Motovan===2000 Ford E350 ex-wheelchair van converted to moto hauler

[Petrolburner]

I sold my 2003 Toyota Tundra in order to get a van that I could keep dirtbikes and riding gear secure and dry inside at all times. Outside of the fire season, my hours at work are very flexible. Sometimes I'm sitting at my desk and I get tired of browsing GRM. I wanted to be be able to say berkeley it, I'm going riding, with minimal load up and hit the road effort. I entertained the idea of 10' box vans, ambulances, short buses, conversion vans, and wheelchair vans. My list of requirements was cruise control, power windows and locks, and a higher than standard top. I really wanted tall rear doors so it would be easy to load and unload my taller bikes without having use a ratchet strap to compress the front suspension. This would also serve as my non-Corvette weather daily driver. This thread covered most of my thoughts and how I ended up with a wheelchair van as the best compromise. http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/grm/learn-me-10ft-box-trucks/95689/page1/

I probably paid too much, $8250, but this van was in really great shape, 137k miles, from California so no rust underneath, had the required cruise control, power windows and locks, rear heat and air conditioning, a 6'2" inside height (I'm 5'8" so I can stand and move around inside easily, tall rear doors, rubber floor, steel roll cage inside the fiberglass top, better aerodynamics than a bus or box truck, 5.4l gas V8 (didn't really want a diesel), extended length which makes it long enough to keep a bench seat between the bikes and front seats, and it was a one ton which meant it had great disk brakes and the capacity to carry everything. The additional cubic feet of space and airflow with the rear fan makes gasoline fumes in the cabin a non issue. Even with my trials bike and a leaky petcock I don't smell any gasoline fumes inside. Bonus, it came from a retirement home so it had a bunch of service records on the carfax, although I don't know what was actually done. Since it was made for old folks, it has a nifty automatic retractable step and courtesy light for the passenger side double doors, and a solidly mounted steel hand rail on the right side of the entryway. How about some photos?

Inaugural moto trip to Tillamook State Forest

Comparison shot with my temporary van, a '97 E150 standard length

I wouldn't mind one of these if I could afford it.

Shelf for helmets, hats, gloves, rifles etc.

 

[Petrolburner]

It came with decent highway tires with about 40% tread remaining. I got stuck the first time I parked at a friend's house in his unpaved overflow parking area covered in packed snow. Needs meaty treads. Should I go with mud tires? I hate getting stuck. 4WD conversion costs way too much and requires a 4" lift minimum. I'll go with mud tires. Do I want mud tires on the front? All they do is steer and brake, do I really want the extra hum from the aggressive tread up front where my ears are? How about I go Baja truck style with mud tires on the drive wheels and all terrains on the steer wheels? Treadwright Guard Dogs with Kedge Grip. https://www.treadwright.com/individual-product/159/GUARD DOG-245-75R16-E

I had those same style tires on my Tundra and really loved them. They wore well and handled snow and ice very well for a tire with tread blocks that big. They were also on super sale with free shipping so I had all 4 sitting in my living room for $480. Paid a local shop $50 to mount and balance. One of the higway tires had way more tread than the other 3, so I kept it to be mounted for a spare and sold the other 3 tires for $20 on craigslist. Picked up a junkyard steel wheel for $14. Since the wheelchair lift was mounted where the spare tire normally is, I didn't have a spare, or the mechanism to store it.

 

[Petrolburner]

That's much better.

 

[gtbensley]

Nice setup!

 

[T.Low]

So I scrolls down the first couple a pics on the first page, and I sees a guy in a Green Bay Packer jacket going ridin at Tillamook: Anyone else see a pattern here? :bike_rider:





Cheese Head!

 

[why3zx]

the mis-matched tires make my head wanna explode and my eyes bleed. You're going to kill an ocd car guy, haha

 

[Petrolburner]

the mis-matched tires make my head wanna explode and my eyes bleed. You're going to kill an ocd car guy, haha

Keep in mind that they're sort of like a BFGoodrich pattern on Michelin cases! Ahhh!

 

[Petrolburner]

Cheese Head!

Born & raised!

 

[T.Low]

Born & raised!

My first memory in life is Bart Starr down the sideline to Boyd Dowler.

 

[Bikersmurf]

Pss... BFG is owned by Michelin...

 

[Petrolburner]

She says, "It's actually not as terrible to drive as I thought it would be!" :smiley_drive:

 

[Petrolburner]

Wow that lift is heavy! Almost 400 pounds I'd say. I had to disassemble it into chunks just so I could move it. Nobody buys these things once they're out of the van, especially not one like mine. This was a pretty invasive install. Although if I were to have one, I'd want one like this that is completely outside of the passenger compartment when stored, no wasted space. Anyway, now I've got some good thick sheets of aluminum and a bunch of steel to sell for scrap.

I needed to get a hitch on this thing ASAP so I can haul my Aliner. Picked up a hitch from a junkyard for $50, mounted it with some grade 8 hardware and wasn't real happy with how far it hung down. It was made to clear the regular bumper. Well my bumper had a big notch cut out. Now I need a new rear bumper so it doesn't look so goofy, something with a step would be nice too. Or wait, what if I flip the receiver hitch upside down...

BAM!!

A perfect fit! What are the chances of that? This is a big deal because with the extended length van, the departure angle sucks. With a low hanging hitch it sucks even more! I'm happy it's tucked way up inside the frame rails. Bonus, I don't feel like I have to spend additional $$$ on a new rear bumper.

 

[Petrolburner]

Van developed a stutter on the drive home. It was the worst at low rpm in high gear. Got a #5 misfire code. I figured it was a bad coil since these modular motors have a reputation for eating coils. Threw the new one in and went for a drive, no change. Ok lets change the spark plug. No change. Ok let's change all the plugs. No change. Fuel filter is cheap, let's try that. Bingo! Yay that was a fun knuckle buster changing all the plugs. Needed to be done though, they were in pretty rough shape.

Just did a highway trip through some really gnarly winds and got 15.2 MPG. Not bad, but I was hoping for better. I drove down a muddy road and was pretty impressed with the traction. Front tire piles up a ton of mud on that retractable step though. I may have to make a shield to remedy that. Also, rear axle might have some sort of LSD in it.

 

[philos]

My dad is a retired form-die builder and operator... he used to make some of the bits for Ricon's lifts back in the late 80s/early 90s, he's said for years that dealing with Ricon was one of the biggest reasons for him closing his shop and leaving LA. Thanks for that trip down memory lane!!!

 

[Petrolburner]

My dad is a retired form-die builder and operator... he used to make some of the bits for Ricon's lifts back in the late 80s/early 90s, he's said for years that dealing with Ricon was one of the biggest reasons for him closing his shop and leaving LA. Thanks for that trip down memory lane!!!

I could not believe how hard it was to disassemble that POS. So many different fastener sizes, and so many with uncaptured nuts on the inside, which were inaccessible. I just kept removing fasteners and still couldn't get it apart. You would think it would be made so you could remove the skin and get at the innards, but instead you had to extend it, disassemble the innards, and then you could get at the skin. Sort of like field dressing a deer I suppose. I have some really nice sheets of thick aluminum though. I'm thinking about making some skid panels/underbody aerodynamic plates for the van to help out the mileage.