Extended express VS E350

dcorbett62
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Morehead City, NC US
6/28/2022 3:59am Edited Date/Time 7/1/2022 10:00am
Looking at van options. I’ve had an e350 so I’m familiar with them just looking for some other input on pros/ cons.
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Mx391
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Mid, TN US
6/28/2022 4:10am
LS motors in the express vans are basically bullet proof
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Mr. Afterbar
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Green Bay, WI US
6/28/2022 4:25am
I bought my 2009 Express 2500 about 5 years ago with 180,000 miles. Put about 30,000 on myself since then and have not done anything other than replace a broken door latch clip. We also use 3500's at work and they are pretty solid. Never any major issues.
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motomike137
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Fenton, MI US
6/28/2022 4:54am
The steering in the GM vans is heads and shoulders better than the vague Ford steering.
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Rickyisms
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6/28/2022 5:13am Edited Date/Time 6/28/2022 4:05pm
Express seems to be the way to go. Other than the paint issue I haven’t seen any problems out of them. Pretty sure the express is slightly more roomy than the extended Ford.
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The Shop

Sandusky26
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6/28/2022 5:56am
Just so everyone knows the op has a badass Promaster van and is a hippy.
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motoxrocks
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Dunnellon, FL US
6/28/2022 7:01am
Express/Savana is the only full frame van left. They are rock solid! I currently drive a Nissan NV 3500 high roof but as of last year they are discontinued. Towing 9000+ lbs with a van will be a thing of the past if GM does away with their current platform. Off topic i believe i read that the new Transit electric has a range of 160 miles! Ridiculous!
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dcorbett62
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6/28/2022 7:29am
Sandusky26 wrote:
Just so everyone knows the op has a badass Promaster van and is a hippy.
You don’t know me you hippy.
1911
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6/28/2022 7:51am
Sandusky26 wrote:
Just so everyone knows the op has a badass Promaster van and is a hippy.
dcorbett62 wrote:
You don’t know me you hippy.
I question anyone saying they are a hippie, if this is not the van they are looking at, SillySilly

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MXer391
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Altoona, PA US
6/28/2022 8:04am
I’ve had probably close to a 100 vans over the years at my company. Right now we have around mostly Transits and a few E-150/250s and Expresses. If you are towing anything over 3000lbs, count the Transits out. Honestly, they are all about the same durability wise if you take good care of them. I’ve had E-series and Expresses go well past 250k with minimal issues and I have a couple Transit’s that are 150k and still going strong. The brakes suck bad on the Transit’s compared to the others. The medium roof Transits are obviously great for moto vans because of the extra height. If you are purchasing used, I would really go over any of them very closely. Most are fleet vehicles that get run hard and not everyone takes good care of them.
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6/28/2022 8:15am
Allow for extra time working on a older van. I spray pb blaster on bolts a couple times days b4 I work on it. It still snapped 1 of the 1/2 in bolt that holds the thermostat housing on. Not much room to work a drill and a easy out in there. 95 g20 101k mi the body is good mechanically some stuff is worse that my other van with 183k. A mechanic owner Owned it go figure. I can’t get the housing off the intake to change the thermostat. I kinda ran out of time mon.
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Ob917
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Carlsbad, CA US
6/28/2022 8:36am
Express all day long, just try not to warp the rotors every time you go down a mountain. Only problem I ever had with mine. Sold it 10 years ago and it’s still a Moto van in TX now.
E series fords didn’t do it for me when I had them back in the day.
6/28/2022 8:51am
Another consideration is the E350 has been out of production for a decade.
Sacko
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Canyon Lake, CA US
6/28/2022 8:58am
motoxrocks wrote:
Express/Savana is the only full frame van left. They are rock solid! I currently drive a Nissan NV 3500 high roof but as of last year...
Express/Savana is the only full frame van left. They are rock solid! I currently drive a Nissan NV 3500 high roof but as of last year they are discontinued. Towing 9000+ lbs with a van will be a thing of the past if GM does away with their current platform. Off topic i believe i read that the new Transit electric has a range of 160 miles! Ridiculous!
This. As much as the inner-me wants a high roof Sprinter or Transit, they will never tow much. My express tows my 25 foot toy hauler with ease. Nothing beats putting the bike in the van and already having all my tools, gear, etc. in there and not having to put it all in the trailer. I think I'll always own one, imo best van option out there.
dcorbett62
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6/28/2022 10:58am
Hard time finding one in nc for a good price.
McG194
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Palm Coast, FL US
6/28/2022 11:17am
I'll preface this by saying I'm totally ignorant on vans, but I have been looking at some class C motorhomes and it seems like the preferred chassis is the Ford.
Everyone in this thread seems to prefer the Chevy which I would side with due to the best V8 gas engine in the industry right now. What gives?
1
nytsmaC
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Frig Off CA
6/28/2022 12:53pm Edited Date/Time 6/28/2022 12:54pm
Another vote for the GM. My family has owned several of each, the GM is better in every way I can think of. Both will do the job though so if you can get a significantly better deal on the Ford you can’t really go wrong.

Get the 4.8 V8 for best fuel economy, the 6.0 is thirsty.
motomike137
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6/28/2022 1:48pm
The only problem now is that clean ones are getting relatively rare and people want a lot of money for them. I had a regular length GMC with a mild conversion that I bought new in 2005 and drove for ten years. It didn't even have a v8 it actually had the 4.3 six which was a damn good truck motor with decent torque. I pulled my 25 foot travel trailer all over Michigan with it for many years and while it wasn't fast it would do 65 or 70 pulling the trailer with no problem. I've always wanted another one but I'm spoiled and driving a new truck these days lol.
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Sacko
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6/28/2022 1:49pm
nytsmaC wrote:
Another vote for the GM. My family has owned several of each, the GM is better in every way I can think of. Both will do...
Another vote for the GM. My family has owned several of each, the GM is better in every way I can think of. Both will do the job though so if you can get a significantly better deal on the Ford you can’t really go wrong.

Get the 4.8 V8 for best fuel economy, the 6.0 is thirsty.
Agree. I have the 6.0 but towing the trailer requires that. If there's no need for towing I would definitely get the smaller engine. I could be wrong but I believe they offer the 5.3 as well. If they do I would go with that. I've had 3 silveradoes with the 5.3 and that engine is absolutely bulletproof + good on gas.
plowboy
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6/28/2022 2:50pm
Before retirement, the company I worked for had the big chevy vans. I drove them, heavily loaded with some heavy trailers. Coast to coast and all around the country. I'm a Ford guy but I would purchase a decent bowtie van in a heartbeat. They do work.
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motorick5052
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6/28/2022 3:12pm Edited Date/Time 6/28/2022 3:21pm




My 2006 E350 has been rock solid!
(6.8 ltr V-10 w/170K original miles now!)
Pulled all three of my RV’s all over the country without issue! I’ve had it since new and plan to drive it till the wheels fall off since I cant get another one now!
I had a 1995 Chevy Express and it was FABULOUS too!
Unless you can find a good used Ford you’re getting the GM model BUT I wouldn’t hesitate to buy another new GM van either!
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motorick5052
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6/28/2022 3:14pm Edited Date/Time 6/28/2022 3:23pm

All my work buddies SWEAR this is my van anyway…

(SERIOUSLY? Who down votes a guy laughing at his buddies teasing him?! If you drive a van you BETTER be ready for the “Chester Molester” van jokes!)
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Sandusky26
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6/28/2022 3:20pm
dcorbett62 wrote:
Hard time finding one in nc for a good price.
I buy mine from the wheelie boys in Fayetteville.
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plowboy
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6/28/2022 4:02pm
[img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2022/06/28/557121/s1200_850A62B7_34C7_4445_A31B_F1CDA2EE9F2A.jpg[/img] [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2022/06/28/557123/s1200_8467BA1B_E397_40C5_85D6_5594361B84BF.jpg[/img] [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2022/06/28/557122/s1200_ABDCF1EB_EB85_47B7_B3DE_2DAA017DC4E8.jpg[/img] My 2006 E350 has been rock solid! (6.8 ltr V-10 w/170K original miles now!) Pulled all three of my RV’s all over the...




My 2006 E350 has been rock solid!
(6.8 ltr V-10 w/170K original miles now!)
Pulled all three of my RV’s all over the country without issue! I’ve had it since new and plan to drive it till the wheels fall off since I cant get another one now!
I had a 1995 Chevy Express and it was FABULOUS too!
Unless you can find a good used Ford you’re getting the GM model BUT I wouldn’t hesitate to buy another new GM van either!
I had a '93 E-350 to pull my concession trailer. 351ci. I absolutely loved that thing and would buy another if clean enough. The ONLY problem I ever had was vapor lock when temps got above 110 ambient, which wasn't that often. It also doubled as a bike hauler. Reletively secure vs my pickup. I didn't have to bring the bike into the hotel room when traveling. You won't believe how upset they get when you cram your bike on the elevator.
plowboy
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6/28/2022 4:05pm
[img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2022/06/28/557124/s1200_CC96E966_0B3E_41F6_8A89_BA1006654EB1.jpg[/img] All my work buddies SWEAR this is my van anyway… (SERIOUSLY? Who down votes a guy laughing at his buddies teasing him?! If you drive...

All my work buddies SWEAR this is my van anyway…

(SERIOUSLY? Who down votes a guy laughing at his buddies teasing him?! If you drive a van you BETTER be ready for the “Chester Molester” van jokes!)
Lol...a car wash once in a while...and some hubcaps...might help.
motorick5052
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6/28/2022 6:04pm
I’ve only driven vans since right after I graduated high school!
My wife teases me ALL the time that I better hope nothing happens to her, because NO ONE is gonna go on a date with me in a van!
(I tell her I hope nothing happens to her, because after 35 years of marriage, I almost got her trained up!)

My first moto van was a 1980 Dodge Tradesman, that my brother and I fixed it up just for Moto and we had a BALL in that ol’ van, pretending to be Moto heroes
(in the Novice class?!) as we traveled around to the Okla state series and misc MX events in our region!
I’ve had a few other Econolines, and two Chevy Expresses along the way, and they’ve all been great!

I’d grab either one, depending on which one you can get the best deal on! I don’t think you’d be disappointed with a clean used Econoline, and if the budget allows, a brand new Chevy Express or GMC Savanah would be really cool!

(And yer right about, putting bikes in hotel rooms, that almost never goes over well when caught!)
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GARhead
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6/29/2022 10:30am
Chevy has a better ride.
Ford has more aftermarket stuff.
Spooner
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6/29/2022 11:46am
Express is where its at.
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DTR830
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6/29/2022 11:50am
dcorbett62 wrote:
Hard time finding one in nc for a good price.
You just bought a 800k house what type of deal you looking for? Coupon codes dont exist for marketplace.
plowboy
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6/29/2022 1:08pm
Spooner wrote:
Express is where its at. [img]https://p.vitalmx.com/photos/forums/2022/06/29/557209/s1200_E4033D28_D58A_44B5_979A_8FC50618967E.jpg[/img]
Express is where its at.
Not half bad...I could put that to use day one.Wink
plowboy
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6/29/2022 1:11pm
GARhead wrote:
Chevy has a better ride.
Ford has more aftermarket stuff.
Ford interiors are more durable and the dual a/c is a bit better. So thereWhistling

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