Will's Bug Out Rig: Duramax Van
Posted: Sun Dec 29, 2019 11:36 am
Not sure if license plate should read:
DMAX VAN
or
FRECNDY
or
BUG OUT
or the new entry
BOOGALU
-with a nod to black-face Ralphie
Here it is getting on the trailer in Tucson:
In my dad's driveway in VA:
It didn't want to start coming off the trailer, but I found it has an immobilizer that was somehow activated during transport. I figured out how to deactivate it, although I haven't removed it yet. Once it would start, I turned it around to start getting work done on it.
BEEEEEEEFFFFFFFFCCCCCCAAAAAAAAAAKKKKKKKKEEEEEE!
Here's the bulkhead. The rig came with two fire extinguishers, a hose reel, a small exhaust pipe going through the floor and a fuel tank. I guess whatever line of business it was formerly used in required an engine driven air compressor, hence the fuel, exhaust and 12V wiring everywhere.
Only the plastic parts are smashed
Here's where the compressor was in the auction photos
After some work, I got my seat range of motion back.
That thing is rather heavy (the bulkhead more than the cat, but the cat's kinda chunky too)
The van is a 2006 Express 3500 Extended Diesel with sliding door. Add all those up and it becomes a unicorn.
2006 was the first year for the Duramax in the GMT610 platform (Chevy Express & GMC Savana vans)
All calendar 2007 production was required to have the DPF, which hurts fuel economy. Since *RANGE* is the primary defining characteristic of a bug-out rig, I had to have a pre-DPF rig. This narrowed my selection to 2006 Diesel production only.
Within the set of 2006 diesel van production, a 3500 Extended van is on the rare side, but not unicorn status.
However, when you add the sliding door into the list of requirements, that specific configuration does become a bit of a unicorn.
Platform stats:
Wheelbase: 155" (135" is standard length)
OAL: 244"
GVW: 9600
Empty weight: TBD
GCW: 17000 without load distributing hitch, 18000 with.
Max trailer weight: 10,000
Frankly, I don't understand why people would pick the hinged side doors over the sliding door. The hinged side doors don't open far enough to have the full width of the body opening available to ingress/egress, as well as requiring a good bit of real estate to the side of the vehicle in order to use them. The sliding door is much better in both regards. On the current model configurator on the Chevy website, the sliding door is only about a $200 option. I don't understand why it's not WAY more common.
Following the van's basic configuration being a unicorn, this particular van is:
-Low mileage at 137k, while most diesel work vans are in the 250k range by the time they hit eBay
-Straight; most work vans get external hasps to lock the doors with a padlock and the bodies get beat up over time from being treated like work trucks. This rig has only one dent, and that's on the left front fender, which has no impact on the function of the doors or weatherstripping.
-Rust free, having spent its working life in AZ
The only option it's missing that I really wish it had is cruise control.
Plans:
-Empty it: As noted, I already pulled out the bulkhead. The shelving will follow. The current shelving prevents laying 4x8 plywood or drywall flat. I'll end up with shelves that will allow 4x8 payloads. Basically, I'll rip everything out and start over.
-Fuel and Spare tires: Remember the primary characteristic of a bug out rig is RANGE. The full body vans are available in 135 and 155 inch wheel base options and all have 30 gallon tanks inside the frame rails, with the spare under the body behind the rear axle. The cutaway chassis have 159 and 177" wheelbase options. Those chassis also have an optional 55 gallon tank that fit behind the rear axle. So in this van I'll remove the spare and mounting hardware and install the 55 gallon tank where the spare was. I have multiple options to carry a spare, of which the current front runner is dual spares carried internally. Yeah, I'm aware I could carry six spares on the roof, but that's kind of attention-getting.
-Hitch: I'm surprised it didn't come with a hitch, but whoever ordered it was definitely trying to keep it cheap while still fulfilling some must have requirements similar to mine. E-Trailer has a Class V hitch for it... I'll snag that before too long.
-"Crew Van": This is similar to GM's current "5 passenger seating" option for work vans. GM's option requires full body glass and a full interior, thus turning a work van into a passenger van with some seats left out. That's not quite what I want. I want the first bench seat and body glass installed in the forward section of the cargo area. I want to keep the rear section of the cargo area paneled. That means that I can install a seat and a windowed sliding door to be 2/3 of the way there. I'll have to consult with body shops to figure out how hard installing the forward bank of windows in a panel body would be. There are 5 vertical structural members there. Members 2 & 4 need to be replaced with shorter ones and window sill structure installed, in addition to cutting holes for the windows and then doing sheet metal work to profile those edges to accept GM's windows.
As mentioned, I'll swap the panel door for a windowed door. I also want to change the color to green. Green vehicles get the fewest tickets. Green is also the color that's the best compromise between urban and rural camouflage on the east coast. Green was also the LOWEST production of any color GM painted a van. I've found a green windowed sliding door, but it's a full day road trip distance away. I don't trust a junk yard to ship it, so I'm thinking I'll drive out there, swap the doors and leave my current door there.
I'll also snag any other serviceable green body parts they have. The more green I can bolt on, the less green I have to pay a body shop to change over from white.
-Other: Fuel economy tune, maybe a couple of Titan transfer tanks, shelving that doesn't interfere with 4'x8' cargo, front and rear high current electrical sockets for winches or jumper cables, engine driven air compressor (bolts on to Duramax!)... and other stuff as I see fit.
DMAX VAN
or
FRECNDY
or
BUG OUT
or the new entry
BOOGALU
-with a nod to black-face Ralphie
Here it is getting on the trailer in Tucson:
In my dad's driveway in VA:
It didn't want to start coming off the trailer, but I found it has an immobilizer that was somehow activated during transport. I figured out how to deactivate it, although I haven't removed it yet. Once it would start, I turned it around to start getting work done on it.
BEEEEEEEFFFFFFFFCCCCCCAAAAAAAAAAKKKKKKKKEEEEEE!
Here's the bulkhead. The rig came with two fire extinguishers, a hose reel, a small exhaust pipe going through the floor and a fuel tank. I guess whatever line of business it was formerly used in required an engine driven air compressor, hence the fuel, exhaust and 12V wiring everywhere.
Only the plastic parts are smashed
Here's where the compressor was in the auction photos
After some work, I got my seat range of motion back.
That thing is rather heavy (the bulkhead more than the cat, but the cat's kinda chunky too)
The van is a 2006 Express 3500 Extended Diesel with sliding door. Add all those up and it becomes a unicorn.
2006 was the first year for the Duramax in the GMT610 platform (Chevy Express & GMC Savana vans)
All calendar 2007 production was required to have the DPF, which hurts fuel economy. Since *RANGE* is the primary defining characteristic of a bug-out rig, I had to have a pre-DPF rig. This narrowed my selection to 2006 Diesel production only.
Within the set of 2006 diesel van production, a 3500 Extended van is on the rare side, but not unicorn status.
However, when you add the sliding door into the list of requirements, that specific configuration does become a bit of a unicorn.
Platform stats:
Wheelbase: 155" (135" is standard length)
OAL: 244"
GVW: 9600
Empty weight: TBD
GCW: 17000 without load distributing hitch, 18000 with.
Max trailer weight: 10,000
Frankly, I don't understand why people would pick the hinged side doors over the sliding door. The hinged side doors don't open far enough to have the full width of the body opening available to ingress/egress, as well as requiring a good bit of real estate to the side of the vehicle in order to use them. The sliding door is much better in both regards. On the current model configurator on the Chevy website, the sliding door is only about a $200 option. I don't understand why it's not WAY more common.
Following the van's basic configuration being a unicorn, this particular van is:
-Low mileage at 137k, while most diesel work vans are in the 250k range by the time they hit eBay
-Straight; most work vans get external hasps to lock the doors with a padlock and the bodies get beat up over time from being treated like work trucks. This rig has only one dent, and that's on the left front fender, which has no impact on the function of the doors or weatherstripping.
-Rust free, having spent its working life in AZ
The only option it's missing that I really wish it had is cruise control.
Plans:
-Empty it: As noted, I already pulled out the bulkhead. The shelving will follow. The current shelving prevents laying 4x8 plywood or drywall flat. I'll end up with shelves that will allow 4x8 payloads. Basically, I'll rip everything out and start over.
-Fuel and Spare tires: Remember the primary characteristic of a bug out rig is RANGE. The full body vans are available in 135 and 155 inch wheel base options and all have 30 gallon tanks inside the frame rails, with the spare under the body behind the rear axle. The cutaway chassis have 159 and 177" wheelbase options. Those chassis also have an optional 55 gallon tank that fit behind the rear axle. So in this van I'll remove the spare and mounting hardware and install the 55 gallon tank where the spare was. I have multiple options to carry a spare, of which the current front runner is dual spares carried internally. Yeah, I'm aware I could carry six spares on the roof, but that's kind of attention-getting.
-Hitch: I'm surprised it didn't come with a hitch, but whoever ordered it was definitely trying to keep it cheap while still fulfilling some must have requirements similar to mine. E-Trailer has a Class V hitch for it... I'll snag that before too long.
-"Crew Van": This is similar to GM's current "5 passenger seating" option for work vans. GM's option requires full body glass and a full interior, thus turning a work van into a passenger van with some seats left out. That's not quite what I want. I want the first bench seat and body glass installed in the forward section of the cargo area. I want to keep the rear section of the cargo area paneled. That means that I can install a seat and a windowed sliding door to be 2/3 of the way there. I'll have to consult with body shops to figure out how hard installing the forward bank of windows in a panel body would be. There are 5 vertical structural members there. Members 2 & 4 need to be replaced with shorter ones and window sill structure installed, in addition to cutting holes for the windows and then doing sheet metal work to profile those edges to accept GM's windows.
As mentioned, I'll swap the panel door for a windowed door. I also want to change the color to green. Green vehicles get the fewest tickets. Green is also the color that's the best compromise between urban and rural camouflage on the east coast. Green was also the LOWEST production of any color GM painted a van. I've found a green windowed sliding door, but it's a full day road trip distance away. I don't trust a junk yard to ship it, so I'm thinking I'll drive out there, swap the doors and leave my current door there.
I'll also snag any other serviceable green body parts they have. The more green I can bolt on, the less green I have to pay a body shop to change over from white.
-Other: Fuel economy tune, maybe a couple of Titan transfer tanks, shelving that doesn't interfere with 4'x8' cargo, front and rear high current electrical sockets for winches or jumper cables, engine driven air compressor (bolts on to Duramax!)... and other stuff as I see fit.