Image via Complex Original
Your car is a great place for personal time and personal space. That's why it's important for you to love your vehicle and have a vehicle that you enjoy. It's particularly important, if you're going to be staying in your ride for an extended period of time. We're talking more than an eight-hour drive. This could happen, expectantly or unexpectantly, for a variety of reasons. Maybe you're going camping. Maybe you're taking a road trip. Maybe your girlfriend just kicked you out, or maybe you're just trying to be thrifty and save some money.
Considering the amount of space you get for the money you pay here in New York, we've certainly considered it a few times. Unfortunately, we'd be paying just as much for parking and tickets. Regardless of your reasoning, picking a car to live in needs to be a selective process. It has to have plenty of space, some useful features, and it needs to be reliable. We've narrowed down the field, with those thoughts in mind. Welcome to our open house of The 10 Best Cars To Live in.
Volkswagen Vanagon Westfalia
There's no point in stalling, so we'll just get to the obvious favorite for the list: the VW Bus/Wagon/Van/Vanagon Westfalia. With the camper top, these were specifically designed for living and camping in. You've got space for minifridges, cabinets, and a small seated table area. Nobody can get mad living in one of these. It's just a happy and extremely functional vehicle.
Ford E-Series Van
Doesn't this van just look so much more appealing than that gargantuan house in the background? When it comes to pure functionality and purpose, nothing would really make more sense than an economy panel van. There are no rear seats to worry about, you could actually build shelving and dressers into the vehicle, if you wanted to get fancy, and you don't have windows that allow people to peep into your business. Sure you'll look like a construction worker or just a really creepy dude, but you're living in your car. Do you really care what people think?
Chrysler Town and Country
The one thing you'll be missing from standard house or apartment living is a table that you can physcially sit down. Or so you thought. The Chrysler Town and Country defies that claim, with rotating seats and a full pop-up table inside the cabin. So, you can play chess, eat macaroni and cheese, paint your nails, do a puzzle, or whatever else you do while living in a minivan.
Ford Flex
The Flex is a vehicle that's completely under the radar. It's pretty weird, actually. People almost act as if they don't even exist. You never hear any issues about them, you rarely see them in the streets, and nobody really made a big deal about how similar it looks to Range Rovers. It's weird, because they're actually huge and have a big presence. The interior is nicely appointed. It's got ambient lighting, for those times when you need a take a girl back to your whip and woo her (... yeah ... RIGHT), folding seats, and compartment space. This is an appropriate crossover for living in, unlike those tiny CUVs that are taking over the world.
Dodge Magnum SRT8
2008 was the final year we saw the Magnum, and it was easily the most attractive. Not that it's super important to find an attractive car to live in (you generally want a low-key one that won't get noticed when you're squatting), but people like looking at nice homes. It also comes in an SRT8 model, giving it something no other vehicle on this list has: speed. Speed would be particularly nice when you're trying to avoid the law or that crazy dude with the shotgun who found out you've been sitting in his business' parking lot for the past three weeks. The fold-down rear seats make it a completely viable option for sleeping in.
Honda Element With an ECamper
If you were to go outside and play the word association game with random people using "Honda Element" as the prompt, you'd probably get one of two responses: weird or ugly. In reality, the word everybody should be thinking is versatile. The seats can be laid out, folded, or removed, the interior is water resistant, the doors fold wide open, and it's got plenty of space in that big box configuration. Throw an ECamper on there, and it's basically a mini mobile home.
Ford Transit Connect Van
The new restyled Transit Connects for the 2014 model year are pretty attractive (for a van, at least). The multitude of seats all fold down nicely for a huge flat surface in the rear, there's a ton of compartment storage, there's an awesome panoramic roof, through which you can watch the stars as you fall asleep, and it's got good fuel economy with EcoBoost.
GMC Yukon
Really, any of the GM SUVs (they're really not all that different) are pretty well-equipped to be a living space. They've got a ton of room, you can tint out the windows for some privacy, and it's, of course, got the sweet entertainment system with the DVD player. GMC now stands for G.rand M.an C.ave.
Dodge Dart
Choosing an actual car for a list of vehicles to live in might not make a ton of sense, but the Dart has a lot to offer at a pretty low price point. The seats are extremely comfortable, it's its own mobile hotspot, and it's got heated seats and steering wheel. You'll thank us when you're laughing your ass off watching YouTube videos with a toasty butt in the middle of winter.
1989 Chevrolet Explorer Conversion Van
I have personal experience with one of these, and let me tell you, I loved this thing. It had a TV and VCR, it had runner lights, it had plugs galore, it had a fold-down bed, it had shades and curtains, and it was enormous. It was always the ultimate road trip vehicle, and we definitley slept in it a few times for various reasons. At the end of the day, I'd probably take this over just about any other vehicle to live in.
