2012 E-350 EB V10, 4x4, CCV Top

[Otter]

Originally Posted by cthayn

I added some vertical stringers on the driver side where the two sheets of plywood meet to provide more support. I added a few other vertical stringers on the passenger side to support the wall cabinet that will be added later. These stringers were screwed to the horizontal stringers and the cut to the inner wall profile.

Cthayn, this is a great build and I really appreciate the photos. I’m building out my van in a similar manner. I can’t tell from the photos, are those horizontal stringers 2x4 or 2x2?

[cthayn]

I believe I started with a 2x4 and trimmed them to fit. They were likely just slightly wider than a 2x2.

[medicfernando]

Are you still happy with the CCV top? Would love an update and thoughts on the top after you have had a little time with it.

Also, are you in Salt Lake City or close by? If so, I would love to come look at your van and the CCV top if you wouldn't mind.

Thanks! Great write up, beautiful rig!

[cthayn]

Overall I am pretty happy with the CCV top. We have spent maybe 25 nights in it so far. Below are my thoughts on the top.

Pros:
Love the space, it is plenty high to sit-up in and I believe it is close to a full size bed width. We added 4 inches of foam and it is a pretty comfortable bed.

The large window openings are great on warm nights. There is a lot is ventilation when you zip all the windows down.

The storage space in the front is very useful, even when the top is down.

We got the high top because of the ability to almost stand up straight when the top is down. There is also a nice amount of storage on the bed when the top is down. Plenty of room for all the bedding and clothing.

These Pros were all the areas where the CCV top was better than the Sportsmobile top for us.


Cons:
I still think the high top is ugly, but I am starting to get use to it. It looked really awkward when we first installed it on the van, but after we added the 4x4, larger tires and bumpers, it kind of balanced things out. Adding the black awning and roof rack broke up the large white surface, so I think that helped a lot. However, I still think the benefits of the high top overcome these negatives.

New top


Added 4X4, bumpers and tires


Awning and roof rack



There were a few small fit and finish things that were a little annoying, but not too difficult to fix.

There have been a few issues that I still need address. The remote control only works intermittently. I replaced the battery, but still have the issue. Also, one side goes up and down faster than the other. There is a 4-5 seconds lag between the two sides. I don’t know if this causes a problem or not, but it seems like they should go up and down together

The CCV customer service is really lacking. They are slow or nonexistent in their responses. I still haven’t heard back from them regarding the remote control issue (I need to follow up again). When we arrived to pick up the van, there were not ready, and we had to wait 3-4 hours to pick up the van.



But again, overall we are happy with the top. At the time it was the best option for us.


I live is Lehi, just south of SLC. PM me and we can connect so you can take a look at the van and CCV top. We had a forum member allow us to look at his CCV top before we pulled the trigger. Nothing beats a hands on look.


>> Corey

[cthayn]

Wesbasto 2000 STC Heater Installation

I installed the heater a couple of months ago, but I haven’t had a chance to write it up.

I went with Wesbasto gasoline powered heater so I didn’t have to add a second fuel source. It seems that the diesel version is a bit cheaper and maybe a little more reliable, but there were mixed reviews on that.

I decided to put the heater in the cabinet under the fridge, just inboard from the wheel wells. It was not an ideal location, but the best location considering the trade offs. I know the heat will rise to the fridge, but I figure we will only run the heater when its cold, so hopefully there will not be much a negative efficiency with the fridge from having the heater below. I added a layer of rigid foam insulation in the cabinet above the heater to help insulate the fridge.

Finished installation

Attachment 27574

In this location the warm air outlet is in the isle, and the cold air intake is at the back of the cabinets, behind the sofa.

This location put the under-van exhaust and fuel input just inboard of the van frame and aft of the fuel tank. This should be a fairly protected, but allows access for the installation.


The first step was to cut a 4” hole in the plywood floor and insulation. From there I cut a 3-3/4” concentric hole in the metal van floor. I painted the cut edges to eliminate the risk of rust. I used a piece of ABS pipe to “line” the hole through the plywood floor, down to the metal floor. I used silicone to seal around the pipe at the floor, below the van, to make it air tight and weather tight.




I couldn’t find the proper sized metal pipe, but since the working temperature of ABS is just above the exhaust temperature of gasoline, so I think it should be okay. I also smeared an ~1/8” layer of silicon on the ABS pipe to add some insulation. I decided, since Wesbasto has a plastic fuel line just 1/2” away from the exhaust, this ABS pipe should be safe.

The heater kit included a square mounting plate. I put the included heater gasket between the heater and the plate, and made a closed-cell foam gasket for the perimeter of the square plate. To make it easier I attached the exhaust, air intake and fuel lines before attaching the mounting plate to the floor



Under the van I routed the exhaust above the frame, through the muffler and build a bracket to hold the end of the exhaust pipe to the pinch weld of the van body.







The cold air intake was easy to terminate just above the fuel tank. I used zip ties to hold everything in place.

The fuel is sourced through a filtered petcock that I installed in the 1/4 npt port in the bottom of the tank. The petcock is a little exposed to damage, but I hope it will be okay. It does extend below the fuel tank, but there is a risk of a rock hitting the petcock and breaking it off. This could leave me stranded with an empty tank. I may change it to the transitional siphon tube in the future.



I also used a QuikFist to mount the fuel pump, rather than the included band clamp. I read that this will dampen the pump cycles and make it a little more quiet.



The electrical install was pretty straightforward. Just connecting 12V power and plug in the control panel.

I then spent a full day trying to start the heater. No matter how many times I tried, it would not start. I used gas filled syringe to prime both sides of the pump, but still no go. I even remove the pump and placed it below the fuel tank so it was a gravity feed, and still no fuel from the output of the pump. It was pretty frustrating because we had a camping trip planned in southern Utah and my wife was excited to have heat for the cold mornings. But no matter what I did, no fuel would flow through the pump. Well we went camping and had to use our Buddy heater in the mornings.

I went back a forth with Heatso a few times, but nothing would help. Finally I removed the pump from the van and did some bench-top testing. I still could not get the pump to move fuel through. In desperation, I back pressured the pump and then noticed a piece of yellow plastic in the intake fuel port. When the pump is shipped, they place yellow caps on each of the fuel ports. It appears that the cap was impacted and the impact cored a piece of the plastic cap, with the cored piece tightly fitting in the fuel intake port. This completely blocked the fuel from passing through to the pump. I used a dental pick to grab the plastic piece out of the port. After reinstalling the pump, the heater fired up on the first try.

Since installing the heater I have not had a chance to use it further. I have taken out the temporary electrical system so I can build the cabinets. Once I have the heater back in the van, I will pass on how well it works.

[86Scotty]

Good looking install and great idea on the Quick Fist!

[shadetreevanman]

Haha, sounds like my first camping trip with my recently installed chinese heater. Wound up using the Mr Buddy on that trip, and now that the heater truly works, we probably won't need heat until next winter.

I can't tell from the pics, but is your exhaust downhill all the way to the tip? Condensation will need to have a place to drain. Any low spots could potentially rust prematurely unless a drain is provided.

[cthayn]

I have the tubing sloping down to the exit, but I was wondering about the exhaust muffler. It seems like it would just collect water from condensation. There is no way to have it drain.

Anyone have an idea if this is an issue? Does the muffler stay hot enough to keep the water from condensing?

[shadetreevanman]

Originally Posted by cthayn

...I was wondering about the exhaust muffler. It seems like it would just collect water from condensation. There is no way to have it drain....

My muffler looks just like yours. I haven't looked but I've read there is a small drain hole on one side of it. I'm planning on rerouting mine to the drivers side, currently on passenger, and will make sure mine is oriented properly. If there is no hole, I don't suppose adding a small one would hurt. EDIT: actually, I think yours is oriented properly. Looking at the picture there looks to be a small hole right on the seam.

[marret]

Well done and agree on the QuickFist.

What made you decide on the Webasto instead of Espar?

Thanks.