On the To Do List before San Felipe/May 2019....
-Install battery storage
-Install Sterling Charge Controller
-Install rear view camera system
-Install WeldTec Ocotillo Lift
-Install new tires
-Source & install cruise control steering wheel
Wish List
-Prerunner style front bumper w/skidplate
-Rear bumper (mix of Jeep style cargo and prerunner style; hauling 4 moto fuel jugs, mc ramp, etc)
-Window tint (cab and rear)
-Troubleshoot right mirror motor controls
Been too busy working on this project and then travelling to San Felipe, Baja and neglected the updating....
All of these items and more, except the bumpers, happened before the trip!
-The single Group 65 battery can run the Engel MT60 fridge for 20+ hours, depending on the ambient temperatures and can easily freeze beer/liquids if not careful! I will be adding another Group 65 soon.
-Sterling Charge control was easy to install and does a great job!
-The rear view camera system(Boyo VTB301C/VTM7000S) was easy to install, had way more than enough cable and works great! We hooked it up to run fulltime with ignition, that way it functions as a rearview mirror would, not as a reversing camera. Between the 4 mirrors and the wide angle camera, there is alot of over lap of vision. Not only do I feel perfectly safe making lane changes, but I can parallel park in major cities, like Oakland, CA, with relative ease!
-All new front suspension components, WeldTec Ocotillo lift and Falken 32" tires went well with Bruces Tire in Fremont, CA doing the work.
-The cruise control was successful and cost roughly $75, sourced the cruise wheel and clockspring from a gas powered 1999 E150 van conversion at a local PickNPull. The only difficulty is that Ford uses a T50 bolt, not the standard nut to secure the wheel. Also, a normal steering wheel puller wont work, you need a 2 claw style gear puller.
-On the window tint, I just had the cab windows tinted to 50%, I felt the rear windows were factory tinted well enough.
-Right mirror controls were simply unplugged inside the mirror, easy fix!
Also, got 2 heavy coats of the Henrys TropiCool on the roof and only used 1/3 of the 5gallon bucket, so itll be getting thicker!
Had the A/C system diagnosed, bad compressor. New compressor and full charge (4.25 lbs of R134a) and it works great! Still need to go by a house A/C service shop for a recharge on the rear electric A/C unit, but it still blows cold.
Added a Shore Power exterior connection and a dual Uground outlet w/ GFCI and a (4) USB outlet. Blue Sea 12 ckt DC fuse box, dual usb outlet, cig socket and dual voltage meter.
Added a canvas curtain wall between the garage portion and passenger space to help with sound and A/C needs.
The trip went well, the bus averaged 12mpg, using cruise and maintaining speeds of 70-80mph, until we had to deal with traffic and or mountain climbs. We had to try and keep pace with the motos I was supporting, we did that successfully with the help of the large fuel tank. They ran ahead, but stopped every 100-125 miles for fuel. Sometimes we would stop at everyone of there stops, sometimes every other stop. The bus would only be hitting 3/4 tank after 2-3 of their stops! We would usually pull in during their refuel or at least during their cigarette break after fueling.
The border crossing went better than expected, due to rumors of bus conversions having difficulty. Mine is registered as a Cali Passenger plated and the one bus I know that was denied passage was Cali Commercial plated. It would have gone better it seems if I had seen the sign for RV/Bus lane, but I only got a light scolding. They searched the whole vehicle including the engine compartment. They checked thoroughly for vehicle reg on the bus and moto, large sums of money(excess of $10k US). They asked about alcohol, not concerned with the 12pack and 2 bottles of whiskey. They did take issue with the 5gallons of fuel inside the vehicle, but let me keep it. Future work will include jerry can holders on the rear bumper and maybe a gasoline tank under the floor one day!
On the way back, we stopped off at WeldTec to drop the core charged parts and they installed a Fox 2.0 steer stabilizer!
