MTVR Dimensions

[HopperChopper77]

Hello Everyone!!

I am trying to plan on how I want to design my home on the back of my MTVR. I have a little bit of knowledge with a CAD program, so I was hoping to be able to start designing my home that i want to build on the back of the MTVR but I was wondering if anyone could possibly measure these 3 spots out on there MTVR? Also is this diagram correct on the dimensions? Thank you for any you can provide! I really appreciate it! and when I get it designed I will post it here and get some helpful feedback

I understand if no one can get these dimensions, just thought I would put it out there. When I get my MTVR I could get them but that won't be for a couple of months so I just wanted to start planning.


Thank you!

1 is from the front of the bed to back of cab
2 is from the ground to top of the bed
3 is from the front of of cab to the front of the bed. To see how much overhang on the home I can get.

 

[Russ Knight]

Dimensions = Real Big.

 

[HopperChopper77]

Dimensions = Real Big.

HAHA, well I know that, but the question is, Just how big!?

 

[JonM934]

Here are the measurements from my truck - your mileage may vary.

1. 33 inches.
2. My truck was not on flat ground so it is about 65 inches but might be 67. These measurements are in another post too.
3. 80 inches.









You should thank me for this because it was snowing and cold as hades when I got these photos.

 

[HopperChopper77]

Here are the measurements from my truck - your mileage may vary.

1. 33 inches.
2. My truck was not on flat ground so it is about 65 inches but might be 67. These measurements are in another post too.
3. 80 inches.

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You should thank me for this because it was snowing and cold as hades when I got these photos.

Oh man! That’s some serious work for little ol me. I really really appreciate it! Very much. It will help me to start designing a rough layout of my home!

I can even see the snow in the pictures so thank you I appreciate it. Your efforts will not be forgotten by me! To do something like that for a stranger on the internet is something else so I really appreciate it. Appreciate you!

I will show you in a couple days why I needed the measurements.

thanks again,
Hopper

 

[MTVR]

I am measuring about 75.5" from the leading edge of the cab to the leading edge of the bed...

 

[MTVR]

As far as the height of the bed, keep in mind that the tire brand, tread depth, tire pressure, and the load in the bed will determine the height of the bed itself.

Our vehicle has the original Michelin tires, they are at about 90% tread depth, the CTIS system currently has them inflated to the 2-7.1 ton highway setting, and our box is on the back.

We have not scaled the truck to find out what our box weighs, but I am estimating it currently at about 3,500 pounds.

According to the best information I have, the rear suspension will compress about 1" for every 3,700 pounds.

Our truck is sitting on the flat concrete floor inside our shop, and I am measuring the bed at about 65" high at the front corners, and about 68" high at the rear corners...

 

[MTVR]

Technically, there is about 31.5" of space in between the back of the cab and the front of the bed, but there is a lot of stuff in between the two- the air intake stack, the exhaust stack/muffler, the transmission fill tube, a large bundle of vent hoses, the master battery switch, the "slave" electrical port, and so on.

It appears that the master battery could be relocated under the left side of the cab, and still allow reasonable access to it. The slave port could be relocated also, or simply eliminated if you have no need for it.

The transmission dipstick tube also peeks out from under the back of the cab, so if you plan to build a box that eliminates that access, you may have to extend both the tube and the dipstick roughly 21" to be able to access it from the left side.

The rear central cab mount also extends rearwards from the back of the cab, but it appears to be pretty much below the prolongation of the bed's load surface.

The actual clearance between the front of the bed and the muffler's heat shield, is about 16.5".

 

[MTVR]

I believe that a walk-through type box would be impractical for the MTVR. Our box extends about 5" forward of the front of the bed, and we use the platform between the cab and bed as our front porch. We also mounted our generator to an extension of that platform, behind the stacks.

 

[MTVR]

I also believe that extending the box over the cab roof is impractical.

For starters, the truck is designed to twist when it articulates, and the bed has a torsion-free mounting system, so you'd have to have a fair amount of clearance between the top of the cab and the bottom of the overhang, to keep the cab from hitting the overhang when the truck twists.

Second, the roof of the cab is about 10'4" tall, and you'll need to keep the overall height of your box to no more than 13'6", including vents, solar, etc. to be legal in all 50 states.

Between those two issues, you'd end doing a lot of work, to create a tiny little slot- and it would also prevent you from being able to use the machinegun hatch.

...and you still have the air intake snorkel and exhaust stack sticking up above the cab, so you'd need to shorten/redirect both...

 

[HopperChopper77]

I also believe that extending the box over the cab roof is impractical.

For starters, the truck is designed to twist when it articulates, and the bed has a torsion-free mounting system, so you'd have to have a fair amount of clearance between the top of the cab and the bottom of the overhang, to keep the cab from hitting the overhang when the truck twists.

Second, the roof of the cab is about 10'4" tall, and you'll need to keep the overall height of your box to no more than 13'6", including vents, solar, etc. to be legal in all 50 states.

Between those two issues, you'd end doing a lot of work, to create a tiny little slot- and it would also prevent you from being able to use the machinegun hatch.

...and you still have the air intake snorkel and exhaust stack sticking up above the cab, so you'd need to shorten/redirect both...

Oh, man! Thank you for all the information MTVR. That is super helpful.

I plan to relocate everything between the cab and the bed and actually extend the cab itself. Now that is what I am thinking now but when it comes down to it, I may have to rethink that. I don't want the home and the cab attached. Don't see the need for it. Also, I will be removing the turret hatch and just welding in some metal to make it flush. I plan on dynamatting the cab to make it a bit quieter and insulated. I was hoping to extend the cab so I could have more seats but then if I remember right if it classifies as an RV then people could in theory just ride in the home on the back? I realize this isn't very safe but could be an option. Could even put seats with harnesses in the back?

The extension over the cab will be little, to hold 2 winches. I have a wacky idea I'm going to see if it will work. haha

I'm actually going to try to keep the entire build right at 13 feet. for a little wiggle room and safety of mind. I'm going to try to make the solar panels flush with the roof.

But then again, I don't have an MTVR or a container so it's all theory haha

Let me see if I can work something up in CAD and I will send it and see what yall think.

 

[HopperChopper77]

Well I have only been learning CAD for a week or 2 so I'm super new, but I made this up. Nothing is to scale obviously but you gotta make a rough draft right? haha, what do yall think? although nothing is to scale I'm thinking along the lines of this.

Orange is the extension of the cab
blue being solar
grey being the door
and I'm wanting the back to come down to make a like porch. A place to sit out and enjoy. My thought on this is to place 2 winches inside of the little extension on the box over the cab. Have the cables run to the top of the back door to let it up and down all while still retaining the original container-style locking mechanism. This may be way too far-fetched but hey, we can all dream until it's time to actually do it right? Haha.

Also yes I want to cut the back of the container at an angle for a couple of reasons
1: departure angle
2: looks

 

[MTVR]

Have you seen our thread?

Our MTVR camper:

Greetings. We just purchased an MTVR from GP. The vehicle is a 2007, indicating 3,443 miles and 216 hours. I spent hours scouring the Inspection Reports and photos, and tried to pick the nicest one. The only material defect listed in the inspection report, is that the CTIS is flashing. I have an...

www.steelsoldiers.com

We built a rear "drawbridge" door to serve as our back porch, and it is powered by a pair of 3,500 pound winches with automatic load holding.

Our winches are located at the rear, in the upper corners. I wouldn't want the drawbridge cables running all the way through our box from the front to the rear...

 

[MTVR]

How many people are you trying to seat in the cab?

The rear cab wall is a structural member- the center rear cab mount attaches to the bottom of it, and it is no little thing. I'm not sure how you would be able to cut that wall out to extend the cab rearwards, and still be able to have that cab mount support the back of the cab...

 

[MTVR]

FWIW, the cab is ginormous- my wife is a little pixie (not quite five feet tall), and she can stand up completely and walk around inside the cab without hitting her head on the ceiling.

 

[MTVR]

Where are you intending to relocate the air intake stack, exhaust stack, and vent tube bundle too?

If you shorten that stuff to make room for a cab extension, you're going to seriously reduce the vehicle's ability to ford water.

Diesel engines are not like gas engines- even a tiny amount of water injested into the engine will destroy it instantly, and replacing a CAT C12 engine would be very expensive...

 

[MTVR]

I'm not saying that it would be legal (or safe), but you might be able to widen the passenger bench seat to seat 3 plus the driver. The stock passenger bench seat is designed to seat 2, with a gap between it and the driver's seat.

 

[MTVR]

It sounds like a lot of the issues you're facing, are issues that we've dealt with...

 

[HopperChopper77]

Have you seen our thread?

Our MTVR camper:

Greetings. We just purchased an MTVR from GP. The vehicle is a 2007, indicating 3,443 miles and 216 hours. I spent hours scouring the Inspection Reports and photos, and tried to pick the nicest one. The only material defect listed in the inspection report, is that the CTIS is flashing. I have an...

www.steelsoldiers.com

We built a rear "drawbridge" door to serve as our back porch, and it is powered by a pair of 3,500 pound winches with automatic load holding.

Our winches are located at the rear, in the upper corners. I wouldn't want the drawbridge cables running all the way through our box from the front to the rear...

Dude!!!! I had not even seen your thread. We are pretty much on the same path but you have already done it! Awesome job, by the way, that is a stellar build you did.

I definitely learned a lot by reading the thread, and I really like how you did your draw bridge on the rear. That is exactly how I want to do it.

One of the reasons I am going to run the winch the way I am is because I actually want this build to be my full-time home, so I am trying to make every single inch of space count

also how long is your box? I think I saw in the thread you said 16ft? I think I will overhang mine a little further just due to cutting it at an angle. the bigger I can make it is ideal but I don't want to kill its balance or center of gravity or off-road capabilities.

Also, I'm still debating on moving the intake, exhaust, and such. I feel confident to be able to move them, and actually, I would move them higher so the water fording would still be the same if not actually higher, of course, that depends on where electronics are located. I don't ever see myself fording more than a foot or 2 so it should be alright.

 

[MTVR]

Ours is 16 feet long and 8 feet wide.

The departure angle is fantastic, even without an angled cut on the back.

No cut means:

1. More square footage of floor space.
2. Our back porch is larger.
3. Our back porch is lower. (approximately the same level as our floor)