Thoughts on this '01 Ford conversion van from #vanlifers?

[WaistDeepGroomers]

Hey mags,

Been casually looking at vans for three season weekend outings here in New England and, as I work remotely, the occasional 3-4 day weekend with some laptop time in the van.

Found this '01 E350 extended conversion van, 164,000 miles, for $7,000: https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...roduct_details

Purple interior def not my favorite (maybe the floor carpet at least could be pulled up and replaced with vinyl flooring I have? or at least black or gray carpet?), and would prefer to be standing up if possible, but for my purposes (i.e. not living out of it) it seems like a pretty decent deal. There's some body damage alongside the driver's side rear rearwheel that I'd need to fix since the owner ran it against a curb that was too high, but I could get some money off for that.

Obvi will carfax it and would like to bring it to a mechanic if I check it out, but curious if any folks in the hive have experience with these rigs. Danke!

Original post: "16’ long, 8’2” high, with a V-8 motor, two one-year old batteries (one runs the fridge), 15-amp electrical system, 2 sets of tires. 2 captain’s chairs in front; bench seat in back seats three. Additional bench in rear. Bench seat flattens electrically to queen size bed. Large cabinet and several small cubbies for storage. Has a handheld vac that plugs into cigarette lighter. 163,600 miles. Some damage on driver’s side rear wheel well and step as a result of learning 16’ vehicles can’t go through most drive-thrus. Hitch and outlet for towing and brakelights.30-gallon gas tank; gets around 15 mph, slightly better highway mileage. Easy to drive. $7,000 or best reasonable offer."

[toast2266]

Facebook won't let me see the link, but $7k for a purple interior sounds too good to pass up.

[WaistDeepGroomers]

Facebook won't let me see the link, but $7k for a purple interior sounds too good to pass up.

Ha! Just updated the post with pics and the description.

[mooseknuckle]

Sin bin

[Vt-Freeheel]

That's mauve, not pink. Undercarriage looks ok for an older rig, fluid film would keep it stabilized for a while. 15 mpg? lulz

[The Tortoise]

I assume it's the 5.4? There are a few issues with those, namely coil packs and spitting out plugs.

Is there a spot to mount the mirror ball to go with that purple rug?

[El Chupacabra]

Shine a black light on the carpet when you go check it out.

[toast2266]

I think not being able to stand up will suck. Sure, when the weather's nice, you're mostly outside. But if you're buying a "camper," you'll want a decent place to hang out when it's cold, rainy, etc. And something you can't really stand up in isn't all that pleasant to hang out in.

[stuckathuntermtn]

That looks rapey af.

[Vt-Freeheel]

Shine a black light on the carpet when you go check it out.

Picturing that woman selling the van romping in the back with guys she picked up at the campgrounds.

[ill-advised strategy]

I think not being able to stand up will suck. Sure, when the weather's nice, you're mostly outside. But if you're buying a "camper," you'll want a decent place to hang out when it's cold, rainy, etc. And something you can't really stand up in isn't all that pleasant to hang out in.

Having lived in a semi with a low-top sleeper cab, I totally totally agree.
It seems like a small thing until you’re living it.

[t-the-east]

I can tell you from owning 4 separate f150’s from 01-03 as work trucks, the 5.4 will run for a very long time, I had 2 that went to 250k and still ran strong, the rust was what did them in. BUT as stated above the coil packs are a bitch. Worse than that is the exhaust manifold. It’s like they used the cheapest possible material on it. I’ve had a few replaced and it’s not cheap.

I’d take a good look at the exhaust manifold and the shape it’s in. It’ll be totally normal and running quiet and then all of a sudden the thing sounds like a Harley.

Also at 160k +, it’s gonna probably need new ball joints, tie rods, u joints, struts, and brakes. See when those were last done.

2wd is a bitch as well.

Lastly, it really does look rapey af

[TeleBeaver]

The '01 5.4l is one of the good ones. It is the 2 valve which doesn't have the clogged oil journal problem of the later 3 valve models. It is after they updated the heads so spark plugs don't fly out, but the shitty two-piece stock plugs can break off in the head. If it has made it this far the plugs have likely already been replaced so you shouldn't have an issue. The only other issue to look out for on the motor side is if the coils have been going bad at random. This could be a sign of an intake manifold gasket leak. The manifold leaks and fills the plug holes with coolant which burns the coil out and causes a misfire condition. Ask if it has a slow coolant leak or check if the coolant is low. It is a tough leak to track down because it only happens when the system is pressurized and the coolant evaporates on the hot motor. Doing the intake manifold on these vans is a b*tch, so just poke around. I wouldn't be afraid of the 5.4l, it is a strong motor that will go forever if you change the oil with some regularity. I think 7k is a little much for a 20 year old northeast vehicle but #vanlife has increased the value of these rigs so maybe its fair. 5k and I'd say jump on it in a heartbeat.

Source: Been living in my 2002 Ford E250 for 5 years now. Bought it with 162k and am over 216k now. I did have to do the intake manifold gasket but other than that the thing has been dead nuts reliable and started on every -20 degree Maine or Crested Butte morning without complaint. Also 15mpg is possible for highway driving, but around town expect more like 12mpg. I got 15.8mpg on my most recent trip from CB to Taos and back. That's driving like a grandma though.

[ryan b]

From what i've seen older used camper vans are pretty cheap and often have lower millage then that since they were only used for camping. For the use you describe I'd try to find one thats more of a camper and less of a convertible people hauler with a high roof, forced air furnace, a real bed and front seats (or at least the passenger side) that swivel to let you sit at a table for laptop time.

[WaistDeepGroomers]

From what i've seen older used camper vans are pretty cheap and often have lower millage then that since they were only used for camping. For the use you describe I'd try to find one thats more of a camper and less of a convertible people hauler with a high roof, forced air furnace, a real bed and front seats (or at least the passenger side) that swivel to let you sit at a table for laptop time.

Interesting yeah. This one does have captain's seats up front that swivel, and I did like the bench seats in the back to have extra seating for pals and/or work station during the day. Only planning on using this for weekends v. live in so main question is whether not being able to stand up would be a killer.

[ryan b]

Yeah spending a day in there working is going to suck. Might be fine if you are somewhere in nice weather when you can just hop out to stretch but not ideal.

(We have a passenger van with a bed in the back for family camping. My dad had a ford conversion when i was a kid, the rear seat bed was so uncomfortable he ended up tearing it out to put a plywood platform and camping matts in.)