Wanted SMB. We want to buy another SMB!!

[BroncoHauler]

FWIW, I found mine listed in either Cars.com or AutoTrader.com, I can't remember which. I went to the Advanced Search page, and used Sportsmobile as a keyword to search on. I called as soon as I saw it, and found out they alread had an offer on it. Luckily for me, when the owners took it to show to the person who put an offer on it, that person decided to lowball them and the deal fell through. On their way back home to Oakdale, CA, they called me back and swung through my town. I fell in love with the SMB, and then my family and I drove to Oakdale the next day so my wife could see it. We had a handshake deal that day, and had ownership within a few days after that. Evidently, they had many, many phonecalls from prospective buyers after our deal was made, including the person who lowballed them in the first place. That guy was actually upset that the owners had sold it to someone else.

Moral of the story: used SMBs can move fast, though in general, they seem to have slowed down somewhat lately. Square away your financing or line of credit ahead of time, and be prepared to pounce.


Herb

[klamt]

The Voyager and Cruiser tops are fixed hard fiberglass shells, so they cannot be raised or lowered. We have a Voyager top, and opted for a GM van rather than a Ford because the interior standing height with the Voyager top is listed as 6'5" for the GMs, and only 6' for the Ford. I'm 6'1" and have about 1 - 2" clearance in our GMC. If we had went with as Ford, we would have opted for the penthouse since I wouldn't have been able to stand upright in the Voyager anyway.

I believe the Cruiser top has more headroom, and the penthouse tops have plenty of room when raised.

Lots more pros and cons for the tops (parking, insulation, wind stability, looks, etc., that have been hashed out in prior posts.
_________________
J.P.

I really appreciate the information on the Voyager and Cruiser tops. I did not know that they were both hard fiberglass shells. As far as the interior standing height, I think either top would work for me since I am not that tall. Our present SMB is on a Dodge chassis, with a lowered floor so height is not problem in it. We are just getting started in our hunt for a different vehicle. Our present vehicle is a 1995 and has 140,000 miles on it. We really like our present vehicle and have stayed in it over 450 nights. Again, I thank you for any information you can give me. Darold & Patsy

[klamt]

Hi Herb,

Thank you for the heads up on pouncing once we find one we want. I imagine that man that let "your" SMB slip through his fingers learned a hard lesson.

We do appreciate input from anyone.

Darold & Patsy

[Roubo]

One more thing on the standing room issue. Although the SMB website lists the interior standing room for each fixed top on its website, the website is slightly misleading. Once the top is installed, SMB then installs a covering over the inside, and mounts lights on the underside of the top as well. Also, the Voyager top is curved from side to side, so the interior standing room is less than spec'd. My GMC (same as the Chevy) is listed on the wbesite as having 6'5" interior height, but realistically it's about 2" to 3" lower, depending on where you are in the vehicle.

The Ford is listed with only 6', so I would expect that you would not be able to stand upright freely unless you are no taller than 5'9" or 5'10". Perhaps the folks with the Ford and fixed tops can clarify this.

[klamt]

Hi J.P.,

Thank you for the additional information about the interior height. We are shorter folks, 5'3" and 5"8" so we should have no problem with these fixed tops. It helps to gather information in our quest.

Have a great day and thanks again for all the information.

Darold & Patsy

[zugg]

Hi Roubo & klamt,

To clarify, it is true that the Voyager Top measures 6 feet- from the ceiling to the floor, in a Ford EB van. I have a Ford SMB EB-50 layout and it has plenty of standing room, especially for the heights klamt mentioned.





Zugg

[klamt]

Hi Zugg,

Thank you for the height information. SMB's are great. We are still looking everywhere we can think of searching to find another one.

Darold & Patsy