Why you NEED a cabover truck

[Flys Lo]

The simple reason not to drop an NPR or Fuso cab onto a diesel american pickup is simple: It would be a step backward. Domestic trucks are garbage.

I've owned all of the above. I'd disagree. Best of luck with your truck :wavey:

 

[LukeH]

...... Domestic trucks are garbage. You could not give me a domestic 3/4 ton or 1 ton pickup unless it was to sell for parts or scrap.
....Long rant...

Gosh I'm sorry I got you so worked up.
Very interesting to learn your opinion of what you have available over there; I had no idea they had gone downhill that badly. In France even the modern stuff is portrayed as indestructible, reliable and exotic (a friend sold her Suburban for almost twice what it was worth in the States - shipped free as part of the work contract).
Funny thing is the Jap and Korean small cars here are much much better than anything the french motor industry can cough up (the french don't know how to make big ones-they're just incapable).
So the Orient wins on reliability; however you did identify Dana axles, Allison gearbox and the Cummins motor as good things to come out of the American motor industry; is there not a platform that already combines all of these good elements onto which a Jap cab could be grafted?
I can see how homebuilt is an attractive idea, if you have the skills.
Do the big US products have open or closed section chassis? Open section chassis are astonishingly twisty. So much so that you can articulate like a 4-point on simple leaf springs, but it does make the vehicle feel "loose" compared to a closed section chassis.

*more virtual beer here please!*
The Rally Fighter Open Source design project actually produced a fun vehicle; I wonder if there's a market for an open source forward control daily drive adventure vehicle.
The size and configuration of the Tatra 805 is actually pretty good too. Bigger than the tiny Pinzgauer, (which is a direct copy of the T805) a modern version would be a good size to play with - about the same width as a Fuso.
The land rover 101 is also very obsolete now, but again almost as big, and has been popular in the past for its FC position.
So, years ago there WAS a market for medium sized FC go-anywhere vehicles; where's everyone gone?

There seem to be a few here

 

[mhiscox]

. . . so your "domestic" truck was built by amigos making two dollars a day and living in a shack.

I know you're a man who doesn't like facts and data to stand in your way, but that comment is wrong and easily perceived as racist. Mexican auto workers average $26/day.

Think about reining in your rants a bit. No harm will result from posting opinions that have more credibility.

 

[DzlToy]

I know you're a man who doesn't like facts and data to stand in your way, but that comment is wrong and easily perceived as racist. Mexican auto workers average $26/day.

Think about reining in your rants a bit. No harm will result from posting opinions that have more credibility.

Racism: the belief that ALL members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race, so as to distinguish it as INFERIOR to another race.

Mike, that has absolutely nothing to do with my comment.

A "domestic" truck built in Mexico, or any other country for that matter, is not a domestic truck. Mexican auto workers, according to you post, earn in one DAY, less than what many American Union auto workers earn in one HOUR.

Domestic: existing or occurring inside a particular country; not foreign or international. Mexico is foreign to the United States.

If I know five people who have BMW Mini Coopers and all 4 of 5 them complain how unreliable and troublesome the car is, I dont need to own one myself in order to "experience" unreliability personally. I take their experience and say "dont buy a Mini."

Toyota/Lexus and Honda/Acura are "mysteriously" absent from a list, dominated by "domestic" car makers, hmmmmmm......

http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2013/10/29/consumer-reports-worst-cars/3304413/

Why again, should I "gamble" 50-60 grand into a Ford or a Dodge? This is not a new trend....

My comments are all supported by facts, as you can see.

End of rant and discussion. Point missed by all but a perceptive few. Apologies to others for getting off track and sharing opinions regarding quality of vehicles. I believe I may have ruffled some feathers.

Have a :beer: on me.

 

[pugslyyy]

Sounds like a great project.
I had almost those same plans until I found my creampuff FG (<50k miles, used by a little old lady to deliver furniture in a Colorado ski town).
Once you get away from the 4x4 cabover trucks, very good deals can be found.
I had already bought an '86 Iveco (<140k miles, parabolic springs, 6mm frame, spare engine) with the same type back as in your photo to use as my starting point .

View attachment 195947

FYI (for sale $1,200)
NP205 divorced transfercase $400

That Iveco is a great looking little truck.

 

[mog]

That Iveco is a great looking little truck.

Thanks,
Don't get me wrong I love my Fuso, but Iveco kicksa** over Mitsubishi IMO.
I sure wish we could have gotten (or get) the 4x4 version of them over here. Factory 6mm straight frame with wider channels, parabolic springs !, a much-much stouter truck.
I think the new 4x4 Daily ( Daily 4x4 UK site ) would be a killer start for an Expo-vehicle.
But then again, the grass is always greener. :ylsmoke:
I want this

 

[mhiscox]

Yeah, I suppose that could work.

 

[pugslyyy]

View attachment 196720

Yeah, I suppose that could work.

That's either a popcorn popper or a really large coffee percolator in the bonnet.

 

[mog]

That's either a popcorn popper or a really large coffee percolator in the bonnet.

Ahh... come on. That is the engine driven expresso machine (option # Ex342/1). Those Italians think of everything.