Recon Envy Camper Van Tour

[@MLKYWY503]

Eric, thanks for a thorough walk through of your van. It's helped me a lot as I am picking up ours today, yes today! We will be the lucky second owners of the well loved Recon. Would you consider coming back around and do another review of your life with the Recon? Maybe what you have changed, added, would do differently... maybe more gear or what you bring? Thanks! And great job!

[@EricGebhard]

Thank you, I am planning on doing a follow up video to talk about updates and changes. Hopefully I will have it finished later this summer.

[@fortyoneshades]

Very nice, but small! I'm looking forward to Recon's new garageable truck camper which offers more room. It won't get quite the gas mileage that the NV200 gets (more around 18-20), but I can take the camper and put it on an electric truck in the future once new models emerge and the range improves. With the NV200 everything is built in, so I'd have to sell the entire van. I really want to go electric in the future and a truck camper seems like the perfect solution. Love the direction Recon is going!

[@EricGebhard]

It is really sad that no car company is offering a compact van in the US. In the Phoenix area where I live you see them everywhere. It will be interesting to see what Recon comes up with.

[@Desperado3248]

Recon should pair up with Wingam to make Oasis in the US

[@fortyoneshades]

@@Desperado3248 It appears Recon is no more. I've tried contacting them several times over the past year and no response. They rarely update their website or social media accounts anymore. I've moved on to looking at small vans.

[@timschutte6924]

Awesome, cool to see people's take on different things.

[@chrisstyles1104]

Great video

[@EricGebhard]

Thank you

[@timschutte6924]

The pop top sleeper is one of the main issues for me. That way you dont have to have a bed down stairs , so to speak. Im getting one of those zero gravity chair/sleepers things so if i want to i can just sleep in that. Folds up

[@damnameisinuse]

Love this camper. I’m bouncing back & forth between doing one of these, a transit connect, or a metris. Just curious, what are the dimensions of the beds and the weight capacity of the top one?

[@EricGebhard]

The lower bed is 72 x40. I don't have an exact measurement for the upper bed but I think it is about 38 x 80 maybe slightly longer. I know a Big Agnus double wide sleeping pad fits. My wife is 5' 10" tall and she can sleep comfortably in the upper bed. The upper bed weight limit is 350lbs. Hopefully this helps.

[@arkadventure2]

Nice video. Are you able to park in covered parking garage? Thanks

[@EricGebhard]

Thank you. We park the van in our garage which has an 8 foot tall opening. I have measured the height from the ground to the top of the boxes and it is about 6 feet 9 inches tall so it should fit into a standard 7 foot tall garage opening. Being able to park the van in our garage was very important because we can not park it outside were we live.

[@stewreviews9345]

Nicely done sir. Enjoyed your video. Considering an NV200 build for myself so am absolutely loving these videos.

[@EricGebhard]

Thank you. The Nissan NV200 make a great camper van. We love ours and most importantly it fits in our garage and get good gas mileage.

[@Desperado3248]

Didn’t know they were back in business

[@lweleven3423]

Nice build in the process of doing similar, interesting the variations of spec , mine is a 1.5 diesel, mine has 4 bolt wheels not 5 , centre console is different, I fitted 205 60 16 on mine so similar

[@EricGebhard]

Thank you. In the US you could only get a gas version. Personally, I wish we could have gotten the diesel version because then we could have installed a diesel heater. Would have taken the chill out of the cold winter nights.

[@brianhensien]

Nice to see all the ways you’ve customized your van. I’ve been a huge fan of Recon Campers since they started and this video is one of the better ones out there. Are you using this as your daily driver? Thanks for posting and looking forward to more of your content, cheers!

[@EricGebhard]

Thanks for the kind words. We really love the van. One of the things we really like about it is that it fits easily into our garage. It is our second daily driver, so my wife and I drive it around town quite a lot. Even with the larger tire we still get 25-28 mpg which isn't too bad but not as good as our hybrid.

[@petecoventry6858]

And in the UK this is the Mazda Bongo/Ford Freda - I own both and just like the recon Envy - they are both awesome :)

[@EricGebhard]

It does make a great camper plus you can use it as a second vehicle quite easily.

[@stevescramo592]

Love to see other videos regarding packing, accesories, quirks, issues you dont like...hows that tiny engine going up and down mountains?

[@EricGebhard]

Sorry I didn't see your comment earlier. We are planning on doing a follow up video this fall. the little engine work just fine for use going up and down the mountains. It does get the revs up on some of the hills but so far it has done really well.

[@vickiepicky]

If the front seats swivel, then it would be my perfect budget friendly camper van. 🙏🙏🙏

[@EricGebhard]

Unfortunately the front seats don't swivel. I have seen some people in Europe have modified the seat to swivel using a Volkswagen seat plate but it looks like a lot of work and I don't recommend it.

[@stevescramo592]

Any concerns going with bigger tires and impacting the Nissan warranty? Any impact on the Nissan safety features, speedometer, etc. I ask this because I contacted Recon and they mentioned this concern going with 16 in wherls and tired. Do you have a 16 inch spare tire also underneath the vehicle?

[@EricGebhard]

No concerns with the larger tires. The biggest issue is that the speedometer will read lower than your actual speed. This also means that your fuel milage will read lower than it actually is. We have the stock spare tire on the vehicle. We don't really go off-roading with the van. Mostly we go down some rougher dirt roads for a short bit.

[@cyberi4a]

What to you do with the water in that little pool after taking a shower? Seems you would have to drag it somewhere to empty or have something to pump the water out, unless it has a drain plug.

[@EricGebhard]

The little pool has a drain plug and you can attach a garden hose to it for draining. The pool is not ridged so if you need to pick it up with some water in it the side will come together kinda like a bag. After both of us use it there isn't too much water standing in there so it is pretty easy pick up and dump the water out. If you wanted to you could hook up a garden hose to it and let it drain as you use it.

[@cwheremonster8870]

I’m really excited to see what Recon Campers does next. As you may be aware, Nissan has ceased production of the NV200. They replaced it with a van that is smaller and not conducive to a van build. Recon is aware of this, and they have more than likely identified a new platform for their amazing builds.. well, that’s what I hope anyway. I keep checking the web site. Hopefully it happens sooner than later .

[@EricGebhard]

Thank you for the comment, and I too am excited to see what Recon comes up with. I know they are workington something but I have no idea what it is. It is really sad that Nissan quite selling the NV200. It is really a great van. Most of the compact van that I see on the road, at least here in the Phoenix area are NV200's.

[@stevescramo592]

Recon says they will have the new camper van model sometime in the Fall. Wonder how expensive and how capable off the beaten path

[@luibola208]

@@EricGebhard here in mexico we have the nissan urvan, perfect plataform to convert to >Recon

[@stevescramo592]

Is there a grey tank under the sink or is it piped outside after washing dishes, etc?? Where is the 10 gallon regular water stored? Do you use that solar panel exter al connect at all? If so, what kind and wattage of flexible panel is compatible? Where do you plug in your jackery 300 in the van to refresh the battery? Thx. Getting closer to purchasing a 2021 envy. Anything else I should know?

[@stevescramo592]

Sorry. How do you fill and discharge the fresh water tank to winterize?

[@stevescramo592]

I guess the same question for that water heater in the back? How to add and discharge the water?

[@EricGebhard]

The 5 gallon gray water tank is mounted under the van. It has a quarter turn valve which is threaded so you can attach a hose to drain it if needed. The fresh tank is located in the van along with the hot water heater. There is a fill port on the drivers side of the van to fill the fresh water tank. The hot water heater is filled from the fresh water tank. You just turn on the water heater from the touch screen and it will pump water to the heater if needed. Quite honestly I haven’t had to recharge my jackery while in the road. If you do want to charge it I would use one of the factory 12 volt outlets and make sure that the engine is running. The NV200 has an oversized alternator which will charge the Jackery and house battery very quickly. To be honest, we don’t use the solar panel all that much. On most of our trips we are driving some place during the day and the house battery charges up very quickly if it even needs charging. When we have use the solar panel it worked quite well. You have to plug it in and then it is running. I have no experience with winterizing the van. Living in the desert I was able to get away with out doing that last winter. If you get the van make sure you join the Recon Campers Facebook group. Lots of good information there.

[@stevescramo592]

@@EricGebhard helpful. Thx

[@stevescramo592]

any link for those hooks you have holding the mugs, etc? Is that area above the sink metal? Would magnetic hooks work there? I may be purchasing a used Recon camper. Love your video. Helpful. Any concerns over the Nissan van not being sold anymore with getting spare parts, etc down the line?

[@EricGebhard]

Steve, a friend made the hooks for me. They are just a bent piece of aluminum and I bolted a magnet to it. So far we love our Recon camper. It is been really well though out and for the two of us it works great, plus it fits in our garage. Personally, I am not worried about Nissan not selling the NV200 in the states anymore. It is still sold in other parts of the world. Spare parts shouldn't be a problem considering how many NV200s I see on the road here in the Phoenix area.

[@stevescramo592]

@@EricGebhard thx. You answered my question. Any magnetic hook would work above the sink

[@EricGebhard]

@@stevescramo592 Yep

[@stevescramo592]

I also have a jackery..is there a convenient 12 v outlet nearby where you connect it into?

[@EricGebhard]

There are three 12-volt outlets in the van. Two factory outlets and one installed by Recon. I would use one of the factory outlets located in the front dash or in the back of the center console. The outlet installed by Recon runs from the house battery and might not be able to charge at a high enough amperage for the Jackery. Just make sure the van is running when you're charging.

[@thomasdipaolo2349]

Really like the set up. What year is the nv200?

[@EricGebhard]

It is a 2021 NV200.

[@thomasdipaolo2349]

@@EricGebhard nice. Love your setup and gear. Appreciate the links.

[@EricGebhard]

@@thomasdipaolo2349 Thank you. glad the links are helpful.

[@stevescramo592]

do you have any issue with rust and /or water seeping at the top frame of rear doors, etc. Some on an NV200 site mentioned rust issues with the thin paint job

[@EricGebhard]

We haven't had any issues with water or rust on the van. Fortunately living in Phoenix we don't get too much rain to deal with.

[@dewservices]

THIS VEHICLE IS NO LONGER BEING MADE. IF YOU WANT TO SELL YOURS, LET ME KNOW FIRST!!! But, now that tha's said, all the more reason to keep it yourself forever. It will never be made again. It's now an instant classic adn extremely rare. Don't know how many they made, but it can't be more than 200. And, btw, ya'll are some of the smartest campers I have seen.

[@EricGebhard]

Yea it sucks that Nissan decided stop selling the NV200 in the US. It is a great little van. Looking forward to seeing what Recon makes next. Not planning to sell our but I’ll let you know if we do…

[@Desperado3248]

They could have used a different van, a little larger and added a cassette toilet and shower.

[@gerrynightingale9045]

*Beautiful, with great engineering...and best of all a 'Sleeper Pop-Top' to go along w/tons of headroom* *Drawbacks?* *I very seriously doubt I could ever pay for one, and don't have any 'burning desire' to go anywhere and considering my house is maybe two-miles from a fully-equipped 'State Park' overlooking the Ohio River from a hundred-foot escarpment... I'm not suffering much!*

[@EricGebhard]

Gerry, Thank you for the comment. I agree it sounds like you aren't suffering too much being that close to a nice location. Heck if we were that close we probably wouldn't have a camper.

[@gerrynightingale9045]

@@EricGebhard *Yeah...the State Park has all the amenities with 'concrete-bunker'-type restrooms and large fire-pits + barbecue-grills (the big 'stacked-stone' kind) and hella' view looking down that sheer stone rise if you don't 'get woozy' over it* *The is also a restaurant and cabin-rentals available, and both 'dry' and 'wet' camping is available w/or w/out electric, but that area is a little 'Meh' and not actually IN the forested area...good for overnights because you can't see a damn thing anyway in the dark!* ____________ *Biggest crime threats in this area is "Oh crap I burnt the hot-dogs! which is a HUGE ++++ in my book* ____________ (Of course I would gladly STEAL THAT CAMPER if I thought I had even slightest chance to and then 'gloat over it' while I sit inside...going nowhere in the backyard* ) *Is that pathetic or what?*

[@EricGebhard]

@@gerrynightingale9045 Sounds awesome. I'll have to make sure I don't saying anything if I'm heading your way, don't need to get it stolen, JK.

[@gerrynightingale9045]

@@EricGebhard *How about 'indefinite length borrowing' maybe?* ( At 67 I don't have that much time left to 'Borrow' for long!*) _______ *I would've liked and still would like to see my beloved desert Southwest again, and to see the Sequoia and Redwood Forests with my own eyes in Cali* _______ *I want to see and explore New Zealand and climb those mountains before age takes my strength from me and my eyes too weak to see how beautiful it all is...how Earth looked long ago when there were still 'Giants' roaming the World* ( *That 'Recon' would be perfect for a 'base camp'* )

[@timschutte6924]

OMG, EXPLOSIVE DIAREA. Im dieing laughing.

[@EricGebhard]

Thanks, we have a lot of strange conversations while driving. BTW my apologizes for my delayed response.

[@mckeon1960]

Lol dont bring a lift to the loo at night, your neighbours might not appreciated the view, do they not use loos also. They can look away. You could fall without a lite. Fab van by the way

[@EricGebhard]

Thank you, and sorry for taking so long to reply.

[@banksmc311]

Great video! Does anyone know of a possible bike rack that would fit the NV200?

[@EricGebhard]

Thank you. We added a trailer hitch and have a 1Up USA rack. The nice thing with the 1Up USA rack is that if you take the bikes off you can tilt it down and open the rear doors.

[@junbug20]

Links?

[@Kruemelmatz]

Beautiful !!!! 👍😎🌲🌼

[@EricGebhard]

Thank you

[@jamesbryan4373]

Very useful video and it is great to see how you have made the van more functional. It would be helpful to know the mpg and how far you can travel on a single tank of gas. Also, your experience with purchasing your van would be interesting. Any tips on how to make it as easy as possible?

[@EricGebhard]

Thank you. As always there is stuff that I wished I had included in the video. Regarding your questions, right now we are getting about 25-27 mpg with the larger tires. Several Recon owners have reported getting around 30 mpg with the much smaller stock tires. Purchasing the van was the easiest vehicle purchases I ever made. It was all done online. The down side was that we never saw this camper van in person until we saw one in Organ Pipe Cactus NM in February. The owners were kind enough to give us a tour of there van. In January we placed an order with Recon to up fit the van, putting us on their schedule. They then connected us with Rosen Nissan who we purchased the actual vehicle from. That process involved a 5 minute phone call and a couple of FedEx shippings of paper work. Once Rosen received the van they shipped it to Recon in Michigan where they did the up fit. When it was all ready we arranged for the van to be shipped to us in Arizona. The best tip for ordering any van is to try and be patient and figure out what you really need. If you can try and rent a van and go on a trip to see how it works for you. We rented a Winnebago Revel (Sprinter van based) before we ordered the Recon and I am really glad we did. Sadly, Nissan is no longer selling the NV200 in the US so as a result Recon is not taking orders for new vans right now. They are working on a new van for next year but I have no idea what that van will be.

[@stevescramo592]

Where did you get those hooks you used? How do they attach to the van?Thanks

[@EricGebhard]

I had the hooks made by a friend of mind. They are attached with at magnet. The system works really well.

[@jeffpittel6926]

Can you just get the pop top, without the camper interior? Cost?

[@EricGebhard]

I don't know if they sell just the pop top. I would suggest contacting Recon (www.reconcampers.com) to see what they have available. Eric

[@0grifman1]

So I have two questions: How do you dispose of your shower gray water? You have it captured in that tub. Second, how do you dispose of your toilet solid waste? You can’t just put that in a garbage can, can you?

[@EricGebhard]

After showering there really isn’t much water in the tub. It’s pretty much a spray down, soap up, the rinse off system. Afterwards we pour the water into a bucket or wash bin and take it to the campgrounds gray water disposal area. The National Parks we have stayed in have dedicated sinks for sink water disposal which we use. We use the cleanwaste bags for the toilet. They come with a powder/granule substance that solidifies and neutralizes the contents. This allows you to dispose of them in the garbage. They system may not be glamorous but it works pretty well.

[@stevescramo592]

Any concerns regarding the fact that Nissan has discontinued the NV200 in the US?

[@EricGebhard]

No concerns at this point. There are so many NV200 work vans on the roads here in Arizona that I don't thinks parts will be a problem. It does suck that Nissan stopped selling them in the US. It is a great van and appear to be really popular as a work van.

[@usatrucking-f7w]

Very nice

[@EricGebhard]

Thank you.

[@stevescramo592]

Eric, how was it to get insurance for this class b camper can?

[@EricGebhard]

Insurance can be a bit tricky because most companies don’t know what a Recon Van is. We went through Zachary Schneiderman. Schneiderman Insurance Agency, Inc. [phone] [e-mail] He works with Recon a lot and knows how to handle the van. If you go through someone else you want insure the van as a van with an up fit. Don’t call it a van conversation or RV because they won’t know what to do. If you go this way you will and an up fit or add on policy to the van to cover the cost of the up fit. Hope this helps.

[@stevescramo592]

@@EricGebhard very helpful

[@johnnyfair]

Very nice guys! I look forward to catching up on your videos and more to come. Our mutual friend (J.F.) turned me on to your channel. ( We met you guys last aug for lunch.)

[@EricGebhard]

Thank you. I remember that lunch and it was JF that inspired our opening discussion in the video.

[@stevescramo592]

What brand of wheels? Why?

[@EricGebhard]

We have MB Wheels. I choose them because they were available from discount tire at a reasonable price. If I was doing it again I would probably get 15" wheels. The extra clearance you get with 16" wheels really isn't worth the reduced gas milage. If you get wheels pay attention to the offset. If I remember correctly the stock wheels have an offset around 40. This will help make sure that the tires clear, especially in the front.

[@stevescramo592]

How does it do in snow/icy conditions?

[@EricGebhard]

To be honest we really haven't used it in snow or icy conditions so I can't give you a good answer.

[@matthewholecko2024]

Where do the cats go? 😸

[@EricGebhard]

The cats have their own tent to do their business in.... Actually, they stay with Sheila's parents when we travel.

[@bayer54]

So sad ! I want one !

[@EricGebhard]

It is sad that Nissan decided to no long sell the NV200 in the US. It’s a great Van platform.

[@Desperado3248]

It is a tent with a roof. No bathroom is a thumbs down. In bad weather would be miserable. No security. Can’t use tents on the road. Something like a Thor Rize 18 m makes more sense. No ac, no microwave. Glad you like it but not for us

[@javediqbal1832]

Good......ok

[@EricGebhard]

Thank you.

[@junbug20]

found it!

[@EricGebhard]

Glad you found the links.

[@baronj4210]

the van is for wery small people migits Liliputians :-) Why can't you use VW or Metris?