I noticed that GM is now using their van bodies to base the current medium duy cabs on, instead of just sharing the same cabs with their light duty p/u's like they always have before, as far back as I've been aware. Anyone know why they might have made that change? It's weird not seeing medium duty versions of the light duty p/u's around. They still look great, it's just different. :)

Savanna and Express van plants are located close to medium duty assembly locations.. is about costs.

Lots more room too!!

A couple of great things with the new style, wheel cut is 53 degrees, allows for very tight turning circles almost like a cab over, better than alot of pass vehicles. Much better front vis when looking out and in front of the vehicle. Can see the ground much closer to the front of the truck. Mirrors on the cowl, cuts down vibration and you can open doors and still see behind the truck through the miirors as you step out. The best truck on the market.

I've been wondering if a guy could replace or section a van body onto a 4500 chassis and make a conversion truck. It might look goofy but with a flat bed out back it would make an awesome toy hauler.

All great points, though they should still offer a 15K GVW C&C with the pickup cab. Then offer the 15K+ trucks with the larger van cab.

Ford's been selling the 450/550's with 4x4 for quite some time without ANY competition. At least Dodge has an excuse, but why did GM drag their feet Soooooo long? And, when they finally DID produce it,.....the 4500 & 5500's is all we get?

There IS a HUGE market for 15K-17.5K GVW 4x4 C&C's

Savanna and Express van plants are located close to medium duty assembly locations.. is about costs.

Let me see....Savanna and Express plant, Wentsville, MO. (St.Louis) Kodiak and Top Kick plant, Flint, MI. That's pretty close. :)

???? Some info needs verified ????

The GM MDT Class 4-8 cabs are new, not re-sized vans.....I don't know where that information comes from, but it is bogus. To haul my ladders and overhead cable trays to-from jobs, I had to cut down the rails for a regular van ladder rack by 5 inches to fit the gutter mount points on my C5500. Though similar, these cabs are not choped down van bodies, and have no interchangable parts.

Second point, which is the most important for many commercial buyers, is that the Ford "Pick-up" cab trucks have the turning radius of a city bus (at best), and they use weaker formed rails instead of the much stronger C-Channel type straight rails. GM's decision to go back to a COE (GMC used Cab Over Engine for the MDT's back in the 40's through the late 50's) to have smaller turning radius while allowing maximum cargo carrying space behind the cab. I know that the RF can turn inside the circle made by our full sized FWD chevy, even with a crew cab wheel base.

RF

Let me see....Savanna and Express plant, Wentsville, MO. (St.Louis) Kodiak and Top Kick plant, Flint, MI. That's pretty close. :)

ITS A JOKE !!! GET IT ?? THERE IS NOT A REAL REASON

All great points, though they should still offer a 15K GVW C&C with the pickup cab. Then offer the 15K+ trucks with the larger van cab.

Ford's been selling the 450/550's with 4x4 for quite some time without ANY competition. At least Dodge has an excuse, but why did GM drag their feet Soooooo long? And, when they finally DID produce it,.....the 4500 & 5500's is all we get?

There IS a HUGE market for 15K-17.5K GVW 4x4 C&C's

actually they do make a 17.5k GVW 4x4, its a 4500.

15kGVW is useless, a 550 crew cab, with any sort of bed is almost 11,000 lbs on its own. 15,000 GVW would only leave 4k for payload/pin weight.

17.5 is bare minimum in this class. The fords are built up light duties, the GMs are downrated medium duties.

Which would you rather have?

15kGVW is useless, a 550 crew cab, with any sort of bed is almost 11,000 lbs on its own. 15,000 GVW would only leave 4k for payload/pin weight.

17.5 is bare minimum in this class. The fords are built up light duties, the GMs are downrated medium duties.

Which would you rather have?

I'd rather have what is now a 3500 dump truck with 15K GVW instead of the 12K GVW. Make it a SFA, make it turn tight. That would be 3K lbs more capacity than a 1T dump (actually making them useful), yet look the same with a pickup cab. In other words....a 3500HD of the past....now.

They (GM) would sell these like hot cakes.

Well, it's more of an assumption on my part since they have shared the same cabs with light duty pickups for years (that much I do know), and the exterior/interior of the current vans/medium duties look alike. That, plus it only seemed logical that they wouldn't go through the expensive of designing/building two different bodies close in size that looked the same and differed by only inches. But what do I know, maybe that is what they've done. I did find this little article, it's a little old though, and I'm not sure about the model they refer to:

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GMT560 conventionals feature roomier and stronger cabs, based on the wide Savana van cab rather than the pickup cab as now. They offer better visibility with steeply sloped hoods, and claim a turning radius almost as tight as a compact car’s. Front wheels cut up to 52 degrees, thanks to a longer axle and wider track. The trucks will use Vortec gasoline engines and the Duramax 6600 V-8 diesel from GM’s heavy-duty pickups, plus the 6-cylinder Duramax 7800 and Caterpillar 3126E diesels.
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I found it here: http://www.betterroads.com/articles/brdec01c.htm
about half way down. Anyway thanks everyone for your thoughts and opinions.


???? Some info needs verified ????

The GM MDT Class 4-8 cabs are new, not re-sized vans.....I don't know where that information comes from, but it is bogus. To haul my ladders and overhead cable trays to-from jobs, I had to cut down the rails for a regular van ladder rack by 5 inches to fit the gutter mount points on my C5500. Though similar, these cabs are not choped down van bodies, and have no interchangable parts.

Second point, which is the most important for many commercial buyers, is that the Ford "Pick-up" cab trucks have the turning radius of a city bus (at best), and they use weaker formed rails instead of the much stronger C-Channel type straight rails. GM's decision to go back to a COE (GMC used Cab Over Engine for the MDT's back in the 40's through the late 50's) to have smaller turning radius while allowing maximum cargo carrying space behind the cab. I know that the RF can turn inside the circle made by our full sized FWD chevy, even with a crew cab wheel base.

RF