first B class cutaway or extendedlease

thebrain wrote:
The 2500 should have a 6.0 or 6.2 400 horse power

Powertrain options for the Express are not the same as for the pickups. The top engine option on the 2500 is the 6.0 with 341 horsepower. But the 2500 Express standard engine is the 4.3 V6 and the Duramax diesel is the little 2.8 4 cylinder used in the Colorado. I certainly agree with you that a conversion van built on a 1500 is bound to be overloaded. Curiously, I see on Chevy's website that 1500 series Expess vans are no longer built.

Photomike wrote:
Most of the converted vans would not be great to launch a boat with. They have way too much stuff hanging down under them making the clearance horrible. You would more than likely rip something off or flood the built in generator when doing so.

I was actually planning to cut a hole in the driver rear door just under the spare tire holder and place the yamaha 2000 1600 watt continuous on a small plateform w/ cover that exposed the exhaust outward.do you think this would be high enought for cruising at vessel launching the generater will be stowed.

was planning to use this generater on both van and camper vessel however w/ the associated CO fumes I'm leaning toward more amp hours.
I could get by w/ a hotplate attached to a foldup shelf attached to the side door.

when I first found out about roadtrek and the other B class. I thought the generater was mounted up in the rear roof area however that just the AC compressor.

you are absolutely correct about the xepress's being very low if I remember correctly the tongue height was like 11" van is allready very low but squatted underload I actuely hit a sewer lid strucktore and the lid flipped up and damaged the rear plastic body panel surrounding the rear wheel.my new tow vehicle saab 97x tongue height is like triple the vans in fact I had the invert the 1 1/2" hitch.

the van I want to fix up and invest in will have either airbag leveling sys. or some air shocks to compensate for the sag.

edit: I have two camper cook tops the first is a coleman 2 burner which burns either gasoline or coleman fuild would a stove like this be as safe as the propane hotplate which is my second cooker however it's a grill type I suspose a pan could be heated on a grill correct.I haven't used either grill yet.

thebrain wrote:

Camper van Concerns are as follows

1,smelly propane fumes for the stove top I think it heats water to.really what induction hotplate at 1300watts high or 600watts lower heat range.

2.orman generater noise.

3.just how much stuff can you operate off of 200amp hourslike refrigerator,

I desire a roadtech 21 popular widebody however at 8'9" it won't fit drive though resturants/car washs 9boat won't either) that only has overheads not full galley full closets I have in mind a minimalist weight reducing floor plan

Propane cooktops, if operating properly, do not emit smelly fumes. They do consume oxygen and produce water vapor and carbon dioxide, of course, so some ventilation is important (and not generally a problem), but they do not smell any more than a gas stove in a house smells.

The big advantage of propane vs. induction cooktops (if powered by a battery and inverter) is that burning propane liberates about 25 kWh of energy per gallon, so is a far more compact way to store energy than batteries.

Onan generators are not silent, not by a long shot, but a good installation can be relatively quiet. Relatively is the important word here; think maybe vacuum cleaner or window air conditioner sound levels, or perhaps a bit louder.

200 Ah can be a fair bit with efficient appliances and a little conservation. An absorption fridge running on propane might use around 10-25 Ah per day, depending on the model and installation, plus some propane (about a pound a day as a rough rule of thumb). A compressor-driven residential fridge running with an inverter uses maybe 100 Ah per day. These are just quite rough estimates, not precise figures.

If you're looking for the most bare-bones setup, a conversion van (as opposed to an RV) or a home-built unit might be more practical than a Roadtek or other commercial class B / class C motorhome. You may not be able to register it as a motorhome (that usually requires some minimum level of equipment), but that's not a great difficulty in your case; it would just be an ordinary van in the eyes of the law.

Most of the converted vans would not be great to launch a boat with. They have way too much stuff hanging down under them making the clearance horrible. You would more than likely rip something off or flood the built in generator when doing so.

thinking I'd be better off w/ a roadtrek or other chevy2500 mainly for tow capcity

My recent observations for the new van are as follows. Completely sticker stock even on none runnering vans.

1.dissapointed that chevy conciders a 2500series comes w/ a 1500 sized 4.8

The 2500 should have a 6.0 or 6.2 400 horse power

2.the road treks have way to much furniture and are weak tow vehicle at 5400LB 1KLB tongue weight due to this extra interior weight.

3.just noticed tire preasure on the 2500 as 50PSI front 80PSI rear.

Maybe this is why my 02 1500 express felt a little weak while towing .



I think I only had 40PSI front /45PSI rear



Camper van Concerns are as follows

1,smelly propane fumes for the stove top I think it heats water to.really what induction hotplate at 1300watts high or 600watts lower heat range.

2.orman generater noise.

3.just how much stuff can you operate off of 200amp hourslike refrigerator,

I desire a roadtech 21 popular widebody however at 8'9" it won't fit drive though resturants/car washs 9boat won't either) that only has overheads not full galley full closets I have in mind a minimalist weight reducing floor plan

A Promaster cut-away with single rear wheel can't carry much of a load, let along tow a notable load. I personally wonder why it is even offered for the RV industry.

Your most affordable and capable Class-C choices will be a Ford E350, for smaller applications and the E450 up to the largest of applications. They also rank high in reliability, have a low maintenance cost, great ease of maintenance, good access to service, and have high power and towing capabilities. Buying a new one with the latest transmission with more gears makes it even better yet.

But the E350 and E450 is the least comfortable, most noisy, least fuel efficient, and has the worst turning radius of the bunch. If "cost to purchase and maintain" is a serious factor, and you can work with those monetary deficiencies, they are an excellent choice.

If you seek better fuel economy, a more quiet ride, improved comfort, and a better turning radius, any Sprinter diesel has that going for it. Note that the new 2019 Sprinter 4500 chassis is a significant step up from previous model years with 12,125 pounds of GVWR and lots of new technology like smarter driver assist features. There is an extra price hike for that so be mindful of it.

A Chevy 3500 and 4500 are very nice as well. They seem to be a great compromise between the Ford E-series and Sprinter.

The Ford Transit is great, but only for the smallest of applications.

Reiterating that I would stay away from any Class-C Promaster. A Class-B Promaster is another story. They seem ideal because of the front-wheel drive configuration. The lack of a drive shaft permits the RV outfitter a lot more under-belly space for more RV-specific features and capacities, assuming they utilize the space smartly.

I would imagine launching a boat with any Class-C with a notable extended rear over-hang would be very difficult. I have seen a few Class-C rigs with a front tow ball hitch specifically for boat-launching. They push the boat into the water rather than backing it in. It keeps the boat's trailer hitch much closer to the road surface to prevent the rear of the trailer from getting damaged by dragging on the boat ramp.

For what it's worth.
When I was looking at new rv's last year, I was told by two rv dealers that the Promaster FWD spins on dirt/gravel when weight is added to the rear, to be careful loading it.
So, I went with Ford this time but when I towed a boat using ramps, I was glad to have a 4x4 TC.
Too many ramps had very shallow water and I had to bury the rear end in order to get my trailer deeper to launch and retrieve. The added weight and drag of water on the trailer would be a deal breaker for me.

When I was looking at vans I started wanting a Sprinter. Was warned about the expense and issues with them by many people. Then looked at a Promaster and was warned about breakdowns with them. So I looked at then bought a Ford. Very happy with it.

I did do the build myself so that may not be what you want to do.

Here is a link about mine

The Ram Promaster is only available with a V6 or a small diesel. It's also front wheel drive only, not good for pulling a boat up a ramp.