Introducing the Van-That-Can- 2000 E350 V10 EB Passenger Van

[desertspeed]

I'm not sure who first coined the term "Van That Can" but my friends and I have always used it to describe lifted, 4x4 vans, Sportsmobiles, etc. I have always loved them but somehow they never quite fit my needs until recently. I spend a lot of time in the local deserts and down in Baja with my prerunner (or "the girlfriend" as the wife calls it ), so in the past I needed a tow vehicle capable of towing it around but that would also be used for family trips down to Baja, as well as chasing and supporting off road races. For the last several years I have had a 2004 Silverado 2500HD Crew Cab 4x4 diesel short bed with a shell, and I have been pretty happy with it. It tows great, has a great ride for such a heavy vehicle, and has been very reliable.

However, after our last San Felipe trip, with the wife, 2 kids, and our 2 dogs (60lb Vizsla and 70lb German Shorthaired Pointer) in the cab and the shell completely stuffed with crap, my wife and I started looking into how we can get some more room. Picture stopping at a military checkpoint and trying to control 130lbs of crazy Eastern European psycho dogs who are barking at Mexicans with guns and jumping all over 2 kids who are trying to unwind themselves from the 17 electrical cables that they are plugged into, and you get the idea. Plus, our GSP farts when he gets nervous, and he gets nervous a lot in the car. This does not make for an exceptionally enjoyable drive…….

So I started searching for a solution- I have been on ExPo for several years but never really paid much attention to the van forum. When I bought the Silverado several years ago I had briefly looked into vans but UJoint was not around (or at least I wasn't aware of it) and it seemed like all of the other conversion companies were only touching new vans. Luckily for me, I took another look and after reading all of the other build threads on here I was sold. Vans have the size, towing capacity, and with UJoint a good quality 4x4 conversion that I feel comfortable taking anywhere.

So after a 2 month search, I found a local 2000 E350 V10 EB Passenger van with only 52K miles, and I was able to pick it up for $5,500. It was used as a maintenance vehicle for a local Burger King chain, and it came with a Tommy Gate lift gate in the rear as well as a metal partition wall installed just behind the third row of seats. Other than being a little dirty and having a few broken interior panels, it is in remarkably good shape. The first order of business was to get rid of the cheap aluminum side steps and the partition wall, and start cleaning it out. I spent about 6 hours today removing all of the panels on the passenger side, cleaning them up, finding out what needs to be fixed, etc. The Tommy Gate is listed on Craigslist for $500, but I just want to get it out of there so I can finish cleaning up the interior.

My Silverado is sold and being picked up on Friday, so I will be ordering the works from UJoint next week. Since it will be doing some towing I am going to go with the 4" kit. I have these wheels on order:

revMR301StBlk.jpg

Here are a few pics of the van- I will update this thread as parts start coming in. I am going to do the conversion in 2 parts- I want the front axle in by Oct 6 for our next San Felipe trip, and then do the xfer case etc before the Baja 1000 in November. Should be fun

[desertspeed]

For the interior, the plan is to swap the first row of bench seats for captains chairs for the kids, and keep the second bench seat in place for extra seating or pull it out if I need more storage. I plan on building a sleeping platform in the rear with storage underneath, but I can't figure that all out until I get the lift gate sold and out of the van. I also need to install a GPS, race radio, and some better tunes, as well as replace the vinyl floor mat with carpeting.

[bknudtsen]

Method Racing wheels are one of my choices too. I am interested in your impressions of them when they show up. The van really looks clean in the pics! I look forward to seeing another van build pass mine up as I patiently wait for tax season. It helps keep me motivated!

[CodyY]

Only downside to the methods are the center caps. They fit a little loose. We run em on our Dodge 2500 17x9 with 35-12.5-17 grabbers E rated

[desertspeed]

Method Racing wheels are one of my choices too. I am interested in your impressions of them when they show up. The van really looks clean in the pics! I look forward to seeing another van build pass mine up as I patiently wait for tax season. It helps keep me motivated!

I just ordered them on Friday and they are supposed to ship out today. I will let you know my thoughts when I get them. Thanks again for hooking me up with the seat brackets!

Only downside to the methods are the center caps. They fit a little loose. We run em on our Dodge 2500 17x9 with 35-12.5-17 grabbers E rated

I won't be using the front center caps, and not sure about the rears. I will check them out when they show up and see. Maybe a little silicone would work?

[desertspeed]

I didn't get any pictures because I was just too dirty, but I spent about 12 hours over the weekend pulling the hydraulic lift out of the back of the van and then pulling all of the interior panels and cleaning up everything in the interior. I not sure if it is normal or because my van was used as a maintenance vehicle, but the entire interior was covered in a black, oily film/dust- it was everywhere, behind all of the panels, on the sheet metal, etc. I went through a bottle of 409 and 2 rolls of paper towels, but finally got it all cleaned up. I also starting making a list of things that need to get fixed/replaced in the interior- so far I am up to a few interior panels that were cracked too badly to fix, the rear A/C blower works but no air is coming out of the top vents, and only hot air will come out of the bottom vents, the cruise control isn't working, and my van doesn't have the remote door lock module. Nothing too major but just little thigs that I want to take care of.

Also, when the lift and partition were installed there were a bunch of mounting holes drilled through the floor that I will need to seal- I'm not sure if I am just going "half-***" it and use some fender washers and body sealer, or if I am going to whip out the TIG and weld them up with silicon bronze. I also need to replace the vinyl floor mat with carpeting sooner rather than later, as at one point some hydraulic fluid got spilled in the rear and is soaked into the padding.

On a good note I sold my truck on Friday which means I can give Chris a call today

[desertspeed]

UPS started dropping off some goodies yesterday. I mounted a new hitch, the stereo head unit that was in my old truck, a center console from the newer vans, and my wheels showed up. I also got my trailer brake controller but havent had a chance to mount that yet.

New Wheels:
uploadfromtaptalk1345048250954.jpg
Old Console:
uploadfromtaptalk1345048196624.jpg
uploadfromtaptalk1345048209048.jpg
New Console:
uploadfromtaptalk1345048221107.jpg
uploadfromtaptalk1345048237592.jpg
Stereo:
uploadfromtaptalk1345048164577.jpg
Hitch:
uploadfromtaptalk1345048143155.jpg

I still need to find a good spot to stash my Ipod......

A couple things I learned- you have to unscrew the headlight switch bezel to get the dash panel off Luckily I figured it out before I broke anything, but it took me 20 minutes of messing around with it before I got smart and did a Google search.

Also, I was very pleasantly surprised at how easy switching the center console was- the old one just pops off. I was thinking that I was going to have to pull the doghouse off and unbolt it.

[Kermit]

I won't be using the front center caps, and not sure about the rears. I will check them out when they show up and see. Maybe a little silicone would work?

Should be able to find an o-ring that will fit, little cleaner and less messy than silicone.

http://www.theoringstore.com/

[desertspeed]

Should be able to find an o-ring that will fit, little cleaner and less messy than silicone.

http://www.theoringstore.com/

I just got my wheels last night, and the center caps do come with an o-ring. I snapped one in to a wheel and it seemed pretty solid.

[Kermit]

I just got my wheels last night, and the center caps do come with an o-ring. I snapped one in to a wheel and it seemed pretty solid.

nice!