Expedition 4x4 camper

haven

Expedition Leader
1990 Born Free, a highly regarded manufacturer, on E250 chassis with Quigley 4x4 from E350, 351 v8, 90k miles. The engine and 4x4 conversion are very recent, kind of a Frankenstein project. Located near Victorville, CA
$19,000 or best offer.

Ad says

Recently restored and converted to 4x4 with front axle and suspension from a Ford E350 Quigley. Rare, one-of-a-kind sportsmobile expedition vehicle. Very nice interior - in very good condition for its age. You wouldn't find a more complete compact RV, the only thing missing is the spa.

Features (all working, except as noted):

Original production RV by Born Free, built in 1990 on Ford E250 Chassis; Fiberglass body bonded on cutoff E250 metal body; 19 feet long, shorter than many pickup trucks, easy to drive and park; All power windows, door locks, and steering; Cold dash A/C system, re-sealed, new receiver-drier; Hot dash/foot heating; Solid oak console, between the seats (portable).

Ford 5.8L / 351W EFI V8 engine, rebuilt with less than 1000 miles; 81K miles when converted; less than 500 miles after conversion; New Engine Control Unit (ECU); Front Dana 60 axle, Full-floating Rear Dana 60, 4.10 gearing; E4OD 4x4 Automatic overdrive, BW-1356 Electronic Shift on Fly (ESOF) Shift Control Unit and 4x4 Switch - from 1996 Bronco; Less than 1000 miles on rebuilt transmission; Ford manual locking hubs; New huge (Ford 6.0) transmission cooler, with Autometer gauge; New engine oil cooler; All fluids flushed / changed; New dual batteries; Dual fuel tanks (18gal mid-tank, 22gal Rear), drained and cleaned; All new - 2 in-tank, 1 in-line fuel pumps; Fuel tank selector valve/switch - currently bypassed for rear tank operation only; New Fuel Pressure Regulator; New MSD Distributor Cap and Rotor; New MSD high-energy Ignition Coil; New MSD Ford Racing 9mm Spark Plug Wires, New Spark Plugs.

Front spoiler; 19.5 "Budd" brand wheels with 225/70/R19.5 tires; New set of custom-valved Fox 2.0 shocks and steering stabilizer from Agile Offroad; New front coil springs; Front anti-sway bar; Disc brakes - front and rear; New rear leaf spring packs; Rear anti-sway bar; New rear panhard / track bar; New rear wheel spacers to match front track; Spare wheel and tire in rear-mounted carrier; the tire needs replacing.

RV amenities -

6-ft interior stand up height;Solid oak wall cabinetry; Solid oak drawers and cabinets around kitchen base, with slideout cutting board; 2 Flexsteel captain's chairs - need re-upholstery; Carpet flooring, with setup for mobile table; Table top with stand; 1 sofa-bed, folds out, sleeps 2; 1 kiddie bed, over-the-cab slideout, solid oak frame, with large window sunroof; Extra large window by the sofa-bed, with solid oak surround; Dual-layer pleated window blinds, 1 opaque and 1 translucent layer with separate controls; Solid oak storage cabinets under sofa-bed.

Sony HT-ST9 800W 7.1ch 45-inch Soundbar mounted in compartment over the sunvisors; Bluetooth, Screen Mirroring, USB host enabled, with connectivity to HDMI display; Sony wireless 200W subwoofer; 12V and USB (5V) power receptacles; 115V power receptacles.

Side house door; Automatic Kwikee electric step (currently manual - door magnet sensor needs replacing); RV monitor station (battery monitor, water / waste tank level, propane level all working); Carbon monoxide alarm; 3000W Xantrex Prosine Inverter-Charger with wired remote monitoring and control; 30A RV shore power cord;12V lighting inside RV. 13500-btu Roof Air Conditioner; 12V Fantastic Vent, air intake or exhaust control fan.

Stainless steel kitchen sink, with faucet; 2-burner propane stove, with over the range exhaust fan; Small GE Microwave oven; Dometic 2-way (electric/propane) refrigerator, newly serviced; Propane heater furnace, newly serviced; 6-gal propane water heater; Rear Stand up shower enclosure; Rear Thetford water-flushing toilet; Bathroom exhaust fan; Rear closets hanger pole, towel linen rack; Rear window, with dual-layer blind and emergency exit; 9.5 gallon propane tank 30 gallon water tank, with on-demand electric pump; 20 gallon waste tank.
 

ezzpete

Observer
I posted that when it first showed up on CL. E mailed the guy 2 times and no response. It looks like there is rust along the top of the windshield, and something looks funny about where the top meets the van body on the passenger side of the windshield, top corner. I asked about those spots in the email, which is probably why no response.
 

adam88

Explorer
Just a community warning to everyone - Almost all of these 90's vans are being sold by "flippers". Basically, there are professional flippers that sit on craigslist all day long and have "alerts" set. They wait for the little old lady's who just lost their husband to list the "van in the garage" for sale. As soon as the post goes up, they phone, come by, lowball the old woman and give her cash and drive off. Then they post it for sale without doing anything to it for 3x the price as if it is god's gift to the expedition world. I would suspect whoever bought this probably paid about $6,000 for it. When you are looking to buy one of these, ask them how long they have owned it and ask to see proof. If they have owned it less than 3 months, then they are just trying to flip it and you should walk away and not support that kind of BS.
 

adam88

Explorer
I posted that when it first showed up on CL. E mailed the guy 2 times and no response. It looks like there is rust along the top of the windshield, and something looks funny about where the top meets the van body on the passenger side of the windshield, top corner. I asked about those spots in the email, which is probably why no response.

Exactly. He is looking for a sucker. You aren't a sucker. Try e-mailing him again with another email and say something like:
.
"Hi there!!! I love your van so much. My dumb wife and I are looking for a westfalia, is this pretty close??? Does it have 4x4? Would it be good in the snow?"
.
Then you'll get a reply. He will smell dumbness and money.
 

Jdubucsd

Addicted to Espresso
I also saw this. Im in San Diego. I always like seeing whats out there for sale.

Yes even look at the tires...other points mentioned above. I dont know if he is a flipper lol but 19K is an outrageous price!!
 

LandCruiserPhil

Expedition Leader
Why the flipper hate? One pays what one feels its worth, nobody is twisty their arm. If it is from a "flipper" I say thank you for bringing to everyone attention. The price that one paid is no ones business but the buyer and seller.
 

ezzpete

Observer
Why the flipper hate? One pays what one feels its worth, nobody is twisty their arm. If it is from a "flipper" I say thank you for bringing to everyone attention. The price that one paid is no ones business but the buyer and seller.

I agree with that, as long as they are honest about it. I don't think it's that easy to find old ladies to buy from anyway. I watch the adds really close hoping to get that one great deal. So far most "deals" are far from me.
 

adam88

Explorer
Why the flipper hate? One pays what one feels its worth, nobody is twisty their arm. If it is from a "flipper" I say thank you for bringing to everyone attention. The price that one paid is no ones business but the buyer and seller.

Putting aside the fact that it is not really a nice thing to do... and assume you are a capitalist who doesn't give a crap about anyone else, you just are about money. The first argument I would present to you is ethics. Do you think it is ethical to offer someone a lower price than something is worth, knowing you can sell it for more? You will say yes, that's life. So then... let's present a scenario: I go knocking on doors in the neighbourhood until I find a little old lady. I ask her if she wants to sell her house. She says "no". I say "What did you pay for it?" she says "$5,000 in 1950". I say "I'll give you $50,000 for it!" and she goes "Oh my, okay!". The house is actually worth $1 million dollars. Is what I just did ethical? No??? Then what if she listed it for sale first, instead of me initiating the deal. Let's say her husband died and she posted a "For Sale" sign on her lawn. I offered $50k and she accepts, but I know the house is worth $1 million. Is that ethical? No/yes? Maybe? What if she has early onset dementia? Yes/no?
.
Let's switch it up. What about if someone trusts you. Let me present you with a TRUE scenario that happened. Everything that happened in this is 100% true:
.
An old lady (let's call her "Marge") lost her husband. In their garage was an old classic car that was in rough shape, had some rust, etc. It had been covered with a tarp for 15 years. Marge knew that the car might be worth something, so she phoned her friend, let's call him "Homer".... now, Homer says to her "I don't know much about cars to be honest, but I have a friend named "Bart" who is really smart with cars. He is my best friend. I will send him over and he will take a look and make sure you don't get scammed". So Bart goes over to the old ladys house, sees the car, and immediately knows it is worth at least $5,000 in its current condition. But he turns to the old lady and goes "Gosh Marge, I am sorry but this isn't worth anything. It's in too bad of shape. Maybe just scrap metal prices".... Marge goes "Oh dear."..... then Bart goes "I'll tell what, I can use it for parts probably on some old cars I have. Maybe get you a bit more money. Scrap would only be worth $300, but I will give you $500". Marge says "Oh thank you so much!".
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Is that capitalism at its finest?
.
Now back to this car. Let's say there's no old lady involved or ethical stuff. Well then, I'd present to you the simple argument that these guys are 1) Lying when they sell it. A lot of them say they owned it longer than they have. No one is upfront about it and says "I'm a flipper, I just bought it to make profit". Why? Because they are ashamed? And if you feel shame about something it generally means your ethics are being tested. If what you say is true and there's no problem with flipping then how come people lie about it. 2) This expedition vehicle could be used and enjoyed by someone who actually wants it, this summer. Instead? It will sit in this guys front driveway probably for 3 years as they slowly lower the price until eventually they sell it for $3k above what they paid probably. Who enjoys watching a nice vehicle sit in a front driveway not being used? It would be like an art collector buying a nice painting and then putting it in the basement. Or if I purchased a $50,000 bottle of champagne and used it for washing dishes. Yes it's my money but that doesn't mean I'm not an idiot for doing it.
.
 

ezzpete

Observer
I don't think flippers tell you they have had the vehicle longer than they have because the feel bad, they just want you to think they know the vehicle. It's really common around here. Lot's of car auctions going on and people reselling those cars. It's almost getting hard to find someone selling a car after years of owning it. I've been buying and selling things (not cars/trucks) for years. I'm always up front and tell people I bought this to resell, or even tell the seller. If I offer someone what I think something is worth (to me) as a reseller, and they accept, I really don't see how that is unethical. If they want to get the same as I will be selling it for they are free to go through all the hassle of selling it for more.

If you look through these for sale posting, you should notice that any items are sold by the same people. Are they making profit, or doing' it for the good of the community? If you are honest with your buying and selling both parties win.
 
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