Truck Bed Camper vs Van/Motorhome

[eugene]

Since Suburban was mentioned in the first post as solid mounted I thought it worthwhile to mention its not. The Suburban/Tahoe, other body on frame SUV's have rubber body mounts like the cab of a truck so the frame can flex some under the body.

I think the main choice between truck and van is the low range transfer case, most vans are available with AWD but rarely with low range where 4x4 trucks typically have a low range transfer case.

 

[rruff]

One method to keep it rigid is just having the truck overbuilt, and that is what I get with the C700, it will flex at 26,000 lbs..but at 8,000 lbs?
And there are other ways to remove chassis flex, but in any case, one needs to build the house to account for just normal bouncing around.

Normal bouncing around is not a problem, but a closed box is a torsionally rigid structure. If the camper is rigid and the frame isn't then the camper will be subjected to all the torsional loads... until it fails.

The chassis will flex like crazy with 0.0000 lbs load. They are designed to do this. Go find some terrain and see how much twist you can induce in the frame. The Fuso below isn't even at its maximum.

 

[rruff]

I think the main choice between truck and van is the low range transfer case, most vans are available with AWD but rarely with low range where 4x4 trucks typically have a low range transfer case.

If we are talking about full size vans, you can get 4wd with a low range in a Sprinter, and now AWD in a Transit... but that's it. The Transit has the 10spd now, so gears are pretty low already. Neither is going to be as offroad capable as a good truck due to poor ground clearance, poor suspension travel, little tires, lack of lockers, etc. I'd pick the Transit over the Sprinter... but I honestly think I'd prefer a 2wd GM Express with low gearing and a locker if I really wanted to beat it up offroad.

 

[Peter_n_Margaret]

I suggest that while Sprinters and Transits are a viable choice for some applications, they are not designed as serious off road vehicles. Rather they are intended to successfully deliver the parcels when there is a foot of ice and snow on the bitumen road.
Even the Fuso, while a better choice, is fundamentally a 2WD goods carrying truck with 4WD added. The super singles and the parabolic springs are after market modifications, not contemplated by the manufacturer, so there are some compromises as a result.
Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 motorhome

 

[roving1]

One method to keep it rigid is just having the truck overbuilt, and that is what I get with the C700, it will flex at 26,000 lbs..but at 8,000 lbs?
And there are other ways to remove chassis flex, but in any case, one needs to build the house to account for just normal bouncing around.

Watch a bobtail tractor drive around a dirt drop lot with holes or pull in and out of a driveway or drive over a curb and with the absolute barest of minimum of weight it is possible to have on the vehicle you can watch the frame flex with ease and regularity. So...no.