This Off-Road-Ready, Towing-Capable, Pickup-Chassis Minivan Could Actually Make The Category Cool

In marketing, the key to success is finding gaps that nobody else has seen. Lee Iacocca’s Mustang is a perfect example of the right product at the right time, as was his Dodge Caravan. Skeptics might say that such opportunities no longer exist, but I think I see one right now.

Spoiler alert: it’s not a back-to-basics vehicle, the latest cause celeb with startup now. However, this machine is indeed a bit of a throwback. Why don’t we revive the body-on-frame minivan with power to all four wheels?

What’s Next, A Knob-Tune AM Radio?

Let me ask a serious question: even if you’re a huge fan of these bare-bones, back-to-basics, crank-window trucks that have been appearing as of late, do you think there’s really a market for them? We’ll know soon enough, with EV startup Slate getting ready to roll out and REO trucks promising a similar “just the essentials” gasoline-powered product. Personally, I don’t think the demand is as strong as some think it is outside a certain group of enthusiasts.

Regardless, another startup called Amberglow is promising a Soviet-austere camper van following the same formula. The AI-generated image going around shows something resembling a VW Vanagon Westfalia camper:

Information is very, very slim for this thing; there are vague specs online and drawings that look very amateurish, even to the painfully amateur scribbler writing this thing right now. I am assuming non-camper versions will be offered, but most images show living spaces, a turbo straight-six, and manual transmission of unknown origin under a “doghouse” between the front seats of the cabover design. There are also quotes from the company’s founder about making a truck that will last 30 years, that you can fix yourself with your own tools, that uses an old Russian UAZ “bread loaf” van as inspiration.

It’s not so much specifications on the Amberglow website than it is a bunch of ideas spat out by a group of old-school van camper fans in puffer vests drinking beer around a firepit.

Amberglow also presented the interior mockup, which is essentially a 1980 VW Vanagon cabin with a military-grey metal dash and exposed-fastener door panels.

It’s undeniably sort of cool, but here’s my prediction: other than a small set of hardcore Luddites, nobody wants a new UAZ. Ask the owner of an old Econoline with the engine next to the driver’s seat how much they enjoy that at highway speeds in the summertime. Most buyers have zero interest in sitting over the front axle with their legs ahead of the wheels. They also want automatic transmission plus the magic of power windows, heated seats, and other niceties. They don’t have the inclination to wrench anyway, and if you made the thing able to last three decades like my old W126 Benz or Land Cruiser, they couldn’t afford it. Lastly, a $35,000 price tag is out of the question in almost any scenario.

Having said that, this odd concept that will likely never see the light of day had me thinking of something that a lot of shoppers really do want. I’m convinced that Autopians, off-roaders, and those who tow will agree.

Respect The Van, Man

Sad fact: despite their inarguable practicality, nobody thinks most minivans are cool. Station wagons were considered nerdy and passe by the nineties, but eventually had a resurgence as the hippest machines on earth; it appears minivans will never experience such a renaissance. With SUVs, owners can sort of pose like they’re driving some kind of adventure truck; good as it is, that isn’t the case with the likes of a Pacifica.

There were some exceptions to the rule, however: minivans from Chrysler’s competitors. The rear-drive body-on-frame Chevy Astro/GMC Safari and partially framed Ford Aerostar were eventually both available with four driven wheels, allowing them to go (and tow) where even the AWD Mopar twins could not.

Sadly, those trucklike products didn’t even last as long as more traditional minivans in the market. The Aerostar died out in 1997, while the GM twins lived on until 2005; neither manufacturer really took advantage of the opportunity to offer these rugged things as something sport utility-like. Two decades on, is the time right for an independent startup to see if making such an overlanding box is crossing a diamond with a pearl?

Reframing The Minivan, Literally

A few years back, I collaborated with off-roading authority and Autopian friend Fred Williams to create concepts for the Jeep Van that he thought it was high time to see.

I did an ICE version of this van, with the fossil-fuel-powered one featuring the chassis of a full-sized RAM.

I also did an EREV “exoskeleton” version as well:

Wow, what was I thinking back then? This thing was strange.

For my version of the Amberglow, I’d do something similar but with a mid-sized truck chassis like a Ranger; the wheelbase of that Ford is within an inch of the ID.Buzz. It’s got far more overhang, but that could be modified for the van.

Using that chassis would push the engine further back into the cabin than on that Jeep Van I was proposing, but not fully between the seats as on old Econolines and the design Amberglow was suggesting. Ford only offers Rangers with a six-speed automatic now, so that makes the choice of gearbox easy.

What should this Bishop-modified Amberglow look like? I can see a VW Transporter being a great muse, but not the one you’re thinking of.

Call It “Cocaine Buzz”

Few vehicles were as eagerly anticipated and then quickly dismissed as Volkswagen’s ID Buzz, an electric Bus revival that bombed with laughable range and stratospheric price. However, when it was unceremoniously dropped after one year, people missed something about its unmistakable look.

That’s not unlike the original Land Rover Defender 90. The owner of chemical giant Ineos wanted to buy the rights to the thing and continue production, but JLR refused; his solution was to make a just-changed-enough copy of his own called the Grenadier.

Personally, I think that was a rather unethical move, and I believe that the changes to turn the Defender into the Grenadier are visually subpar. Still, what if Amberglow did a sort-of-Grenadier with the ID Buzz? For some reason I wouldn’t feel as sorry for Volkswagen since a.) they teased us with this van for twenty years before inexcusably blowing the execution and b.) the CEL is on once again in my own personal VW product despite thousands spent on maintenance, so screw them.

Using the ID Buzz as an inspiration, I’ve kept much of the same look but with some more of an industrial feel. The end result looks remarkably like one of those Stomper 4X4s you had as a kid, just with the body of an electric Volkswagen on it. Talk about a practical family machine that’s also tough-looking. Also, I see similarities to the Toyota Previa “egg van” that’s a personal favorite of mine.

As a “mouth-breather” with a low grille up front, why not add the spare tire on the nose like the old VW Bus used to do? Well, there are a number of reasons not to put the tire there (aero, getting to the motor), but Jason demanded it. Actually, I spent time on Slack talking to Torch about this feature, and such conversations inevitably take a turn for the worse. In this case, Jason suggested that the pivoting tire would be for more than just engine access; he saw it as turning into a round “bistro” table for your meal or drinks. Insane as it is, I think TireTable might even be something Jason should patent.

I’m afraid that sliding rear doors might run into issues with the addition of big off-road tires, so I’ve replaced them with hinged doors. Full roll-down windows would replace the rather silly sliding squares of the Buzz. There might be options for different doors on the sides and back, including sliding or bi-fold ones, which might be particularly useful on commercial-based versions.

Speaking of variety, besides different side door styles, I’d propose a bunch of completely different versions of the van. Obviously, the rendering of the green one above shows the overlanding version, but we’d also have a less aggressive (even rear-drive-only) lower “street” edition. Naturally, a camper with a raised or pop-up roof would be part of the equation, plus maybe commercial versions as well. Yes, I know seemingly every corporation is going for fleets of EV vans now, but what if one didn’t? Let’s face it: the Chevy Express/GMC Savanna outlasted the BrightDrop.

The “doghouse” would naturally dominate the interior; I’m seeing that whole L-shaped console thing with the screen and gearshift pivoting up and backwards to access the rear part of the engine. Chunky wiper and signal levers, big knobs, industrial toggles for accessories, and even large buttons to allow you to turn the temperature up or down while wearing big gloves. “Clamshell” style armrest pads pivot outwards to access a big storage bin behind the shifter.

It’s hardly lavish, and very angular in a retro sort of way, but far more modern and tolerable than Amberglow was suggesting with their mock-Vanagon cabin.

Bishop, The Patron Saint Of Startups?

Don’t get me wrong: even if it isn’t exactly my cup of tea, if the proposed Amberglow actually materializes, it would be a refreshing change from what’s out there now. Still, I think they’re missing the opportunity to do a less hair-shirt example of a body-on-frame mid-sized van that we’ve been missing for decades now. It would be as capable at towing and off-roading as any SUV, but offer practicality that they’re sorely lacking.

Maybe that’s what it would take to get people to finally accept minivans as cool?

Top graphic image: Volkswagen/The Bishop