So we set out in my '88 E250 on June 17th to visit family in Texas. We drove a total of 2996 miles round trip. It is about 1300 miles each way along with a week of site seeing. Passed through Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, Texas and Oklahoma.

Overall the trip went well. The only mechanical issue was a dead alternator about 8 hours into the trip. It is a lifetime warranty unit, so I was able to find an Autozone and replace it in the parking lot. It definitely convinced me of the need to swap to a 3g and to go with a new unit instead of a rebuild.

Ended up averaging 16.37mpg for the trip there and back with the cruise set at 70mph. Not too bad for a barn on wheels. Best tank was 17.55mpg (twice) and worst was 15.26mpg. I was able to maintain CC at 70mph on all but a couple of inclines in the Ozarks.......the same ones had an extra slow lane added for 18 wheelers that would lose quite a bit of speed. With just cruise I would drop to 65mph and hold there. No black smoke etc. If I gave it a little more throttle I could stay at 70mph or even speed up. EGT's never got above 1000*.

I did notice that the Texas heat/humidity affected performance some (high 90's vs low 80's). Mostly it was just added black smoke during harder acceleration prior to the engine getting up to operating temps.

I set up the van to give us the most interior room possible. I removed the middle bench seat and built a platform to go over the brackets. This left the back bench, 2 captians chairs and the 2 front seats.



I used a hitch mounted cargo carrier for our luggage. That meant that inside we only had our coolers, pillows, blankets etc. Made it so we didn't have to spend money on a hotel on the way down. Pulled into a WalMart and parked with the other RV's. My 3 boys slept on the back bench and on the floor. My wife and I spun the front seats around for our feet and laid the middle captains chairs back. Like sleeping in a recliner. Only thing I forgot about was that it was still 85* out at midnight in Texarkana. We had a battery powered fan to help, but it was still pretty warm. If we did it agian I may make an AC out of a cooler and run it off my 12v jump starter.



I added a phone/gps holder to the cupholder I had already built. Allowed easy access to view gps while still keeping an eye on the road. Also used it to stream Pandora during the trip. I purchased a Bluetooth Cassette adapter so I could stream the music through the vans tape deck.


Setting off at 5am



I ripped a bunch of movies on to a USB. This kept us from having to carry a bunch of individual DVD's. The boys got to kick back in front of the TV to pass the time.....and yes, my son on the right wears his head phones that way so he doesn't mess up his hair. Gotta love teenagers.....

 

Pics added

 

Sounds like you all had a wonderful trip! Sorry to hear about your alternator, but i guess it could have been something bigger.. Your van looks like its in pretty good shape from the pics. Did you move the rear bench seat to the back? I was wondering how you got so much space in there looking at the first pics.. how many windows open in your van? Only my front two open. A couple of roof vents would help you out a good bit..
Is this the first long trip you have made in the van?
I worry about mine making long trips and then I look down at the odometer and its time to change the oil and its still running...

Hope you can make many more trips!
Anna

 

The van originally had 2 captains chairs and a jack knife sofa/bench in the back, so it was a 7 passenger. I wanted more seating, so I sourced 3 benches from a 12 passenger van on Craigslist (even the color matched). I pulled the jack knife bench and had enough room to install 2 rows of benches while still keeping the 2 comfy captains chairs. It makes the van an 11 passenger. The rear/4 person bench goes all the wy back against the rear doors. It gives a LOT of interior room, but limits cargo room. That is why I used the eternal cargo carrier.


The 2 side passenger compartment windows open along with the rear door windows. Hinged at the top and pop out at the bottom.

A couple of years ago we took a trip to Disney in it with another family. It wasn't quite as long (16 hours one way vs 20 hours one way). For that one I had to put in all the seating and hook up my 4x8 trailer. We had 10 people (4 adults and 6 kids) and used the trailer of luggage. Made it with no issues.


Mine is pretty low mileage. I bought it with 125K (or atleast that is what the seller and the title said) . It just rolled 210K.

 

Here is how we setup the front to sleep in.





We used a battery powered camping fan in the window for air circulation. We only had the 1. Using a couple more would have been better.



In the future if it is going to be hot at night I plan on building one of these. I will use a 12v fan that can run off the jump-starter I carry around or off a house battery once I get it installed. My biggest concern with it is space, so I would need to be able to use the ice chest for more than just the AC. Maybe storage of dry goods while not in use. Then use frozen water bottles during AC duty so I don't have to worry about water when the ice melts.

 

Great story and pics but what's a 3G?

 

Sorry, didn't elaborate. The OEM alternator setup has an external/seperate voltage regulator, barely charges at idle and struggles to keep up when any additional accessories are added. If i remember correctly it is a 100amp alternator. Adding accessories, plus the rear AC blower stesses it and causes it to die.

A "3rd Generation" alternator from a mid 90's Ford 3.8L Taurus (or similar vehicle) physically bolts right in. Some minimal wiring mods make it fully functional. It is internally regulated, charges at idle and is a 130amp output. It easily keeps up with the added draw of accessories etc.

As an added bonus, the case portion of it is slightly smaller so it is easier to fit your arms around when trying to reach other parts of the engine in the cramped engine bay.

 

We have done a similar trip many times in the 88 E150 club wagon, Texas to Illinois, about 800 miles one way plus side trips.
This year we had 7 souls on board, 3 grandkids and 4 grups, but it was in a Honda Odyssey. 3.5L v6, front wheel drive, 30MPG on cruise, powered sliding doors (both sides!), and hatch, electronic everything. It felt like a cruise ship.
I could never justify buying one for occasional trips but for long haul people moving, it was amazing.

Sorry about the Texas temps, we consider 90's just spring temperatures. Ha
jim

 

I can't believe you didn't drive 4 more miles…

 

Yeah. I brought that up to the family when I filled up in town. After 20 hours of driving I was told driving an extra 4 miles home was not an option.