U-Joint vs. SMB vs.Quigley vs. Advanced 4X4 vs. ???

[rob_gendreau]

I also have a Salem-Kroger; SMB only used Quigley's at the time, and wouldn't convert a used van. So it was S-K by default. I generally like it, although I'd like to do some tweaks. Front springs aren't as soft as I'd like, and going to some arch, a bit higher lift maybe, and reverse shackles might be nice. But works fine as is for my needs now (I drive less aggressively).

If you want the whole conversion, and that includes the interior, SMB would seem to work for you, as would Quadvan.

If, on the other hand, you have some specific ideas about what you'd like then I would think getting ujoint to find a local fab guy who could work on the van would be in order.

I'm not impressed with dealer work and mostly OEM parts; it'll work, but in my experience a dealer is always kinda flustered with a 4x4 van, even if it has say OEM parts from another Ford, mostly because of the way they work and write up work. If they aren't, the fact you have mostly OEM parts doesn't seem to matter. The good mechanics I know, as Chris said, can work with other stuff. Except for dealerships everyone else is working with aftermarket all the time. And the very best don't hesitate to fab their own bits, and can work with stuff like ujoint's without batting an eye.

So if I were doing it again the choice for me would be complete custom, like ujoint and my local favorite fabricators. If I'm spending all that money I want more control. If I just wanted a good 4WD van, and didn't want to sweat the details, I'd go Quadvan or SMB, depending on price and availability.

[E350]

My conversion was done by Salem-Kroger.

Regardless of who you go to for your 4x4 conversion, you may want to specifically ask whether or not the lifted height is more, less or the same as the bump stop gap measurement.

(When I ordered my 4x4 conversion with 4" lift, I naively assumed that I would have 4" of travel before the suspension bottomed out on the frame. Not so.)

The gap between the bump stops determines when you bottom out. (Not the lifted height.)

With a 4" lift, my van has 2" before the cross-member supporting the motor mounts bottoms out on the front axle. Looking at these pictures, I see that the cross-member is slightly bent which no doubt means that the bump stops have too large a gap:



After owning and driving two 4x4 converted vans, it is my personal opinion that the bump stop gap measurement is something you should consider when choosing what lifted height to order, regardless of what converter you choose. Hopefully this helps the OP and also adds to the general information pool.

Edit: I see that the bend in the cross-member is located above the bracket for the dual opposing pressurized gas shocks which I installed (after Salem-Kroger was unable to permanently cure my Death Wobble). That bracket undoubtedly reduced the gap slightly, but as you can see it was never more than about 2.5"

[rob_gendreau]

E350, thanks for pix. On my SK conversion that cross member is modified a bit, and it doesn't hit.

But then again I don't think I'm getting much travel either. I have leaf springs.

As I said, if doing it again I'd like to get more travel, which I think would allow for softer settings. But at this point I just live with it. And it does have the virtue of forcing me to drive slower

[copescobra]

I selected Ujoint the shop that Chris owns. He is an avid rock crawler himself and owns numerous 4x4 creations.
The quality and workmanship of his work is second to none.

I liked the options available. Plus the ability to have someone that is always ready willing and able
to take the time and talk you through issues.

I think the best way to get to know Ujoint is to visit his website, and see
what the customers have said in the testimonial section.

Plus he lists all this parts on the site as well as other information pertaining to his product line.

He is very well known on the Expeditionportal.com website.

I think all the "contenders" are quality.

In the end I went with the person who I felt was building my VAN as if it was his own. That meant a lot to me.

[Kelso]

I got to check out my new EB Quigley next to a new EB Quadvan this past weekend. It looked like the Quadvan radius arm was a little beefier and longer than the Quigley, and the Quadvan has the dual shock setup (I think that's for the v10's) but without looking too closely, the vans literally looked identical next to one another. In fact, I thought my Quigley looked like it sat slightly higher than the Quadvan, which I thought would have been the other way around.

I wanted to go UJOR or Quadvan, but finances took me in the direction I went. So far, I'm actually really impressed with my Quigley and think it drives much better than what I've read about. It does have upgraded shocks though. I have already hit some good dips and bumps at highway speed and it handled nicely. I do have some suspension plans for it though, which I will start a thread for when the time comes. Quadvan does have some interesting options, like being able to shift into 4wd on-the-fly, which would be really nice to have for me. In the end, I think there are more factors that come into play than just which 4x4 option is best. While that is the most important thing, it also comes down to proximity, cost, timing, finding a van that will work, and your usage of the vehicle.

One thing that does set Ujoint apart, however, is that Chris offers many 4x4 upgrades that go beyond what the other companies do.

[jage]

Personally I insisted on the SMB4x4 because I've run an Atlas II for years in multiple Jeeps and I'm familiar with it and I have no fear of buggering my t-case in the weighty van this way. The downside was flat overloaded springs, which a few thousand converting to Deaver springs "solved". I've put a few more 100s and 10s of hours into shocks...

If I was starting over from jump, I'd go with Ujoint. Main reason, as much as I love the Atlas, I'm still trying to get the right mix of shocks/stops/bags etc. and putting the Deaver's on was an expense I'd rather put towards a full-floater upgrade, better brakes or something else.

[UJOINT]

We do the Atlas too!

[seven]

I have first hand experience on a Quigley front end setup and Quad Van front end setup. I recently purchased a 2010 Quig with pop top, bumper/winch, awning etc. I drove it from San Diego to Portland as a Quig and became painfully aware of the harsh ride and constant bottoming. John at Quadvan swapped over the suspension to Quadvan. Now I have mostly Quadvan (all the important stuff). I call it my Quadley! I drove from Portland to Seattle. What a difference. No detectable bottoming, much better steering and much much smoother ride. So, I can honestly say I have tried 'both' setups on the same van and would recommend Quadvan.[thumb][/thumb]

[wheresmikeys]

Id like to throw in another company that is putting out some conversions. Fairly new, but getting great reviews.
Denver Fleet Van and Truck Sales

https://www.facebook.com/denverfleet/

[TheWooginator]

Those guys at Denver Fleet have a built F250 that's pretty rad for the $. ATS trannys aren't cheap!! Looks like they'll have a pretty sweet 2003 7.3 on the market soon as well.