Pass-through really necessary?

waveslider

Outdoorsman
This thread is really just another example of how diverse the users and use cases for these vehicles really are. We would hard pass any vehicle that DIDN'T have a pass-thru and there's just as many people that wouldn't consider having one.

If you are building one of these (or having one built) and you don't know what you want, you are guaranteed to be disappointed IMHO.
 

gregmchugh

Observer
This thread is really just another example of how diverse the users and use cases for these vehicles really are. We would hard pass any vehicle that DIDN'T have a pass-thru and there's just as many people that wouldn't consider having one.

If you are building one of these (or having one built) and you don't know what you want, you are guaranteed to be disappointed IMHO.

I will go one step further, even if you think you know what you want but you haven’t had experience with anything like one of these before you are probably guaranteed to find out you really didn’t know what you wanted until you have had one for awhile and see the things you decide you should have done differently. Just the way it it is. If you are lucky the things you decide you want to change are easy to change…
 

pugslyyy

Expedition Vehicle Engineer Guy
One issue with a passthrough as found on vans and class c's (non lockable doors) you will hear every rattle and every squeak, doubly on washboard roads. If I was getting a new European style expedition truck I would have a passthrough, otherwise its a hard pass on it.
It's worth noting that most of the European trucks (cabovers) are designed to have the rear wall cut out without compromising the integrity of the occupant protection systems. In the US you can get vans as cutaways but not pickup trucks, and the makers (Ford, GM, RAM, etc.) have no provisions for cutting into the back wall of pickups in their body-builder manuals - they don't want the liability.
 

gregmchugh

Observer
It's worth noting that most of the European trucks (cabovers) are designed to have the rear wall cut out without compromising the integrity of the occupant protection systems. In the US you can get vans as cutaways but not pickup trucks, and the makers (Ford, GM, RAM, etc.) have no provisions for cutting into the back wall of pickups in their body-builder manuals - they don't want the liability.

On the other hand, it seems to be a common practice to do it for the Class C RV’s that use a pickup chassis but probably nothing said about the fact that it may be compromising occupant protection?
 

pugslyyy

Expedition Vehicle Engineer Guy
On the other hand, it seems to be a common practice to do it for the Class C RV’s that use a pickup chassis but probably nothing said about the fact that it may be compromising occupant protection?
If the truck is over 10,000 GVWR it is exempt from the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 49 CFR § 571.216a for roof crush resistance.

As I understand it, the issue is that the makers are using the same cabs for a wide range of vehicles, so for example if Ford publishes a spec for modifying the cab of a 11,900 GVWR F-350 where the roof can collapse in a rollover due to a passthrough and Ford has no liability, someone could make the same modifications to an F-150 which would take the vehicle out of compliance with the FMVSS. Ford would much rather you sue the company that made an unendorsed modification than them.
 

Ramdough

Adventurer
One issue with a passthrough as found on vans and class c's (non lockable doors) you will hear every rattle and every squeak, doubly on washboard roads. If I was getting a new European style expedition truck I would have a passthrough, otherwise its a hard pass on it.

My vote is a door on each side of the pass through to seal out noise and temperature. Make sure at least one is lockable.

That is my plan.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Darwin

Explorer
I'm a big fan of a pass through so here is my silly analogy: Do the bedrooms in your house open to the inside of the house or do you have to go outside to access them?
Do you want to hear the sounds your kitchen and bathroom make during an earthquake that lasts 6 hours?
 

68camaro

Any River...Any Place
I want to hear if the fridge was not latched properly or if a drawer is not closed. Once have been on the road a while you get everything in its place so that it is relatively quiet.

Agree, I have large pass thru in Chinook which is based on e-350 cutaway and although I do hear occasional squeaks/rattles and such (not too bad unless on bad dirt road), I really like hearing what else is going on back there.......did I forget to put something away and now it fell and is rolling around, was cabinet door left open and stuff maybe spilling? Also, I can turn head to look back there to see what is going on. I also love ability to access rear without going outside.

Unexpected benefit - recently had a day in Georgia with heat index over 100 and cab a/c went out. To stop sweating to death I turned on camper a/c while driving and it cooled cab down very fast and kept it cold:)
 

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