How Two Doctors Ended Up With a Dead Startup’s Vans
When Cabana — a Seattle camper-van rental startup — shut its doors, two of its Ford Transit 250 high-roofs needed a home. We gave them one. Two years of weekend rebuilds, wrong turns, right tools, and Pacific Northwest campsites later, Van of Brothers is where we document all of it: what worked, what didn’t, and what we’d never do again.
JB is a physician who can’t leave a problem un-solved; Andrew is an engineer-turned-physician who can’t leave a spec sheet unread. Between us: two day jobs, two vans, one shared allergy to overpriced gear.
We’re not full-time van lifers — and that’s the point. Everything here is built for busy people who escape on weekends: builds you can actually finish, gear that sets up fast, and trips that fit between Friday evening and Monday morning.
Why We Do This
Because the internet is full of van-life fantasy and short on van-life data. We test in real rain, real cold, and real I-5 traffic — then tell you the truth, with receipts. And yes, there will be dad jokes. We’re contractually obligated.
The Builds
Two rescued Transits, rebuilt on weekends — every mistake documented.
Meet the Brothers
From the Road
Snapshots from the rebuilds and the PNW trips in between.
