the consideration when buying artwork is that it has to appeal to the buyer. once an artist develops a following, he can cater to that style. targeting a demographic can be more easily done by starting with generally accepted considerations, and then refining those as the process unfolds. you're sort of done that, but I think you are defending considerations which may be only receptive to a specialized niche within a specialized field. cart before the horse kind of thing.
I think all creative people want their ideas/ craftsmanship/ esthetic to be appreciated. but appreciated and sold are not the same thing. the inside of the van initially reminded me of the Mr Sharkey Bus Barn website of yore. it was always a go-to for me, but hardly demonstrated vehicles which I would consider building in kind. can't remember the "Woodstock handmade busses" book title that goes for megabucks if it even can be found, but
Roger's "some turtles have nice shells" also comes to mind as examples of "hey that's cool" but, "not for my daily driver".
something can be said for Joe Checkbook when you are trying to market a product, especially an expensive one. not to imply it has to be an RV with brass 'n' glass, but it has to have some latitude for the buyer, or his significant other, to be able to personalize after the ink on the check is dry. you're really not giving birth; at some point it has to be let go.
there's a jeep floating around here which has quite a sorted past and should have been allowed to rest many moons ago. when I read the thread, all I could think was Steven King's
Christine. it was resurrected and made somewhat usable, but it looks like a swiss army knife. obviously there is only so much real estate in a fourteen foot space, but it looks like what I believe the owner did was use every scrap of dissimilar material he had in the garage. extra piece of wood? make a shelf. extra sailboat cleat? not gonna throw that out: screw it on over here. had a coupon so I bought a piece of this stuff - lets glue it to that. and in the process, I think it diffused the idea and workmanship required to get it to the completed stage.
anyway, not to imply every vehicle has to have a wrap with swoops and swirls, but unless you are in a position to hold out for That Special Buyer, you might consider modifying your designs to a more "white bread" audience. let them add the sparkly mosaics and dhurries after they get it home.
ps: where'd the #2 go?