Any questions about the structural integrity of high tops?

[SoulRaven]

I got an old high top, I don't notice flexing, but I do have some cracks, insulation problems, and one leaky area

Greetings!

Check out "akrvbob's" leak repair solution at:

https://vanlivingforum.com/Thread-water-collecting-on-high-top-causing-leaks

Cheers!

The CamperVan_Man

 

[MK7]

Sub-frame connectors should help a lot. They helped on my Mustangs and especially the convertibles. They'd have to be custom made for vans probably but shouldn't cost that much. It's just 2 metal bars welded on. A speedshop that fabricates roll cages should be able to do this easy. Maybe $250-300 parts and labor. It will be like night and day difference.

 

[vanguy]

i'm having trouble picturing any high top van rolling completely over. IMO, odds are it will fall on its side and slide to a stop. they're so tall it seems like it would take a lot of energy to flip them upside down. sure it's possible, just seems unlikely.

 

[Belinda2]

Optimistic/John,
Yes. Ambulances are held to a higher safety standard. This incudes type I , II, III, and medium duty (truck cap chassis, wheelchair vans, speciality vans, and heavier load trucks). It needs to protect not only a patient, a driver, a crew that is actively working and moving around in the unit, but 3-4 small tanks of oxygen and one large 4.5 foot tank of oxygen that is sitting right behind the driver. The rollover protection systems are tested on frontal, side, and rollover by sensors for air bags, 3 point seat belts, etc. by the National Highway and Safety Administration. The patient stretcher, which is the safest spot, is locked in place. The second safest spot is the captain's chair by the patient's airway. The roof, for example, can take AS MUCH weight as the chassis! It is designed to totally roll without caving in!!!

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

Optimistic/John,
Yes. Ambulances are held to a higher safety standard. . . . .The roof, for example, can take AS MUCH weight as the chassis! It is designed to totally roll without caving in!!!

Thank you. I'd suspected as much.

Regards
John

 

[akrvbob]

While all that safety is a big plus it also has a downside: ambulances are extremely heavy, much heavier than a box van or truck of about the same size.

Dragging all that extra weight around has numerous negative results. None of them are important compared to saving peoples lives but are very important to a vandweller trying to live cheap.
Bob

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

While all that safety is a big plus it also has a downside: ambulances are extremely heavy, much heavier than a box van or truck of about the same size.

Dragging all that extra weight around has numerous negative results. None of them are important compared to saving peoples lives but are very important to a vandweller trying to live cheap.
Bob

I'd always assumed that ambulances weighed so much because of all the medical junk they piled into them - oxygen cylinders, generators, portable iron lungs, field brain surgery kits, and so on.

You're saying that if someone bought a used ambulance and stripped out all of the medical junk, it would still be much heavier than an equivalent commercial vehicle?

Regards
John

 

[akrvbob]

John, that's right, the van by itself is heavier since they take out all the medical stuff when they sell them.

They are very big heavy vehicles carrying a precious cargo and are intended to be driven at high speeds. Because of that they are structurally beefed up for safety. There is almost no practical way to bring down their weight to a reasonable level.

For some people that might be an advantage, they really are safer.
Bob

 

[GotSmart]

I wonder what mileage they get?

 

[SoulRaven]

I wonder what mileage they get?

Greetings!

I ran into a guy a couple of years ago that had one, basically the same as mine, except I think it was maybe a foot wider.

I don't remember what engine he had, but I do remember him telling me that he got 15 mpg ALL of the time, and it didn't make a difference whether it was city driving or highway, and even pulling his 23 foot trailer didn't affect it.

I remember being impressed, and of dreaming what could be done with that extra foot of width!

Cheers!

The CamperVan_Man