Ambulance Camper/ Expedition Rig Conversion FAQ

zuke

Adventurer
Did you ensure you revved the engine up at least once after starting? A lot of alternators that don't have a sense wire require a higher RPM to be "fielded" or begin charging. You don't have to maintain the higher rpm, you just needed to run it up once after each start to 1200 rpm or so...
 
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Pangle

Wanderer
Did you ensure you revved the engine up at least once after starting? A lot of alternators that don't have a sense wire require a higher RPM to be "fielded" or begin charging. You don't have to maintain the higher rpm, you just needed to run it up once after each start to 1200 rpm or so...

yea I have tried ever trick in the book.. there has to be a wiring issue i cannot find.
 

Pangle

Wanderer
Well, HDPSI has a pretty good guide on troubleshooting that alternator, and it includes wiring and regulator info, but if you suspect they miswired something back in the cabinets when they decomissioned the ambo, it might not help much;

HDPSI Series 23 and 24 Troubleshooting

thanks, and yes I have this guide also! I have my electrician friend coming to take a look and see if he can figure it out! thanks for the info
 

BigMiglikesFigs

New member
1988 350 diesel 7.3 non turbo ambulance

Hello everyone. I just picked up this sweet ride and wanted some feedback any and all. Suggestions and opinions welcome. Came with around 105k miles and I purchased for 2000$ hoping to fix it up nice and travel.
 

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patoz

Expedition Leader
Welcome to the Ambulance Owners Club!

That's pretty low mileage for a unit that old, so maybe you lucked out and got one that didn't see that much use.

Not much I can tell you right now without seeing the inside and knowing more about what equipment and systems it has. The few things I can tell you are:

1. Clean it up good so you can see what you've got, but be very careful when poking around seats, cracks, cabinet and compartment doors, and anyplace else where needles can fall into and hide.

2. Once you have it cleaned up, take lots and lots of pictures of every square inch of it, and from every angle. Don't forget the compartments inside also. You will thank me later.

3. Once you think you have figured out where you want everything to go, and get ready to start ripping out wiring, cabinets, and walls, STOP and think about it some more. After that, wait a while and then think about it some more. Considering you are working with a very limited amount of space, you'll find there will be several things you want in there, that will be competing for the same space. It's going to be like putting together a jigsaw puzzle, and once you remove parts and throw them away, there is no do-overs.

I'm not trying to scare you here, I'm just saying don't be in too big of a rush to do something, and then regret it later because your plans changed. Just make sure you have thought it out thoroughly, talk to other people who have already been there, wait to see if anything changes, and then start cutting and removing things if you need to. Most of the wiring circuits for ambulance items you wont need like the suction pump, can be re-assigned to another item like the water pump, etc. I would not remove any unused wiring, just cap it off and label it as to what was used for to make identification for use later easier.

Now, jump in and start planning your dream vehicle!
 

BigMiglikesFigs

New member
Thank you sir. I appreciate the help and will keep all you said in mind. I'll get to work on this after I really think through this whole project
 

patoz

Expedition Leader
Thank you sir. I appreciate the help and will keep all you said in mind. I'll get to work on this after I really think through this whole project


Wow, judging by the number of typo's I see, I must have been tired when I wrote that! :coffeedrink:

They are a lot of fun to work on, but you just can't run down to your local auto parts store and pick up new ambulance parts when you break something or fry an electrical part. However, a lot of the electrical parts are standard off the shelf items. And, there are several places online that rebuild and refit ambulances, and they stock parts and sometimes have used parts for sale. eBay is another place to look also.

One other thing I forgot to mention is, hang on to anything removed if you have the storage space, because you may need it later or it can be traded to other members who may need just that part. I have even saved small pieces of trim and laminate covered wood from the module (aka patient compartment), because it's hard to find matching materials at Home Depot and Lowe's, etc.

Well, the sun is finally shinning, so I need to go do some work on mine!
 

Bikersmurf

Expedition Leader
Hello everyone. I just picked up this sweet ride and wanted some feedback any and all. Suggestions and opinions welcome. Came with around 105k miles and I purchased for 2000$ hoping to fix it up nice and travel.

1) Clean, Clean, and Clean some more.

2) Put some miles on and get it reliable.

3) Check brakes, change fluids, go through mechanical from bumper to bumper.

4) Use it some and decide how you want to build it out.

5) Don't over complicate plans and design.

Enjoy the ride...
 

Ampalamps

New member
Hi all,

I'm looking at an 03 type ii unit with 260k on it. It has a 7.3l that seems to be running well. Cold starts fine. Seller replaced the high pressure oil pump and lines, but otherwise service history is unknown. It has had the inverter pulled, but all lights are still wired up. Don't see any dripping oil, but the trans and bottom of engine definitely have some oily grime on them.

Curious what I should be looking out for. Is $4500 reasonable for something like this? In California, and thus no rust.

Any insight appreciated!

Edit: forgot to mention that it's a leader build

IMG_0324.jpgIMG_0325.jpgIMG_0323.jpg
 
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patoz

Expedition Leader
That is a nice clean looking vehicle, but $4,500.00 with 260K miles on it sounds a little high to me, even for a 2003 model. What does the cab area look like? How about the tires, or are you planning on converting it to 4WD?

Do you have any idea who owned and operated it when it was still an in-service ambulance?

It does look like a quality built unit, and Leader Emergency Vehicles is owned by the REV group, so that says a lot. However, I think I would offer $3,000.00 and go from there.

http://leaderambulance.com/company/factory-tour/
 

Ampalamps

New member
That is a nice clean looking vehicle, but $4,500.00 with 260K miles on it sounds a little high to me, even for a 2003 model. What does the cab area look like? How about the tires, or are you planning on converting it to 4WD?

Do you have any idea who owned and operated it when it was still an in-service ambulance?

It does look like a quality built unit, and Leader Emergency Vehicles is owned by the REV group, so that says a lot. However, I think I would offer $3,000.00 and go from there.

Tires have a decent amount of tread left. Unclear how new they are though.

Forgot to mention that it has 4 new batteries.

Cab is pretty clean. No tears in the seats. Couple little bits missing like knobs for one seat, the plastic piece you pull for headlights.

It was allegedly used as a training vehicle for a jr college prior to is owner.

No plans for 4x4. Seller has it listed for 6k on cl. Found it on eBay where he has had 3 winners flake with bids ranging from $4100-4650.

Any recommendations on other places to find a good unit? The auctions I have seen aren't turning up much.
 

patoz

Expedition Leader
New batteries and usable tires are always a great plus! The rest sounds pretty good also.

I may be off on the price, but the mileage is what worries me. Not so much as far as the engine is concerned, but for all the other things like, the drive train, steering box and linkage, suspension, exhaust system, etc. If it was owned by a government or large private agency it probably had routine maintenance done, but if it was owned by a small rural department or small private agency, it may not have been due to limited budgets.

I drove emergency vehicles for 35 years and I know they can get dogged pretty bad, even when the driver wasn't meaning to, it's just the nature of the beast. Just be careful and check it out thoroughly.

As far as locating other prospects, check out post #7 at the beginning of this thread. Jeremy put together a pretty good list that should get you started.

Also, be sure to check out Global Emergency Vehicles to. Here is a 2003 Ford E350 McCoy Miller Type III ambulance for $5,500, so maybe that asking price is fair. Just keep in mind GEV sell units that have been thoroughly inspected and are ready to go in service as an ambulance, unless otherwise noted. The McCoy Miller is being sold 'as is'.
 
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rlrenz

Explorer
I agree with Pat -the mileage doesn't give me a warm fuzzy. Also, being used by a junior college also doesn't help. Maintenance could have become breakdown maintenance instead of periodic, plus being used by students is also a warning sign in my book.

I bought my medium ambulance from a dealer, but I wound up with a good unit with only 50,000 miles on the clock. There are many ambulances available with about 100,000 miles that may be a better choice - check www.ambulancetrader.com.
 

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