My sendmobile van build

Okay, it's not a van but a hatchback car. Whatever. It's still a sendmobile. Gearing up for my year-long climbing trip starting in March. 2013 Ford C-Max hybrid. It's part of my ever-challenging quest to somehow have enough space to live in my car without buying an overpriced plain van that gets 15 MPG. After months of research I think I may have pulled it off, although of course never as comfortable as a full van, but much more efficient, less expensive and with a much nicer vehicle.

Suede for an extra touch of dirtbag:









Added piano hinges so the platform will fold up for easy access to my crap:





Supports boards are bolted directly to the seatbelt and seat frame posts so they should be good for the long haul:





The entire platform folds up in three places. It allows me to use the entire length of the car with the seats all the way forward while sleeping, and while driving I can fold up the forward-most section so I can scoot my seats back. Then when I need access to my gear I can fold up the middle section as well. If I need access to the hybrid batteries in the back, I can fold up the rear section.

I am not done yet, but I am going to add plastic containers in the rear (pictured above) and in the middle. All in all I will have about 22 - 25 cubic feet of storage, which is enough for myself.

Any chance of pulling the passenger seat?

Why not go with something like a Ford Focus wagon? More cubic feet behind the front seats...73 cubic feet...more than most suvs and can be had for under 5k.

Looking forward to how the build goes!

It would be a little spending but a powerful inverter could power AC cooking appliances. But if the battery and alternator could support it is another thing.

A roof box in the plans?

wankel7 wrote:Any chance of pulling the passenger seat?

Probably not. I need some place for the chicks to ride.

Two words: sun roof. Otherwise a sweet gig. We had almost the same exact "van" rig for 3 years with a sky box and bike rack on top (Ford Edge). Hope you got extended warranty since it's a Ford. Get a hookup for a fan and punch out a sun roof if there isn't one already.

J.C. Penny wrote:Two words: sun roof. Otherwise a sweet gig. We had almost the same exact "van" rig for 3 years with a sky box and bike rack on top (Ford Edge). Hope you got extended warranty since it's a Ford. Get a hookup for a fan and punch out a sun roof if there isn't one already.

Clearly you didn't look at the pictures...

Yea the Ford Edge was super clutch. I took the back seats out and did a similar setup. I imagine that even though you don't have the space of a van, for long trips that will be ok. The part that would bug me would be sleeping. In our Edge I has enough room at 6ft to sleep extended and comfortable. For me being able to/knowing that I can come back to a nice bed is absolutely invaluable.

Now I see why you want 12v appliances. That could end up costing you a lot of space to create an electrical system adequate enough to power coffee makers etc. not to mention having to store the appliances.

Nice work, Navy
I thought you and that Passat were for life.
Will you just be relying upon campground/picnic tables & the ground for food prep and cooking? Or do you have something else in mind with this build?

Ryan N wrote: Clearly you didn't look at the pictures... Yea the Ford Edge was super clutch. I took the back seats out and did a similar setup. I imagine that even though you don't have the space of a van, for long trips that will be ok. The part that would bug me would be sleeping. In our Edge I has enough room at 6ft to sleep extended and comfortable. For me being able to/knowing that I can come back to a nice bed is absolutely invaluable. Now I see why you want 12v appliances. That could end up costing you a lot of space to create an electrical system adequate enough to power coffee makers etc. not to mention having to store the appliances.

Oops. There is a small sun roof. Heat is worse than cold to me for sure. It is amazing how we could fit all of our equipment into the tiny Edge! I appreciate the space now. :)

Impressive!

Hey 20kn! Was it you who just posted up the C-Max in some other dude's van build forum? Did you get the hypbrid ~45mpg or the elec ~80mpg? And in either case can you elaborate on legistics of charging? You plug it into your house? What's that do to elec bill? How convenient? What is the measurement, back of front seats in full-forward position to inside of closed hatch?

Being 6'-2" has been a real pain in my ass in the everlasting battle of sleepmobile vs. payment at the pump...

And I see you've got some under-platform storage, but can you elaborate with some packed up pics, and tell us what you can really fit? It seems when you do this kind of a thing, you end up needing to pack the gear in the front seats to sleep at night, but that always limits how much you can move those seats up...

We like to sleep in tents, but want room in our vehicle to sleep too, for those 1:00am friday night arrivals, or when we can't find a covert camp spot. But (bringing camping gear as well) this also means, even more required storage. After this past weekend, girlfriend and I, 3-days, camping and climbing gear. When we got it back inside it must have been 10' long by 3' wide by 2' high laid out on the floor...

A friend was debating getting a Westfalia, instead he got himself a rooftop tent.
autohome-official.com/en/
the Air-Top small fits on top of a Subaru Impreza.

Luc wrote:A friend was debating getting a Westfalia, instead he got himself a rooftop tent. autohome-official.com/en/ the Air-Top small fits on top of a Subaru Impreza.

It would not be too comfy in a rooftop in subzero temperatures. Avid ice climbers, we are intending on roughing it up in the hills of Montana next year. Insulation is essential not only for cold but for heat as well.

Ryan N wrote: Clearly you didn't look at the pictures... Yea the Ford Edge was super clutch. I took the back seats out and did a similar setup. I imagine that even though you don't have the space of a van, for long trips that will be ok. The part that would bug me would be sleeping. In our Edge I has enough room at 6ft to sleep extended and comfortable. For me being able to/knowing that I can come back to a nice bed is absolutely invaluable. Now I see why you want 12v appliances. That could end up costing you a lot of space to create an electrical system adequate enough to power coffee makers etc. not to mention having to store the appliances.

I plan to put a 4" memory foam topper on top which should make things comfy. With the platform fully extended, it's more than long enough to sleep on. It's about 6'6" long when fully extended.

I don’t need a coffee maker, just something to cook on. The vehicle has a 2000W inverter for the 12v system, so I can just leave the car in the ready mode and cook. It sips fuel anyway.

Tom Sherman wrote:Hey 20kn! Was it you who just posted up the C-Max in some other dude's van build forum? Did you get the hypbrid ~45mpg or the elec ~80mpg? And in either case can you elaborate on legistics of charging? You plug it into your house? What's that do to elec bill? How convenient? What is the measurement, back of front seats in full-forward position to inside of closed hatch? Being 6'-2" has been a real pain in my ass in the everlasting battle of sleepmobile vs. payment at the pump... And I see you've got some under-platform storage, but can you elaborate with some packed up pics, and tell us what you can really fit? It seems when you do this kind of a thing, you end up needing to pack the gear in the front seats to sleep at night, but that always limits how much you can move those seats up... We like to sleep in tents, but want room in our vehicle to sleep too, for those 1:00am friday night arrivals, or when we can't find a covert camp spot. But (bringing camping gear as well) this also means, even more required storage. After this past weekend, girlfriend and I, 3-days, camping and climbing gear. When we got it back inside it must have been 10' long by 3' wide by 2' high laid out on the floor...

Yes it was me. I got the hybrid version. It would be pretty dumb to get an electric car for a climbing trip. The batteries take up a ton of space and Yosemite doesent offer many charging stations. ;) The car is in storage until I start my trip so I cannot take any more photos. But I plan to use those storage containers Wal-Mart sells to store my stuff in under the platform. Wal-Mart has a pretty large selection of different sizes. The vehicle is long enough using the platform I built for someone tall. It would be a bit tight with two people, but it could be done. The main concern would be storage space for two people. You would have to go with a roof box and/ or hitch box.

caughtinside wrote:It's a nice build out but you could do that to lots of cars. If your main interest is mpg its a fine choice but if your budget is 18k and you're planning to live in it for a year there are many more comfortable options out there. I think this a good hack if you're going to convert a vehicle you already own, but doesn't make much sense to buy and move into.

Yes there are other vehicles that are much larger for the money. But space was not my only concern. After months of research I found the CMAX offers exceptional value for the money due both to Ford’s excellent ability to cut costs through interchangeable parts among many models and because the market for non-Prius hybrids is quite weak right now due to fuel prices and winter snow. The sticker price on this car was $33k and I paid $6.5k with my trade in ($9.5k trade in value). So almost 60% off and the car is not even 2 years old. Not many other cars can offer that.

I was looking at the Transit Connect, which is basically the same price for the year/ millage combo. But look at the interior differences:



Vs


It doesent even compare. Having seen both cars in person, I can say the Connect is just as crappy in real life as it is in that photo, and the CMAX is even nicer than it looks in the photo. So that had a large influence on my decision as well.

J.C. Penny wrote: Hope you got extended warranty since it's a Ford.

Determining reliability solely by manufacturer is a pretty unscholarly way of doing it. Manufacturers make so many changes over the years and offer so many models that you cannot definitively say that one manufacturer is always unreliable or always reliable. It’s much better to look at the reliability of the specific model and year you are buying. Some Fords suck for reliability, others are outstanding. The CMAX so far seems to be quite reliable. I follow a CMAX discussion forum and aside from dead 12v battery problems, there are no known common problems with this vehicle so far.
Ford and Toyota are the pioneers in hybrid technology in a way, and they have the two most solid hybrid designs out there. Ford used the Focus platform for the CMAX, which is a platform they have had success with for years. They used the Fusion hybrid drivetrain, which is a drivetrain they have had success with for years. All in all it seems like a solid car so far, but only time will tell. Also, if you look at JD Power’s latest vehicle dependency study (2014), Ford is dead in the middle average, so they have made some progress over the years.

J. Broussard wrote:Nice work, Navy I thought you and that Passat were for life. Will you just be relying upon campground/picnic tables & the ground for food prep and cooking? Or do you have something else in mind with this build?

I will cook outside at most locations. Otherwise I am going to have to figure something out. I am not sure really. This is a problem I had with my last car too. It’s hard to figure out what to eat while on the go between crags.

Interesting write-up thank you. Doing some more research I found that the electric model C-MAX's electric stats. The 80mpg combined estimate for electric mode is for a total range of 19-20 miles. This is after a 2.5hr full charge. After that the vehicle actually comes in 2mpg under the CMAX Hybrid's combined mpg of 40. I know these stats are idyllic and not real world, but hearing about the 20 mile electric mode range, that dumbed down my 80mpg boner real fast...

I live in my Mitsubishi Montero Sport full-time, year-round. I haven't removed the rear seats because I dont have anywhere to put them, but they fold down fairly flat. The Montero has a 'ledge' in the back when the seats are down, which makes it a little tricky, but I rest a wooden board down one side of the vehicle off this ledge, with plastic shoe boxes under it, that are the support. I can lift this board up to get at the boxes. I call this 'the basement.' Of course I have a couple of pads on top of it for sleeping. Down the other side I have my ice chest, a bag of clothes, and a box full of food at the foot. I use the top of the ice chest as a table. I have two more shoe boxes on top of the food box, one for toiletries and one for cooking utensils. They fit inside the lip of the box perfectly, so dont slide around. On top of my vehicle I have a carrier for my gear (the attic). I have two nets hanging in the rear, one on each side of the vehicle. They block the side windows a bit, but they are invaluable for stuffing clothes and other items in.
I have all kinds of other little bags hanging from the nets. One for reading glasses, another for my phone, or coffee mug, trash bag etc. so I can always find these things at night without a light.
Keep in mind that everything I own in the world is with me, I dont have storage elsewhere. There are times that living this way gets a little tiresome, because cooking on the bumper can be almost impossible when the wind blows the sand, or one is trying to cook during a snow blizzard, but I manage. Here is the back of my vehicle: afreespiritedwoman.wordpres…
and here is a rack I built for the top to use for hauling wet gear or firewood, xtra gas etc: afreespiritedwoman.wordpres…

Harbor freight has a hitch rack that hold 500lbs and can be converted into a lockable box. On sale for $69. Takes some assembly.

Hey 20kn,
would you have bought a Prius V (wagon) if the cost were as low as C-max?
(Not that it is, so purely theoretical question)

tom donnelly wrote:Hey 20kn, would you have bought a Prius V (wagon) if the cost were as low as C-max? (Not that it is, so purely theoretical question)

I was looking hard at the PV. It's got more room than the CMAX. I was originally going to go with the PV before I learned about the CMAX. If I was willing to accept a 2012 with higher miles, I could have gotten a base PV for the same price as my CMAX. The problem is the PV is rather expensive for what you get (as are all Prius'). Even in the highest model trim, the v, the PV is still more plain than the highest model CMAX, and much, much more expensive.

So for space, yea the PV is better. But for driveability, features, technology and luxury, the PV blows compared to the CMAX unless you get the PV v, in which you are looking at like $8000+ more than the CMAX for the same year and millage. Oh, and the CMAX has like 50 HP more than the PV which is extremely noticeable as the Prius' are very slow.

Nice job with the Cmax. i am currently researching a place that can do almost the same thing you have. bed frame,access to back seats for passengers, sunroof,or vent fan, solar panels, drawers under bed with a slide out table. it was good to see yours, it shows me it can be done. have you made any new modifications since this post?

Dude! That thing SENDS.