Extended body vs regular body

[1der]

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/ctd...856858625.html

[shenrie]

after looking for 6 months solid and being a complete slave to cl, I sat the wife down and said obviously we are being too picky. we decided to grab the first 4wd van we could find since that was the biggest expense and something I didn't have the facility to do myself. she left to her parents house and I went back to my searching. amidst scrolling through page after page and all the links I have previously clicked on I noticed one I had overlooked. clicked and started reading, then ticking all the wanted options off the list. im thinking, how the hell did I miss this add? sure enough it was across the nation. for the hell of it, I called the dealer and the lady was very willing to work with us. 2 weeks later our van was sitting in our driveway.


the pnw is a haven for the trend. don't give up the search, just plan on not finding it where you live, lol. youll find your van, it just takes time.

[JWA]

Good advice all around that followed my question!

I'm in full agreement about avoiding the 4.6--it might be useful to some but the 5.4 gets good enough MPG's that its NOT a gas hog. The 6.8 V10's would be my choice for pure power in gas motors but MPG's suffer greatly so that is a concern for most---understandably. Properly geared the 5.4's do very well in the SMB-type vans.

So I own and drive three (3) different E-Series: 2000 E250 RB with raised fixed roof & extended height rear doors; 2003 E250 EB with normal roof and doors & 2005 E350 raised fixed roof, extended height rear doors. All are 5.4 motors, all have hinged or barn side doors.

I prefer the EB's mostly because once you've had one you simply can not live with the RB's after that. There are no more parking and/or maneuvering issues, this assumes you have back up cameras or great depth perception while driving. I can't speak to handling if your new van is to become a 4x4 but the E-Series are what they are, dinosaurs to a degree but still one of the most usable vehicles there were or still are.

I had to alter my own search/acquire criteria which morphed into finding the Club Wagon rear glass versions with raised roofs acceptable. Because raised roof EB's weren't readily available AND the end of life thing.

Had I known the E350 chassis would be so much to my liking I could have had a lot of these just several years ago for less than $8K. These days they're tougher to find in good condition body wise however like you I have always passed on the heavily commercial upfittings of ladder racks, external puck locks, interior partitions etc etc. Usually by the time a fleet vehicle is up for sale its beat to death. No longer owning a body shop my biggest concern was the condition of the body; collision damage, heavy rust were reasons to pass something by.

Mechanically I'm okay with replacing damn near everything IF the body is in good shape. In fact I've already replaced/rebuilt the engine and transmission in my '05. I'm lucking knowing so many talented trustworthy highly experienced mechanics who work under the table far far cheaper than I would.

Start looking on eBay using different search criteria with the main one being "ford van". Try other parameters like "E-Series", "E250". "handicap transport". While each search may turn up many of the same vans you'll occasionally find one of interest in an odd description or category.

If I can be of any inspection help I'm located in Columbus Ohio and would be willing to travel maybe an hour one way to check something out for you.

HTH

[JamesO]

Originally Posted by 1der

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/ctd...856858625.html

I’m wanting a cargo van, not the passenger van. My first and only conversion has been on my current daily driver, a 97 gmc safari cargo van. And I can say I am very glad I decided to go with the cargo van. Makes insulating much easier and also seems stealthier. I do a lot of urban camping and having all blacked out windows in a passenger van might look a little suspicious.
Although, talking about making sacrifices in certain criteria, maybe I’ll look into sacrificing getting a cargo and go with a passenger if it’s extended with a 5.4 or 6.8.

[JamesO]

Originally Posted by 1der

I really, really, really recommend you keep looking rather than settle for the 4.6. You are looking to put in $20k to $40k (or more) into your rig after you buy it, right? An airline ticket and transport is a small amount to add to that to find a v10 or 5.4. You will have far more trouble selling the 4.6 based built van and I venture to guess the discount you will give to sell the 4.6 built rig will far exceed the travel/delivery.

There are lots of members here who are really helpful and qualified to check out a for sale van near them if you find one you like. And there are members here who will drive it to you for gas, a plane ticket and a bit of appreciation.

Visualize your dream rig, write down the details you want (length, engines, options, colors, even location) - be positive about it - start a separate thread for it and see what happens. And be patient and keep looking on Craigslists, RV trader, EBay, here and a couple of other forums There are people here who post links to vans they come across. And there are members who are almost ready to sell and may find your posting just the incentive needs to pass their rig to you without the hassle of listing it. There are more non-posted/PM based rig sales occuring than people realize.

So, put it out there.

I appreciate you taking the time to write this post out. You are correct, sinking all kinds of money into a van, it better be on the van I actually want.
I haven’t considered posting on here looking for a van, will definitely give that a shot.
Either way, your explanation was a good wake up call for me to wait and be patient with my purchase.
Worst comes to worse, I’ll just have to get another credit pull to get re-approved for my auto loan.
Even worse, I’ll have to sink a little money into my current daily driver, 97 gmc safari, since it seems to be on its last leg and might not be around for much longer unless I fix a few things.

[b. rock]

Really? I was in the hunt for a van up until 2 months ago and I had found 5.4 EB vans galore. Expand your search outside of Portland and you'll fare better. I keep it to anything west of the Mississippi for rust concerns, although being in Denver I'm a bit more centered when it comes to driving something home. I was looking for an 05-06 V10 or a '00 and up 7.3, which while being even more limiting, I was able to find a few options to pick from.

commercialtrucktrader.com, trovit (although watch out for scammers), and large city craigslist should have options. FB marketplace is picking up as well. There are some larger van dealers like famvans.com that will pretty readily ship if you don't want to see it first. Good luck, but finding a 5.4 EB really shouldn't be too tough....unless you don't like white.

[daveb]

Although it sounds like your build doesn't sound too heavy, it would probably be a good idea to find a EB-350 with a full float rear axle instead of a semi float. Also IIRC 2008 was when they changes body style and the newer vans have a better braking system.

[JamesO]

I talked to a dealer in Colorado that has a 2010 Chevy express 1500 awd. I started a new thread yesterday “express 1500 awd vs. ford 4x4 conversion” so I’m kind of double dipping here.
But the express has only 24,000 miles on it and they’re asking $26,000. I wonder if that’s a ridiculous price to pay for that van and I also wonder if I’d be happy with that express vs the eb ford eseries in regards to cargo area and power.
It looks like the regular size express is bigger than the regular eseries but it is smaller than the ford extended obviously. It also looks like the express has 310 hp vs the fords which only have mid 200’s.
If I’m not towing , maybe the express awd is the way to go. Then I won’t have to worry about any 4x4 conversion.

[JamesO]

Originally Posted by b. rock

Expand your search outside of Portland and you'll fare better.

I’ve been searching nationwide. I am specifically looking for a cargo not a passenger. There seems to be many passenger vans available.

[1der]

Originally Posted by JamesO

I’m wanting a cargo van, not the passenger van......

Totally understand this thinking.



Having had both I would not have any hesitancy of doing the Passenger, in fact there are many plu$e$ to it - No windows to be added, really excellent rear A/C, normally has power, cruise, carpet, headliner, better upholstery, many pieces of plastic interior trim that can be repurposed in the build. If you are lucky a 15 passenger might even come with full floater rear end, or just as likely as the cargo would. the seat mounting pints are excellent floor and cabinet tie downs so no need to put more holes into stock floor.



Insulating windows is easily done, the rest of the insulation is the same. Glass or metal are both great conductors of heat and cold, so you are going to put the same insulation in there.



re: stealth - I understand this as well. If the rear windows on the sides at the back are too conspicuous, they can be replaced with metal inserts or wrapped to match the body.


Now, if you are going 4x4, stealth is going to be compromised especially if bumpers, wheels, etc. are going to be part of the mods.


I will PM you one van I found this morning that is certainly attractive.