# Choosing the right Service Van.



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

I need some help researching a good van to start out. In the past I was pretty set on using my truck to start out but after a lot of thinking I'm not set on that anymore. I'm thinking more long term now.

If I get a van I'll be looking to get something that is slightly used, under $20,000. I have my Tundra which is nearly paid off to do a trade in.

Honestly I don't know squat about vans other than the fact that I drove a GMC service van for about six months. Any advice on make/model/racks/etc would be great.

BTW, BigReds GMC Savanna - Pro is pretty sweet!
(Check out post #19)
http://www.electriciantalk.com/f14/post-truck-interior-pics-545/


----------



## NolaTigaBait (Oct 19, 2008)

Those kanpheide vans are pretty cool. I have an e150, but I would reccomend getting at least a 250 series with all those 25 foot cuts of romex you will be stocking.


----------



## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

Yeah, definately stay away from 1/2 ton vans. Get at least a 3/4 ton. 

Value for the money, you're probably well-advised to just get a Ford E250 or a 2500 series GM product. There's a freaking gazillion of them on used lots right now. Drive it for 4 or 5 years while you do research on exactly what type of tool body or walk-in body truck you'd really like to have.

Many reports seem to indicate that Sprinters often turn into huge money pits, so I could't in good conscience ever advise a guy to get one of them. The regular Dodge vans have the wheel well right under your left leg, so you're riding around lopsided all day. I hate them for that reason alone.


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

NolaTigaBait said:


> Those kanpheide vans are pretty cool. I have an e150, but I would reccomend getting at least a 250 series with all those 25 foot cuts of romex you will be stocking.


Yea, they do look pretty cool, modern looking. Seems like it would have a lot of storage. I guess the only down fall vs. a van would be working in the rain having all those bins on the sides.

You know, with all that storage room I could probably fit a dozen buckets of "assorted parts" in the back and still have all those bins for all my partial rolls.


----------



## BryanMD (Dec 31, 2007)

MDShunk said:


> Yeah, definately stay away from 1/2 ton vans. Get at least a 3/4 ton....Drive it for 4 or 5 years while you do research on exactly what type of tool body or walk-in body truck you'd really like to have.
> 
> Many reports seem to indicate that Sprinters often turn into huge money pits...


All good solid advice.

Come on marc... 
post some pics and show the man what the REAL solution is.


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

MDShunk said:


> Yeah, definately stay away from 1/2 ton vans. Get at least a 3/4 ton.
> 
> Value for the money, you're probably well-advised to just get a Ford E250 or a *2500 series GM product*. There's a freaking gazillion of them on used lots right now. Drive it for 4 or 5 years while you do research on exactly what type of tool body or walk-in body truck you'd really like to have.
> 
> Many reports seem to indicate that Sprinters often turn into huge money pits, so I could't in good conscience ever advise a guy to get one of them. The regular Dodge vans have the wheel well right under your left leg, so you're riding around lopsided all day. I hate them for that reason alone.


I found a 2007 GMC Savana 2500 Cargo w/33,338 miles on cars.com for $12.999. I wouldn't owe much after the trade in if I got something like that... Looks clean, doesn't have any racks or shelving though.


----------



## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

BryanMD said:


> All good solid advice.
> 
> Come on marc...
> post some pics and show the man what the REAL solution is.


No, just trying to keep it real here. I think that just starting out in business, you're probably screwing up if you don't take advantage of a good deal on an E250 or 2500 GM van and go from there. 

Grimlock, keep shopping. There's plenty of stuff out there with shelving and ladder racks already. That will save you 3 or 4 grand if you don't have to buy all that stuff.


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

MDShunk said:


> No, just trying to keep it real here. I think that just starting out in business, you're probably screwing up if you don't take advantage of a good deal on an E250 or 2500 GM van and go from there.
> 
> *Grimlock, keep shopping. There's plenty of stuff out there with shelving and ladder racks already. That will save you 3 or 4 grand if you don't have to buy all that stuff*.


Good advice, I'll take it, thanks! :thumbsup:


----------



## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

Yeah, if you're buying used, take advantage of someone else's misfortune and hunt one that's already setup. You can get some serious dough wrapped up in the upfit.

I bought a new Chevy HHR panel wagon during the cash for clunker's deal (as a sales and estimating vehicle), and got 500 bucks from GM toward the upfit. It still cost another 1800 bucks for the few things I had done to it (ladder racks, bulkhead, slide-out, laptop mount, fire extinguisher, first aid kit, and few bins).


----------



## JayH (Nov 13, 2009)

In Southern Ca there is an equipment auction every three months or so with every possible kind of construction equipment (including service vans with low mileage.)

It might be worth it to see if there is an auction like that in your area.

I know a structural contractor that bought two scissor lifts from them practically brand new for less than 1/3 the cost of both of them new.


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

JayH said:


> In Southern Ca there is an equipment auction every three months or so with every possible kind of construction equipment (including service vans with low mileage.)
> 
> *It might be worth it to see if there is an auction like that in your area*.
> 
> I know a structural contractor that bought two scissor lifts from them practically brand new for less than 1/3 the cost of both of them new.


Thanks, I didn't think of that, there is an auction place not too far from my house. They have a huge yard that is usually full of heavy equipment and trucks. I'm going to look into it. :thumbsup:


----------



## chenley (Feb 20, 2007)

I've have a Ford E250 that I got about two years ago. Find a dealer that buys the old fleets from Sears, etc. Got mine for 6,500 with 80k miles on it and the vinyl graphics already removed with no trade in. 

Have been thinking of getting a truck though with one of those service beds on it. Having the compartments on the sides seems as though it would be more efficient. I'm really getting tired of climbing through the van to get small parts.


----------



## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

Side bins are okay until it rains or everything you need is in the bins on the traffic side.


----------



## Innovative (Jan 26, 2010)

A Knapheide utilty van is by far the best service truck on the market. Ask anyone of my guys. We went to them from standard vans about 6 years ago, and no one would ever want a regular van again. Why not buy a new one.....E350 KUV $30,000 less trade.. all set up with towing package, ladder racks, bins and all the fixins........ Ford Trac lease, which is actually a purchase where you select the amount you want to finance. Example:
30,000 less 8,000 trade = 22,000 after 5 years you know you can still get 6,500 for it, so use 5,000 as your "residual" . 22,000-5,000= 17,000 so you finance 17,000 for 5 years @ 5.9% 327 per month and at the end of 5 years, you trade it in, sell it or buy it for 5,000.
All of our trucks are on the Ford Trac Lease, except my 2500 Sierra HD 4x4 Diesel. Would love to have all GMC's, but their fleet program is really lacking. If you buy from Ford, be sure to use their fleet dept.


----------



## 10492 (Jan 4, 2010)

Boy, I'm outnumbered from the start.

Looking back at things, I think I would of started with a small box truck, with a roll up door.

I would of custom built wooden shelves in the back, instead of buying a package.

E250 never got better than 11mpg.

Them Izuzu box trucks got 13, and had more storage.


----------



## BryanMD (Dec 31, 2007)

Dnkldorf said:


> Boy, I'm outnumbered from the start.


nah. you've got it right.
take note of which parts of the country the open bin truck fans are located in


----------



## BuzzKill (Oct 27, 2008)

Quite happy with my ' 99 chevy 2500, ex-AT&T van, with only 90K on the clock.


----------



## captkirk (Nov 21, 2007)

I wouldn't trade in my sprinter for anything out there. It carries a good amount of stuff, they make a 3500 dually if you need more weight, It gives you decent mileage, i get about 16-17 miles a gallon, and it has good torque, I had the back of mine loaded with about 80 feet of 3 inch rigid and its usual accompaniment and it still drove strong. And the traction control really helps in the snow. Only on the next one I am going to get the sides covered inside, so material doesn't go banging into the side of the bulkhead. 
I think most of the problem ones are the 06 and under models. They seem to have worked out all the bugs. ..Everyone that has worked with me says the same thing...."Dude your van rocks and is so easy to work out of." I have an 07 144 wheel base. And it doesn't cost anymore than a E350 diesel. I got a ladder on the back door so I can reach the ladders. But if your not into that I would definitely go with a nice F250 or something. Ive always liked the Ford vans. Your probably better off with a 350 though. Ive driven a gas 350 and it was nice. The diesel is nice too but really loud. My one precious employer had a 350 diesel window van that was used as a utility truck. Everything from shuttling guys to work in the morning (through Union Picket lines mind you) to carrying carry over material to and from jobs and to transporting our "Big" lift. Nice vehicle. But The 250 is good too. Nice all around truck.


----------



## drsparky (Nov 13, 2008)

I like having the windows in the side cargo doors, it helps me see in traffic when I pull out.


----------



## Advanced37 (Jan 11, 2010)

I have a 2007 Chevy 2500 van with the 4.8 with sliding door and outfitted with shelves and the divider. 130000 miles and no issues to mention. Great truck. Highly recommended. Gets between 13-16 miles per gallon.


----------



## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

Grimlock said:


> ..............


 
Wait until you have to spend half an hour locking it up.


----------



## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

Grimlock said:


> I found a 2007 GMC Savana 2500 Cargo w/33,338 miles on cars.com for $12.999. ........


Dang. I would have given the guy $15 for it.:laughing:


----------



## caseysbuilding (Mar 19, 2009)

Can't go wrong with GMC! http://www.caseysbuilding.com


----------



## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

480sparky said:


> Wait until you have to spend half an hour locking it up.


Many of them have an electric, remote controlled central locking system. You only have to go around with a key to each door if you want to double-lock it, like for overnight parking.


----------



## drsparky (Nov 13, 2008)

How about a nice used Ford Transit?








Or maybe a new one.


----------



## Podagrower (Mar 16, 2008)

I bought a new (to me) van about 18 months ago. I had been trying for a few years to beat the last $50 out of my 98 Dodge, and finally succeeded. I knew I wanted some creature comforts (PW, PL, Cruise), and I had the opportunity to drive a Chevy 2500 and Ford 250 and 350's. Being a gear head, I just knew that with it's extra power, the Chevy was for me. I was wrong. The Chevy had about 40 extra horses, but I don't know what storage bin they were locked up in. 

My wife found a Ford with all the toys, PW, PL, Cruise, Bins, Ladder Rack, Remote Keyless Entry, 13,000 miles, 1 year old, $14,000. Hard to beat a deal like that.

I found several vans less than a year old, less than 15k miles, under $16k.


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

Who makes the best shelving and partitions? How about ladder racks and conduit boxes?


----------



## Mike Guile (Jan 14, 2010)

*Dream Vehicle*

I want one of these so far. Don't know much about dualie's ??? is it worth it for extra weight?? This would be the mothership of course.


----------



## electro916 (Jan 16, 2009)

Grimlock said:


> Who makes the best shelving and partitions? How about ladder racks and conduit boxes?


Adrian Steel, for everything. 

Check the local Junk Yards. We have 2 you pull it yards about 45min away from home. I was pulling used Adrian Steel shelving in good shape out of vans for $10 a section.We outfitted an entire van with console, bulkhead, and shelving down both sides for $60.


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

electro916 said:


> Adrian Steel, for everything.
> 
> Check the local Junk Yards. We have 2 you pull it yards about 45min away from home. I was pulling used Adrian Steel shelving in good shape out of vans for $10 a section.We outfitted an entire van with console, bulkhead, and shelving down both sides for $60.


Great Idea! Thanks :thumbsup:


----------



## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

Grimlock said:


> Who makes the best shelving and partitions? How about ladder racks and conduit boxes?


I've always had good luck with Adrian as well.


----------



## kennydmeek (Sep 12, 2009)

I'd get a nice service cap with side tool bins, a good locking back door and a ladder rack and keep the Tundra for another 250,000 miles...


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

kennydmeek said:


> I'd get a nice service cap with side tool bins, a good locking back door and a ladder rack and keep the Tundra for another 250,000 miles...


I haven't had much luck looking into service caps, I guess if there where one that were designed properly it would be an option, any ideas?


----------



## kennydmeek (Sep 12, 2009)

Grimlock said:


> I haven't had much luck looking into service caps, I guess if there where one that were designed properly it would be an option, any ideas?


I have a brochure out in the truck...I'll bring in the details when I get a chance...


----------



## McCaa (Sep 3, 2009)

I got a 2001 Ford 3/4 ton Econoline I picked up for $2,500. It had 80,000 miles but had been maintained pretty well. I spent $750 and had all new brakes, rotors, wheel bearings, seals, etc put in it, $225 on a new windshield (had a small chip in it), $750 on four new tires, $600 on some shelving that I built, $800 in trade work to have my Van lettered from a sign company. 
I also spent $1,000 for my mechanic to go through and tune up and double check everything from bumper to bumper and make it like new.
I have less than $6,800 in mine and its virtually brand new. This allowed me to spend some money on tools that I have been wanting this year. Bought a new Greenlee tugger, a New Makita lithium Ion 9pc set, A new portable bandsaw and a TON of other stuff for about $8,000. 

I'm still at less than $15,000 and got a really tooled out van that can handle almost any job, that still gets 20 MPG.

PS - www.americanvan.com has the best prices on boxes you can find. Their service is great and shipping is prompt!


----------



## thegoodelectrician (Dec 13, 2009)

480sparky said:


> Wait until you have to spend half an hour locking it up.


I had one of the ford KUV trucks. I like the looks of it, It looked wonderful. Looked professional. But when it came to functional. IT IS NOT!
When it rains you get soaked getting parts.
Your larger tool bags will not fit in the side boxes so they clutter the back.
The paint job on the box is not very well. Rust spots started showing through with in the first year. Knapheide repainted mine and another one that I know of. 
Mine had power locks on the boxes, that was nice except when the button kept getting pressed in my pocket and my truck was unlocked and I did not know it. Thank God, nothing ever came up missing.


I Like the 10ft cube van. It is the same truck as the KUV, it just has a cube box instead of a KUV BOX. The 10 ft cube van is perfect. Mine has a 6 cyl engine, and gets aproximately 10-11 mpg with the ladder rack on it. I will take post inside pics later. I bought this van on Ebay for 2400.00, it is a 2000 ford e 250. 

My KUV was going to cost aprox 37,000 after all the payments were made. I like my mini cube van alot better. NO PAYMENT, NO GETTING WET, and I can have a spot for all tool bags/boxes with room in the middle for the days materials.


----------



## personal (Jun 3, 2008)

I would have to say after working out of a box truck/cube van that I liked that the best. Set it up how you want, workbench inside, ladders inside, can be a mobile shop. Mine had a curb side door which made it nice to work out of. But I have fallen in love with our new addition a 2000 e350 c/w telsta lift. It is so nice to have a man lift available at a moments notice. It has limited space and interior accesability due to the boom installed through the center of the van and the rear street side door is inaccesable due to the 4500 onan bolted to the tail shelf, but for commercial service it works great. We picked it up with 88,000mi & 180 hours on the lift (lift basically never used) $12K. California van from Nevada ex. Cox cable.


----------



## thegoodelectrician (Dec 13, 2009)

personal said:


> I would have to say after working out of a box truck/cube van that I liked that the best. Set it up how you want, workbench inside, ladders inside, can be a mobile shop. Mine had a curb side door which made it nice to work out of. But I have fallen in love with our new addition a 2000 e350 c/w telsta lift. It is so nice to have a man lift available at a moments notice. It has limited space and interior accesability due to the boom installed through the center of the van and the rear street side door is inaccesable due to the 4500 onan bolted to the tail shelf, but for commercial service it works great. We picked it up with 88,000mi & 180 hours on the lift (lift basically never used) $12K. California van from Nevada ex. Cox cable.
> 
> View attachment 2727


My bucket truck has the same boom but one a Ford F super duty truck. What kind of height clearance do you have From the top of boom to the ground for driving under canopies? Is this your everyday truck, or do you still use a cube van. I am considering one for my next bucket truck. You have a nice looking bucket van. I bought my truck for 6k, but have about 15k total in it. I think my is in good shap too.


----------



## personal (Jun 3, 2008)

I think the sticker says 9'8" clearance. Fully extended I get 34' working height. It's not my main vehicle. You can find nice ones for 12-20K anything less seems to be rusting or worn out. Of the four of us I have the pickup w/ service body, the most unfriendly one to work out of. The cube is gone but will be replaced by a newish one (05ish). We do a variety of work so I like to have different vehicles to get the job done and match the employee to the type of work they prefer to do. We have a 98 2500 chev ext. cargo which is nice to work out of (low to ground), 2000 e350 with bucket, 92' F250 w/ topper and cargo bed, 07 3500 siverado w/ service body (sits high so it's a pain to go in and out of for tools & parts). My Ideal van is a 1 ton cube van with a bucket or ladder lift.


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

Nice lifts. I'd love to have a bucket truck on start up, I'm not sure one could be used as a service vehicle simultaneously due to the fact that there just isn't a place to put ladders. There's good money is site lighting repair.


----------



## personal (Jun 3, 2008)

Grimlock said:


> Nice lifts. I'd love to have a bucket truck on start up, I'm not sure one could be used as a service vehicle simultaneously due to the fact that there just isn't a place to put ladders. There's good money is site lighting repair.


The van has a drop down rack for an extension ladder on the curb side and I have a 4' & 6' step ladder on the inside drivers side. Still room for materials.


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

personal said:


> The van has a drop down rack for an extension ladder on the curb side and I have a 4' & 6' step ladder on the inside drivers side. Still room for materials.


Could you transport a 14' or 16' A-frame ladder?


----------



## personal (Jun 3, 2008)

only on the curb side rack on top


----------



## 220/221 (Sep 25, 2007)

If you have room to park them, I still think the 16' box vans are the way to go. You can stock all the materials and tools you'd ever need, you have a big ass rolling billboard, all your stuff stays secure and dry, AND you can use it to move furniture on weekends.

I have yet to find a fully functional bin/rack system so I prefer to build them myself.




















I'd like to set up a Sprinter someday. I think they could be pretty productive trucks. I wouldn't dig the ladders on the roof but it would be a bit easier to park if you took it home.


----------



## NolaTigaBait (Oct 19, 2008)

You move furniture on weekends:jester:? THis economy has gone to chit.


----------



## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

NolaTigaBait said:


> You move furniture on weekends:jester:? THis economy has gone to chit.


If his wife is anything like mine, she'll say, "I bought this fill in the blank and I need you to pick it up tonight/this weekend".


----------



## 220/221 (Sep 25, 2007)

> You move furniture on weekends:jester:? THis economy has gone to chit.


Hell, I'll even resort to being a plumber again.


----------



## LGLS (Nov 10, 2007)

220/221 said:


> Hell, I'll even resort to being a plumber again.


 I recently learned how to sweat! Plumbing is EASY! :thumbup:


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

MDShunk said:


> No, just trying to keep it real here. I think that just starting out in business, you're probably screwing up if you don't take advantage of a good deal on an E250 or 2500 GM van and go from there.
> 
> *Grimlock, keep shopping. There's plenty of stuff out there with shelving and ladder racks already. That will save you 3 or 4 grand if you don't have to buy all that stuff*.


 
Thanks for the great advice, I found a really nice 2005 Ford E250 with an all weather guard interior set up. Apparently it came from a cable utility company out of Los Vegas and was auctioned off. From the looks of it they didn't hold back when they set it up.

I bought it last Friday and picked it up on Saturday. I'm looking into the decals right now.


----------



## nitro71 (Sep 17, 2009)

How much did that run you Grim? Nice looking van!


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

nitro71 said:


> How much did that run you Grim? Nice looking van!


 
I got it for 12K. 2005 Ford E250 40K miles. Runs great, I have a good feeling that it was well maintained being that it was owned by a large utility company.

I was also looking at this as an option:
(It was 17K though which was pretty high for me just starting out, it had a ton of storage space!)


----------



## nitro71 (Sep 17, 2009)

With only 40K on it that'll be a great van. I'm looking into something simular later this year myself.


----------



## NolaTigaBait (Oct 19, 2008)

Nice grab. That is exactly what you need. It's all set up with low miles...I bought my e150 in '08 ...It had 70k miles and I paid 6800 for it...I had to add the ladder rack and bins...


----------



## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

Grimlock said:


> Thanks for the great advice, I found a really nice 2005 Ford E250 with an all weather guard interior set up. Apparently it came from a cable utility company out of Los Vegas and was auctioned off. From the looks of it they didn't hold back when they set it up.
> 
> I bought it last Friday and picked it up on Saturday. I'm looking into the decals right now.


Holy crap, that's a nice van! Inverter, laptop mount, nice ladder rack, and bins like I've never seen before. That should do you good for a good while. You're spoiled, now. :thumbsup:


----------



## personal (Jun 3, 2008)

Thats a nice van. I see from the front plate you picked it up at century. They have a nice selection. If you look close I was wondering if you can see what name was on the van. Looks like a cox van from the setup. Mine came from cox and also came with lots of cables and other specialized stuff. They must have done a quick clean out before auction, they left alot of junk inside. I like the slide out racks on the floor in your van. Congrats! It will look very professional once the signage is on it.


----------



## Grimlock (Aug 4, 2009)

personal said:


> Thats a nice van. I see from the front plate you picked it up at century. They have a nice selection. If you look close I was wondering if you can see what name was on the van. Looks like a cox van from the setup. Mine came from cox and also came with lots of cables and other specialized stuff. They must have done a quick clean out before auction, they left alot of junk inside. I like the slide out racks on the floor in your van. Congrats! It will look very professional once the signage is on it.


:laughing:, Yea, you got it. It was a Cox van. When I pulled the pack rat drawer open in the back it had about 60+ phone jack plates and some cable splitters. When I left on Friday I made sure I grabbed them before they detailed the van.

The pictures I posted are from an identical van still on sale at Century. I think I got the better of the two because the one I got has 10K miles less and the interior looks cleaner. Also the ladder rack looks nicer too.

http://ww2.cox.com/


----------



## JohnJ0906 (Jan 22, 2007)

Nice! :thumbsup:

One dislike I have had with Ford vans was that the power point was right at the gear shift - PITA when I was using my GPS


----------



## user4818 (Jan 15, 2009)

Grimlock said:


> :laughing:, Yea, you got it. It was a Cox van. When I pulled the pack rat drawer open in the back it had about 60+ phone jack plates and some cable splitters. When I left on Friday I made sure I grabbed them before they detailed the van.




There's a dealership near me that sells some of the cast-off Cox vans. They are set up just like the one in your picture so I'm assuming they have a standard way they set them up. I'm in the market for a van myself so I think I'm going to check that place out again. :thumbsup:


----------



## SPINA ELECTRIC (Dec 1, 2009)

I agree I was set on a Ford E-250 but after I heard that they are a pain to fix when they break down and they leak oil alot I went with a Chevy Express Van 2500 2006 I love it bought it used with 86.000 miles on it my mechanic checked it out body was in great condition it had the partition all the window grates and shelves I modified the shelves a little added a 3 bar roof rack and pipe box and a few items and now I'm good to go.


----------

