2020 Ford Transit AWD
- Thread starter simple
- Start date
Victorian
Approved Vendor : Total Composites
Will put this on our list. Basically, the seats can be mounted to the same internal floor structure that's being used to mount the body to the subframe/truck. Therefore I'm pretty confident that we have a very strong foundation.
luthj
Engineer In Residence
Its a sort of complex issue though. Buses don't have to meet the same standards are other vehicles for example. And you will never be able to incorporate air bags.
From a safety perspective, you need a seat mount that can carry and absorb the load in the crash without flipping forward/backward. That is simple enough to test with a static pull. Airline seats up until the early 2000s used the same approach for certification.
The other major concern is integrity of the box. It needs to survive a rollover without crushing the occupants. Though there are plenty of vehicles sold with marginal rollover safety.
Finally the design needs to be such that cabinets can't open when deformed by crash loads, ejecting contents. All heavy objects need to be contained, as a 25lb inverter or 100lb water tank can kill just an easily. This is less of a risk with bigger vehicles, as due to their mass, they simply don't have the same deceleration G loading.
From a safety perspective, you need a seat mount that can carry and absorb the load in the crash without flipping forward/backward. That is simple enough to test with a static pull. Airline seats up until the early 2000s used the same approach for certification.
The other major concern is integrity of the box. It needs to survive a rollover without crushing the occupants. Though there are plenty of vehicles sold with marginal rollover safety.
Finally the design needs to be such that cabinets can't open when deformed by crash loads, ejecting contents. All heavy objects need to be contained, as a 25lb inverter or 100lb water tank can kill just an easily. This is less of a risk with bigger vehicles, as due to their mass, they simply don't have the same deceleration G loading.
Victorian
Approved Vendor : Total Composites
Those are all very valid points. I'm too taking the safety of my family very serious.... Question: Ever seen an RV that was in an accident? No way on earth has any of them ever past any crash testing. Those cheap latches will never hold any contents in place. The main body is just stick frame and staples.
In the past I have seen similar composite campers in Europe that had rolled over. The Unimog chassis was totalled, the box was banged up but did NOT fall to pieces and was re used for another expo truck. Saying that, with cabinets and divider walls in place I'm pretty confident that ours will be as safe as it gets. I'm more concerned about a lifted truck with steel bullbar will T bone our family car.
I agree that composite campers are a lot more solid than conventional RVs. I have seen conventional RVs where the seams between the panels opened and the cabinets fell off the wall after a few years in South America. I have seen 2 composite camper in a ditch falling on their side with an undamaged box (except scratches). My camper was rear ended twice in Africa. In both cases the other car (BMW and Nissan Frontier) had considerable damage to their hood and radiator, My camper only had scratches. But a crash tested van body is a different story provided that the furniture is solid enough and solidly attached to the van and the components and cabinet doors stay locked. And there I have my doubts. The usual push locks or similar locks won´t survive a crash, They aren´t even reliable on bad roads. As far as I know none of the class B campers (vans) has ever been crash tested. It is therefore speculation whether or not the furniture and components go flying in an accident. A prime candidate for such a missile would be a heavy microwave installed in a hanging cabinet. All you can do as a consumer is to inspect your camper the best you can and try to identify weak points or have a solid OEM installed dividing wall between the passenger compartment and the camper like in a pick up with a slide in or flatbed.
Victorian
Approved Vendor : Total Composites
To my knowledge you can get the 2020 with AWD and eco boost. A friend of mine works at the plant as an engineer and advised us on the purchase. At this point nobody really know when those will be available in Canada. That's why we looked for a 2019. I'm kind of looking forward driving ours. Driving it without weight right now is not fun but I can tell that the 270HP will be awesome!
Here are a couple things I noticed in comparison to our old truck the 4x4 Sprinter:
1. The rear differential is HUGE and hanging very low. Not sure bigger tires will make a big difference..
2. Load capacity is twice as much as the sprinter
3. Turning radius is MUCH bigger.
4. Getting in and out of the cab is super easy. In the Sprinter it felt like you are climbing a mountain.
Here are a couple things I noticed in comparison to our old truck the 4x4 Sprinter:
1. The rear differential is HUGE and hanging very low. Not sure bigger tires will make a big difference..
2. Load capacity is twice as much as the sprinter
3. Turning radius is MUCH bigger.
4. Getting in and out of the cab is super easy. In the Sprinter it felt like you are climbing a mountain.
Insurance on RVs is cheap because people are much more careful driving them (less risk/likelihood to insurance). Take the same chassis and use it for commercial work and the insurance is 3 times as high. That sort of indicates that it's OK to be less safe when building an RV but obviously the outcome will be much worse if something did happen.
Photo of a Roadtrek being crash tested: https://archive.org/details/roadtrekbrochure2004chassismodelyearocr29pages/page/n7
Photo of a Roadtrek being crash tested: https://archive.org/details/roadtrekbrochure2004chassismodelyearocr29pages/page/n7
alldownhill
Member
I don't think that's true. I think in general insurance is cheap for RVs because on average, they don't get a lot of miles on them. The "average" rv owner barely uses their rv. On the contrary, commercial vans get (in general) heavy use and as a pool of users, the insurance rates reflect that.
Victorian
Approved Vendor : Total Composites
I'm looking for rims and AT tires. Do you guys know anything about the max size while maintaining the 119 load rating? The factory tires are all season and should work fine on a delivery van but for upcoming tradeshows I need something more impressive.
Also, I'm looking for a trailer hitch but not sure if the panel van shares the same mounting points as the cab chassis. Any insight on that?
Thanks
Also, I'm looking for a trailer hitch but not sure if the panel van shares the same mounting points as the cab chassis. Any insight on that?
Thanks
Where'd you get the line drawing of the Transit? Looks handy for planning.
Victorian
Approved Vendor : Total Composites
No idea need to ask our draftsperson. Stay tuned.