new GXV on Freightliner chassis

[haven]

Global Xpedition Vehicles has built a camper using a Freightliner M2 chassis.
This appears to be an M2 106 with "super single" wheels and tires. Details are
very limited at this point, but I expect the GXV web site will be updated with
information soon.

Freightliner sold the Mercedes Unimog U500 chassis that GXV has used for
their campers until now. So I guess it's natural that GXV would choose the
M2 chassis. A Meritor front drive axle is a factory option for the M2 , but I
don't know if the GXV M2 uses this axle.

A big advantage of the M2 chassis is the availability of service in North America.
Only a handful of Freightliner dealers know anything about the Unimog.

The GXV M2 appeared at the recent Overland Expo gathering in Arizona. The first
photo is from the GXV blog about the trip.

The camper section of the vehicle appears to be a little longer than the campers
typically used on the U500.

And this photo of the M2 was taken at the Expo by Dave "Adventureduo" Druck.

 

[hardware]

that looks good !

i wonder if the living space is accessible from the cab of the truck

 

[dzzz]

...........
i wonder if the living space is accessible from the cab of the truck

Almost certainly. People want that when spending the big bucks.

The camper looks at least a couple feet longer and six inches wider than the unimog box.

The "glamor shot" is a great photo of the truck.

 

[6Pins]

Very cool. I just found out the other day that there is a GlobalXpeditions vehicle in my neck of the woods. I just need to track it down now...

Didn't get any pictures of it, but last weekend I saw an ICON FJ43 in The Plains. WOW.

 

[haven]

So why is Global Xpedition Vehicles using the Freightliner chassis? Didn't they have success with the Mercedes Unimog U500? Here's my speculation.

The Unimog U500 has almost unprecedented mobility in off-road conditions for a vehicle of its size and capacity. So if you are looking to traverse difficult off-road terrain (and I mean truly without a road, not just off the pavement) with 15,000 lbs of cargo, then it's hard to find a better choice than the U500.

That said, the Freightliner M2 is probably a better chassis for the way most people use a vehicle that is this large (and expensive). Nobody is participating in King of the Hammers driving a vehicle with a 35,000 lbs GVWR.

In my experience, the owners of these camping vehicles are looking for secure travel on rutted, unpaved roads in all weather conditions. They want the durability and range offered by a commercial truck chassis. And they want a vehicle that is straightforward to service.

The M2 has a history of use in off-road conditions. The M2 with front drive axle is frequently chosen by Forest Service and firefighting groups for use as a brush truck, a vehicle that can take people, gear, and a supply of water into position to fight a wildland fire when no road exists.

The U500 was imported to North America from 2002 to 2007. Relatively few were sold. There is hope that Mercedes may bring them back in the future. Today, the only source of the U500 is the used vehicle market. Global Xpedition Vehicles does its best to find good used U500s and other models of Unimog for its customers.

In contrast, the M2 is Freightliner's bread and butter vehicle. Thousands are made annually. There are three cab choices, including a four door crew cab, several engine choices, and many choices of wheelbase. A 6x6 version of the M2 is available. Freightliner is happy to make an M2 to your particular specifications, including paint color. That makes it easy for GXV to acquire a chassis that meets its customers' requirements.

I'm looking forward to reports from GXV about the tradeoffs involved when deciding between U500 and M2 as a chassis for an ExPo vehicle.

Chip Haven

 

[ersatzknarf]

It sure looks nice
With a walk-through from cab to cabin, although a large set-up, it sure would be at the top of the list of the moment, if any of the numbers had hit on my powerball ticket
Drat ! (someone in Missouri won it all - good for them)
Looking forward to learning more about this one - if that chassis is more easily available here, than say the one Unicat (NA) had only one of, it seems a good solution for GXV
Wonder if they have a "less chrome" option ?

 

[SunTzuNephew]

So why is Global Xpedition Vehicles using the Freightliner chassis? Didn't they have success with the Mercedes Unimog U500? Here's my speculation.

The Unimog U500 has almost unprecedented mobility in off-road conditions for a vehicle of its size and capacity. So if you are looking to traverse difficult off-road terrain (and I mean truly without a road, not just off the pavement) with 15,000 lbs of cargo, then it's hard to find a better choice than the U500.

That said, the Freightliner M2 is probably a better chassis for the way most people use a vehicle that is this large (and expensive). Nobody is participating in King of the Hammers driving a vehicle with a 35,000 lbs GVWR.

In my experience, the owners of these camping vehicles are looking for secure travel on rutted, unpaved roads in all weather conditions. They want the durability and range offered by a commercial truck chassis. And they want a vehicle that is straightforward to service.

The M2 has a history of use in off-road conditions. The M2 with front drive axle is frequently chosen by Forest Service and firefighting groups for use as a brush truck, a vehicle that can take people, gear, and a supply of water into position to fight a wildland fire when no road exists.

The U500 was imported to North America from 2002 to 2007. Relatively few were sold. There is hope that Mercedes may bring them back in the future. Today, the only source of the U500 is the used vehicle market. Global Xpedition Vehicles does its best to find good used U500s and other models of Unimog for its customers.

In contrast, the M2 is Freightliner's bread and butter vehicle. Thousands are made annually. There are three cab choices, including a four door crew cab, several engine choices, and many choices of wheelbase. A 6x6 version of the M2 is available. Freightliner is happy to make an M2 to your particular specifications, including paint color. That makes it easy for GXV to acquire a chassis that meets its customers' requirements.

I'm looking forward to reports from GXV about the tradeoffs involved when deciding between U500 and M2 as a chassis for an ExPo vehicle.



Chip Haven

The Unimog is no longer being imported into the US because of EPA restrictions on the engine.....hence, they can chase an ever dwindling supply of previously owned mogs, or find something else...

They chose 'else'.

 

[teamtrailrunner]

Global Expedition Vehicle (GVX) on the M2 Freightliner...WOW!

I've been an avid "lurker" on the forum and have been actively researching literally every available expedition vehicle platform available for the USA.

We've have spent 100's of hours researching platforms, as this is a purchase for our family that will involve lot's of travel within North America. We have looked at everything from Sportsmobiles and Earthroamers to the Unicats. We left no stone unturned!

And I can say that Mike and Rene Van Pelt truly build high-quality expedition vehicles (and all in the good ole' USA). We attended the Overland Expo in Tucson specifically to "finally" view the vehicles in person. The quality is hard to picture...well...until you actually can sit in one and drive it. We liked the Unimog U500 platform, but the build options are literally endless with the M2 Freightliner. And since we have 4 kids it just made much more sense to have a platform that would provide great manufacturer service throughout North America.

We also felt that the M2 Freightliner really covered all the bases for durability, ride, ease of operation and comfort. This vehicle covers it all. The M2 at the Expo was actually not completed. Mike and Rene said they have a custom built expo bumper with a winch going on the front along with numerous other items to complete the vehicle. The expo box is actually custom built to whatever size and confiquration needed...that was a big need for our family...and one that will let us "truly" build a custom vehicle.

I know we sound like employees! But we are not! When you have done the research and actually meet the people that build a high quality USA expedition vehicle...it's hard not to be excited. Mike and Rene are really knowledgeable and certainly have the overland experience to back it up. My wife and I (and the kids) look forward to years of new overland adventures and meeting many of you on the forum. I spent a number of years as a professional athlete and the last 2 decades running the trails and mountain biking. We expect to now travel all over North America covering as many adventures as possible.

Needless to say...we will be putting in our order for a Freightliner M2 CrewCab GVX with Mike and Rene in the coming month and building out our dream vehicle. It's been a few years in the making and we look forward to posting the vehicles progress.

P.S. Attached are a few pictures of the GVX M2 we took at the Overland Expo 2010.

 

[charlieaarons]

The Unimog is no longer being imported into the US because of EPA restrictions on the engine.....hence, they can chase an ever dwindling supply of previously owned mogs, or find something else...

They chose 'else'.

Not true not true not true!
http://www.detroitdiesel.com/engines/mbe900/default.aspx
Do you see a Mercedes 900 series engine on the linked page?
Thousands are sold in the US yearly, you can buy one in a Freightliner!
Meeting 2010 emission specs.
Mercedes stopped importing U500s into the US because they weren't selling very many and it wasn't worth the investment to fit the (conforming) 900 series engine into the chassis, with AdBlue/DPF etc.
Mainly, they sold 183 in 4 years.
All the people crying "I wanna I wanna I wanna new Unimog" for years were strangely silent in 2003-6.
But the engine still is installed into chassis in the US/Canada, and it meets EPA specs.

Charlie

 

[SunTzuNephew]

Not true not true not true!
http://www.detroitdiesel.com/engines/mbe900/default.aspx
Do you see a Mercedes 900 series engine on the linked page?
Thousands are sold in the US yearly, you can buy one in a Freightliner!
Meeting 2010 emission specs.
Mercedes stopped importing U500s into the US because they weren't selling very many and it wasn't worth the investment to fit the (conforming) 900 series engine into the chassis, with AdBlue/DPF etc.
Mainly, they sold 183 in 4 years.
All the people crying "I wanna I wanna I wanna new Unimog" for years were strangely silent in 2003-6.
But the engine still is installed into chassis in the US/Canada, and it meets EPA specs.

Charlie

So,

it wasn't worth the investment to fit the (conforming) 900 series engine into the chassis, with AdBlue/DPF etc.

You agree with me. The existing engine wasn't cutting it. A new engine did but would require more than it was worth to fit.

 

[charlieaarons]

So,

You agree with me. The existing engine wasn't cutting it. A new engine did but would require more than it was worth to fit.

Yes, sort of. But, since the engine meets EPA specs in other chassis applications, the decision to stop importing the chassis was made on the basis of low unit sales, not "engine unable to meet EPA specs". And, contradicting my last post (sorry), AdBlue didn't come in till 2010. DPF/oxidation cat came in 2007.
I think at best the emissions were their excuse to stop importing, not the real reason.
There is no "new engine" in Freightliners/Thomas school buses etc. It is the same old engine with more emissions hardware. This engine series was specifically designed in the late 90s to deal with emission specs up to Euro VI which are about as stringent as EPA 2010.

Charlie

 

[Bill Beers]

...There is no "new engine" in Freightliners/Thomas school buses etc. It is the same old engine with more emissions hardware...

While that's true for the MBE 900, the DD13 is all new.

Though I don't think you could cram a DD13 in to a Unimog!

 

[ersatzknarf]

Welcome and congratulations on your impending order !
It sounds like you have found just the right solution for you and your family

I've been an avid "lurker" on the forum and have been actively researching literally every available expedition vehicle platform available for the USA.

<snip>

Needless to say...we will be putting in our order for a Freightliner M2 CrewCab GVX with Mike and Rene in the coming month and building out our dream vehicle. It's been a few years in the making and we look forward to posting the vehicles progress.

 

[charlieaarons]

A word of advice:
Order the highest GVW, axle and spring ratings available on your chassis. RV weights climb but never seem to decrease.
My experience, also Doug Hackney's and Jay Shapiro's EcoRoamer are instructive in this matter.
When I picked up my Unicat in Germany Thos. Ritter and I took it to get weighed. It was 4200kg in front and 5700kg in the rear with (nearly) empty fuel and water tanks.
I now have added a front winch, a lot of recovery gear and tools, comprehensive spare parts, 2 unmounted extra spare tires on the roof, etc etc.
With full tanks and fully set for a long trip it weighs 4400kg in front and 8300kg in the rear! The rear axle is plated at 9000kg but the truck's plated rear GAWR is 8500kg.
It really adds up.
Enjoy your vehicle.

Charlie

PS: Don't worry about going over 26K GVW. RVs don't require CDLs in the US. If you need one for a foreign country (like Australia) a Class B CDL is easy to get.

 

[hardware]

teamtrailrunner,

does the GXV M2 vehicle you looked have a walk through (or crawl through) from cab to living space ?