Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126243
secret is some kind of super soft , yet tuff nylon rubber. I figure these tires will last me 100,000 miles easy. The increased height of the 12 inch tires also did a lot for the looks of the van with its heavy duty , jacked up suspension. The options on my E,250 include automatic transmission (n othing is less fun than a van with manual column shift) , factory air co n d itio n ing , Ca p ta in's chairs , Chateau package (carpeting: d oor pa n el s, c h rome mirrors, nice d ash ), and Com bin ation Tu-T one paint (chrome mold ings and bumpers, chrome yellow u pper body with bla ck rock er panels). The sticker price last year was $6 ,600 . T his yea r the same package will cost you abo ut 6% more . Things I've added on to th e van incl u de J.1. L .'s rea ll y n eat combination AM /FM /CB /8 ·Traclr. in d a sh stereo u nit , which se lls a t discou nt sto res for $26 0. Speakers and antenna b ring it up to about $300 , which is still a lot less th an the $450 Ford wants for their A M / FM / 8-Tr ack without CB. Because I like seeing where I'm going at night and want people to move out of the fast lane when 1 come up behind them , I've mount ed a set of Cibe driving lights in the front grill and wired them upto the high beam in the regular headlights. A flash from behind with the Cib es. is more than enou h 10 blow anyone out of your way. My van has fold-open side cargo doors. I'd never get slid ing doors for a and road noise. Despite the poor quality contro l on all American automobiles these days, Ford 's better. design of components and the way they go together on the assembly line hel p to compensate for any sloppiness when the van is bolted toge ther . Desp ite its rugged good looks and numerous passe nger car . type options, the Ford is more of a truck th an th e Dodge or Chevy. T he ot hers use lighter frames and Avarrn car type front suspensions. Ford has a higher load ca pacity fra me a nd its I-beam front suspension. If I was going to buy a van strictly for road d riving, not worryi ng about hauling stuff, I might consider a Dodge with tricked / ou t suspension. Bu t for carrying heavy loads and bashing across the boonies For d is my only choice. The worst part about buying a new Ford is the long wait after ordering. Because of factory strikes and the long backorder list for pussy wagons (model E·I00 short wheelbase and E-150 long wheelbase vans whic h are ordered in volume for customizing) the wait on a new van from Ford is close to_ eight mont hs. When and if you find a van on a Ford dea ler 's lot , it's usuall y an E150 model with full cu srorniz ing garnish. W hen you go into a Ford dealer , or any other dealer for that matter, to order a van , don't use th e factory color brochure 10 order your options out of. Ask 10 look at the factory option book. It will IOtally blow your mind with th e items t he salesman does n't even know are availab le . Things like sway bars , spring 'rates and oil coolers. It 's better 10 order everything you need with th e van than to pa y e xtra for most ac cess ory items lat er o n . Ford offers three engines ; a 300 cubic in ch six is standa rd , with 35 1 and 460 c.i. V-8s optional. I got th e 351, which has enough horsepower to blow off most Detroit iron these days . The 460 is faster , but rumor has its fuel consumption at 8·9 mpg. At 70 miles an hour the 351 engi ne will put down an honest 12 mpg. It runs strong up to 80 mi les an hour and runs out of breath at 90. My first modification 10 the engine - 10 give it bet ter gas mi leage and mor e power - will be a se t of Hooker functiona l header I sidepipes when they become availa ble for the late-model Fords. Power to the ground is via a 3.50 rear axle with positraction , T he la rger d ia m e t er tires I'm using have effectively reduced that ratio to 3.20. On a vehicle as heavy and which pushes as much air as a van, it's important no t to go much lower in ratio even if you plan to do a lot of highway driving . Wi th axle ratios in the neighborhood of 3.00 or lower, present-day low horsepower engines are working under too much of a load in the 55 ·70 m ph range and fuel consumption and engine wear ma y actually increase. It was then tha t I thought of my nearby Kelly-Spri ngfield dealer who had sold me a set of lOx16.5s for my last Ford van when the stock • Goodyears wore out in 20,000 miles. Those Kellys only cost $55 each , cornered like crazy on wet or dry roads , and still had half th eir tread left after 40 ,000 miles whe n I sold the van . I paid him anot her visit and came ho me wit h a set of 12x1 6.5s for my new van . The la rger size cost me $72 . each , bu t even after 25 ,000 mi les they hard ly seem ed scuffed-in. T he neat thing is how they handle. I can pitch th e van int o a turn ashard as I dare and never once hav e they come close to br eaking loose, even in th e wet. The van because they are difficult to close , never seem to work right, fall off the h inges , a n d don 't allow enough stiffness to the bod y. I've partitioned off the front of the van from the back so that opening the front side doo r all ows access to the front of the van , and opening the rear sid e door allows access to the back of the van . When the doors are closed, and with mirror film on the wind ows, no one can look into the van a nd see the bikes . O ne day I'll get aroun d to adding p fold -ope n ben ch sea t beh ind the d river's seat. One op tion I no w wish th at I had order ed, bu t d id n 't, is the ai r conditioni ng package for the interior wh ich panels and insu lates the whole van for arou nd $150. It 's something you ha ve to do anyway to prevent inside/ ou t dents in the va n from bikes and gea r. Maintenance wise , my Ford has re a lly been good. I ig n ore the m anufacturer' s le nient se rvice recommendat ions, changing the oil and filte r du rin g bre ak -in and every 3,00 0 miles. W hen I received th e van I had th e who le underside painted to preven t rust and I wash the ou tside and u nderside weekly to keep dirt from buildi ng up. On ce a month I wax it . My last van still looked like it was new after two years a nd brou ght a resale value only $1 ,000 less than wha t I paid for it. If I had it to do all over aga in , I'd still order the same Ford van because the wait was worth it. Now , as soon as I put on those headers, al uminum high rise man ifold and. progressive Holly four barrel . . . • (Below ) There's plenty of room in the back for bikes. gears , , , and 8 friend. 13