Tall van clearance heights

LDB

Veteran Expediter
Retired Expediter
You guys with the tall vans, what is your clearance height? What year/make/model van? Do you have a QC dome? Roof air? Solar? Other roof top items? Have you been anywhere (on a legitimate road) where you had to turn back due to height? Drive-thrus don't count.
 

Turtle

Administrator
Staff member
Retired Expediter
My 05 Sprinter is 8.64 feet tall, or about 8 feet, 8 inches. I have a Fantastic Fan Vent with a vent cover, but the imporant thing is the Tailgater satellite TV antenna which is 17.5 inches tall, plus the roughly half inch bracket I made for it, so it adds 18 inches. So I have a clearance of about 11 feet, 4 inches.

I do have a CB anenna that will just scrape at exactly 12 feet. So I look for clearances that are at least 12 feet.

I have had to turn back a few times, usually with railroad overpasses in small, rural towns.
 

ALieNUpsTAirS

Active Expediter
Owner/Operator
My '15 Promaster 2500 Hi-roof is about 8'6" high never had to turn around yet. No extra stuff on the roof.
 

xiggi

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
My 012 sprinter is about 10'2" with roof air, Jack antenna and fan shroud. I've had to turn around two or three times. Like turtle, old railroad bridges on 2 lane roads. I think the last one was 8'6" high.
 

Turtle

Administrator
Staff member
Retired Expediter
There are roads around Boston that say trucks only. Storrow Drive along the Charles River downtown in particular where there are half a dozen low overpasses. It says "trucks only," but what it really means is "9-foot clearance ahead, so sphincter-pucker up!"
 

Moot

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Out of the box my Transit is 110" tall. I replaced the stock tires with taller ones, adding about 1½". I have a Fantastic Vent with hood which puts it at about 120". Call it 10', I do. I haven't encountered any low clearances on roadways, yet. Mostly its door heights. But I had that problem with my Chevys. Some people just don't want to run their doors all the way up.

I have a 48" roof mounted CB antenna which has caused some problems. A guy on the Ford Transit Forum sent me a template for a mount he designed to mount on the inner fender. A friend made one out of stainless steel for me but I haven't installed it yet.
 

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
1 in Ohio west of Anna that says 9' but its an oval and you must ride center line...looks like the 9' mark is close to the sides...
 
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