Selling my 2019 Mercedes Sprinter 170 4×4. I’ve taken it cross-country on a beautiful trip to Alaska and back in the three months that I’ve owned it and had intended to live and travel full time in it for a few years. I have decided that a brick and mortar life is better suited for me and so am passing on this beautiful van to it’s new caretaker. Though a 2019, it was purchased new in the summer of 2020 and built out by a home contractor named Paul Kirkland and his wife, Faith. They did an amazing job creating a tiny home on wheels.
Their custom build started with Kilmat sound deadening. 5 Windows were added along with 2 Maxxair fans. The van is fully insulated with Thinsulate and kept warm in the winter with an Espar diesel heater which is plumbed directly into the van’s main fuel tank, assuring you will never run out of heat in the middle of the night or need to refill small cans.
There is 3/4 marine plywood covered in Lonseal vinyl on the floor. The walls are 5mm Baltic birch plywood with landau foam and Duramax tweed fabric. The ceiling has custom milled ship lap cedar. Upper and lower cabinets are extruded aluminum frames bolted to the frame of the van and covered in bamboo plywood. The countertops are black walnut. All the wood is finished with marine Spar varnish and is baby-soft smooth to touch.
In the galley there is a good-sized Isotherm marine fridge that I have fit a ton of food and beverages into, a Ruvati undermount sink and a two burner induction cooktop. Hot water is supplied by an Isotemp marine water heater which heats water to piping hot very quickly.
Behind the drivers seat there is a bench with full-storage underneath, a small is safe bolted to the frame inside the bench and a swiveling Lagun mount bamboo top table. Interior lights are LED puck lights with dimmers on multiple individual zones. There are also two reading lights at the head of the bed that are a great light for reading or ambient light for hanging out at night.
When I bought the van it had a Natures head composting toilet installed behind a closing door. I preferred a different toilet and removed the door to fit it, but I plan to keep my own toilet and the van will sell with the Natures Head one and I will remount the door (mine cost 500, the Natures Head is around 1,200 so it’s a better deal for you-I just happen to like mine better).
There are three huge drawers providing tons of storage under the induction cooktop (you can even fit a toaster oven in the bottom drawer). Under the sink is dedicated gray tank as well as the water pump and ball valves for the water system. There’s also room for a full-size trash can under the sink.
In between the two jump seats in the floor there is a drain fitting that services the removable indoor shower pan. It drains into a 28 gallon gray tank that is mounted in the spare tire carrier. The tank has a heating pad on it for use in cold weather. There is also an outdoor shower in back of the van with a curtain that stretches between the two open doors.
The bed is a comfy three piece mattress on a custom aluminum frame. The panel at the foot of the bed folds up out of the way exposing the two jump seats. The panel at the head is on an electric lift so you can sit up in bed and read or watch a movie. This creates a very comfortable hang-out space.
Under the bed in the garage area on the drivers side is a cabinet that houses the 30 gallon fresh water tank with a storage cubby above. The cabinet on the passenger side holds the 4-100 ah Battleborn lithium batteries. There is also a 3000 watt Victron inverter-charger, a Victron solar charge controller, 2 Victron 30 amp dc-dc chargers, a Victron Lynx distributor and the ac breaker box. Another little storage cubby is over all that.
The cockpit of the van has heated black leatherette swivel seats (both swivel) that power adjust with memory. It has the 10.25” screen along with lane keeping, distronic cruise control, auto-dim headlights etc, etc.
On the roof is a Flatline Van Co roof rack with 300 watts of solar. There are two raised crossbars that can be used to mount a cargo box on the roof or skis or canoe, etc. A Roam Built ladder is mounted on the driver side. Behind the ladder is an Aluminess Surf Pole you can strap paddleboards or surfboards to (photo shows only one mount. I temporarily removed a second board mount and will reinstall).
On the rear doors there is an Owl Vans spare tire carrier, Owl Vans B2 mount and Owl Vans Expedition box (a great place to keep the bits and bobs for your van like oil, hoses, bungees, etc.) There is a sturdy rear step that mounts into the trailer hitch for climbing up onto the rear of the van. On the passenger side of the trailer hitch is the shore power connection. On the driver side is an air chuck that is fed by an ARB dual compressor mounted under the hood.
For exterior lighting there are two Rigid scene lights on each side. Mounted on the rear of the roof rack are two Rigid spotlights. Up front on the bumper is an RB Components mounting bracket with four Baja Designs lights, two are spots and two are fogs. All the lights except the fogs are controlled by a Trigger Sixshooter Controller. The fogs are controlled by the factory fog light switch.
The van has a Pedal Control 2.0 throttle control installed. There is also a Mid City Engineering drone mobile alarm with remote start though I never used it but it is there for you if you would like to. All the wiring in the van is marine rated. The plumbing is Pex A expansion to protect against leaks if water were to freeze in the pipes.
The van had four new BFG KO3 tires mounted on the Black Rhino wheels on 5/22/24. It had new brakes and rotors replaced on 8/19/25 and some kind of system flush that cleans out the diesel system (you’d have to ask Mercedes what it’s called, I’m just the messenger and don’t really understand this stuff!). I also replaced the dash heater module thing as I felt the heat was not hot enough. Now it is!
There is also a full up and down zip screen installed in the rear for bugs, as well as one on the sliding door. And every window has VanMade insulated magnetic window covers.
The price of the van listed reflects a clanky sound from the rear that I am having looked at. Someone said it could have something to do with the rear-differential or maybe a u-joint? If it is rear diff related it could cost around 8 K depending on where you get it done. The price I am asking reflects the 75K I paid three months ago minus the cost of a potential future repair and a new awning which broke and that I haven’t replaced yet. If I fix the clanky sound before the van sells I will adjust the asking price up to include what it costs me to fix.
It’s with mixed feelings that I am selling the van because it’s beautiful and has been a great little home on my trip, but I am just not cut out for solo travel and am also not comfortable driving a vehicle this big. It turns and handles surprising well so it’s not the camper’s fault. It’s just too much for me. And I can’t afford to go back to an apartment and car and keep the camper too. So that’s why I am selling.
This van is very cozy, homey and comfy and beautifully crafted with quality workmanship; it’s a real head-turner. I can’t tell you how many times people have come over to check it out and ask questions. One guy said to me: “Wow. That guy put a lot of time and money into this”.
