Off-road RV specialist Storyteller Overland is switching on a new Mode. Realizing those forever-young, free-living van lifers aren't actually going to stay young forever and might even outgrow their two-person adventure Sprinter, it's building a van for the whole family ... or starting basketball team. The company leaps right past the common four-berth pop-up camper to create a five-seat five-sleeper Sprinter 170 that's every bit as rugged, adventurous and versatile as its smaller 144s. It's the Crew Mode, and it sleeps the most adventurous tribes inside hard walls that run from floor to pop-top.
Since launching back in 2019, Storyteller has become a master of Sprinter 144 AWD camper vans, installing everything from beastly off-road packages, to stealthy war paint, to Swiss Army-grade interior versatility. Surprisingly enough, the all-new Crew Mode it introduces this year is its first shake at a long-wheelbase Sprinter 170 AWD, a task it's taken quite seriously by combining its signature flexibility with a unique layout like few to no other vans on the American market.
Storyteller essentially breaks the van-level floor plan down into three separate zones: a front commuter zone, a central 'getting camp work done' zone, and a rear bedroom-lounge zone. The innovation starts up front, where Storyteller eschews the common cramped half-width two-seat bench in favor of three individual seats. Combined with the cab seats, this full-width rear row gives the van its five-person carrying capabilities, something that could prove just as useful for shuttling the family to baseball practice or competitive soccer tournaments as it does for extended camping holidays.
As an integrated flex option, the passenger-side rear seat is mounted to floor rails for easy removal, and the other two seats are built atop a swivel base that rotates them against the driver-side wall. Factor in the swivel front cab seats, and you have a small front lounge that complements the larger one in back.
Step amidships, and the central zone is defined by a passenger-side kitchen block across from the bathroom. The compact but fully equipped kitchen, which extends across the aisle next to the bathroom, includes a portable induction cooker, sink, 93-L fridge/freezer, microwave/air fryer and flip-up counter extension.
Five people inside one camper van could probably use more than one bathroom, but at the very least, they'll be glad to have a full bathroom rather than a collapsible bathroom box. Storyteller equips the Crew Mode with the full "Boombox" bathroom it launched on its "XO" lineup last year as an alternative to its classic "Flex Space" expandable cooler box-shower/toilet room.
A basic wet bathroom, the Boombox is more in line with what competitors like Winnebago and Jayco offer, combining a toilet and shower into a single compartment that doubles as a closet for drying wet clothes and gear. It includes a series of removable perforated shelves and a removable closet rod. Also standard is a water recirculation system.
The Crew Mode won't quite cook or cocktail party like the new Rossmönster Skye 170 camper van, but the Crew Mode still shines brightly in back, where it offers shelter for all your backcountry brethren, including some who aren't even spending the night. Storyteller's massive "TroupeLounge" is essentially two camper lounges in one – not only will it seat all five primary occupants comfortably around the removable pedestal table, it looks like it should seat eight adults without trouble.
The full lounge can then split into a half-length elevated bed and half-lounge or convert into the full-size elevated RV queen bed, providing a little extra flexibility for morning, afternoon and night.
The combination of long side benches and removable center table leaves plenty of space for carrying cargo, including extended items like surfboards and bicycles. The trick floor conceals a 5-foot-long (1.5-m) slide-out tray for easier tailgate loading and unpacking. Storyteller further adds to the flexible cargo carry with overhead cabinets that can be removed for more headroom around the van.
The big, genre-topping innovation on the Crew Mode is the hard-walled pop-up power roof. The origami folder features a hard-sided wedge form sheltering a full-size bed inside. Campers access the roof area from inside through a hatch in the van ceiling. The only other American off-road adventure camper van we can recall with a hard-walled pop-up roof is the Skyloft that Redtail debuted last year, and that sucker costs over half a million dollars, more than double the Crew Mode.
One side note about sleeping arrangements – the Crew Mode floor plan doesn't leave room for Storyteller's convertible two-seat couch/bed, so there are only two beds for an advertised five adults or adult/child mix. We'd tend to call a combination of RV queen and full-size beds a four-sleeper to be safe, but we suppose if you're roaming with a family of five, you'd likely prefer squeezing everyone in within the hard walls of your camper van versus leaving someone outside in a tent. Each buyer's experience will vary, though.
Beyond those primary amenities, the Crew Mode comes generously specced with a diesel cabin/water heater, air conditioner, 16.8-kWh Lithionics battery bank, 345 watts of solar charging, high-capacity inverter/charger, 11-in control touchscreen, outdoor shower, shore power connection, and 140 liters of fresh water.
Storyteller premiered the Crew Mode at the 2025 Florida RV SuperShow earlier this year. It's available to order now at a base price of US$249,378.
Traditionally, we've preferred the idea of a shorter, nimbler Sprinter 144 AWD camper van as an off-road explorer, but the 170-wheelbase AWD van is really making a case for itself with help from shops like Storyteller, Rossmönster and Airstream, especially for families who will ultimately dedicate their time to exploring lakesides and dirt roads, not snaking bus-width canyon crawls or over-vegetated two-track treks. We're definitely rethinking just how much we would need that extra maneuverability for driving and parking versus how nice that added space would be at camp. Honestly, both sizes look pretty enticing – maybe Westfalia can bring over its James Cook expander to split the difference.
Source: Storyteller Overland
