All About Conversion Vans
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Wednesday, August 30, 2006

THE QUALITY OF CONVERSION VANS


Since the late 1990's the O.E.M.'s of van chassis such as G.M. and Ford have required higher quality components thus longer warranties. 3 year/36,000 mile bumper to bumper warranties are now offered. The style of construction has also been enhanced, making vans much more durable. There is, however, a difference in quality of conversions from upfitter to upfitter. The smaller companies tend to do the higher quality conversion while the vans you'll find sitting on dealer lots tend not to be the best quality. Some companies put more time, money and effort into marketing and not into their product. There are big name van conversion companies that don't even have insulation. Lack of insulation will give you a noisier interior as well as be harder to heat and cool. The van consumer would be well served to do their research, such as on the Internet, before making a purchase.

Saturday, August 26, 2006

THE MOBILE OFFICE


Take your office on the road. Keep your work materials at your fingertips and stay organized. Invite your customers to step inside your private office. Mobile Offices are specialty vehicles that are becoming more popular. With limited configurations these can be a viable choice for those that need to take their business on the road. The normal application is a high top extended conversion van with a desk, chairs and all the electronics needed to run an efficient office.

Wednesday, August 23, 2006

0% FINANCING

FORD JUST ANNOUNCING 0% FINANCING in an effort to keep the 2006 products moving. These extraordinary incentives will be on for a limited time.

Monday, August 21, 2006

Conversion Van Availability


The Conversion Van Industry used to sell 200,000 + units a year throughout the 1990's. Today they sell 20,000-30,000 making it more of a "sellers" market. In the 1990's there were over one hundred upfitters of vans, today a little over 20. Fewer and fewer dealers are stocking vans with the primary reason being their overstocked inventory of overpriced SUV's. Many buyers consequently, go to the Internet, as a reliable source of information, to locate and arrange a purchase. A lot of van buyers are very loyal to conversions for the extra room they offer as well as all the amenities. The companies that remain in business are the better van manufacturers that build higher quality vehicles. The Internet is probably the best way to shop for a conversion van.

Thursday, August 17, 2006

Conversion Van Mergers

Throughout the history of the conversion van industry economic conditions have forced some companies to go out of business. The latest trend seems to be mergers. Recently Quality Conversions, formerly known as Quality Coach, merged with Discovery Vans and Sherry Designs. The result of this and other mergers are good for the industry and more importantly the consumer.

Monday, August 14, 2006

What do vans cost? What should they cost? Conversion vans are manufactured by second stage manufacturers of the original equipment. They are typically produced on Chevrolet Express vans, GMC Savanah vans, Ford Econoline series and Sprinter/Mercedes platforms. The common conversion van starts with a shell such as a cargo van that is manufactured by GM, Ford and Daimiler Chrysler. The most reasonable chassis is the Ford Econoline that is based on the oldest chassis configuration. One of the most poplular is the new Chevy or GMC chassis that has additional driver side doors. The most expensive raw chassis is the Sprinter van which features the durable Mercedes Turbo Diesel engine. GM also offers an all wheel drive version of their chassis. The conversion manufacturer, or upfitter, will produce a wide range of packaging that can be applied to the raw chassis. You may find a basic package that consist of cloth seats, no TV but all the room and space of a full size van in the mid twenty range after rebates. An example of the other extreme would be an elaborate package on a Sprinter chassis. This could have leather seating, two flatscreen TV's, GPS system and all the amentities in the mid sixty range.

Thursday, August 10, 2006

A Blue Ribbon for Mercedez Sprinter

According to a recent online article, the new Mercedes-Benz Sprinter finishes strong above all the rest. You can read the article here. Sprinters are fast becoming a growing trend in the van industry. Their uses range from commercial to personal and can be customized to just about anything.

Monday, August 07, 2006

History of the Conversion Van

The history of the Conversion Van started over 30 years ago. Companies took "cargo vans" and converted them into passenger vehicles. They would take raw vans or shells and then put in windows, seats, insulation, carpeting and electronic amenities etc. The chassis used to be called cargo vans but are now called conversion vans which are build specifically for this industry. The ergonomic of the chassis have been greatly improved over the past 30 years. There is more total cubic area inside a conversion van than any other passenger vehicle. They have removable seats including the rear sofa making it's usage flexible with cargo carrying capabilities. GMC and Chevrolet are now offering driver side doors giving the van an eight door configuration. Conversion vans have been proven to be one of the safest vehicles on the road primarily due to being a high profile vehicle. There have been a great deal of improvement in the electronics that are being used, such as flat screen LCD TV's w/ DVD players, wireless headphones, back up monitors and cameras along with GPS systems. The popularity of vans are still strong http://tinyurl.com/s7bkr, although they are sometimes difficult to find on normal dealer lots. The biggest detriment to the van industry has been the SUV,s. They have been over produced,over advertised and over rated for the last decade. The van is, by far, the better way to travel offering more space and comfort.

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

Sprinter Vans



Passenger Sprinter Vans are still in short supply. There are, however, some manufacturers with availablility. The Sprinter chassis, which is known for durability and economy, are more expensive than GM or Ford chassis. They come with the Mercedes 2.7 L 5 cylinder diesel and are produced in 9 - 14 passenger configurations.