Fred the Van. The More We Explore's Adventure Van Build Thread

[TRSPR128]

Hi Steve,

I’ve been following your inspiring journey on Youtube and here for a while. I’m from Europe and obviously have not seen an E-350 from less than 3,500 miles away. Not trying to talk you in or out of anything here, but—is there really that much more room in a Transit? Is Fred’s interior at its full potential? Bear with me please.



Looking at the numbers it appears that only the super-long Transit would give you substantially more room than Fred with a high top. Going “off the beaten path” with that booty, even lifted and 4x4ed, might be quite the challenge… would it get any Airstream here?

I believe somewhere you said you’d like to be able to store the bikes with the front wheel on. You probably have seen this van (more pics here). There does not seem to be much headroom left, and not much length either. And climbing a platform that high might prove difficult for not-so-tall people.

On the other hand, with the front wheel off, the typical Outside Van interior might work in a mid/high roof LWB Transit—and, given the similar dimensions, probably just as well in a high-top Fred. Bikes could fit along or across. Or in a rear gear garage like this Sprinter has.

Another interesting approach: Accrete’s former van-and-trailer combo (page 7 and onwards), spreading their living space over the van (bed + bath) and the trailer (kitchen + living). Perhaps you could

• For most of the year, live in a smaller Airstream and use Fred as a bike hauler / office space. Integrating the van into your living space, and not just using it for towing and storage. Or keep your current Airstream.
• When required, transform the van: Pull a modular bed platform, a porta-potty and a collapsible camp kitchen out of some now-unused Airstream storage space, live out of the van, and leave the trailer behind as the storage shed for whatever is temporarily not needed in the van.

A high top and remodeling your fixed (and probably somewhat limiting) interior would be required, yes, but there are many origami-like solutions out there, and it should be much less disruptive than starting over. And you’d end up with something more capable and, IMHO, better looking…

Just my two (Euro)cents.

Saludos from Spain
Thomas

 

[sixstringsteve]

Thanks for your thoughts Thomas, definitely some good wisdom in there. Brian Lopes' sprinter is one of my all-time favorites. LOVE that thing. We'll be doing a build similar to that.

 

[justbecause]

I'll just leave this here

 

[sixstringsteve]

we looked into fiberine heavily, but we ultimately decided to sell. The next buyer can decide if they want to do a pop top, hi top, or leave the stock top.

 

[sixstringsteve]

Bumpski. I've had a few semi interested partners. Shoot me a PM if you're in the market.

 

[sixstringsteve]

After driving a handful of transits, I've come to the conclusion that I'll be hanging on to Fred for a while longer. The only things I like about the new transits are:

1) the ecoboost engine
2) the square cargo area that stays square all the way to the top
3) the great visibility out that windsheild

After each test drive I kept finding more and more things that drove me crazy - a brake pedal that's 2" too high, plastic EVERYTHING, doors that don't shut well, poor door trim, issues with the airbox letting water in (that one I read about on the forums), no front inner fender liners protecting the washer bottle, a dash that doesn't allow me to run an aftermarket stereo, no real handle inside the rear cargo door to let me out, horrid ground clearance, the fact that the windows roll down 95% of the way, but not 100% of the way (there's still a 1/2" tab of glass sticking out when it's rolled down), the fact that the 60/40 front side window blocks the tow mirrors, the ebrake lever on the floor making it tough to climb back between the seats, the fact that you have to look at the ignition to insert your key (no plastic to guide it in), the procedure for removing the batteries, the plastic cargo bin above your head, dash controls that are point away from the driver and impossible to see... the list goes on...

None of these are deal-breakers on their own, but combined they make it a no-go for me. Maybe I've raised my expectations too high after driving a lot of hondas and toyotas. I've gotten used to a car being designed well, and $40-45k should feel as nice as a 10 year old honda. The transit wasn't designed well. It feels like a bunch of bean counters called all the shots and nobody was on the same page. Every little piece feels like a shortcut was taken. If I'm going to drop $40-45k on a new van, I don't want to have to tell myself to ignore all those things because it's "better than a promasater" or "cheaper than a sprinter."

That being said, I still think the transits are my favorite modern van, but my current van is so much better on so many fronts. I think I'll add a high top and see how that treats me. Then, if in a year or two I'm still jonesing for a transit, I can pick up a used one and save a bundle. I honestly felt like the transit felt more like a kia than a solid vehicle. I respect Ford for not taking bailout money, and for making cars for so long, but the engineers must really be against some crazy constraints, because the Transit is not user-friendly in any way, shape, or form (in my opinion). The good news is that this saves me a ton of time and energy.

 

[justbecause]

:clapsmile

 

[DzlToy]

:beer:

 

[phenopd]

For what. It's worth, I put a high top on my van and I love it . It has made all the difference in the world as far as usability.
Mike

 

[sixstringsteve]

Thanks, that makes me feel better. Got any pics of your interior setup? I need to start watching high top build threads for ideas.

 

[12xplore]

Another hightop build thread since you're looking... let me know if you have any questions.

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/160267-Quadvan-High-Top-Build

 

[justbecause]

if fiberglass doesnt do it for you, you can always add some beef. http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/136944-New-Build-The-quot-RDV-quot

 

[boardrider247]

Here are a couple shots showing where our bed ended up. I personally don't think it's ideal and I would not want it any higher. But trying to build around having space on the floor for two dogs this is where it worked best.

2016-06-06_09-42-48 by Danny Knowlan, on Flickr

2016-06-06_09-43-01 by Danny Knowlan, on Flickr

Here you can kind of see how much of a ledge is left when using the reverse flange. I thin k I could have cut it down a bit further to for a larger opening. Right now I can't recall why I didn't......

IMG_20150831_182925 by Danny Knowlan, on Flickr

 

[p nut]

...
That being said, I still think the transits are my favorite modern van, but my current van is so much better on so many fronts. I think I'll add a high top and see how that treats me. Then, if in a year or two I'm still jonesing for a transit, I can pick up a used one and save a bundle. I honestly felt like the transit felt more like a kia than a solid vehicle. I respect Ford for not taking bailout money, and for making cars for so long, but the engineers must really be against some crazy constraints, because the Transit is not user-friendly in any way, shape, or form (in my opinion). The good news is that this saves me a ton of time and energy.

I think you need to realize Transits are cargo vans, made to move stuff between points A and B, on paved roads. Not for adventure seeking folks that will be living out of it. I've been looking at vans as well, and really wanted to like Transits. But I think there are better ones out there. Sprinter, obviously, but I'm really liking what Nissan NV's have to offer. There is one in town with a full size roof rack with a ladder in the back. Seems lifted with some meaty tires. I don't think it's 4x4, but looks pretty capable.
_
But old E-series vans are plenty capable themselves and I think you've got a good rig. Add a high roof and you'll love it.

 

[sixstringsteve]

Lots of great info here guys, thanks.

I stumbled on this thread, which really helped:
http://www.expeditionportal.com/for...ction-and-My-Ford-Fiberine-Super-Camper-build

I'd love a top that looks like this. It looks like the super camper, but it looks smaller than 30". Granted, this is a photoshop, not an actual image, and the "completed" image on page 5 isn't working for me. Go figure. I love this profile though. I worry that the portion that hangs forward would kill my MPG.

I think the 30" super camper on Fiberine's website looks a little dorky, and I don't need quite that much space up there.

I wonder if there's an 18-20" super camper that looks like the white one above.