windguy

Sorry to hear about that. It would be great to see a picture of the trim you're talking about.

@Peter - welcome to the forum and congrats on your new cargo van. I'm considering adding a jump seat to my 2015 LWB Cargo van so this is an interesting topic for me. If the seating is for short distances, then a jump seat would work. Anything longer and I would go in the direction of what Beta Don is referring to and using a decent TC bench seat that you can find from a salvaged van. Those are going to be more comfortable and have a higher safety factor. I think this is the video you are referring today. I was curious to see what that person did https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvJR-ix5LTI If you're going to use the TC bench seat, then it would be best to open up the hidden foot well below the cargo deck (see pics below). It's a relatively easy job to do. I can share more pics on that. I opened mine up to use for storage and love having that amenity. Taking the cargo mat out will also expose a variety of mounting holes that exist on all vans, cargo or passenger. Below is an example of a jump seat that I've been considering. I've found several of them that might work. It has a built in seat belt and is a low cost option. Using this would require some type of adapter plate for mounting. https://www.amazon.com/Bestauto-Universal-Contoured-Retractable-Adjustable/dp/B07BBCWGT4/ref=sr_1_16_sspa?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1542259228&sr=1-16-spons&keywords=jump+seat&psc=1

@ImTom - okay, I understand your reason now. To me, the hitch seems pretty heavy duty and I'm sure Ford tested it for it rating, but you have first hand experience with it for your application. Seems like a hitch shop could custom make you a beefier hitch. That's the path I would first consider since I have no welding experience and would want to lessen my liability. I added two more pics in case others are wondering what this looks like. I guess you're back to how to get that hitch off after the mounting nuts are removed.

@appraiser219 - welcome to the forum and congrats on your new to you van. I also have a 2015 cargo. Great van with lots of cargo space. Your conversion to RHD will be interesting. Please keep us updated. Enjoy!

@nickles - welcome to the forum and congrats on your new van. 2019 already - wow! I haven't been keeping up with what's being added to new model years. Let us know if you have new features not found in older models. Curious, when did you order your van? As dparker said, lots of pics would be great. Enjoy!

ImTom - might as well welcome you to the forum since you're a newcomer. I have a factory installed hitch on my 2015 XLT Cargo. I pursued have the receive part of the hitch redone because it sticks out too far, but the local hitch shops wouldn't touch it. They would make their own hitch to replace it though, but that would be too expensive. Why do you want to remove yours? As I recall, when you get a factory hitch, Ford replaces the regular metal bumper frame with the hitch frame, which sits behind the bumper cover. If you get rid of the hitch, then you essentially have no support back there or tow point if needed. As you mentioned, I think there are only four bolts on each side attaching the hitch frame to the chassis. See pics I took a few years ago. You would think it would just drop after what you did to remove.

Got it. Very slick design. Can't wait to see it all setup. Does your helper work by the hour, job or in trade for room and board? You're a cool dad for letting him work (play) with you. Keep up the good work. BTW - that's a sharp looking van color.

You got that van for a steal! Even with the travel expenses factored in. Good find for sure. I like the dimpled look. Gives the van some street cred.

That long black tube looks like a rocket launcher - 007 style. How does the awning work with that?

@tully kieys - thanks for sharing more pics. Two thumbs up for making some very cool mods. You're doing some innovative things to your van. Two thumbs down for drinking Gatorade and smoking Marlboros, but I'm sure you've already heard that a few million times before. Sorry to jump on the dog pile.

@jackson - Welcome to the forum and congrats on your new to you TC. I have the exact same radio and there is no Sync, just AM/FM with a CD player. Exactly as 'Beta Don' described above. It's a basic radio option but works well for me. The only option I wish I had was being able to input music to the radio from a USB port. I thought that was standard on an XLT but it wasn't. I'm curious what Beta Don needed to do to install that aftermarket Pioneer Nav Unit. It's it's an easy drop-in replacement then I might be interested.

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your new van. Looks very nice. Your camper mods look very interesting. Please share more pics when available and details on what you're adding.

@gwc2u - thanks for the updates - all sounds good. Please post more pics when you have a chance. There are a few other threads on this forum regarding installs of roof vents. Might give you some insight.

See the link below for one of the threads on this topic. If you have a factory trailer hitch in the rear, then there's no rear socket for the recovery hook, just the front bumper location. Good luck!

@donuts - great job on upgrading your van. cruise control is a must for me. Shout out to Beta Don for coming through with the new wheel. Love the teamwork!

Welcome to the forum. All the way from Sweden. Wow! Great job on your camper mods. Thanks for sharing. Do you plan to travel to other countries camping?

@skizo - sorry for the late reply on your van mods. Looks great. Very slick design. You've transformed a regular TC into a condo on wheels. Love it! Keep up the good work. Want to see more mods!

Welcome to the forum Great job on the rack. I'm sure it will serve you well. You'll need the extra storage with that large posse Looking forward to seeing more mods!

@doitdub - very cool pic. All set for fun!

Welcome to the forum Please post up some pics during your build. Fun to watch virtually!

@gwc2u - Welcome to the forum. Is your TC new to you or have you had it a while? Great job on your camper conversion. Thanks for sharing. What's your next addition? I'd like to add a toilet option as well. What model is your port-a-potty?

I noticed the rear panels on a 2019 TC cargo look different compared to my 2015 ones. Ford is till adding the seat belt cut-outs at top front area but now I see a bump out on both sides. Seems like the top profile is different too. Has a deeper dip in the middle area. Just curious what's going on with the new models. This pic was from a dealer's inventory posted online. Rare to see a cargo model with a lift gate. Most seem to have barn doors.

Thanks Mountainman. The way my van is modified makes it difficult to add a jump seat for occasional use. Not worth the effort but still an interesting option to have.

@No1udno - thanks for sharing your videos. Entertaining! Pretty cool looking rack you engineered. You're a real craftsman! Best of luck fighting your PD.

@mountainman - nice job adding that row of seats to your cargo van. Thanks for sharing your mod. I would love to have the option of a 'jump seat' for my cargo van in case I need to carry a 3rd passenger. I would only need it for short trips a few times a year and I end up just working around not having that capability but it's a cool add-on.