Four wheel drive conversion vans mostly got their start with the new generation of vans that date back to 1971 for the Chevrolet and Dodge, and to the 1975 Econoline. And conversion vans, in terms interior redecoration, also got really rolling about that same time. And this Econoline 4×4 Quadravan is a double-conversion van, ready to take its occupants into the wilderness for their vanning pleasures.
I’m not sure of the exact year of this rig, but based on the colors, I’d date it to about the 1976-1979 era. Those were boom years for the whole RV industry, until the second energy crisis put the kibosh to it. There’s not many 1980-1982 vintage RVs out there, except maybe some very small and relatively efficient ones. This one does not fit into that category.
Quadravans were built by Pathfinder, which apparently survived the 1980-1982 downturn, only to go belly up in 1991, another difficult year for RVs. Parts specific to them are getting hard to find.
I would expect that a 460 V8 is quite likely hiding under the Econoline’s stubby hood. A great engine, but obviously also a thirsty one. Especially when teamed up with a high roof van raised jacked up even further.
I should mention that as far as I know, Quadravan only did the 4wd conversion. I’m not sure about the fiberglass top, interior and paint.
Needless to say, these still have a pretty strong following, and it’s undoubtedly worth a whole lot more than if it were just a 2WD Econoline from this vintage.
Always thought 4wd vans where so cool! Had alate 60’s GMC Handivan, and believe me 2wd vans are worthless in snow, ice, or just plain wet roads. This van has real fixer-up potential.
Hello,
Great idea !
Paul,
How about Class A motorhomes, converted for off-road ?
I have looked into converting my old Winnebago D27 ?
After all it’s a Dodge chassis & power train !
Has anyone out there seen a Big Old RV 4X4 ? ?
The environmental firm I once worked for bought a new ’82 4WD Dodge van for field work. I’m not sure who did the conversion but it looked a little wicked with jacked-up stance, beige paint, matte black grille and diamond-plate bumpers, and a huge winch on the front. When the old folks were cruising down US 27 in Florida, the appearance of this thing in their mirrors gave them something to think about. The only real quirk I can remember was the suspension’s bouncing in rhythm like a hobbyhorse over certain concrete-paved roads. A regular van over the same roads rode smoothly. Must have been something to do with the tuning of the springs.
Perhaps a Van Charger ? That was the name on some in that time frame.
I love vans and have had one for decades (not the same one). The 4×4 conversions look cool but I would think that having the center of gravity even higher than stock would make them more tipsy. Paul, you are right about the desirability of these 4×4 conversions. They bring a hefty premium over the RWD stock van.
That kinda looks like Campervan Kevin’s (Youtuber) old campervan. I don’t think his was 4 wheel drive though. He’d dig it, I sure do.
Prior to the HMMWV, the Army had quite a few 4WD vans of various makes and vintages that were typically outfitted as field ambulances. They were most commonly used at training posts rather than posts where tactical units were based. Typical use was driving out to a range, sitting all day, then back to the motor pool at night. As pool vehicles, they weren’t particularly well maintained, but they also rarely – if ever – saw salt and didn’t go many miles. I can’t remember whether any of them had raised roofs as I was never an ambulance driver. I also don’t know if any of them might still be in the system. As these were considered administrative use vehicles – despite being an ambulance – the normal rule for replacement was 7 years and 70k miles. Due to the low mileage created by the limited use, some of these may have remained in a fleet much longer than normal for a government vehicle. If anyone has a real interested in finding a full size 4WD van to fix up for some purpose, I’d suggest trying a DRMO and/or GSA fleet auction.
This grille (if original) would make this no newer than 1978. And a minor nit, this generation of Econoline began with the 1975 models.
Many are surprised that these vans from the late 70s retained the age-old Ford habit of putting the ignition key on the left side of the dash. I do not believe they went to a modern steering column-mounted key until either 1980 or 81.
I am like some others that wonder how good of an idea 4wd is on something with such a high center of gravity. In my world the 2wd versions were awesome highway cruisers. And wow did I hate that strange color of beige that Ford was using in those years. A friend’s dad had a 76 Granada that color – it was hard to make a Granada ugly in 1976, but that color about did it.
Years back a close friend’s dad had an LTD II company car in that color… blech. Talk about unappealing…
The Econ-O-Master would know the year that grille ended. 🙂
According to the forums I visited last night, they do quite well off-road, except for tight turns. Note that most of them didn’t have the high roof, although that’s fiberglass. There’s a lot of tall 4×4 military and Unimog-type trucks that are used in pretty extreme situations.
I do know that in 1979 on the Ford vans, the grille went to an egg crate/waffle style in a 4×8 pattern with square headlights and the turn signal/parking lights directly below it. I know the FORD lettering remained on the hood until 1982-83 when the blue oval appeared on the grille. I’ve seen some Ford vans with both the FORD lettering on the hood and the blue oval on the grille.
Considering the popularity of 4wd trucks, I don’t understand why this wasn’t offered by the Big Three, or at least I never heard about it. AMC struck gold with the 4wd Eagle, didn’t they? I suppose one reason was that they didn’t want to siphon off sales of Suburbans and Ramchargers and Broncos, but this would have been an unexplored niche. Even VW had the Syncro 4wd van.
GM did sell an AWD version of the current-gen full-size vans, not sure if they still do, though these weren’t raised much if at all and weren’t intended for off-road use. I think there have been several companies that converted full-size vans into 4WD besides this one though. Will have to research this.
A local British Columbia company produces the Clydesdale Conversion for GM and Ford I believe, and has been around since the ’80’s at least.
The extended top looks just like the one on my old van and it is even a similar color scheme, though mine was a plain old 2wd 150 with the 351 which got the job done. Had a large branch not shattered the top I’d probably kept using it. I did use it for quite a while Gorilla taped together until I found a suitable replacement. I’ve always wanted a Quadravan but the reality is that they carry a significant premium and I don’t really have a big need for the 4wd. Now If I was building an expedition rig A Nantucket with the Quadravan and high top conversion like this one would be at the top of my list.
Quigley is still making off-road vans. I still see one every once in a while even here in the flat Midwest.
And more serious…
I don’t know the numbers, but suspect the CG height isn’t as bad as one would think. Except for the likelihood of slightly taller tires, the axles remain low and the frame and powertrain are only slightly lifted. And it’s possible that the fiberglass roof extension is much lighter than the stock steel roof with stiffeners. FYI, I believe Quigley also sells dealer orderable 4wd Nissan conversions as well as the Transit.
Yep, Quigley sells converted Nissan, GM, and Ford vans.
A version closer to the subject vehicle:
The 1975 to current day Ford E Series are the best vans ever made. And that’s a remarkable feat for a Ford considering they’ve built some pretty crappy cars, but not their trucks and vans. I used to own a 2012 Ford Taurus Limited which was utter crap, an absolutely forgettable heap of dung! I should’ve gone for the Crown Vic I was looking at instead of the crappy Taurus. My BIG mistake?
I’ve had nothing but E Series Fords in my business for over 25 years and they have been the most durable and reliable vehicles I’ve experienced. It’s very common to exceed the 300,000 mile mark on these vans and not do an overhaul.
It’s too bad that Ford cancelled their E Series vans for light duty use. I absolutely hate the Transit van that replaced the legendary E Series. I took a Transit for a test drive and wasn’t impressed in the least. And they look ugly. Good goin Ford you struck out on that one.
Lastly, the beige and brown Ford Econoline pictured at top is a 1977 model. In 1979 E Series vans all had rectangular headlamps.
The reviews and sales of the Transit seem to indicate the opposite. What in particular did you not like about the Transit that the E-Series did better? Handling? Fuel efficiency? Space?
I thought the Transit had proven itself superior in most all ways…though reliability is unknown at this point and looks will always be subjective.
That’s exactly my point–the Transit has been proven superior (though as you said, reliability is still up in the air after only 2 model years, and looks are subjective).
Third time trying to post this… hopefully this is the charm!
In The 1990’s, Ford had the VPN127 project that was envisioned to support both an F-Series and Econoline off the same platform.
In the end, the divergent use cases didn’t afford the expected savings and added unexpected complexity and cost so it was killed. Both vehicles also sold in large quantities so they could easily be stand alone and optimized for their specific needs.
I don’t know if a 4WD Econoline was in the plan but given commonality it would have been much closer to feasible than the two separate platform approach given the niche characteristics of a 4WD full size van.
B/r, RW
I have a 1978 Ford looks just like this one I’m having a hard time finding parts I remodeled the inside but cannot find door seals. Or someone to work on the van the wiring needs redone the battery will not stay charged.