I agree that it's a little too easy to say, "The frame is twisted,
so the vehicle must have been used in a way the manufacturer
did not intend."
My understanding is that Michel's driving is not so much "off-road"
as it is "off-pavement." Many of the secondary roads he travels in
Baja are unpaved and rough. With the exception of the distance
from the road to the places near the beach where Michel sets up
camp, Michel stays on some semblance of road.
The more important issue is how to attach a camper box to the
Fuso FG chassis without increasing the potential for damage to the
frame. Michel's camper had a three point attachment, with the
pivot at the rear. Doug Hackney's Fuso camper also attaches at
three points, with the pivot in the rear. We know that Doug's vehicle
was overweight. We don't know if Michel's vehicle is over the Fuso's
GVWR.
Darrin Fink's Fuso AATREK also has a multi-point mount with the
pivot in the rear. There are no reports of problems with his design.
Darrin's AATREK is right at the Fuso GVWR, if I remember correctly.
Carl Hunter's Fuso has the pivot in the front, and two fixed points
of attachment in the rear, behind the axle. His camper worked fine
during many thousands of miles of rough road travel. Carl's Fuso
was well under the 14,000 lb GVWR.
Bruce Hersey's Fuso has two rigid points of attachment at the rear,
and two airbags at the front. No chassis problems reported, but
fewer miles traveled than the above examples.
Chip Haven
