Some adventure vans are built for a postcard. The Kōri was built for a Tuesday-night practice three hours from home. Created by Yama Vans in Calgary, this Mercedes-Benz Sprinter conversion belongs to a family in Penticton, British Columbia who spend their winters chasing puck drops around the province — and it is purpose-built to make those early rink mornings and tournament-weekend road trips dramatically easier.
Kōri is one example of Yama’s Teton 01N, the company’s most popular floorplan. It pairs a compact 144-inch wheelbase with a clever two-zone sleeping layout, a chest-height fridge, and an 85-cubic-foot rear gear garage that — in this family’s case — swallows hockey sticks, helmets, and bags of pads without taking over the living space. It’s a four-season machine engineered for Canadian winters, and it shows.
The Kōri, a Teton 01N build by Yama Vans, sits on an all-wheel-drive Sprinter chassis built for four-season travel. Images courtesy of Yama Vans.
A Hockey Family’s Home Base on Wheels
The brief behind Kōri is one a lot of busy families will recognize: the season is long, the rinks are scattered across the province, and the gear never stops multiplying. Rather than cram duffel bags into footwells, Yama designed the build so the messiest, bulkiest equipment has a dedicated home in the rear — leaving the cabin free for sleeping, eating, and warming up between games. The result is less a weekend toy and more a rolling base camp that happens to be excellent for skiing and camping the rest of the year.
Built on a 4×4 Sprinter Platform
Kōri starts with a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 144 2500 with the high-output all-wheel-drive 9G-TRONIC transmission and the four-cylinder twin-turbo diesel. That combination is the sweet spot for a van that has to handle snowy mountain passes and icy rink parking lots: it keeps the footprint to a tidy 6 meters (about 19’6”) so it still drives and parks like a van, while the AWD system and upgraded suspension keep it confident when the roads turn white. Yama finishes the exterior with a roof rack, a side ladder, a rear-mounted full-size spare, and a Baja Designs light bar for the dark drives home.
The compact 144-inch wheelbase keeps the van easy to drive and park, even loaded with a full season of gear. Images courtesy of Yama Vans.
An Interior That Sleeps the Whole Family
This is where the Teton 01N earns its “most popular” status. The headline feature is Yama’s Signature Sliding Bed System, which provides sideways sleeping for two people up to 6’1” on a ventilated, dual-density mattress — a smart way to sleep two adults across a short-wheelbase van without sacrificing length. Below it, a lower seat-bed adds a second sleeping zone that’s ideal for a kid, a pet, or an extra adult, and the ISOFIX-compatible rear seat means car seats install safely for younger family members. Add it up and the Teton 01N seats four and sleeps three-plus.
Olive cabinetry, light walls, and six dimmable LED zones keep the cabin bright; the elevated rear bed leaves room for the gear garage beneath. Images courtesy of Yama Vans.
A Galley Kitchen Built for Real Cooking
The galley is set up for people who actually cook, not just reheat. A 90-liter chest-height fridge/freezer means you can pack for a tournament weekend (or a week off-grid) without a daily grocery run, and induction cooking with on-demand filtered drinking water keeps things simple and safe inside a tight space. Marine- and commercial-grade counter materials are chosen to survive years of wet gloves, spilled cocoa, and post-game cleanup.
The chest-height fridge and induction cooktop make the galley genuinely usable for full meals on the road. Images courtesy of Yama Vans.
Flexible Seating and Dining
One of the quiet advantages of the Teton layout is how the rear seating converts. The ISOFIX rear bench transforms into a double bed or a lounge space, and a slide-out table turns the area into a dinette for meals, homework, or taping a stick before warm-up. It’s the kind of flexibility that matters when a van has to be a bedroom, a dining room, and a gear room all in the same afternoon.
The rear bench converts to a bed or lounge, and a slide-out table creates a dinette for meals and downtime. Images courtesy of Yama Vans.
The Gear Garage: Where the Hockey Bags Live
The 85-cubic-foot rear gear garage is the heart of Kōri’s story. Tucked under the elevated bed, it’s outfitted with wall and floor T-track, 12V and 120V power, and enough room for up to four bikes — or, for this family, a full load of sticks, helmets, and pads. An exterior wash station with hot and cold water and a privacy curtain means muddy or sweaty equipment gets rinsed outside before it ever comes near the living space.
The rear gear garage opens wide for loading skis, packs, and bulky equipment straight off the snow. Images courtesy of Yama Vans.
Ski Racks, MOLLE Panels, and Smart Storage
Inside the garage, the details are what make it work. MOLLE-style panels and T-track let the family rearrange tie-downs, ski racks, and hooks to suit whatever the trip demands, so the same space that hauls hockey gear in February carries backcountry skis in March and bikes in July. It’s modular storage that grows with the family rather than locking them into one configuration.
MOLLE panels and floor T-track make the gear garage fully reconfigurable for skis, bikes, or hockey gear. Images courtesy of Yama Vans.
Power and Water for Two Weeks Off-Grid
Kōri is genuinely self-sufficient. An 11.8 kWh lithium system — paired with a 3kVA inverter/charger, a 280-amp secondary alternator, and 200 watts of rooftop solar — gives the van capacity for about two weeks off-grid with typical use and regular driving. A marine-grade 30A shore-power input is there for when you can plug in. Fresh water runs 106 liters (28 gallons) with 83 liters (22 gallons) of grey, and a 0.4-micron filter handles drinking water. Keeping it all comfortable is Yama’s signature 21,000 BTU hydronic system, which delivers cabin heat, on-demand hot water, and radiant in-floor warmth — the kind of heat you want after a cold morning at the rink.
Design Details
- Model: Yama Vans Teton 01N (build name: Kōri)
- Owners: A hockey family based in Penticton, British Columbia
- Chassis: Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 144 2500, 4-cyl twin-turbo diesel, High-Output AWD 9G-TRONIC
- Footprint: ~6 m / 19’6”; 144” wheelbase; ~15 L/100 km
- Seating / Sleeping: Seats 4; sleeps 3+ (Signature Sliding Bed System for two up to 6’1” plus a lower seat-bed)
- Kitchen: 90 L chest-height fridge/freezer, induction cooktop, on-demand filtered water, marine-grade counters
- Electrical: 11.8 kWh lithium, 3kVA inverter/charger, 280A second alternator, 200 W solar, 30A shore power, six dimmable LED zones
- Water: 106 L (28 gal) fresh, 83 L (22 gal) grey, 0.4-micron drinking filtration
- Climate: 21,000 BTU hydronic heat (cabin air, hot water, radiant in-floor); four-season insulation
- Gear garage: 85 ft³ with wall/floor T-track, 12V/120V power, MOLLE panels, room for up to 4 bikes; exterior hot/cold wash station
- Off-road: Custom leaf springs & coilovers, FOX shocks, BFG KO3 tires on 17” alloys, roof rack, full-size spare, Baja Designs lighting
- Pricing: Teton 01N builds start at $223,000 CAD plus tax (Sprinter chassis not included)
A cutaway view of the Teton 01N layout, with the elevated rear bed sitting above the gear garage. Images courtesy of Yama Vans.
What Makes This Build Special
- Storage drives the floorplan. Most vans treat gear as an afterthought; the Teton 01N elevates the bed specifically to create a full-height garage underneath — a layout lesson for anyone who hauls bulky equipment.
- Two sleep zones in a short van. The sliding bed plus seat-bed combination sleeps a small family without jumping up to a 170” wheelbase, keeping the van nimble.
- Modularity over fixed builds. T-track and MOLLE panels mean the same garage adapts to hockey season, ski season, and bike season instead of being purpose-locked.
- Real four-season engineering. Hydronic heat with radiant floors, heavy insulation, and AWD make this a van you can actually live in through a Canadian winter.
- An exterior wash station. A simple, smart touch — rinse muddy or sweaty gear outside before it ever reaches the cabin.
Learn More
- Yama Vans Teton 01N model page: yamavans.com/vans/model/teton01n
- Yama Vans build gallery (Kōri and more): yamavans.com/vans/gallery
- Start a build: yamavans.com/contact
Highlights
- 4×4 Mercedes Sprinter 144 adventure van by Yama Vans (Teton 01N)
- Two-zone sleeping for a small family in a compact wheelbase
- 85 ft³ gear garage with MOLLE panels and an exterior wash station
- 11.8 kWh lithium and 200 W solar for ~2 weeks off-grid
- 21,000 BTU hydronic heat with radiant floors for true four-season use
- Built for a hockey family — and ready for skis, bikes, and everything after
Would you trade the minivan for something like Kōri? What gear would fill your garage?
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Alex