Thanks for the replies. Missing the links link on the page was a big 'duh' for me :-)
I (somehow-likely this :
http://www.alumibunk.com/ the Snap_On truck on the Freightliner chassis) got the idea that a MDT might be a "better" solution for dog-hauler/tow vehicle than my current one which is a (woefully underpowered) one-ton cube van .
Stop me if this is foolish , BUT , I imagine a MDT has:
a better engine of your choice
better transmission
larger fuel tanks
better towing capacity
choice of front and rear axles
more durable?
than any of the current 'commercial cutaway'offerings from Ford/GM .For 2003 it seems that GM is limited to the 6.0L engine/4l80e trans with a possibility of the Duramax/Allison in 2005 and Ford's offering isn't interesting 'till you get to the E450 (is that a "Class 4 truck?) and I have little experience of these , still only 14500 lbs GVWR?.
Keeping in mind my limited knowledge , however what really confuses me/convinces me is that in my local market (Southern Ontario) , a used Freightliner FL50 , 1998 ,20KlbsGVWR , A/C , hydraulic brakes , aprox 120000mi , Cummins 5.9 is offered at C$27000 ,with many 1996+ G3500/E350-450 offerings at 23000-24000.
It's like finding out that the Tooth Fairy DOES exist [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]
Or , I'm totally missing something here. Now , the used FL50@27K had too long a wheelbase for my needs and I happen not to have 27K at this moment but it would seem to me that there must be a big downside that I'm missing or else why would so many people pay so much more for so much less truck? Is there a generally accepted 'useful life ' for a MDT ? I assume that one can get 'more' out of a properly equpped Freightliner than an off-the-shelf G3500/E350-450.
All comments etc welcome!
best Regards
Keith