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I'm looking for some running boards for my NV 3500 passenger van. This caught my attention because of how inexpensive it is: http://a.co/3wqXgZd I'm looking for any opinions/advice to steer me in the right direction. Are the cheap running boards worth trying? Thank you!

I have a 2015 NVP 3500 SL. I have 3 kids that are 10 yrs old and under and they can actually get in and out of my van just fine. The issue is my parents and in-laws. They are in their 70's and we have been carrying a small folding step stool for them to get in and out easier. I have been avoiding running boards as I didnt want to lose too much ground clearance and I honestly didnt like many of the options we have. Well my wife has wanted me to get a set for a while since my in-laws live next door and we see them constantly. My van is used for all the family outings so I finally broke down and ordered a set. I bought these - http://www.luvernetruck.com/category/360/Grip%20Step%207%22%20Running%20Boards I got them from Amazon after searching the model numbers. They will not just come up without the numbers on Amazon. Many sites sell them but the best price I found was Amazon and they have Prime shipping and great return policy. They were under $400 shipped. They arrived well packed in two boxes. One had the actual running boards and the other is the bracket and mounting hardware. Since they are aluminum steps the long package was quite light. The brackets are powder coated steel. So - first step - Throw Out the directions! No seriously. Do it. Do it now and thank me later. I would only use the directions to sort of get a general idea of how they mount and how the brackets work. The rest of the steps and measurements were utter garbage. You can quickly tell after you start laying things out how bad the directions really are. The big issue? Well the directions and parts are new. When they changed I am not sure but if you look at all the online directions (even at Luvernes site) they are different with different part numbers. The actual parts list has different part numbers! The original directions were dated from 2012. The new parts and directions are dated 2017. At some point they added three twisted steel braces to keep the steps from flexing. The original directions and photos dont show them. The 2017 parts list and directions do show them. Extra bracing is good, right? They would be good if they remotely lined up correctly! (remember the throw out the directions part?). If you go off their measurements they work on the drivers side, one works on the passenger and the other is a foot off. Not even close. The issue here is the welded bolt/bar T-bolt they made that slides into the oval holes in our frame. Well at one measurement there is no hole! Next issue - those welded bolts dont fit in the holes... I had to grind off the corners to make them fit correctly. Next big issue - those nice new braces do Not line up correctly. They were so far off I thought it I had the wrong parts. Nope. They all matched the parts list with the correct NV on it. Back to the work bench to modify those to fit. They are still not perfect but they are mounted and work. Next issue - since you have to drill all the holes (3 per bracket - one bolt through the pinch weld and two lag bolts into the body) and no factory pinch weld is straight it was fun to get everything leveled up. First time I clamped things to the weld I was 1" off from end to end! You dont have much wiggle room due to the pinch weld being narrow. (On my past trucks the bars bolted to factory mounting points or existing bolts/studs, it was very easy to line up). So after I figured all that out to begin with I got a plan going and got everything mounted and level within 1/8" end to end. The biggest issue was those new support braces being so comically off in alignment. Those braces DO work well so I wanted them but they were a giant pain. I would have called Luverne but it was the weekend and they were closed. I need these boards for Thanksgiving so just made it work on my own. After all that, am I happy? Overall I honestly think I am happy with how they turned out even all that mess. I am not sure I would buy them again but there was nothing else I liked off the shelf. The actual steps and brackets are well made. They are very grippy which I wanted. They dont flex much even under my father-in-laws weight (he was a football linebacker in college - big guy!). They do flex a little but nothing concerning. The steps will never rust but the brackets and hardware may rust eventually. I did lose ground clearance of course but that would happen with most running boards other than retractables or something like a modified N-Fab that was tucked up against the body. I may go back and weld in some other braces since I like how they work. I can just weld them to the frame vs. making a T bolt. I would have welded in the wonky Luverne pieces but I have to use a friends welder and I didnt want to drive over there and bug him to borrow it. I will post photos of them mounted up. I had to go back and realign the drivers side today so didnt take photos yet.

I installed a set of black Luverne O-Mega Step running boards earlier this year, but I've always felt that they hung down a little lower than I'd like. I had some time off over the holidays so I decided to raise them a bit. I ended up cutting the step mounts off the brackets and then welding them back on 2" higher. I'm pretty happy with it so far and I like the look a lot better. I think the original distance from the ground to the interior step (inside the front door) was 18". The unmodified running boards gave me a 10" step, then the remaining 8". My modified mount has me at 12" / 6". The new photo isn't great, but you can get an idea of the look. Raised Original