1998 Dodge Xplorer 230 XLW wide body

1998 Dodge 3500B XLW (wide body)

Mileage: 105,100

Price: 29,000 obo

(*Disclaimer- I am going to call our camper van “her” throughout this explanation. I know this is annoying to some people, so I wanted to point it out first! We have named her Josie (aka- “Josie’s on a vacation far away… you know I like my girls a little bit older.” Seemed appropriate). We call her “Cozy Josie.” The first picture below is from our trip last week from Chicago to St. Louis on Route 66. 

When we purchased her, we had a list, and she checked off every box- it was very hard to find a camper van with this layout.

1. SHE IS A DUALLY- apparently this is kind of hard to find these days.
2. Fully enclosed bathroom (even a small window at the top so it feels light and airy) with toilet and hand shower. We did not want a camper van that we had to open the doors and use the hallway for showering.
3. Stationary bed- the bed is in the very back with the most comfortable mattress ever (brand new, just purchased). We did not want to put a couch up and down every day to make our bed.
4. Dinette up front with a large window next to it- which makes the camper van feel more spacious- it is not just a long hallway leading to a convertible couch in the back like some camper vans have.
5. Dinette turns into a twin bed- table comes out, and two seats convert. It’s a decent-sized twin for sure.
6. Dinette has seatbelts on one of the seats, so you can drive the van with three adults in seatbelts.
7. Swivel front seats- but particularly the passenger seat. Turning it around and pulling it back allows you to have a recliner (you can actually put your feet up on the top of the little cupboard in front of it- see pics). So ultimately, there are three hangout ‘areas’- the recliner (aka the living room!), the dinette (dining room/kitchen), and the bedroom. If somebody wants to go to bed early in the bedroom, the other person can have plenty of room and hang out in the other areas.
8. So much storage- pull-out pantry, cupboards everywhere, and the cupboards over the bed go all the way to the back of the van.
9. “Traditional” air conditioner- so if you ever want a new one, you can just pick it up at Walmart. It’s not the expensive RV air conditioner unit.
10. Furnace works so well- almost TOO well. You only need it on for a few minutes to fully warm the living area.
11. We cosmetically remodeled the inside- tore out the old dark, creepy, brown carpet and installed vinyl wood flooring, kitchen backsplash, new handles on all the cupboards (15 handles!), LED lighting strips, shelves in the bathroom, and other cosmetic things.
12. All brand new hoses- sewer, water, etc., this year. We bought them to have fresh ones, and, ironically, now we’ve decided to sell. Brand new toilet and shower, too.
13. Tires are solid and were new (before it sat for a number of years)- so they haven’t been driven on until this year- only 500 miles on them. Full tread.
14. Has a cool awning and an outdoor shower.
15. Brand new radio and backup camera
16. Solar panels

Mechanics-

We bought her used early this year, and from the research we have available, she had been stored inside (the notes said inside a barn!). We took her to the mechanic when we bought her and asked them to check her over and make sure she is completely safe and roadworthy. She needed an intake manifold gasket and a tire rod, so we had those replaced. We have the receipts, of course. They said they cannot find anything else to fix, but if we wanted, we could consider the shocks, but only if we felt like we wanted her to be smoother. However, we don’t have any issues with how smoothly she runs, so it seemed unnecessary.

We did notice that there was some play in the steering, so we installed a steering stabilizer, and it improved a lot. All the work I mentioned above was done over the past few months- we have receipts for everything. So ultimately, we are ending up flipping her- although that wasn’t our intent when we bought her. We know we’re not going to get all our money back, but we’ve had some really cool trips this year, and we had a fun time fixing her up, decorating, etc.

She starts right up and drives great. The mechanic could not believe the underside- no rust underneath- and looks so much ‘younger’ than she is. She just turned over to 105,000 miles. Oh- and the power lock on the back door was not working, so we had to replace the lock assembly. You are more than welcome to have her inspected if you would like- or you could talk/meet with our place, since they are familiar with her from doing all the upgrades for us.

In the end, she is a 1998 van that weighs 10,000 pounds! (Really- it’s in the owner’s manual.) She drives like a champ, but she wants to take her time in general, so on the highway and interstate, we stay in the right lane and keep her at about 65. It is funny because we have people ask about her at rest stops and gas stations- and whenever people see the inside, they always comment on how much they like the layout since it’s not really one that’s seen too often anymore. There is a group on Facebook dedicated to this particular camper van as well. (“Dodge Xplorer- The group”)

We have the owner’s manual (which is printed out and in a binder- old school style).

Outside- looks good, which you can see in the photos. Yes, she’s vintage, so there are quirks and areas where she is showing her age (paint is worn on the step to get into the driver’s seat and into the back are worn), and there is a flaw/dent on the front right top- it blends in since it’s white, but it’s there. Then there are random spots here or there- not really rust, just age spots (I like to call them). Mostly on the front left of the white hood and on the driver’s door- kind of like freckles. Also, some random quirks here and there, as far as a paint chip on some metal, but it is white, so it blends in.

So why are we selling? A few reasons:

1. We have found we really enjoy RV-ing, and we would use the money we make from selling this one as a down payment on a 2024 or 2025 van and make payments. Also, we aren’t quite empty nesters yet, so we may have jumped a little too quickly- we were going to take all sorts of trips, but it turns out our schedules aren’t cooperating, and she’s ending up sitting (already) a lot more than we would like.
2. We are now thinking we’d like to get a larger class B or a small class C (in a year or two), so we have more room. Josie is adorable, and there’s room for two for sure, but adding another person or a dog would be tight. I imagine anyone looking into a camper van of this size already knows this, though.

I’ll put as many pictures as I can, too- and of course, please reach out if you have any questions. We’d also be happy to FaceTime a tour if that would be helpful. We’re in the Northern Illinois/Southern Wisconsin area. Thanks for looking!