Rear seats?

Here is a starter for ya if nothing else:

http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1398687-someone-must-want-this-1800-87-quadra.html

pcoplin wrote:
I have only been around a couple Class Cs with van fronts, and want to haul my family of 3 around in one. I want to convert to 4WD and diesel.

I would think it would be easier to find an F350 or 450 diesel cab and chassis and move the whole house onto it from a class C than to convert a van chassis to 4WD and diesel. I know the 4WD is pretty straightforward but the diesel sounds like a pretty tough job mostly due to space constraints. Because of cooling issues the diesels are derated in the van to about the same torque and considerably less hp than the gas V10. On the other hand I once saw a Ford van for sale that had a 5.9 Cummins and a 6 speed manual swapped in. That would be awesome in a motorhome!

Thanks, I like that Xplorer. Too bad they appear to be out of business. Also, looks like they were all single cabs. BE something to look for though!

http://www.xplorermotorhome.com/xcursion_ford28.html


I'll be looking for the Bigfoot and variants of I think. It would have to fit us very well and be a Ford for me to convert to 4WD. Those solid axles conversions are straight forward, and won't be a problem for me.


Another option, although spendy, are the Awd versions of the Sprinter Van. These have a lot less room than Class Cs, but the offroad capability is there.

Another one to look for used would be the Xplorer built by Frank Industries around 2004-2005. This was on a F-450 (or maybe F-550, whichever was just under 18,000 pounds GVWR) cab-chassis but wasn't sold as a Super C because it was a small house, for about 26-feet overall length, thus about the size of a 22-24 foot conventional C.

The Xplorer wasn't terribly expensive, about 30% more than a comparable Bigfoot, thus about twice the price of the cheapest conventionally constructed C's on the Chevy 3500 chassis. Roughly $100,000 in 2005, before paying the premium for a diesel and the 4x4 conversion if you must have that.

Building for excursion pushes the price up. It is not just that the chassis is a lot more expensive than E-350/450 with the RV package, the house has to be built differently as well, to stay intact running on uneven surfaces.

Visit one of the Thor or Forest River C motorhome factories to see how the box is tacked together to meet the low price points expected in this RV market segment. It is not at all like the auto industry, where we've come to expect Toyota's Yaris to have the same basic structural integrity as their Lexus. There can be big differences in RV structures for different price points.

If I were going 4x4 on a van-chassis C, I would want it built at least to the level of Phoenix Cruiser or a Bigfoot, and I don't think anyone besides Host and Tiger is building something like the old Chinook, which was popular for conversion to off-road use. But if I really wanted a motorhome for off-road, it would be a van conversion (Class B) to get the structural integrity of the van, rather than try to build a strong enough house-in-a-box to put on a light truck chassis.

pcoplin,

Keep this in mind when shopping around. When it comes to roll-over protection in a class C, nearly every manufacture compromises that protection by cutting the cab roof for easier access between the two front seats and the house, as shown here.


Regarding 3rd and 4th person seating, most floor plans provide "Seat-Belt" seating in the dinette which does not meet NTSB standards for typical automobiles. The only affordable used motorhome I know of that has real seats for four adults is one of the popular Rialta floor plans. But that rig falls short when it comes to "practical" motor home features.

Our 2007 rig HERE has a true 3rd person seat but only with a lap belt. The seat swivels forward to rearward. Unfortunately that person's outside view during travel, is limited to the front cab windows. Fortunately there is a good view of the TV.

Our brand of motor home is offered with a Quigley 4x4 HERE, but there are very few used ones out there to find.

My personal thoughts about a 4x4 motor home is that I really would not want to subject the house to those extremes. There are a few exceptions like the Earth Roamer, Big Foot, and Tiger to mention a few. But a conventionally constructed motor home has enough challenges keeping together on regular roads, let alone on roads that will twist the frame which then will breach seam work. Routine treking through sand and mud would be an exception to the 4x4 world.

I just did a quick search on "Phoenix Cruiser 4x4" and found THIS 2009 2350 4X4 for sale.

There are a couple of companies that used to convert ambulances to 4 wheel drive. Once the F-450 chassis came out, most who wanted a 4X4 ambulance went with that chassis, instead of converting the E-350 chassis to 4x4 at a cost of around $25,000.

I have not seen any 4X4 ambulances based on GM vans or after about model year 2002 on the E-series either.

I think that Bigfoot did put in a roll cage at the factory both front and rear, built into the walls of the RV, so you barely know it is there, unless you are reading the manufactures data on the coach.

I always liked the "Scotty" brand RV, it was typically based on a diesel Dodge 3500 dually pickup. To bad they went out of business a few years ago. You could look up that brand on RvSearch.com.

Good luck on your search!

Fred.

Thanks for the info Drew.



Here's a nice version for a van Class C made by Bigfoot, 6.0 diesel, 4wd. Just needs a crew cab F550 chassis.

Do be aware that the seat belts installed in the rear seats of motorhomes are often not up to the standards of, say, passenger car seat belts. They sometimes have less than excellent mounting structures and general designs; and also some of the seat designs themselves are not really sturdy enough to be particularly crashworthy. For sudden stops or comparatively minor collisions, they would doubtless help keep people in the seats and prevent some injuries. In the event of a serious accident, though, I'm not sure they would be of a great deal of value. Then again, a motorhome is not generally a great place to be in a serious accident, between the many potential projectiles, the edges of furniture, and the typical lack of beefy structure.

My '98 Coachmen has a total of nine positions with seat belts: two in the cab area, four around the dinette, and three along the couch. The ones in the back are only lap belts, and truth be told I'm not sure they've ever been used, either by me or by the previous two owners.

My RV also technically has four wheel drive, although admittedly all four driven wheels are on the same axle... :B

Found these, but looks to have used only single cab 6.0 F350s.

http://www.xplorermotorhome.com/xcursion_ford28.html

lawrosa wrote:
Host makes them.. And even if other manufacturers make them they will all be in the 200K range...


This ones about 228K

http://www.hostcampers.com/subs/motorcoaches/motorcoach_330_quad.html

Looks nice! However, I'm looking for an older one to convert. I want it in nice shape, but I don't tend to buy anything new.

Do you know when Host started making them?