PAV Adventure 4x4 Build

ddunaway

Active member
Those Anderson connectors look like a good option. I'll give them a try. Thanks for the tip Hien and Ranchworld.

The new 30Amp dimmer seems to work fine. It will empty the full tank and not burn out.
 

Dzler

New member
Overall though the heater does not really get hot. I had run it (and felt it) many times before I decided to put the battery right next to it.
I’m interested in the opposite, looking to ADD a little heat to a lithium during subzero operation.Do you think the D2 radiates enough heat in the driver seat pedestal such as it would add ANY heat to battery mounted next to it?

 

Midwestdrifter

Engineer In Residence
The pedestal in my van gets to over 100F with extended D2 operation in mild weather. In sub zero weather it still gets to the 70s. This is with some insulation on the outlet duct. Remember, the housing and ducts will get to over 200F when the heater is running. Which may be too warm. Best to do some testing before you commit to putting a battery there.
 

erik.wahlstrom

Well-known member
I very interested in doing the same with the factory AUX batter under the passenger seat do you have any more pics or measurements?
Moving heater over to make room for Group 31 battery under the passenger seat

When I initially installed the heater, I mounted it on the only flat spot underneath the passenger seat. I later realized that I could easily fit a battery too if the heater was mounted further over, and that it would be easy to do by installing a mounting plate to make the bottom flat. The 304 SS mounting plate was coated with Permatex and screwed in. As far as things go pretty straightforward ~2 hrs start to finish.
 

Dzler

New member
The pedestal in my van gets to over 100F with extended D2 operation in mild weather. In sub zero weather it still gets to the 70s. This is with some insulation on the outlet duct. Remember, the housing and ducts will get to over 200F when the heater is running. Which may be too warm. Best to do some testing before you commit to putting a battery there.
Excellent data.

The lithium cannot take a charge below 32F (but can be discharged down to -4F) so the idea in single digit and lower temps was to start the D2 (as well as engine preheater) a sufficient amount of time beforehand. By the time of engine start, hopefully the lithium has gotten close to 32F and is ready to accept a charge from DC2DC charger. I’ll need to test it to see if it gets too hot in there.
 

ddunaway

Active member
I’m interested in the opposite, looking to ADD a little heat to a lithium during subzero operation.Do you think the D2 radiates enough heat in the driver seat pedestal such as it would add ANY heat to battery mounted next to it?

Sorry for the delayed reply. I have been a bit distracted.

I think the heat you will get just from having the heater there will be minor. It is really just the output duct that heats up in my experience. The output heat is ~175 degrees F when I tested it. The plastic case was not never noticeably hot when I touched it. These are all things I noticed when the seat was off and the heater was running. The way my heater is set up the intake for the heated air comes in through opening around the foam cover on top as well as through vents in the hatch on the side that I got from Hein. That is a substantial amount of air flow.

Midwest drifter seems to have some data from running the heater for long periods with the seat on. Perhaps it does warm up in that case. It may depend some on your air intake details. In any case, some heating would be good for a lithium battery in the seat base next to the heater because you really only run the heater when it is cold.



I have thought about using part of the D2 heat to warm the batteries if I eventually put a Lithium battery there. The idea would be to divert part of the heat output back into the seat base if the batteries ever got too cold. It might be tricky to control. It would be a very empirical thing to get it right and you would want to monitor the battery temp.

I do think that you could fit 200 Ahr of lithium in the short base (along with the D2) if you built your own bank......or one 100Ahr battleborn.
 
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ddunaway

Active member
I very interested in doing the same with the factory AUX batter under the passenger seat do you have any more pics or measurements?
I do not think I have any more measurements or pictures at this moment. I can tell you I also looked at getting a 2nd Mercedes Aux battery (I have the aux battery package under the hood) to put in the seat base instead of the group 31. It would have fit but in the end I wanted real deep cycle batteries instead of dual use.
 

ddunaway

Active member
Version 2: To redo or move on

I am ready to try a new floorlayout on my Sprinter, have been wondering if I should get a new one or just work with my 2015 144 4X4.

I only have 2 complaints about my current sprinter: emissions issues and rust.

Emissions

My main question is "have they improved the emissions reliability over the 2015 6 Cyl"? Or would one really just expect the same...which for me is some big issue every ~30K miles (either 10 restarts or limp mode)?
My brief emission history, which luckily has all been under warranty…..

My first incident was 10 restarts on a week-long ski trip in Canada. Tricky trying to keep it running on ferries....at gas stations...etc. That ended up being new NOX sensors.

Second incident was another 10 restarts luckily in Seattle (where I live). That was a dosing valve. It was very difficult to get anyone to service as dealers were all backed up....there were threats of leave it for a month and we'll see. In the end it was only 10 days of wait.

Third incident was a limp mode several winter mountain passes from a dealer....interesting drive. That was EGR valve, the manifold below, and the cat converter. This would have been a very expensive one.

All different kinds of failures in the same system.....I can only expect more......

After test drives, talking to salesmen, internet searches, and asking on the forum, I have no reason to believe that the newest AWD 4 cyl Sprinter will be any different. I see no claims of improvements to the emission systems.

Rust

These vehicles just seem to have substandard paint or prep or something. I have never had a vehicle rust like this. However, I think I can just fix rust spots once a year and keep it at bay.

So, on to Version 2 of the PAV with a remodel.
 

ddunaway

Active member
Key elements of the new build
  • Raise sleeping deck to allow for mountain bikes inside
  • Re-arrange to a dinette configuration with a table and seat behind the driver's seat.
  • A higher kitchen near slides doorway
  • Take back some space in back used for storage of unnecessary stuff
  • Replace OEM flooring that collects dirt
  • Upgrade to Lithium (not really needed but cannot help myself)
  • Install flares to try sleeping sideways
  • Possibly permanent bed instead converting each night (we'll try it)
This is roughly modeled after my friend's van, who learned from my build and made improvements. Goal is to keep as much open space as possible.
 

ddunaway

Active member
Before moving on there are some elements that I really liked on this old configuration.

Bed was...
  • super-fast to set up (just unclip straps and slide out)
  • large
  • Could disappear in the back to create a lot of open space
bed assembled.jpgBed in travel mode.jpgBed stowed in back.jpg
 

ddunaway

Active member
Back seat (with just a few parts easily stored in the van) could be
  • Just be a box to sit on
  • Or 1-person seat
  • Or 2-person seat (1 person back folded out)
  • Had full seat belts
Box to sit on.jpg1 person seat.jpgDetails on how to attach seat.jpg2 person seat.jpg

This bit of crafty engineering took about a year of thinking and tinkering....I was proud of it
 

RVBarry

2023 AWD 170 DIY CamperVan
Emissions

My main question is "have they improved the emissions reliability over the 2015 6 Cyl"? Or would one really just expect the same...which for me is some big issue every ~30K miles (either 10 restarts or limp mode)?
My brief emission history, which luckily has all been under warranty…..
Hi, did you get the AEM done?
 

ddunaway

Active member
Attacking the Rust

Last year I fixed about 5 spots with bubbling paint.

This year I worked on about 20 bubbling areas. I took special care near where the Flares are going to go. That region toward the back of the rear window cutout chips and rusts bad on most of these vans, especially on driver's side.

These were my steps. Sanding and spray paint this year. Getting better.

  • Took it down to the metal with about 40 Grit wet sandpaper and a grinder.
  • Treated with Evaporust Gel (maybe not needed with POR15)
  • 3 steps of Por15
  • Sand finer grit (100)
  • Prime
  • Sand finer grit (200)
  • Paint
  • Sand finer grit (600)
  • Seal

Primer, Paint, and Seal were in spray cans from Touchuppaint.com. Seems like they even matched my primer. I was impressed with how well it matched.IMG_1641.jpgIMG_1642.jpgIMG_1643.jpgIMG_1648.jpg
 
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ddunaway

Active member
My rust repair technique is improving.

Last year with paint brush and no sandinglast year brush.jpg

This year with spray paint and sandingthis year spray.jpg

Smudge appearance around center is primer overspray.....something to work on with next year's rust bubbles.....
 

ddunaway

Active member
Flare install

I looked at both Flarespace and Vanspeed. In the end, I chose flarespace because I thought their trim was better. Quite the process to install the flares. Lots to figure out and perseverate over. Took a few weeks between painting and install.

Dry fit


The dry fit yielded some concerns about gaps. On the passenger side, there was ~ a 5/16 gap at the top leading edge. The flarespace people assured me it would suck down flat. I was skeptical, and proceeded but had a backup plan that would involve parking it next to the house and wedging carefully cut sticks to hold down the corners.

IMG_1676.jpgIMG_1667.jpg
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ddunaway

Active member
Painting flares

After lots of study on spray technique with Rustoleum. It's an 8-year-old van, and it seems appropriate to use spray cans especially with the ongoing rust repair. I proceeded to paint the flares.
IMG_1690.jpg
Roughed up with scotchgaurd. I did many coats of paint. The first round had 2 thin coats within ~1 minute followed by 2 more rounds in 45 minutes. 3 days later I did another 2 coats within 1 minute. Even though it was glossy, 3 days later I did 2 coats of gloss within 1 minute.

About half my cans clogged pretty much immediately, so much for the 2X thing. I ended up using 6 cans of paint and 2 cans of primer. Halfway through the project I got a spray can handle which made it a lot better, highly recommended. Also, generally key to prevent clogging is to never stop spraying once you start. My technique got a lot better as I went. Bugs and dust were the enemy and some sanding in between was needed to deal with that imperfect situation.

IMG_1685.jpgIMG_1686.jpg
 
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ddunaway

Active member
Flare cutout

The cutout was fun. Quite a bit more involved than the fan. I bought an air powered small reciprical saw from harbor freight. In the end, I used the jigsaw on the straightaways, and the air saw on the corners. The airsaw was a bit wimpy.

Of course, lots of protecting the van from steel shards and sealing the edges.

IMG_1763.jpgIMG_1764.jpgIMG_1767.jpg
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ddunaway

Active member
Flare gluing

The actual gluing of the flares was very straightforward in the end. I had 2 fiends to help just in case. The corner gap I was worried about did indeed suck down pretty flat. Maybe about 1/8". I did not have to use my stick wedging backup plan.

I tried to use all the glue but ended up with 1/2 tube left over of the 3.

IMG_1771.jpgIMG_1772.jpgIMG_1774.jpg
 

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