up.

We don't know how much this camper van set the couple back, but I bet it cost a small fortune. I'll go ahead and make an estimate based on another rig I wrote about last year from Custom Crafted Vans. That one cost $215,000 (€198,709) to build - I'm pretty sure this one cost at least that much.