radin2son

No one has posted doing this. One post for commercially installed single “work,” not for comfort seat, and another for a diy Transit bench seat.

sportsmobileforum.com has an interesting post (4/24/19) under 4x4 “It only gets you more stuck,” Chevy/GMC, plus 3 pages of reponses regarding 4x4 conversion options for a Chevy Duramax van. Weldtec(h?), Timberline Vans, Denver, Clydesdale, BC Canada and BOR (?) are new names to me. Weldtec conversion runs $15900 vs $14100 by Advanced, $13500 by Timberline, and $11100 USD by Clydesdale. I have not checked any to see if they will convert NVs. Sportsmobile forum members generally do not view NVs as true vans so there will be little info. Worth a read, however, if you are considering this type of conversion.

Looks good. Have a great trip and post some photos. You may want to check out Skeeterbeater screens for driver/passenger doors and the rear door. Cargo vans have enough metal to attach the rear door screen and be able to close the doors. Our NV doesn’t and we have to remove the screen...

Thanks. I wish more people would post NV travels. Maybe they do on Instagram etc.

It didn’t take long for the ramada shade to disappear, so we pointed our NV into the sun and waited for it to set behind the nearby hills. The insulation panels work well on the windshield and side windows. I cut some to fit all windows, but the poptop roof and canvas really absorb the heat. We used a 9x9 tarp on the sunny side in Pinnacles but it was much to windy to use in Owl Canyon.

PINNACLES NATIONAL PARK Normally we don’t start a trip on a Saturday on a holiday weekend or expect to find a campsite in Joshua Tree National Park any day of the week. So, we skipped Joshua Tree and used Campendium to find an alternative site, Sawtooth Canyon campground (BLM), 20 miles south of Barstow. It also was full, but directly across CA 247 was dispersed camping in an OHV area. Not a problem as we left early the next morning for Pinnacles. About 25 years ago, we camped on the west side of Pinnacles, near Soledad on US 101. Only day use now. The only campground is on the east side. South of King City on US 101, take G 15 or CA 198 to CA 25 and go north to Pinnacles. From I-5, take CA 198 toward Coalinga and CA 25. We picked up CA 198 from I-5. Scenic twisty road could be a problem for towing but plenty of RVs in campground. There are a total of 134 sites, 29 with electric. Reservations are a must, unless you can do a tent only walk up site. (We had to schedule our trip around the only 4 days we could get.) First, the negatives: Concessionaire run campground. RV sites are full sun arranged in an open field with no rest room and dump site closed. All rest rooms in the campground were barely functional and came with 2 porta-toilets in front. Cleaned only once a week during peak use time. Many tent/camper van sites are full sun in the afternoon, so pay attention to site orientation. Our site (#40) had afternoon sun (90*+) on our van but a huge shade tree that shaded the site. We had to make our own van shade. The popular hiking trails are 2.3 miles away. Parking lots fill quickly. Plus: The concessionaire is changing. Great hiking, moderate to strenuous. There is a shuttle that runs every 20 minutes on weekends, but for whatever reason, it also ran on Monday and Tuesday. We used it to get back to our site on Monday and both ways on Tuesday. We hiked the nearby 6 mile Wilderness trail on Wednesday. You can watch the condors soar over the hills from your campsite. Days are hot but there was a 40* temperature swing by morning. The hiking, wild flowers and birds make this a worthwhile destination. On our return, we camped at Owl Canyon campground (BLM) about 10 miles north of Barstow. More heat (95*) in full sun so it again was use/make shade. We drove through Joshua Tree the next day.

Gila Monster in Gila Bend.

Great video. On our way back, we considered taking I-40 and camping just south of Williams, AZ. Stayed in the heat so we could drive thru Joshua Tree.

Just back from a trip to Pinnacles National Park, CA. (More about that later.) On our 1/2 way return, we stopped at the Mojave National Preserve, National Park office and BLM Barstow Field Office. Must stops if you are going to drive/camp in the area. In the Mojave National Preserve, I would stay mostly on paved roads. Trip for the future... On BLM roads, which seem to start when the pavement ends, I would definitely check in with BLM, get their free maps and talk to a ranger. In our case, we were looking for a place to camp. He looked our NV and recommended Owl Canyon campground and driving Rainbow Basin Loop, in Fossil Canyon, north of Barstow in the Mud Mountains. When we got to the campground, my wife asked did I notice the loop was “high clearance, four wheel drive?” No. Next morning we drove the one way loop. Recently graded and drive-able... wouldn’t do this in wet conditions. Need to add, “When in doubt, walk it.”

It used to say 2 yr warranty in 2018 for new “delivered” NVs. I think this was inadvertently left out for 2019.

Thanks for posting this. Clean set up...

We’ve been to both, but stayed on pavement and in their campgrounds. Geology Tour Rd in Joshua Tree I think is “high clearance,” but check at the ranger station or their web site. You know it is good to go when you see rental cars. Maybe not so good for them.

Our experience has been that most forest service and BLM dirt roads into an area are fine depending on the season. Washes, dry or flowing, can be a problem due to NV’s 20’. High clearance designated roads are fine, depending on ledges, rocks etc. 4x4 recommended roads may be ok but you have to consider how you are going to turn around. There must be all sorts of info on line regarding roads. If you venture into AZ, we found Arizona Highways Magazine or blog to be a good source. There was a recent edition on AZ ghost towns with directions and road conditions. The also have monthly, short articles on primitive camping and road trips. Our NV is stock with Michelin Defender M/S tires. We don’t mess with tire pressure.

New list. Tim Dahle Nissan, Utah may not belong here; 2 negative posts regarding 4x4 conversion and sales practices and 2 positive regarding service and sales. Wait and see? ALABAMA Benton Nissan (Hoover) ALASKA Stanley Nissan (Fairbanks) ARKANSAS North Point Nissan (Little Rock) ARIZONA AutoNation Nissan (Chandler) Avondale Nissan (Avondale) CALIFORNIA Future Nissan (Roseville) COLORADO South Colorado Springs Nissan (Colorado Springs) Greeley Nissan (Greeley) FLORIDA John Lee Nissan (Panama City) MICHIGAN Elhart Nissan (Holland) Fox Nissan (Grand Rapids) NORTH CAROLINA Scott Clark Nissan (Charlotte) Classic Nissan (Statesville) Hunter Nissan (Hendersonville) OREGON Tonkin Nissan (Wilsonville) SOUTH CAROLINA Nissan of Greer UTAH Tim Dahle Nissan (Southtown) VIRGINIA Sheehy Nissan (Manassas) CANADA ALBERTA Grande Prairie Nissan Updated: 4/15/19

Oops! Didn’t mean to confuse the issue if you thought we have a 4x4 NV Sportsmobile (SMB). We did the research and considered several times having Advanced do the work but couldn’t convince ourselves that we needed it. Still don’t see a need... SMB West (Fresno) exclusively used Quigley when converting Ford E-series vans, their preferred van. They never converted any of the 30 NVs, perhaps because Nissan tried selling them through commercial dealerships. I believe Quigley builds were in house and may still be for Chevy/GMC vans. Transit? They built a one-off E- series lookalike van on a 350 cutaway. Check out their video through the Mohave. MB 4x4 also along for the trip. So, if your question is about 4x4 road ride, I can’t help you. Otherwise, it is a great road cruiser on pavement and dirt. You just have to remember it is 20’ and heavy... Enjoy your 4Runner.

Your 4Runner is one of the best vehicles... We had a ‘05 Passat tdi wagon when we started the process and looked at getting a used Sprinter. Because we had an ‘83 Westfalia, we never considered towing or slide in camper. In 2012, we stumbled across Sportsmobile and their short lived Nissan conversion (30). Saw an article today about VW “California” vans, only available in Europe an UK. I didn’t know Daimler Chrysler bought Westfalia in 2001.

Motor Trend also did a long term (1year) use review of the NV200. (There was a long term Sprinter test but none for Transit or ProMaster.) Long term mpg data reflects “real world” posts on this forum. Perhaps more useful for a new NVP buyer. Another positive is Motor Trend’s estimate that NV cargo vans will retain 53% of their value after 5 years. Best of the large vans and the NV200 was tied for first with Ford City Transit at 44% if I recall correctly. Good buying tool. Back to reliability, no argument about NV reliability. Most will be traded in long before their useful life ends. Wonder if they will ever have the brand loyalty of the other commercial vans? Nissan needs to modernize the current drive train. Dodge’s new eTorque with auto stop/start adds 2 mpg in city driving.

Since so few vehicles have bench seats, what air bag coverage is there?

Another blast from the past... Where are they now? RICK certainly had the worst V8 mpg and complained the most. Wonder if he parked his NV and went with a Transit.

No argument regarding you adding to the 2015 topic. Since no truck city/hwy/combined figures are mandatory, all we can hope for is self reported combined. Some hwy, but even that involved combined. As the ad says, “What’s in you Van?” Axulsuv had the best reported V6 mpg for his NV1500. I think it was 21 mpg. His was a bare bones camper and motorcycle hauler. Very little weight. 15+ mpg for the V8, that we get per trip, vs 18+ mpg for the V6 is not earth shaking. It all comes down to how you use or plan to use your NV. Since you have 2 Ferrari’s, did you see the Motor Trend article from several+ years ago, where they used their NV 2500 high roof as a support vehicle for speed testing for sports cars. It even was used as a draft vehicle to get one to a fuel station. The same NV has been used for their truck of the year coverage. They also did long term review of the NV 2500 V8.

Not that you have to go this way... Check out the new Overlandia post and video for the Jeep Gladiator “Wayout” on adventure-journal.com It’s “Jeep Easter Safari” time in Moab, UT. On a totally different scale, we have seen a few Earth Roamers around the west. Based on diesel Ford 450 pickups and will run $175-500k for used with very low mileage. But you get a wine rack and freezer... These are truly for people with too much money.

Interesting. No one has posted doing this before.

Wow, this topic started in 2015. The V6 can get good mpg. How do you plan to use your?

You would think Tucson would be “solar city,” but TEP is fighting for a reduction in what they pay homeowners. We have a small home and average $41 a month for electric; we would never pay it off. Now, if they came up with a plan to put “free” solar on our roof and charge us for what we use, we would jump on that.

Time to put your house on wheels and boondock off the grid...