FG 437E Mitsubishi Canter (FUSO)

[39Ronin]

Hello everyone! I am new to the forum and I have been following the Hackney's FG build. I recently purchased a FG 437E from Japan (RHD) with 2350 KM`s. It was a goverment owned Japan Disaster Relief vehicle, I guess it was in an area that it didn`t have any disasters expalining the low KM`s. I intend to camperize it aswell. Check it out, I can`t find alot of info but it has the 4D33 engine. Let me know your opinions if it will make a good Expedtion Camper platform? I will make mods to the box height of course!

 

[Grim Reaper]

I like it. The narrow box is nice. It doesnt dwarf the cab so bad. Don't see that here in the states.

So are you going to do some sort of pop up top to the box? Maybe something like the Vixen http://stannerair.hypermart.net/1986vixen.htm

I really like how low it is for travel and with that lift gate on it it sure would be easy to but some sort of rack on the back roof for gear.

 

[Scott Brady]

Great rig and very low km's

What is the height of the box? I would be inclined to only raise the rear 2/3rds for headroom and leave the front third for the bed. Then you could install a rack on the first third and have the overall height be the same for the whole box.

 

[39Ronin]

I like it. The narrow box is nice. It doesnt dwarf the cab so bad. Don't see that here in the states.

So are you going to do some sort of pop up top to the box? Maybe something like the Vixen http://stannerair.hypermart.net/1986vixen.htm

I really like how low it is for travel and with that lift gate on it it sure would be easy to but some sort of rack on the back roof for gear.

I was thinking more along the lines of hard shell slide up style. I think Unicat made a few MAN boxes that way, low profile for driving and then full stand up height when parked and in camping mode. I will go roll cage and roof rack on the cab for sure. I want it to look like the one below. They had one that had a slide up box but there site went down before I could save a picture of it, it was awesome! The slide up top allowed a loft for sleeping.

 

[39Ronin]

Great rig and very low km's

What is the height of the box? I would be inclined to only raise the rear 2/3rds for headroom and leave the front third for the bed. Then you could install a rack on the first third and have the overall height be the same for the whole box.

That also seems like a good idea, depending on cost of the slide up style this may be a more afforadable and good idea. This would eliminate the use of the rear doors. The current box is 1.2 meters high. I guess I have lots to think about... It will arrive on Canadian soil at the end of this month. Can't wait!:smiley_drive:

 

[Grim Reaper]

Yeah Unicat made a lot of boxes like that. I loved looking at their site. it was top of the line stuff for sure!

I didn't hear what was up with them. Did they close?

 

[39Ronin]

Filed Bankrupt from what I heard, too bad I loved their stuff! I wonder if someone or another company will pick it up where they left off?

 

[dhackney]

What a fantastic base to build on. Congrats on a great find.

Add my vote to the hard shell slide up style. It will allow you to ship by container if desired/required.

And keep that lift on the back. You'll need it to lift the dirt bikes up into the garage on the rear...

 

[39Ronin]

So it arrived! It is so unbelievable that this rig is 15 years old. My buyer in Japan (mechanic) said that he has never seen a 15 year old vehicle that looked like it was driven off the new car lot untill he saw this Canter. He was right. Now my wheels are turning, where to start? I will try and keep my build more simple than the Hackney build as I don't have the fabrication skills he and his team have. The next few months I will be planning and scheming. I'll keep you posted on my thoughts and look forward to feedback from this forum. Disclaimer: This is not time sensitive project and will not move at fast pace.:victory:

 

[dhackney]

What an amazing find. Congrats again. What a wonderful canvas to paint your dreams on.

This is not time sensitive project and will not move at fast pace.:victory:

This could be your greatest asset. We're living the opposite of that and it's not as enjoyable as it could be if we had time to research things more extensively.

One good starting point might be to weigh each corner of the vehicle as it sits so you know what your baseline weight, balance and distribution situation will be.

 

[oonimog]

Very nice truck, it's so clean. I'm currently building a hard-sided slide up camper. I'm located in Langley and would be interested in seeing your truck in person sometime. Also, in case you haven't noticed yet, the Unicat site is back up.

Regards

 

[39Ronin]

Very nice truck, it's so clean. I'm currently building a hard-sided slide up camper. I'm located in Langley and would be interested in seeing your truck in person sometime. Also, in case you haven't noticed yet, the Unicat site is back up.

Regards

I take it by the name you have choosen that your platform will be the Unimog. I would love to drive out to see what you have come up with for a slide up camper box.

 

[jgolden]

I like the slideup hardside idea....Any progress pics?