AmboLander

[cjken]

Hubs were 8x6.5, and gone anyways.

I got my tires last fall. There is a newer series with improvements. I like them.

FDM,
When did you purchase the 375x65R16 Mickey Thompsons? When I bought mine in 2012 or 13, they said these were the last of the breed and they were discontinuing the tire. I loved my M.T.'s as super singles on my truck camper, and used them on 12 inch wide by 16 Mickey Thompson wheels on the rear axle only. Unmounted comparo to stock size tire:

Mounted comparo:

On my RAM:

On the rig:

When you swapped to the SRW hubs did you add the tone rings to retain the front abs?
I did not I may re do that at some point.

 

[FDM2012]

When you swapped to the SRW hubs did you add the tone rings to retain the front abs?
I did not I may re do that at some point.

Yep, I did. Sent them to machine shop. However, my ABS light is on, so I might have a bad sensor somewhere.....

 

[FDM2012]

Yeah, it's been a while since I have updated anything. Between work, weather, and health, I haven't done a whole lot
with my rig lately.

HOWEVER, I did finally get my snorkel on and mostly completed this past weekend.

Yes, it is functional.
Yes, it has dropped my EGT's a bit. Only driven around town so far....
And yes, my air intake temp at idle has decreased. (About 30 degrees in 90+ degree temps here in Tampa.)
Yes, it still spools up just fine.

I used AirRaid 5'' intake tube to feed the "fabbed" airbox that I got from a wrecking yard. I put one of those fancy red air filters in it..... And 4'' from the airbox to the turbo.

I don't have a clue about water worthiness of the rest of the motor, but I wouldn't be afraid to submerge it for a bit. But I have no intention of ever going in deep water with this damn thing, so no worries there.

Other than just wanting to do it and liking the look, I mainly did this to try and improve the EGT's while at highway speed.

I normally run around 1,050-1,100 degrees at 73 mph, so it doesn't leave a lot of room for increase while on inclines or pulling a trailer.

Either way, I am digging it!

 

[FDM2012]

 

[FDM2012]

Oh, and I got the awning on.

 

[The Punisher]

Where did the awning come from? and the hood vents?

 

[FDM2012]

Both from eBay

 

[sethro80]

I have been all kinds of busy as of late, but here is a little bit of an update on the rig.

I am focusing mostly on performance issues and mods, while still doing some aesthetics along the way.
The inside conversion will most likely wait to begin until fall. It is brutally oppressive weather here in Tampa this time of year, so.....

Anyways, I have removed the amber fender light lenses and fabbed some grates for them. There are small pockets between the fender
and the subframe that I am going to utilize to send the cooler air over to the bigger custom air box that I am in the process of building by
using 2 Aerostar 4.0 boxes. Here are a couple of pics to further explain. I have also ordered a couple of louvers that will go on to the fender
in place of the current light holders. I will test it later on to see if the boost, intake temp , and EGT changes are significant at all. Hope so.
(More pics after it is all together)

View attachment 352186

View attachment 352167

(Airbox in the works......)
View attachment 352169


Speaking of testing. I got my gauges hooked up. I left the pillar pod black, and painted the passenger side pod black to match. It offers a more
custom sporty look inside. I also painted the lower dash panels and doghouse. More pics on those after all put back together.

View attachment 352168

Other things include:

Cleaned out EBP tube, changed EBP sensor, changed oil/filter, changed trans fluid/filter and added Magnefine inline filter, changed rear diff oil,
changed fuel pressure regulator spring, removed fuel filter plunger valve, (will soon drill out fuel rail port fittings to 1/4'') inspected and snugged
all intake boots.

Here is the Wicked Wheel 2. One thing I am scratching my head about, is that they did not put waste gates on these van 7.3's. I guess
they have the motor detuned so much in the ECM, that it isn't an issue. I will swap out for a newer SD housing later on, if I see any issues....

View attachment 352170

So you are probably saying if you are doing all of the intake and fuel mods, then what about the exhaust?
Well, my 4'' Turbo back Diamond Eye w/muffler will be here tomorrow, and I just received my new bellowed up pipes and new upper manifold.
I drilled and tapped the upper manifold for the pyrometer fitting and even did an extra hole and put in a plug. I know that
some of the tuners I am looking at seem to require one, so why not, while I have it off. No way I can get more pre-turbo than this!

View attachment 352175

View attachment 352749

While the turbo was out, I also did the CCV mod. I just used 12ft of heater hose, some fittings. and zip ties. If you do this, be sure to go up and
over the master cylinder with your hose, so that any oil that is blown up, will drain back down. Meanwhile, make sure the end of you hose is
secured several feet behind the cab of your vehicle. Well, unless you are in need of a long nap.........

View attachment 352177
View attachment 352176


I am still thinking that I might have a low power issues at hand, but I will know more once I get it back together and can
actually monitor the boost pressure and EGT's with the new gauges. Fingers crossed it is/was a combo of mild exhaust leak at down pipes
and loose intake boots....

Stay tuned...

So stoked I found this thread, I am also building a 99 ambo, may I ask where you got the pillar gauge pod ? Thanks Seth

 

[FDM2012]

FORD E 350 ECONOLINE AutoMeter 17316 AutoMeter Pillar Gauge Pods | Summit Racing

Free Shipping - AutoMeter Pillar Gauge Pods with qualifying orders of $109. Shop Gauge Panels, Pods and Mounting Cups at Summit Racing.

www.summitracing.com

 

[Abitibi]

Man those tires are WIDE!!! Who needs duallies with those, lol. Looks great.

I remember when you first started on your ambo, quite the difference now. I had time to go over your entire thread today, got a few pointers/ideas along the way. Am I wrong to think your EGT were lower earlier in your post? Would the tires have something to do with it? And any issues turning your wheels when not moving? I know it's not ideal to do but mine are almost impossible to turn if the van isn't rolling which can be an issue when driving on tight trails with large rocks...

Now that you've had your snorkel on for a while, how does it perform on the hwy? On my old van (with a much smaller diesel engine) it dropped my EGT (I could travel 6mph faster for the same EGT...)

I have a few house projects on the go but once those are taken care of and work isn't crazy I'm planning to pull my engine (eventhough it runs awesome) and change my injectors to single shots, upgrade the turbo, new up-pipes, fuel bowl delete, new valve harness and a bunch of other mods. I already bought all the parts so the hardest part is already done

Anyway, glad I found the time to go over your post.

Cheers!
David

 

[Abitibi]

BTW, I can't remember where it was discussed earlier in your post but the question about installing a swivel driver seat...

Yes it can easily be done, I've done it on mine. Just got some captain chairs from a japanese van (2nd row) that swivel. ( (Older Honda, Toyota...) and built a leveled platform for them. Bonus is I used the longer track that came with them and now my seats can travel over 24" back and forth.

 

[FDM2012]

Man those tires are WIDE!!! Who needs duallies with those, lol. Looks great.

I remember when you first started on your ambo, quite the difference now. I had time to go over your entire thread today, got a few pointers/ideas along the way. Am I wrong to think your EGT were lower earlier in your post? Would the tires have something to do with it? And any issues turning your wheels when not moving? I know it's not ideal to do but mine are almost impossible to turn if the van isn't rolling which can be an issue when driving on tight trails with large rocks...

Now that you've had your snorkel on for a while, how does it perform on the hwy? On my old van (with a much smaller diesel engine) it dropped my EGT (I could travel 6mph faster for the same EGT...)

I have a few house projects on the go but once those are taken care of and work isn't crazy I'm planning to pull my engine (eventhough it runs awesome) and change my injectors to single shots, upgrade the turbo, new up-pipes, fuel bowl delete, new valve harness and a bunch of other mods. I already bought all the parts so the hardest part is already done

Anyway, glad I found the time to go over your post.

Cheers!
David

Hey David,

Actually, I probably have less than 100 miles on it since I did the snorkel. I've been dealing with Lymphoma/CHEMO for several months, and haven't put the time into it to do some extensive data logging. But when I do, I will report back here with it.
Also, I am on the fence as to going to 4:56 gears. But I will do some serious evaluation before I do.
At 75MPH (My MAX) it rides and handles like a dream, and it has plenty of power on the highway.
But when I have the cruise control on, it downshifts a lot. Even on slight grades. While using just my foot, it rarely downshifts at all......SMH Haven't figured that out yet. Maybe the ECM measures torque from the transmission and kicks it down? I dunno.


As far as the steering, I have seen many people mention difficulty. Mine however, can be turned with one finger sitting still on concrete. I can't explain it. And it definitely appears to be the OEM gearbox. But, I normally wait till I am rolling to turn the wheel, just to keep undo strain off of it. It was just as easy before I "upsized" the tires.

I have a few small projects to do on mine, but I REALLY just need to get out and enjoy it. Hoping to get to the Smoky Mountains
after my treatments are done and before the weather gets hot. April-ish...

I think you have the right idea of doing a lot all at once. For some, that would be intimidating, but it is a better use of time and accessibility, in my opinion. You are obviously not afraid of taking on big projects, so it makes perfect sense. Post Up, when you do it!

Cheers,

Eric

 

[Abitibi]

Good luck with the treatment Eric! And thanks for the update, I'll make sure to post mines are well. On my van, the cruise is steady but when it kicks down, it's a big gap, probably adds 600-800rpm, wakes me up for sure! So when I know it might kick down I actually give a little right foot to avoid the engine screaming, lol. And yes, definitely no finger steering for me unless I'm already rolling, you're lucky yours is so easy.

Allright, take care!
David

 

[cjken]

Best of luck Eric!!!

David. There must be something up with your steering mine steers so easily. The only time I had an issue was when one of my front axle u-joints seized up.

 

[Abitibi]

Not sure what causes it but let's no hijack this thread... I'll go complain on my own build thread, lol

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