4x4 Camper Van Project - Body Swap

[GNTY]

Well i sold my other 4x4 van not long ago and couldn't stay away. I found these two vans in the Salt Lake area and decided to take the plunge on a new project. The 1990 E350 4x4 460 CI . Advanced 4wd did the conversion. Just some of the observations upon pickup. The 1992 E250 Fiesta Camper came from an older couple with lots of records, drove vantastic. I bought both sight unseen and my brother and i made the trip from Alberta down to SLC and was back home the next day with them hoping for the best.
I assumed when i bought these that the body mounts would just un-bolt from the bottom. Low and behold the bottom bolt stays with the mount and needs to be unbolted from the top. Easy enough on the passenger van, but the camper was a whole different story. Not only did it have a plywood sub floor making it impossible to just feel around and cut but when they built the camper i guarantee that they weren't planning on the body being removed. After lots of measuring i began to expose each mount after getting in to side compartments, cabinets, under the shower, removing the water tank, heater etc.
Well the short of it. I'm now on the last leg just having to button everything back up and i hope to take it on it maden camping/biking trip in two weeks.

 

[dwh]

Nice!

 

[ujoint]

Just like that! Looks easy!

 

[GNTY]

Just like that! Looks easy!

You bet! I guess its not really a proper build thread, its not showing the last two weeks of me pulling my hair out.

Would i do another, probably not. Next is another 93+ with a ujoint conversion! If anyone has a camper van or passenger 7.3 diesel they are looking to sell, keep me posted. I'm always looking for the next project.

 

[nely]

I was think of doing a body swap to my 1/2 converted ujoint diesel van after someone.crashed into it. Now im parting it out and installing the good 4x parts on my replacement van.

Sent from my SGH-T959 using Tapatalk

 

[dare2go]

Nice job - I can appreciate all the work which went into it!
Will this be for sale soon? A friend of mine is looking to buy a small 4x4 camper...

 

[GNTY]

Nice job -
Will this be for sale soon? A friend of mine is looking to buy a small 4x4 camper...

I plan to use it for a little while but will certainly keep you posted if i find something else to work on.

 

[GNTY]

Here's some updated pictures from today. After a few weeks of chasing electrical gremlin's (changing computers, and wiring harnesses) she's finally running and i'm driving it everywhere to make sure its reliable before hitting the mountains. It drives great, much better than i expected.

 

[ExpoMike]

Man, that came out great. Nicely done. About the only major change I would do is to remove the fiberglass running boards, if you plan any travels where rocks might come into contact with them. I have seen how nasty the damage to a rig can get if they get tied up in some rocks.

Have fun and post up some camping pics when you can!

 

[Nathaniel0712]

this is an awesome build

 

[jaggedfish]

Function aside, it looks like it belongs on the new running gear. The original appears heavy... as tho it's pushing the suspension down hard. The new version looks light on it's feet and much more proportional. Very nice conversion... not as simple as a few pics. I hope it performs as nicely as it looks! Great job!

 

[GNTY]

After all the work that was done i decided to take the van on our family vacation to Tofino BC out on Vancouver Island. I tried to drive the van as much as possible before we left trying to shake out any potential issues as ALOT of things were changed on the van. I'm happy to report that it performed great. We took the Crowsnest Hwy out to Vancouver and its 13 hours and twisting winding climbing road. I thought i'd posts a few pictures of the van from the trip, nothing special but proof it was there My wife, 7 month old and i slept in it two nights, it was tight, but overall a great experience.

 

[loren85022]

You are living large, amigo. That is one cool ride.

 

[scoutkid]

We need some interior shots of that beast! Gorgeous van!

 

[Funrover]

Sweet!