That’s what it’s worth after they mod it, not before. It’s called added value and it’s how the people in this video make a living because it is literally their business.
I'm gonna explain more slowly: the van retails for MSRP $53,000-$78,000. They mod the van, and it's now worth more. They sell the van and make money. Their business is doing that. They advertise the business with videos because that's how you find customers. People come and buy the van. They buy another one, rinse and repeat.
I and I'm gonna say it slowly to you, it's literally their business to show off things normal people can't afford. You’ve gotta understand why that can come across as a little annoying or out of touch to a lot of people. Especially in this format, where it's not remotely apparent that you're watching an advertisement.
I agree on the guerilla advertising point, sorry about being an asshole. A few people in this thread are getting on my nerves and I took it out on you.
I understand why it can come across as a bit out of touch, but the knee-jerk reaction to bitch about how rich these people are is absurd. When the hell did a regular ass small business become something for this many people to get so immediately angry about? We know literally nothing about them other than that they have a (seemingly) successful business flipping vans, and the vast majority of the people commenting don't even know that. They might be buried in medical or student loan debt and this is how they're digging themselves out. They might only sell two of these a year. They might have always wanted this one thing and saved up for the last five years to be able to afford it. On top of that, it is a genuinely impressive DIY video. The craftsmanship involved and the final product is really cool, and it's not nearly so egregiously luxurious that the video comes across as rubbing it in anyone's face.
The outrage here is misplaced anger at the uber-wealthy. Seeing a modded van shouldn't have this kind of reaction and these people are not the enemy.
No worries. I think it's great that they are able to do this. I'm in the process of building my own van too, but it's more of a necessity and not gonna be nearly as nice (because I need to move and have a lot of dogs). But people who actually need to live in their vehicles are facing much harsher economic realities, which is part of the reason for some of the negativity.
But I think the main outrage is directed to the whole lifestyle-influencer trend in general, it's basically advertising dressed up as an attainable lifestyle, when in reality it's mostly accessible to the wealthy who don't need to work or influencers whose lifestyle is itself part of the business.
Yeah, lifestyle influencers, and influencers in general, piss me off to no end. They’re gross and a major part of the reason why I’m on so few social media platforms. Not seeing them nearly as much as people who are on Insta or TikTok is probably a decent part of why I didn’t have the same reaction as many people in this thread. Social media is a genuine cancer on society and imo it’s one of the major contributors to where we’re at right now.
That’s cool about you working on the van though, I hope it goes well! Have you ever done anything like it before? Or are you just learning as you go?
I agree, even if I don't have it all figured out, I don't see the appeal of any of it.
Thanks. This is my first van project, it's gonna be fairly basic with an emphasis on self-maintainability and efficiency. I bought an very common but old van with very low miles two years ago knowing I'd probably need to move eventually. And really only started a year ago collecting parts and ideas. So far I've only stripped it, cleaned it, lined the bottom with butyl sheets, and had a transmission rebuilt. I have about a month or two after next week to work on it full time before the move. But at minimum all I really need is insulation, flooring, shelves for cages, a platform for a bed with storage underneath, lighting and basic solar set up and have place holders for the rest. So, learning as I go, but with already a lot of planning.
The planning/research bit is generally the most difficult part in my experience, once you have that done you just need to follow your own instructions. Then you get to have fun putting things together! Good luck with the move and whatever comes next my friend, and thanks for the nice chat :)
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u/Fermit 9h ago
That’s what it’s worth after they mod it, not before. It’s called added value and it’s how the people in this video make a living because it is literally their business.