Seeing more American trucks on the road, got me thinking what do local conversion plants do with the dash? Everything under the hood is mechanically do-able, but if the trucks were never made for RHD markets, there wouldn't be any OEM RHD dash yeah?
Do they fabricate custom dash or do manufacturer backed conversions come with RHD dash along with all the associated parts?
The dash is an excellent point to consider when pondering the complications of any conversion. There is significantly more to it than the cosmetics of the dash. Steering geometry is one aspect that needs to be considered, which could evolve to be an issue; however, for vehicles with some volume, most of these issues will be resolved through economies of scale. Another aspect is hardware that cannot be moved, which interferes with parts that do need to move to facilitate the conversion. My guess is that there are known knowns, and then revealing the unknowns would be interesting evolving over time.
Would be interesting to find out the conversion process, especially the ones partnering with factories, such as ASV and RMA. Do they receive the complete cars and then tear them down, or the cars are only partially assembled.
Tried looking on YouTube etc? Surely one of the conversion shops has put out a video or three
AFAIK these are delivered whole and then pulled apart for a conversion. If the factory was going to make parts for them, they’d probably do the whole lot in house and ship whole.
Custom car people can make pretty much anything. They use steel, fibreglass, timber/mdf as a frame And cover it with body filler or foam and shape it then upholster.
The dash is a big piece of plastic of some sort often covered in foam and leather/vinyl/pleather. Making a one off would typically mean a fibreglass mould that is upholstered. If you are doing a bunch of them it wouldn’t be hard to make a custom mould for a dash to pump out a lot of them. If you are doing a run of conversions it is well worth the investment to make moulds and jigs to make manufacturing parts quick and easy.
Maybe surprisingly, it’s not always easy to work around an engine. There are ancillaries that get in the way of steering columns etc. Some engines are designed in such a way as to allow a steering column to fit beside one side of the engine, but then won’t allow the steering column to fit on the other side of the car, especially with V8 engines.
Unless there's absolutely no other alternatives, doesn't look like a wise move to pay a premium for something presumably less reliable. But who knows, some may argue that the re-manufacturing process actually makes the trucks more reliable.
You pay a premium because there is no alternative. Big US Utes because the local mob won’t import them RHD.
How would it be less reliable? The conversions typically wouldn’t affect most of the running gear.
this is the thing… there are no alternatives
to some people the RAM1500 F150 Silverado is something they really want…
and is reliability any real detriment to be able to swan around town in a full sized petrol yankee pickup that gets 20/100km??? people actually also by V8 Jeeps!
people have money, people want what they want… or we'd all be driving Hiluxes and Camrys and what a shit world that would be
This is just a sample list required to meet Australian Standards and Design Rules and Associated Compliance.
Not every brand, not every model, not every year range.
Manufacture Dashboard to suit RHD & Australian conditions.
RHD power steering upgrade.
Windscreen and side/rear glass as required.
Windscreen wiper conversion.
AU Compliant safety belts - all inc child seat anchorages.
AC re-manufactured as required to suit AU Standards and conditions.
Australian Standards Anti Theft/Immobilization systems.
L & RH indicators /Repeaters fitted as required.
AU spec Rims/Tyres as required.
All mirrors are aligned to suit RHD.
Window/Mirror and seat switches and master controls converted/upgraded to RHD.
Console access, lids, convenience extras etc upgraded to suit RHD.
Headlight systems converted to RHD road camber.
Mmmm, what else off the top of my head…..Window tints, Reflectors in Lenses, foot pedals, brake hoses and Safety Signage all updated to suit
Australian Standards, etc.
All mirrors are aligned to suit RHD.
That’s an interesting one you don’t think about.
I got caught out buying some replacement mirrors from USA for my forester as one was broken. They were half the price of local ones.
Install was easy - until I went to adjust them and they wouldn’t point inthe right direction, the housing was at a different angle to the RHD ones. They worked fine from the passenger seat. Fortunately I was able to rectify by swapping the mirror bases over albeit with a bit of dremel work to make them suit.
Brand new dashboard housings either custom-made or manufacturer provided, then all equipment are brought across and rewired accordingly.
If you break down the components, it's basically just switches, buttons, vents and dials/gauge cluster.