Passing of an era; now the "World" van

[speedhighway46]

Hello Van Dwellers:

This post is long and wonders a bit . . . you think flooded batteries off-gas, wait till you read this!

I'm sitting in the parking lot outside the mall while my wife shops, and to use up some time I am hanging out here reading the current posts, even though I just read them about three hours ago. But, that's another story . . .

Although my current "on the road living vehicle" is the one I will have for the rest of my life (a Peterbilt 379 conversion); it's a big truck and not a van. Still, my mind wonders about van conversions and all the other considerations that go into constructing a full-time living vehicle on a van platform. So what would I do if given a chance to start "greenfield" with a blank slate to build one like so many of you have.

To start . . . what van?

Back in the early 80's I bought a brand new red GMC cargo van. I loved that truck. I called it the "Thermos" because it was big and open inside; bare bones, no frills, no nothing except lots of capacity and always reliable. Big
honking V-8.

That's where I'll start. Pretend I'm getting a new van to convert into on-the-road living. Some folks here talk about
F-350 Ford vans; that sounds great; big, heavy, lots of towing capacity if its needed.

A slight path change here . . .

Sometimes when there is a significant change in a field of interest; or a market; or a society-based lifestyle due to a change in the economy or whatever; these changes are slight and normally evolve over a period of years. Most times they go un-noticed until the change is implemented and you are looking back on the change wondering, "I didn't see that happening." 

I believe we are in the early stages of a change like this, which should be of particular interest to most everyone on this fantastic site. I'll go with that.

And now, the segue way . . .  

I go to the Ford site to build the ultimate F-350 van to convert. To see what the options are; and the order-of-magnitude cost. Just to "learn" and to be more aligned with what so many of you discuss here in your van lifestyle living . . .

Here is the bottom line, because I know most of you are on the edge of your seats right now. For 2016, Ford no longer offers the "regular" sized vans which have been on the market for 35 years in various forms and sizes. Except for chassis models and cutaways for the up fitting market, the evolving trend started several years when the little tiny Ford Transit was introduced has now completed the circle and is basically the only "van" Ford currently offers. Many different body styles and options are offered in the Transit, making the line versatile and adaptable to many work environments. But the big, typical full-sized van we have all lived with for a long, long time is in its last stages of its ending death throws.

I remember reading several years ago the logic behind the introduction of the Transit. Basically, a vehicle simple in design which could be manufactured anywhere in the world, and sold anywhere in the world, built from components sourced anywhere in the world. Very strategic visions, I'd say!

How abt General Motors? Best as I can tell, GM only offers the 1 ton van for 2016. Again, the regular-sized typical van is also disappearing from the General Motors stable. I'm not aware if GM has a "world" van in the making; Ford scooped them in that market for sure, but something must be in the pipeline for GM.

I didn't look at Fiat-Chrysler.

So, as we are evolving though this change, it will be interesting to see where it goes in the next few years. Next time you see a nice
Ford F-350 or Chevy 3500 full-sized van sitting on the street, better stop and give it a little kiss because I'm afraid it is an endangered species . . .

Or, I could be totally wrong! 

Thanks for listening. I bet we can have some fun with this post!

 

[Spirituallifetime]

I have been noticing this trend also. I think the van dwelling community will adapt to but for now most use the older vans so it maybe 10 years before most will acquire such a van.

 

[buckwilk]

Ford announced discontinuing of the E van in 2013. Sportsmobile the builder of 4x4 vans on this platform shifted to Transits and Sprinter platforms. Ford saw interest shifting away to smaller vans and vans that you could stand up in. The E van was around for 50 years and is an outdated platform. The transit was the best selling van in 2014 and gets much better gas mileage and you can almost stand up in them. Sprinter is a fantastic build platform and sure to be around awhile.

 

[karl]

Although it will continue to be interesting to watch the transformation of future vehicles from all manufacturers, I don't see this change as significantly different than any of the evolving of vehicles over the last century or more.
There has been a constant effort to make vehicles more comfortable, economical, "stylish", and sale able since production began.
I am interested to see how being able to be built anywhere, etc with be different than now.

As for the new designs of vans that promise more flexibility of use- I welcome simple design that made for more practical and utilitarian use, one of my pet peeves about van designs over the last fifteen or more years are the increasing curves and protuberances that make using every inch that much harder. There is little more irritating than discovering that "the thing" you carried in your van for years wont fit the new generation one you just purchased because the doors are a slightly different shape or the cargo area is tapered.
It appears that the new ford and Dodge vans are addressing those issues, prompted I'm guessing by Sprinters success.

Simpler would also be nice, but that is a word that will increasingly be used in referring to vehicles of a previous generation as electronics become more and more sophisticated and "economy" becomes more complex.
I would love to see an easy to work on, no frills, utility van produced......oh,wait! I have one- '87 Chevy step van!

 

[masterplumber]

For those that just have to have an old style Ford E series, and have a big pocketbook, Sportsmobile is actually making one. They are taking a cab and chassis that Ford is still going to produce, and add a fiberglass body to the back that looks just like the original van. I read they made a couple improvements, and the one I really like is they added 3'' to the inside width. That should allow a few more people to sleep across the van and open up design opportunities.

 

[LeeRevell]

I watch the slow take-over of the Eurovans with some interest, though I still much prefer the classic American fullsize van, for aesthetic looks and for sheer utility.  With a production history of some 45 years for the Ford Econoline/E Series (Gens Two to Five) they will be around for quite some time on the used market.

 

[blars]

Didn't both GM and Ford announce that they would stop making their larger gas engines a couple of years ago? At least one diesel manufacturer gave up on making for the US on-road market due to the regulations.