SMB-W Nissan Van 4x4 Camper Conversion Coming?? [Archive]

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TomH

11-23-2010, 06:21 AM

My wife and I made the 2 hour 50 min. drive down CA99 to SMB West today for our first factory visit. Alan is in San Diego for the week, so Jeff gave us the tour and then we milled around through the vehicles for about an hour. Pictures just don't do these machines justice!

I asked Jeff what they will do after 2013 when E series vans are no longer available. He said Nissan approached Alan (Yes, THEY asked HIM) about converting a new Nissan van into 4x4 campers. We shall see! :wings::luxhello::Wow1::victory:

ExpoMike

11-23-2010, 04:10 PM

So where are the pictures? :D

cwsqbm

11-23-2010, 04:39 PM

Not really surprising that Nissan is interested. The Japanese seem to understand that filling niche markets can lead to brand loyalty.

Still, if you're not a Nissan fan, you can still choose a Sprinter, Express, or probably a Transit.

I've always thought Toyota should bring the HiAce here too. Might make sense selling them through Hino dealers.

http://www.toyota.com.au/TWR/content/static/87234.png

1leglance

11-23-2010, 05:16 PM

Nissan has their measuring session coming up soon and I am pretty sure Alan mentioned sending someone out there for that.
When Haven here on Expo first posted about the Nissan NV2500 I got in contact with Nissan and told them about Sportsmobile West (I was interested in a Disabled Explorers project if they ever come to market)....I am glad there has been follow through on Nissans part.
They have an interesting marketing plan in that they are showing at the commercial venues vs SEMA and such....makes sense with the van market being more commercial.

Ford has never given any love towards Disabled Explorers (even after contacting up the ladder past the Econoline brand manager) so I have nothing against moving to another platform, especially if it gets me out from under the current loan I have on the WAVE.

At first the word was the NV series was based on the Titan which meant there was a strong possibility of a 4x4, now in marketing and press materials make it sound like they are farther away from the Titan platform so not sure if Nissan will offer 4x4 or is SMB West will have to do the conversion.
Some of the nice factory features are the hightops that Nissan uses for full standing walk around ease, factory nuts welded into sidewalls for mounting things, and since it has a truck nose there is less of a doghouse to limit driver/passenger mobility.

Oh and just for fun here is a quick rendering that Stefan Blast (a friend from the FJ Cruiser forums) did when I was first looking into the project

wanderer-rrorc

11-23-2010, 05:22 PM

the other thing not mentioned is the fact a few sites listed the cummins diesel as an option in the nv2500 and the awd package too...

I would love to see them...havent gotten any in my area yet...Im looking at them for when the kids get tired of the slide in camper...

1leglance

11-23-2010, 06:05 PM

if you go to the Nissan Comm vehicle website they show a tour going around the country with the vans for people to see them, also a show schedule of where they will be.

It just says they are coming 2011, not sure when they will actually be at dealers...
I need to find the contact info of the Nissan people I spoke with and get an update on the reality of it all.

Diesel and AWD would be great....but I doubt it will be a reality, bummer too.
No mention of either on the website.

HMR

11-23-2010, 06:35 PM

Diesel and AWD would be great...Yep. :drool:

While we're daydreaming... I wish SMB would consider using the Tiger (http://www.tigermotorhomes.com/overview.htm) floor plan. :coffee:

Accrete

11-24-2010, 12:22 AM

Diesel and AWD would be great...
I agree!

I realize it is very early in the honeymoon for the new addition in the driveway, but during the first real crazy weather here on the oregon coast that included snow and ice, the Express AWD van with traction tires handled solidly. We had been used to AWD in our Volvo XC70 and when doing the research on AWD vs 4WD...the idea of having AWD for everyday driving in our incliment weather won over having 4WD for a few miles of off-road fun. And what we found during most of our adventures, is we really only _had_ to lock the hubs for the sake of lubing the running gear, rather than for the sake of actually needing 4WD to get anywhere we wanted to go (i hope that makes sense. IOW, for us, 4WD was over rated!)

On desiel verses gasser, Marc of XP Campers was instrumental in educating us on desiel engine use. What it came down to was the realization for us that though our egos wanted to have a desiel in the driveway, driving it to/from work during the 1.5 mile commute would have most likely killed the rig prematurely. So we went gasser. That just meant the appliances in the van would be run on unleaded fuel rather than desiel, so far on paper the upfitment looks doable with the dual fuel appliances on the market.

Cheers,
Thom

weezerbot

11-24-2010, 01:59 AM

If Toyota brought the HiAce here I would freak out!!

ttora4runner

11-24-2010, 02:11 AM

That Nissan drawing looks pretty nice.

TomH

11-24-2010, 03:12 AM

Yep. :drool:

While we're daydreaming... I wish SMB would consider using the Tiger (http://www.tigermotorhomes.com/overview.htm) floor plan. :coffee:

You know, that's very interesting because I also asked Jeff if the Nissan thing doesn't work out, and the Transits don't prove to be a great platform, if he thought Alan might consider trying a 4x4 pickup truck platform like EarthRoamer does with the F550. Jeff affirmed that EarthRoamer has an excellent product, but that it would completely depend on whether the owner of the Texas division approved it or not. Apparently, the owner in Texas owns that division, but also owns the franchise rights. Though Alan owns the SMB West division, SMB is basically a franchise and the other two owners can only do what the owner in Texas will allow. Jeff indicated that Alan was the more cutting edge of the three and that it took a lot for Alan to convince the guy in Texas to let him begin doing 4x4 conversions. People kept bringing Quigley vehicles in for conversion to campers and Alan saw the opportunity to expand into that market. Obviously, this has been a great success.

As to Tiger, that is a serious consideration for me. It is certainly less expensive than EarthRoamer. I looked at a Tiger CX a couple of weeks ago. Tigers used to be built on the Astro van, but are now built on an F350. I have one overwhelming concern about the Tiger and that has to do with many of them developing stress cracks just behind the point at which the cab and cabin are fused. I believe this is from torsional stress. I have started a new thread about this problem here:

http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=52519

HMR

11-24-2010, 04:05 AM

TomH- I own an AWD Tiger XL (Astro based) and have spent lots of quality time with a late model SMB Ford EB 4x4. I've also gotten to tour >10 other SMBs in various configurations. The SMB, obviously, is a stronger, more powerful and more capable chassis. I'm a fan. However, the little Tiger has a superior interior layout compared to any of the SMB floor plans. If SMB combined their chassis with the clever Tiger layout, I might have to consider selling a few vehicles and breaking the piggy bank.

TomH

11-24-2010, 05:38 AM

HMR,

I just sent you a PM.

RR1

12-02-2010, 05:50 AM

If Toyota brought the HiAce here I would freak out!!

A mini Sportsmobile would be great, something to replace those aging 4WD Westys.
Not all of us need or want fullsize rigs.

http://www.toyota.de/cars/new_cars/hiace/specs.aspx

http://blairsite.com/Gallery/albums/album11/eurotrip_39.jpg

SWbySWesty

12-02-2010, 04:53 PM

haha - I'm glad someone mentioned the VW Westfalia's. They're like a mini SMB. You can upgrade with a modern engine, too, but having a modern vehicle to start from with a smart layout and a price tag that isn't like buying a home would be nice.

cwsqbm

12-02-2010, 06:04 PM

A mini Sportsmobile would be great, something to replace those aging 4WD Westys.
Not all of us need or want fullsize rigs.

http://www.toyota.de/cars/new_cars/hiace/specs.aspx

I want the Hiace with the more forward controls, more like an old Westy. Its more space efficient.

They sell them in Japan and Australia.

Toyota AU (http://www.toyota.com.au/hiace?WT.ac=GNHiAceHOME)
http://www.toyota.com.au/TWR/content/static/87189.jpg
http://www.toyota.com.au/TWR/content/static/87201.jpg

Jonny

12-02-2010, 08:50 PM

Yep. :drool:

While we're daydreaming... I wish SMB would consider using the Tiger (http://www.tigermotorhomes.com/overview.htm) floor plan. :coffee:

With the "design your own" ability Sportsmobile can create a van with a similar floor plan. http://www.sportsmobile.com/1_dyo.html (http://www.sportsmobile.com/1_dyo.html) The reason this plan has not become a popular choice for Sportsmobile customers comes down to the storage space.

Bulk storage for key overlanding gear is not available with that particular plan. Things such as camping chairs and table, BBQs, tools and recovery gear, ice chests, duffle bags, etc would end up being stored in the aisle which would take that nice open plan and really clutter things up.

Bulk storage space is commonly overlooked when designing an interior...but is crucial for most people when considering the gear that will be brought along on each trip.

HMR

12-02-2010, 10:34 PM

With the "design your own" ability Sportsmobile can create a van with a similar floor plan. http://www.sportsmobile.com/1_dyo.html (http://www.sportsmobile.com/1_dyo.html) The reason this plan has not become a popular choice for Sportsmobile customers comes down to the storage space.

Bulk storage for key overlanding gear is not available with that particular plan. Things such as camping chairs and table, BBQs, tools and recovery gear, ice chests, duffle bags, etc would end up being stored in the aisle which would take that nice open plan and really clutter things up.

Bulk storage space is commonly overlooked when designing an interior...but is crucial for most people when considering the gear that will be brought along on each trip.Jonny- Have you been inside a Tiger? Other than the ice chest (not sure why you'd need an ice chest in addition to the fridge?) we carry every item you mentioned without storing a single thing in the aisle and we still have 3 of our 8 upper cabinets and one rear compartment completely empty. Again, I'm a fan of SMB and very familiar with their layouts. I love the more capable SMB chassis but, IMHO, the Tiger interior is a better design and offers plenty of storage space.

RR1

12-02-2010, 11:17 PM

I want the Hiace with the more forward controls, more like an old Westy. Its more space efficient.

They sell them in Japan and Australia.

Toyota AU (http://www.toyota.com.au/hiace?WT.ac=GNHiAceHOME)
http://www.toyota.com.au/TWR/content/static/87189.jpg
http://www.toyota.com.au/TWR/content/static/87201.jpg

Those would work too, but I like the Euro model so you're not sitting on top of the motor. Unless the motor was in back like the old VW's. I owned VW's, I do love the forward controls.

I highly doubt we will get either.

Would be nice if Ford replaces the E-Series with their Transit, this is a 4WD model by the way.

I dunno, don't care for the Nissan panel thing.

http://auto.tihai.md/uploads/2006/09/transitawd02.jpg

Jnich77

12-03-2010, 04:57 AM

Jonny

12-03-2010, 06:32 PM

Hey Tom,

I am not familiar with the Tiger. I should have clarified further when talking about that particular plan on the van chassis that Sportsmobile builds on. Storage options will definitely be different in a "box" on a cutaway compared to a standard van chassis. That particular plan on the van chassis that SMB builds on will not have much bulk storage space. My intention was to communicate the ability for a similar plan...or any number of different interior layouts to be installed in a Sportsmobile.

As for the ice chest...maybe I need to cut down on my beer consumption. :coffeedrink:

Cheers,

Jonny

TomH

12-04-2010, 03:22 AM

Hi Jonny,

I did mention the Tiger, but I'm wondering if you may have confused my comments with those of HMR. He's the one who asked whether you'd been inside a Tiger and made the observation about the ice chest. No worries though. I will say that I am leaning more and more toward the Tiger as the vehicle that will meet my wife's and my needs. If I were to be adventuring on my own, a Sportsmobile would be ideal; in fact, I find it to be an awesome vehicle. I know many couples find it perfect. As it is, however, my wife and I as a couple just have to have more space. Also, while the SMB is more off road capable, I believe the Tiger will be able to provide all the 4x4 abilities we will need.

Cheers,
Tom

cwsqbm

07-08-2011, 05:37 PM

Quigley is looking into (http://www.quigley4x4.com/Products/Nissannv.aspx)converting Nissan vans to 4x4.

Given their philosophy, it will probably use as many Titan parts as possible.

Sleeping Dog

08-07-2011, 02:29 AM

haven

08-07-2011, 05:21 AM

I saw a new HiAce van near the San Francisco airport the other day. I couldn't see what sort of license plate it carried. Hmmmmm?

RR1

08-13-2011, 03:43 AM

While I do love those old panel trucks...not sure why Nissan is going this direction, seems to me that the extra wheelbase gained with the truck front end over a conventional van, would be a hindrance in a service type vehicle.

The Euro spec NV400 makes much sense.

http://www.nissan.co.uk/#vehicles/lcv/nv400

http://www.vanlocator.co.uk/vans-for-sale/0030528001296721609l.jpg