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<\/a>The Freightliner today<\/p><\/div>\n
First moves…<\/h4>\n
Our first order of business was replacing all 6 tires, balancing the wheels and checking alignment. We also had the brakes inspected. Next was a trip to Cummins to have the engine serviced. We had Cummins increase both the horse power and torque using software and without invalidating warranties. They also removed the electronic speed governor of 75mph. The Allison transmission on this vehicle was a 5 speed but it has a 6th<\/sup> gear that was locked out. There is a company that reprograms the transmission control module making the 6th<\/sup> gear available improving fuel consumption.<\/p>\n When it came to the electrical system we scoured the internet and found that many people were using equipment from a Dutch company called Victron Energy. A quick internet search and we discovered that there was a Victron Energy ambassador by the name of Marc Stevens<\/em> whose company Off-Grid Solutions<\/a> is located in Chadron, Nebraska – virtually at our back door! We set up the first of multiple Zoom meetings with Marc to discuss our goals for the vehicle which included:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Marc and I worked for about 3 months on the design of the system. We would have Zoom meetings and then swap email schematics and design ideas back and forth. Here’s the final design. Once the design was completed Marc placed the order for the equipment and I drove to his place in the ambulance to pick it all up. You can put a lot of stuff in an ambulance! I have a background in electrical engineering and am a ham radio enthusiast. I\u2019m also pretty good at using AutoCAD. While waiting on the equipment to come in I mocked up the electrical cabinet and battery compartment for the ambulance and produced an AutoCAD rendering of what it would look like.<\/p>\n Next I started installing the devices and making the connections. Everything worked as planned with the exception of the Buck\/Boost which had some sort of a fault from the factory. Marc replaced this and we were good to go.<\/p>\n We next shipped the ambulance off to Colorado Adventure Vans<\/a>\u00a0in Golden Colorado. John and his staff worked closely with Kim and I to design the interior of our dreams including:<\/p>\n This is a 3 season camper. 2023 was our first full season with it. We spent 24 days camping and really enjoyed it.<\/p>\n A few other items to note. We replaced the front seats with new units. We also replaced the front center console with one that was custom made by Colorado Adventure Vans with the same Corian that was used in the back.<\/p>\n We left that majority of the ambulance wiring intact.\u00a0 Lights, sirens, PA system all work. We have 2 One Up<\/em> bicycle racks mounted vertically on the back.<\/a><\/p>\n\n
Bringing it all together<\/h4>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\nWhat’s on board?<\/h4>\n
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