These guys an amazing, caring to you and your pet. Extras and kindness and thoughtful gestures.. just really outstanding. read more

Papago Vans - Baby getting fluids for unknown toxicity.. - RV Dealers Near Me - Mesa, Arizona

4 stars for build quality but given a 130k spend (not including van) grading a 1 for customer relations for an average of 2.5 I am based in Boston. Following my 10 months of experience in dealing with Papago, unless you are located near Tempe AZ and able to have in person follow ups, I would reconsider for a local builder. There were too many breaks and delays in communication that pushed the delivery out nearly 4 months and van delivery came with issues still not resolved. I'll break this review down into pre-sale, design and post-sale delivery and support. Presale First engagement was with Jeremy on Sept 10 2024- he's the best part of our Papago experience. He was extremely responsive and patient with us as we asked many questions about which Sprinter year/model to procure, how to do that design specs, building process, etc. One of our main questions was whether the build could be complete by May for summer camping. Reply: "Getting this completed by early May won't be an issue. Barring any major delays on products or anything catastrophic!" We put the deposit down and received a welcome email outlining next steps to procure the van through Jeremy and that we were assigned a designer Jesse who we would meet with us on design Design A month passes, on 11/14 contact Jeremy to flag that I haven't heard from Jessie. Jeremy sources a GREAT van from local Benz dealer, we buy on 11/29. We get our first design session with Jesse on Dec 11th with the design spec sent on 12/23. Multiple emails to Jesse with no response, Jan 14 ask Jeremy for help and Katie replies "We are still on track to hit your deadline of May completion." February we have back/forth on final specs. March 11 we are told we are next in line for the build and van will be ready mid May. March 19 we land on final quote and pay half of the 130k. April passes and after requests for van status that should be on a portal we are told that the portal has technical issues and the van delivery is pushed to June. Jumping ahead to July 8 we still have no delivery date from Papago. Summer plans are shelved and now trying to get delivery in August before school starts. I visit Papago in Phoenix see the van and it is beautiful. I can't say enough about the attention to detail and how finished it felt. Van ships to Boston on August 12. Post Sale Van finally arrives to Boston in August (recall I have multiple emails assuring me May was no problem). Upon delivery found 3 significant issues. 1- ARB onboard Air Compressor inoperable, 2- Flatline Van Co surfpole installed incorrectly according to FVCO 3- Midcity Engineering software reset for extended tank fuel gauge and DTE not functioning). I was initially instructed to find repair shops to address the issues and submit those bills to Papago. After expressing frustration with that, I was connected to Daniel at Papago who agreed it was their responsibility to resolve by supplying a new switch for the ARB, connecting us to a RV repair shop to correctly install the FVCO pole and would follow up with suggestions on how to troubleshoot the Midcity engineering software update. None of those happened. An email in October pointed me to a local Citgo station with a shade mechanic to troubleshoot the fuel tank. In retrospect I should have asked about how they honor/fulfill their warranty with specifics on how they source shops local to me. Subsequent comms have been suggestions on other service stations (Mercedes, other upfitters) for us to explore and bring to Papago. Feels like we own finding and managing the remedies to the three issues we found existed at delivery. In summary, the interior fit and finish is great, the QA process is lacking and overall project management and communications during build and post delivery have been very frustrating. read more

Their engineering department is amazing, theyre able to make any cabinet no matter how complex to create the van of your dreams

This is a difficult review to write, as a lot of things went well and a lot of things went wrong. I would like for them all to have went well, but that is simply not the story Papago Vans left me to tell. I would be remiss not warn future (and current) customers of the journey of my van build, so here it goes. Let's start with the things that went well: - Jesse (CTO/Owner) had great attention to detail down to the nitty gritty of my van's build. He knew that thing inside and out, and down to the square inch. - After living full-time in the vehicle for 2 months now, the workmanship has proven to be of high quality, with very few improvements/repairs needed thus far. - For the issues that required troubleshooting from Papago Vans after pick-up, Jesse was quick and thorough in helping me to investigate and repair. Now for the things that went (very) wrong: - Upon my first meeting (and vehicle drop-off) with Papago Vans, Jesse (CTO/Owner) quoted me an expected timeline of 6-9 weeks for the build. This timeline was also advertised on their website at the time. - During Week 2 of this build window, I contacted Papago Vans to ask about progress, as I hadn't received any updates, as promised. - To my surprise (and utter horror), the build hadn't even begun, and wouldn't begin for several more weeks. - Though Papago Vans apologized profusely for the lack of notification about a delay, this behavior continued throughout the 19 (Yes, 19. Not 6-9.) weeks my vehicle was in the build window. - The "Weekly Progress Updates" that Papago Vans advertises and promised were often late, or not posted at all, leaving me to wonder if this was due to a lack of update or a lack of progress (which, of course, couldn't be answered due to their being closed on weekends). - I never ONCE received notification of a change to the 6-9 week timeline. - After 19 weeks in the build window (04/07/25-08/14/25), I gave Papago Vans every opportunity to right their wrong, and not have to write this review or take them to small claims court. I truly wanted the story to be different for them. I was open to accepting reparations in any of many forms for the extra months I was made to acquire last-minute housing, vehicle usage, and the acceptance and retraction of a work contract which required me to use this vehicle as housing. - Although the extra expenses on my end were more than $10k (for which I made receipts available), I was willing to accept a much lesser amount, and in the form of an extended warranty, extra gear, payment over time, etc. - Again, to my surprise (and utter horror), Papago Vans responded with "We do not offer discounts." "An estimate's just an estimate." - Despite my best efforts at being understanding and adaptive in terms of repayment, Papago Vans stood their ground in expressing that it was my fault for having trusted their timeline. A last-minute addition of $595 worth of extra gear of their choosing was "the best they could do". My advice to Papago Vans? Allow yourself to be held accountable. Take responsibility for your wrongdoings. Treat your customers as well as you treat yourself. Do better. My advice to the consumer? No doubt this review will be met with a well-written empathetic response, as this is one of Papago Vans' strong points. However, the old adage "actions speak louder than words" cannot be ignored. And the actions, in this case, were a lack of accountability and a frank unwillingness to do the right thing. read more

Not built to last. You cannon build a van like a house. With vibrations and bumps these vans WILL fail over time and will produce mold because all of the wood is not marine grade. Thumbs down for the team at Papago. read more

Papago Vans There are a handful of van conversion companies in the phoenix area but Papago is unique. Back when I started my search for a van conversion company they were known as Papago Customs. That name became evident to me once I realized other conversion companies wouldn't be able to create my custom van design like Papago said they could accomplish. The process started from the Sales side discussing all the potential work with Tim. He led the process for creating the budget, incorporating what I wanted, and put me in contact with his POC for a van at Mercedes. Once I had my van, I was now connected with the design and engineering side of Papago. This meant now everything was through Jesse. As it turned out, he had to make a few adjustments from where Tim and left off. This was tough because my discussions with Tim were in the past about 3 months to where I started working with Jesse. For this reason, I wish I kept better notes to track what we did and tracked pricing for the transition from Tim to Jesse. I think I was a special case too, I really wanted everything in my 144' Mercedes van and Jesse was going to do anything to make my design work. After a couple weeks of planning we finally got it thanks to me only having to make one compromise. From when I dropped off the van to when I picked it up, the conversion process took 8 weeks! That was incredibly fast! I was so happy to finally have my design come to life. I took my van up north for a test run in flagstaff that day for the weekend. While I was using I noticed a leak from the sink and beneath the van from the shower drain. Everything else worked perfectly! I let Papago know about these issues and they fixed both problems the day I got back. About a week after, phoenix received rain and I noticed my roof rack was collecting rust. I notified Jesse and brought in the van for him to touch it up. I've been very pleased with the entire experience and there is a special comfort knowing how they support existing customers with any issues they may have. Obviously building a house inside a vehicle nothing will be perfect but I'm thankful they were proactive on repairing and finding a solution with urgency. If I ever plan to do another van conversion I can't imagine doing it anywhere else. read more

Papago Vans - RV Dealers Near Me - Mesa, Arizona

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Just had a custom van built with Papago Customs. Great work!! My Mercedes 144 now complete with electric water heater, indoor and outdoor showers, induction cooktop, microwave and more is my dream come true. Thanks to Tim, Jessie, and the whole crew for a build well done. read more

Papago Vans - Finished product - RV Dealers Near Me - Mesa, Arizona

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So happy I chose to go with Papago Vans! From beginning to end, my van build surpassed all my expectations. So thankful to have worked with such an experienced and knowledgeable team. Hands down, I would recommend them to anyone looking for a high quality adventure van! read more

After interviewing several van builders I decided on Papago Vans to build my dream camper van that I now live in full time. Papago vans had the most competitive prices AND the fastest build turnaround time of all the builders I talked to (and I talked to several across the southwest). And after talking with and meeting the team moving forward with Papago vans was an easy decision. They listened to my wants and needs and helped me every step of the way to design my campervan exactly how I wanted it. With their prior build experience they also provided advice for things I didn't know to think about. They even helped me to find an empty van to purchase when I was struggling to find one. Without a doubt I'd recommend Papago Vans to build you your dream custom camper van!! read more

Everyone at Papago Customs was incredible! Such a fun company! They were so informative and creative when helping me.

Tim and Jessie did a fantastic job converting my Pro Master van into a camper. My exact wishes were carried out and the workmanship was outstanding. I went on a two month road trip soon as my conversion was done and couldn't have been happier with how everything worked out. I absolutely love my van! read more

Papago Vans - RV Dealers Near Me - Mesa, Arizona

My wife and I recently purchased a sprinter van and brought it to Tim at Papago Custom Vans to convert it for us. His team, lead by Jesse were absolutely incredible. Not only did they deliver what was promised but they did it so quickly and beautifully. Tim, was so easy to work with and truly has a passion for this industry. I would hands down recommend going to Papago Custom Vans for your camper van/RV dreams! read more

This is definitely a triple A business. We have been 100% happy right from our beginning inquiry phone call to waving good-by as we drove our newly finished custom van out the driveway. The design is clever and efficient. I can't believe they got so much living ability inside the box of a van. The craftsmanship is magnificent right down to the special stool they made for my short little legs. Definitely recommend these skilled artisans. read more