HAMBO build thread

[Abitibi]

No issues for WVO on a 6.0, I know of a few that were done and they still run as strong after over 50k miles. Just gotta do build it right and have good oil.

I didnt feel like dropping the tank so I just cut an access latch in the floor. It will be much easier to service the tank and connect the diesel heater. And looks like you were right, there seems to be an auxiliary fuel pick up! I'll open it up later to make sure it is..

And check out this beauty of a tank! Fits nice and tight against the frame

And the windows, primed but waiting to get painted soon. I have a small one by the bed, 2 on each side of the center box area and one on the side door, driver's side. All are awning style opening. Basically very similar to my 1st ambo (metal frame, fir sash with 5/8" tempered glass).

Still waiting for my tires to arrive (previous pics are "borrowed" tires) and will need to decide if i get new wheels or not, still hoping to find a spare one for my current set.

Cheers
David

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[iggi]

hmmmm... WVO. You're a bad influence David.
Looking at your access port, that is tempting.
Sweet job on the tank!!

 

[Abitibi]

Hard to tell from the picture but that tank is 5' long! And I've been told before I'm a bad influence

I was quite concern going from a 7.3 to a 6.0, read tons of horror stories but most of them were on pickups and bunch of them had been modified for higher power or were the earlier version. Since the van version was detuned and mine is a 2008 I'm not as worried as I originally was. Plus a big bonus is the 6.0 is A LOT QUIETER and also more powerful. Time will tell if I made the right choice to let go of my 7.3 but so far so good! And this 6.0 already had 445,000km without any major issues so let's just hope I'm on a roll, hahaha!

 

[iggi]

5 feet? Wow.

I came to the same conclusion on the 6.0. Lots of horror stories but mostly earlier models and a lot of them were pickups that had been bubba'd out.
The lawsuit over that motor only applied for the 2003 to 2007 models. Hopefully for you and me that means things were sorted out by 2008.

I test drove one that had 484,000 km and it sounded strong. I"m just coming up on 212K so guess I've got a quite a few years left.

I suspect that good maintenance, not adding a 200HP chip and driving it like a **************** will all contribute to a good long life.

Ian

Hard to tell from the picture but that tank is 5' long! And I've been told before I'm a bad influence

I was quite concern going from a 7.3 to a 6.0, read tons of horror stories but most of them were on pickups and bunch of them had been modified for higher power or were the earlier version. Since the van version was detuned and mine is a 2008 I'm not as worried as I originally was. Plus a big bonus is the 6.0 is A LOT QUIETER and also more powerful. Time will tell if I made the right choice to let go of my 7.3 but so far so good! And this 6.0 already had 445,000km without any major issues so let's just hope I'm on a roll, hahaha!

 

[Bikersmurf]

5 feet? Wow.

I came to the same conclusion on the 6.0. Lots of horror stories but mostly earlier models and a lot of them were pickups that had been bubba'd out.
The lawsuit over that motor only applied for the 2003 to 2007 models. Hopefully for you and me that means things were sorted out by 2008.

I test drove one that had 484,000 km and it sounded strong. I"m just coming up on 212K so guess I've got a quite a few years left.

I suspect that good maintenance, not adding a 200HP chip and driving it like a **************** will all contribute to a good long life.

Ian

I got mine with a 7.3 for a song so my choice was easy.

I’ve heard the same also.

The other thing I heard is 6.0s like to work and be run... baby them too much and they’re not happy... wail on them and they’ll also fail.

Reputations can be misleading. In a former life I drove a Pull Out truck for a waste company... a Chevy pickup had a Duramax Diesel. We didn’t tow with it, but it was beat on 50 hours per week for more than a decade. I don’t know what all the mechanics did to keep it on the road... but it was rarely in the service bay. Duramax Reputation would have it broken in the shop all the time... so take them with a grain of salt.

 

[Abitibi]

Getting there!

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[iggi]

Looking sharp! Not cutting the rear like on your last one?

 

[cjken]

Looking great!!
It’s going to be a BEAST!!

 

[cjken]

Looking great!!
It’s going to be a BEAST!!

 

[cjken]

Looking great!!
It’s going to be a BEAST!!

 

[Abitibi]

Looking sharp! Not cutting the rear like on your last one?

Thank you Ian

Yes I'll be cutting the rear but not as pronounced as the last one. The tail section on this one is shorter than my previous ambo as it has the longer wheel base. I actually like it better, less overhang... but I want to mock up/install my rear bumper before doing the cut (unless I get impatient, lol)

 

[Abitibi]

Looking great!!
It’s going to be a BEAST!!

Thanks man! Yes, can't wait to start driving it but I screw up something that is delaying my process. While gutting all the ambo wiring in the engine bay I pulled a little too hard on one of the old harness and I think it caught the ABS, Airbag and the wire between the starter relay and the starter. Result is I now have the ABS and Airbag lights stuck on my dash (which I can't clear the codes) and the truck wouldn't start. The starter was an easy fix, I simply ran a wire from the starter to a 12v continuous power on a momentary switch and that got me a nice hidden kill switch, good luck starting my truck Mr. Thief! lol

But the ABS and Airbag is another story and it won't pass the mechanical inspection as is so got one more thing to fix.

On a positive note I'm just about ready to mount my side windows. I think it will drastically change the look and fonction! More to come... including this bat wing

 

[iggi]

Bummer on the wiring but looking forward to the rest!

 

[Abitibi]

I didn't feel like dropping the tank so I just cut an access latch in the floor. It will be much easier to service the tank and connect the diesel heater. And looks like you were right, there seems to be an auxiliary fuel pick up! I'll open it up later to make sure it is..

For those interested... I now can confirmed the extra fuel port works, I still have a diesel breath from testing it, lol

Next on the line was headlights improvement. I ordered a kit from Superbrightled, install was fairly straight forward once I found a good place for the ballasts (you can see it hidden behind the black plastic shroud). BIG improvement! Not sure if I'll get issue in snow storm but for now at least I can see!




Next was a little more ambitious... Made some aluminum frames, got them powdercoated, got some fir wooden windows made, 5/8" gap on double pane tempered glass (that's the widest gap I could get which helps with insulation). Painted on the outside and stain/varnished on the inside.

It's always nerve wracking to cut a big hole in a perfect body panel but got to take the plunge! Mounted them awning style. I have 4 of them, started with the smaller one where the bed will be. Really happy with the result! But this is just a tease until I can figure out why I can't upload the remaining pictures

 

[Abitibi]

Turns out it's easier to upload pics from my phone...

I used different pop rivets this time, these are stainless and you hammer them in instead of using the tool. Not sure what they are called but the finish is much cleaner!

Still need to put the seal in place and the lock then moving on to the next 3.