Sounds like he's looking for a place to snooze in while that 8' load is in there, plus there's the driving area... so definitely need more than 8'. I was thinking about a Diesel VW as well, but a 1500lb load is quite a bit! And that's in addition to the driver & luggage & so on. Not sure how much an old Rabbit pickup can haul but my Jetta is only spec'd for ~900lbs load.
Sucks on the problems with the box van... wonder if there's any chance of finding a used E350 van (preferably Diesel, of course)... a bit smaller but still able to haul a good amount of stuff...
EDIT: This could be a fun one:
Ford : E-Series Van XL Standard Cargo Van 2-Door in Ford | eBay Motors
A ways to go to get it though...