Ford Transit Cab Chassis with Composite Camper

[Victorian]

What an awesome build! I've read and re-read this and did a search and I don't think that you mentioned what wheelbase your Transit is. Please let us know. I have been considering moving our Hallmark Flatbed pop up camper to a different chassis and thought the Transit cab chassis (not the cutaway) might be a good solution. Our roof length is about 13' so very similar to your box length. Having a nice flat and stiff chassis is a huge plus but I would still need a flatbed since the camper floor needs support and I like being able to remove the camper and use the flatbed for hauling.

thank you for your kind words. The 158” wb transit is indeed a very nice vehicle. It drives like a car. Fuel economy is slightly better than a Jeep ?. You certainly Need a flatbed for your pop up.
there are two things I don’t like in comparison to our previous vehicle ( 2001 sprinter 4x4 cab chassis) : the turning radius and ground clearance.

 

[Buckstopper]

HAHA - The Fuso has the turning radius of a jeep but fuel economy...not so much. There are always trade-offs. One of the reasons we are considering this move is to lower the climb into both the cab and the camper. To keep the flatbed height as low as possible we would want to cut a fender into the flatbed similar to what you did in your shell. Can you tell me how much you allowed for larger tires and suspension travel? Mitsubishi/Fuso published a great upfitters guide that has all this info but I haven't been able to find a similar source from Ford.

Here's a crude concept of what I am thinking. Scale is very approximate but the roof on the camper is 13-'6" and the height of the camper with the top down is almost exactly the same as the frame to cab top of the transit so it would be taller than the the cab by the thickness of the flatbed which is dependent on the allowance for the wheel well. The other option is a lift and what I am finding on the market assuming that a Transit van lift would work on the cab chassis is 2" which would help the clearance by allowing taller tires...but defeats the keep the climb height down goal. Trade-offs!

This photo is a cut and paste from the Fuso so tire size of the spare behind the cab is significantly bigger that the transit. Since the Transit spare fits in the frame I wouldn't need to put the spare behind the cab. I would move the tunnel box directly behind the cab and make the bike garage (the teak doors) bigger. I sure like that nice stiff flat frame as a foundation to build on.





ps. Some eagle eyed reader will notice that this photo is of the left side of the camper and the right side of a Transit. I'm 300 miles away from my truck while I am contemplating this so I grabbed what I had on my laptop and flipped it. Cut me some slack.

I'll move this to a new thread if I move forward with this so I don't hijack yours. Thanks for your help with info on the Transit. Congrats on your great build!

Buckstopper

 

[Victorian]

We had our open house last week and seen our old Sprinter for the first time in a year. After the open house we joined our customers for a quick overnighter. Fun times!

 

[Victorian]

Spend the long weekend on Vancouver Island. Took the Transit onto a rough logging road for the first time. WOW! Can't believe how smooth and quiet that truck drove over corrugated gravel. Our Sprinter on the other hand was very rough and not fun with all the rattling and hard suspension. In other words, the Transit is turning out to be a very comfortable travel machine.

Cheers

 

[Jonnyo]

Spend the long weekend on Vancouver Island. Took the Transit onto a rough logging road for the first time. WOW! Can't believe how smooth and quiet that truck drove over corrugated gravel. Our Sprinter on the other hand was very rough and not fun with all the rattling and hard suspension. In other words, the Transit is turning out to be a very comfortable travel machine.

Cheers

what kind of fuel economy do you return with the transit? l/100km?

 

[Victorian]

what kind of fuel economy do you return with the transit? l/100km?

We rarely leave our Island... This means a lot of stop and go traffic and moderate speeds with hills... The consumption is on average between 15 and 16L/100km . We had the same with our Jeep years ago. Therefore I'm pretty happy with this.

 

[andy_b]

I'm really enjoying watching this come together.

Could you go into more detail regarding the wet-bath build? Dimensions, what you're using for the shower pan, etc?

Thanks!

 

[Victorian]

I'm really enjoying watching this come together.

Could you go into more detail regarding the wet-bath build? Dimensions, what you're using for the shower pan, etc?

Thanks!

Sure. The wetbath was constructed with our 30mm/1" FRP sandwich panels. Together with our PU adhesive it created a sealed and water proof room. We use the camper floor as our shower pan. Simply installed a couple of drains.

 

[andy_b]

Sure. The wetbath was constructed with our 30mm/1" FRP sandwich panels. Together with our PU adhesive it created a sealed and water proof room. We use the camper floor as our shower pan. Simply installed a couple of drains.

What are the approximate exterior dimensions of the bathroom?

You're using a composting toilet, correct? Do you anticipate any issues with the wetbath aspect? I heard that they don't like that kind of environment and need to be in some sort of enclosure or something?

One last question - do all TC bathroom doors come with that sweet infographic?

 

[Victorian]

What are the approximate exterior dimensions of the bathroom?

You're using a composting toilet, correct? Do you anticipate any issues with the wetbath aspect? I heard that they don't like that kind of environment and need to be in some sort of enclosure or something?

One last question - do all TC bathroom doors come with that sweet infographic?

LOl, we can get you the same graphic if you like
For taking a shower, we are setting up a curtain that covers the door and the natures head. I'm not expecting any issues.
Interior size: 37" deep 28" wide 79" tall

 

[Victorian]

Getting good use of our camper.

 

[Craig_C]

Great build, and thanks for all the posts. A few questions. Where is the shower head and plumbing for/in the wet bath? I don’t see it in any of the pictures. What kind of price jump would we be talking about to make the cab over an adult size for two (Queen or king) bed and increase the interior width to around 7.5 feet? I’m not worried about a quick turn around time. Really, I’m just wondering if there is some sort of fee for a custom job. If so I would be up for using someone else’s if it was close enough. I’m waiting hoping the duty comes down. Also, I could see having you guys help build/install the box. I imagine the saving in freight to Michigan would make it worth it. Keep the pictures coming. Would love to see it in person this summer.

 

[Victorian]

Great build, and thanks for all the posts. A few questions. Where is the shower head and plumbing for/in the wet bath? I don’t see it in any of the pictures. What kind of price jump would we be talking about to make the cab over an adult size for two (Queen or king) bed and increase the interior width to around 7.5 feet? I’m not worried about a quick turn around time. Really, I’m just wondering if there is some sort of fee for a custom job. If so I would be up for using someone else’s if it was close enough. I’m waiting hoping the duty comes down. Also, I could see having you guys help build/install the box. I imagine the saving in freight to Michigan would make it worth it. Keep the pictures coming. Would love to see it in person this summer.

The duty.... I don't believe these will come down any time soon. At least not with the current administration. It's actually pretty interesting to follow peoples reaction when you list every fee and charges in the quotes... Several years ago we offered a full meal deal price. Nobody ever requested or questioned the duty or freight charges. Two years ago we thought it would be beneficial to be more transparent and listed everything separate. That of course got people complaining about certain numbers. Just yesterday, we switched everything around again with all in pricing.
In any case, don't think too much about the duty and freight fees... See it as a whole package. You will quickly see that we are still way more affordable than our competition.

To answer your question about a bigger box. We can of course get you a custom camper body. Just send us an email through our website and we will get you the documents to calculate everything. Please keep in mind: with increased dimensions comes weight! The body ads more, you are able to ad more cabinetry, water, gear.... It can happen fast to be overloaded! Our vehicle is still ~1000lb below max weight in travel mode (wet,3 people and gear).

 

[Victorian]

Forgot to answer the shower question:
We believe in keeping things simple and universal. Therefore we are using a nemo shower. Loving it! We mostly setting it up outside to do dishes and ribs our little one at the end of the day.

 

[RAM5500 CAMPERTHING]

That of course got people complaining about certain numbers. Just yesterday, we switched everything around again with all in pricing.
In any case, don't think too much about the duty and freight fees... See it as a whole package. You will quickly see that we are still way more affordable than our competition.

I was one of those complaining about certain fees at first...

But then, when I added everything up, it was still thousands less than my FWC, that I was mostly unhappy with since the day I bought it.

All in all, so far TC has far exceeded my expectations for the price point with both quality and customer service.

Final verdict soon, once I’m finished