Ford Cutaway 4x4 With Full Height Hardtop Prototype Planned

[Steve_382]

Originally Posted by carringb

The Fuso is DRW too. Until you convert it.

I wonder if the F450 and F550 used on Earth Roamers are DRW. I looked at the Ford site, but couldn't tell if you could order it with a super single rear wheel setup.

[Steve_382]

Originally Posted by Steve_382

I wonder if the F450 and F550 used on Earth Roamers are DRW. I looked at the Ford site, but couldn't tell if you could order it with a super single rear wheel setup.

Looks like it won't let you select single rear wheel on the F550 at Ford. Guess ER must be doing the swap out.

[Steve_382]

Looks like they buy them with DRW.


Edit: My picture didn't post well, so I just deleted it.

[TomH]

F450, 550, 650, 750 all come as DRW. ER builds XV-LT/XV-LTS on F550 and their new monster XV-HD on F750. Tiger builds the Siberian on F550. I think GEV builds UXV and Turtle on F550. All of these get converted to SRW. They buy the 550 & 750 because they're larger & more heavy duty, including suspension & brakes.

Re. the E series though, I don't know if the E450 is any more heavy duty than the E350. Maybe it is, but if the only difference is SRW vs. DRW, it would be simpler just to build on the E350 to start with.

[SteelheadJones]

Originally Posted by TomH

I put a $2k deposit on a Classic today.

I had to look up what a Classic was.

2015 Sportsmobile Ford E-Series Classic

Wow, cool.

Four inches of interior increase for a couple on her hips? I'd take that trade in a minute. I bet huge demand until the cutaway goes away.

I'd love to buy a blank of that cabin. Does anyone know if it's possible?

[Flux]

From what i understand on the E-Series cutaway, it's 350 up to 10,000 GVRW then it goes dually. The beauty is that the 350 has no RSC to janky it up and comes with a full floater. Then there are different wheel bases after the 138 and they are all dually.

That picture of the classic fiberglass body is pretty telling. I really appreciate SMB's want to keep the style alive. To me, few rigs are as awesome as a decked out E350 in all it's glory. It's the the look that wouldn't leave me alone until I figured out a way to make one happen for me. I can't possibly understand Ford's decision to kill off the E-series van, all I know is that I don't see 1/10th of the Transits that I do MB sprinters. When I bought my van, the guy told me that contractors were coming in and paying cash for a dozen used vans at a time. I doubt they ever drop the cutaway, but I sure would like to see even a cargo make a return to the market.

[SteelheadJones]

Originally Posted by Flux

I can't possibly understand Ford's decision to kill off the E-series van... I doubt they ever drop the cutaway, but I sure would like to see even a cargo make a return to the market.

I'm totally with you Flux. It seems like a boneheaded move, especially considering the E-series was the most popular van in America. I keep expecting them to announce they made a mistake and are bringing it back.

But I was talking to MG last week and he said even the cutaway goes away in 2019. I saw a few sources online that agree, including Wikipedia and PickUpTrucks.com.

Sigh. So much for listening to the customer...

[carringb]

Yeah, the cutaway isn't going away anytime soon.

As for thr Transit.... It's a fine van, and people who own then love them. It drive like a car, and has way more space. It just doesn't have the brute strength of the econoline. But the sales speak for themselves. Of course, the econoline is still #3! What Ford really needs to do is offer a Transit tall van body on the econoline frame.

[Flux]

Wow! Those are some crazy numbers. I should probably go drive a transit just to check it out. I just seem to see a lot of Sprinters in my neck of the desert, but it could be me just noticing them more. Still tons and tons of E series cargos on the road every place I look.

Glad that the cutaway sales are strong. give me time to formulate my master plan.

[TomH]

I got a reply today from Brian. The cutaway with the tall hard roof and vertical sides will fully mate to the cabin to create one single space, just like the classic does, no crawl through, no safety wall, no door. The differences will be the full height fixed roof, walls that are plumb (completely vertical), and (this is my own guess) doors that are more typical of motorhomes rather than stock Ford van doors.

In spite of their market share, Ford abandoned the Econoline based on projected future market share. They are pretty confident that other unibody vehicles would eventually have eaten away their market share. They felt they were being proactive by moving to the Transit. The, cutaway, however, has its own market with larger Class C motorhomes, heavy duty ambulances, etc. Sprinter has a cutaway too, but it has to use a frame, so the unibody advantage is lost.