Very cool Quadravan. Looks to be in fantastic shape inside and out. Love the interior setup and would say with the wall panels and roof already done very nicely, The hardest part is done. I'll be watching your progress as I have a Quadravan I'm working on as well. Congrats👍

 

I just found some original documents from Pathfinder Quadravan Conversions, from someone who posted online; looks like they changed the gear ratio to 4.10
I wonder if it’s still the same one, trying to figure that out now

Tires are 33”

 

Thanks very much! Very excited about this purchase. I’ll definitely share progress when upgrades are underway. I’d love to see what you’re working on.
Also I found a facebook group dedicated to the 3rd gen quadravan https://www.facebook.com/groups/2597187683839568/
this is where I found the Pathfinder booklet

 

That rig is a beauty! what kind of mpg do you get?

 

I haven’t driven it enough to get a good gauge, also I have to figure out how large the gas tanks are. I believe this rig has two 10-gallon tanks, need to confirm. If that’s the case, it’s somewhere between 10-14mpg’s with some steep uphill off-road tests today.

 

Beautiful van!

That is not the best engine choice for that beast! It should have a minimum of a 5.8L ( 351W ) most people want the 7.5L ( 460 ) with a 4x4 E250 van.

A small engine in a heavy vehicle is going to have to rev higher to do the same job as a bigger engine. which is going to hurt the mileage big time. You've got a couple choices to make it peppier.

#1 is gears. with a OD transmission you need 4.10/4.11 minimum! But 4.56 would be better.

#2. Is get the engine to breathe! Do the same thing any person with a old push rod 5.0L Mustang would do. But it can get expensive pretty quick. Heads, cam, intake, exhaust. Aftermarket heads will get you the biggest power increase. But that's not cheap ( $1000-$2500 ) and requires tearing down the whole top end of the engine. And if you do swap heads you really need the headers, cam swap and intake to take full advantage of the heads. Headers with a free flowing exhaust system. A cam swap will help but really needs the heads swapped or modified to take full advantage. If you are on a budget then porting/modifying the stock intake and heads will give you an improvement. The engine is just a big air pump. You need to get more air in and more air out. So another choice is boost, turbo/s or supercharger ( $$$$$$ ) . But not the best option for a beginner. The engine needs to be built to handle that.

 

THanks!

I’m beginning to realize this (too small an engine). I’m worried that over time the engine will suffer from too much strain. The previous owner had replaced the engine and put in the same 302 it has now. That 302 had 40k miles on it when the reseller acquired it, and had some issues (reseller was replacing the head gasket, put it back together and still had some clicking noise, so decided to replace the engine again with the current 302, which is brand new from Jasper engines).
Would it be cheaper to replace the engine to the 351 or do some mods? It sounds like cams are around $2k-$3k alone...
additionally, I suspect this vehicle will need a new exhaust system, I do see some rust on those pipes and the catalytic converter might need to be updated to pass smog... so I’d need to do that anyway. Cold air intake sounds like it could help, but like you said, the engine needs to be able to handle all that.

Gears seem to be correct, looks like they’re 4.10 for the front, will need to confirm the rear.

Another thing, it seems that Pathfinder used a 5L or 4.9L with their conversions when pairing with the AOD, which is what this vehicle has. The bigger engines (351 and 460) had the C6, and I’m pretty sure this tranny is original, hence got a lot of mileage on it... I would take additional strain with a bigger engine I presume.
What transmission would you recommend with the 351? Sounds like C6’s are not the most efficient.
Or put a cooler on the current tranny and hope for the best?

Thanks for your input!

 

Front and rear axles will have the same gear ratio as a necessity. I saw the manual diagram but it looked to be general for the E250 and 350, and the 4.10 might be an example diagram especially if it originally had parts numbers for gears and bearings. For a van convertor, changing the rear gear is not something that would be a part of their normal process because it involves labor and experienced setup...basically a lot of work to fix something that's not broken. (I say this as someone who has owned 5 conversion vans, 2 of them Turtle Top campers.) My bet is that you have 3.73's per your door sticker.

I think your first step needs to be seeing what it will take to get it smog-legal in California(?) I would consult someone in California who really knows what it takes to license an out of state vehicle. Before you spend any money at all, be 100% sure that you are guaranteed getting thru any hurdles. Making any modifications or investing any money into the van is not going to be worth your while if you have to sell it to someone in another state. If it has a new, tight Jasper 302 in it, I see that as a good starting point to present your DMV with a clean vehicle. Guessing you will need new catalysts at minimum, but focus your research on what you need to get it legal.

Surfers used to drive VW buses which had 36 or 40 horsepower so your van is really powerful in comparison

Good luck,
George

 

Thank you YoGeorge, totally agree, first things first, I definitely need to get that ball rolling asap. I have the application to register filled out. Crossing fingers.

And yes, that’s a good point about the vw’s, although I’m not sure how deep into Baja those microbuses made it.
Even with lower power, I just want to be sure the engine isn’t strained too much for the weight, but I guess my driving style will partly determine that.

 

I'm not a big fan of reman'd engines. I've seen too many have issues. They are all about the $$. So the companies that reman. them will reuse a part that is just barely in tolerances. And I've seen a mix of parts in them. I always rebuild my own engines. But if that's not an option have a good machine shop rebuild one. It cost more and takes longer but you end up with a better engine in the end.

Don't worry about hurting the 5.0L. I had one in a 87 F250 with a 4spd ( no OD ) and 3.73 gears. I ran it hours at a time at 3,000-3500 rpms pulling a load car trailer. It had a whole lot of miles on it and I worked it real hard and never hurt it. Maintain it and don't over heat it. If you do that it should live a long time. The heat is a big thing in a Econoline. They run hotter then a truck.

Myself I like the 4.9L or 5.8L. The 5.8L is pretty close to a direct bolt in for the 5.0L. There are some differences like the computer, exhaust, etc. But if you are in California I'm not sure legally if you can swap to a bigger engine or what mods you can do.

A cam swap is a few hundred to $1000 in parts. If you need a shop to do it. It will be expensive. And without mods or swapping to better heads a cam swap is only going to help so much. It's really a whole package deal. Individual parts will give a small improvement. It's not until you do a bunch of mods that you see the big change. Because they all support each other.

Your engine will handle the mods. It's when you get into a turbocharger, supercharger or Nitrous oxide ( not a good option for you ) that the engine needs to be built specifically to use those mods.

Do what is needed to pass smog, then if you want to do mods do them. But make sure it's going to be legal.

I'm not a fan of automatic transmissions. So I'm not really the guy to talk to about them. For the 351W you'd be looking at a C6 ( no OD ) or a computer controlled E4OD. The problem is you are opening a can of worms when getting into transmission swaps. They are different lengths. So that gets into changing/modding driveshafts, transmission crossmember location, etc.

A bigger trans cooler is always a good idea when talking about a automatic in a Econoline!

 

This is all great info, thanks for your input Ted! I’ll update as things progress, just for information’s sake.

 

VW vans didn't have a low range or 4WD and a truck drivetrain...your van won't ever be a desert racers but if you go slow, you can go almost anywhere. If you're prepared to swap the engine out, I'd see if the current engine blows up first. Actually, is there any possibility you have remaining warranty on the Jasper or did that go away with the sale?

As I've gotten older, I force myself to take my time with projects. Your van is a driver, so drive it and get used to it. Probably don't take your trip to Alaska next week. You may have other issues involving stability and other systems in the van so address those first.

I vote for sorting the van out and using it for a year or two as is. It's old enough that there will be stuff like gaskets, rubber seals and bushings, etc that will need replacement. Having owned 5 conversion vans, I know how they are built and there will be issues with any add-on wiring and systems.

Big picture--I assume it made it 30 years with a 302 in it so it'll go a few more years if not forever. Keep the engine full of oil and watch the temperature. It will tell you what you need to do with it. You don't want to get really far off the beaten path until you have sorted the van out and swapping another engine creates a whole new set of issues to sort out.

 

Slow and steady, for sure! I was assured that the warranty would transfer. It’s got 3 years/100k miles, you’re totally right, I don’t need to worry about that for a while.

I just want to drive it everywhere now, just love being in that thing.

A major plus with this lifted van is that oil changes are super easy lol. Already located the oil filter and it’s super accessible.

Definitely all good advice, I’ll keep it local until everything is in solid order. Thanks again

 

This doesn't mean you should not post here with your observations. A lot of us here would love to own your van and as a long time van guy I'm pretty near the front of the line

If you have a warranty on the engine, that's the last thing you want to lose by changing the engine or modifying it. Go after the safety and functional stuff first. I drove big vans for 30 years and never had to jack one up for an oil change.

I have a really clean '91 BMW 318is garage queen/hobby car that I've owned since 1994 in the garage, so I'm very aware of how time deteriorates seals and rubber parts.

 

Like Fordman75 and YoGeorge said... Work on freshening it up and enjoy driving it like it is for now. Depending on your style of driving, you might like it.

What kine of off roading do you plan on doing with the van once you have it ready and the interior built into a camper?

My van has a 5.0, AOD, and 3.73 gears and does fine for my style of driving. I have had my van packed with camping equipment, 8 people, pulling a small loaded trailer, and traveled 50 to 60 miles on gravel roads in the N GA mountains and never had a problem getting around in it except for being careful not to overheat the brakes on the down hills. But my van is a E150 with smaller brakes then your van.

My son changes the oil for me and he has plenty of room under the van without jacking it up.

I also used a tow dolly to pull a 3,300 lb Buick from Johnsonville TN to my house in the N GA mountains, around 220 miles with no problems at all. So the little 5.0 may surprise you depending on your style of driving.