All the Selfish Reasons to Support the GVT OX

"Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig" (AndySheehan-StreetsideStig) 09/08/2016 at 12:42 • Filed to: None

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Legendary F1 design wizard Gordon Murray and saintly British philanthropist Sir Torquil Norman have teamed up to build the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , a revolutionary, low-cost, flat-pack truck to aid the developing world. It’s rugged, simple to maintain and repair, and can be assembled by three trained people in just twelve hours. It can traverse rough and rutted dirt roads with ease and can transport thirteen people. And if it gets funded and built en masse, it could drastically improve life and work for people living in rural areas of developing nations. But we’ll let those goody two-shoes (two shoeses?) worry about the underprivileged. The OX would be great for us selfish, pompous first-worlders, too! Here’s why.

It satisfies our DIY, Lego-happy culture.

Oh man, do we love to build things without needing to be technicians. Everyone wants to make something, but no one wants to map it out in Solidworks and 3D-print the parts. That’s why we pay exorbitant prices for Lego kits. It makes us feel like experts. The OX is a perfect way to scratch that itch. Other than a little welding, the truck bolts and rivets together out of the box, so you can tell people you built it in a weekend. The OX team says this is to help provide jobs for locals and cut down on shipping costs, which it surely would, but it also lets you build one in your garage!

And don’t worry about legality. The OX is the ultimate definition of a kit car, since you build it yourself, and most states allow kit car registration, as long as yours has the proper lights, which the OX includes.

It’s flat-packed for supreme IKEA trendiness.

You know your neighbors track you trips to IKEA, right? They’re judging you right now based on how many times a month you head to that blue and gold box of Swedish pressboard, and that’s important. Well, the OX comes in a flat pack, too. The whole truck, sans engine and transmission, fits in a box just under 30 tall, so about 6 of them fit floor to ceiling in a shipping container. This is great for the developing world because it cuts down on wasted space in shipping, and therefore cost, and could even cost less in tariffs. It’s great for you because it’s the ultimate kitsch trump card to all

those heavy boxes your neighbor brought home from the Meatball Store.

It’s basically a McLaren F1.

The OX’s cabin seats three people, with the driver in the center. The McLaren F1 supercar seats three people, with the driver in the center. Both were designed by Gordon Murray. The OX people say this makes the truck equally legal and accessible in countries with left hand drive and right hand drive, and that it improves visibility and cuts down on parts and complexity. But we know what you’re up to, Murray. You’re trying to bring back the F1, and we’re happy to help.

You can spearhead the FWD off-roading movement.

Murray had the brilliant idea of making the OX front-wheel-drive. This vastly cuts down on weight and complexity, and allows each wheel to move independently with ease, improving ground clearance. The cab-over design puts more than 70% of the truck’s unladen weight over the front wheels, and when carrying a full load, the clever trailing arm suspension setup puts the weight at an even 50/50. Each wheel sticks to the ground independently, and the OX has been tested to work just as well in muddy and rocky conditions as its 4WD counterparts. It can also wade safely through a meter of water, which sounds like a great way to cool off. This will all be lovely for the people in sub-Saharan Africa, but what about you in suburban America?

You could start a new trend. All those expensive Jeeps with their center diffs and their fancy-pants drive shafts? You could show them up at Moab with your OX, all in front-wheel-drive. And let’s not forget the most important aspect of off-roading: accessorizing. The OX has an optional roof rack with plenty of space to rig up some lights, and I’m sure a winch isn’t out of the question, either. Heck, how long will it be before someone builds an e-diff kit for the rear wheels, with a simple electric motor to power them as needed?

It should be easy to modify.

Murray and co. designed the OX to fit a ubiquitous Ford 2.2 liter diesel engine and a cable-clutched 5-speed. Well, ubiquitous everywhere but America, but that’s beside the point. It offers 100 hp and 283 lb-ft of torque, which should be plenty to move the truck’s relatively light 3,500 lb weight at a decent pace. But you know what else is great about diesels? They’re easy to tune for more power. Plus, the team hopes to one day have electric or hydrogen-powered OXes (OXen?), so engine swaps should be easy. If you leave the diesel in, it’s the perfect way to test your doomsday prepper veggie oil system.

It’s the ultimate camper base.

Forget those rooftop tents. You can build a whole house on the back of your OX. It has a payload of nearly 4,200 lbs, so weight won’t be an issue, either for a giant tank full of clean drinking water for your village or a granite-trimmed mobile home so you can camp in comfort. If you don’t want a camper, you can use the OX’s optional rear canopy, which can easily transform into an emergency shelter. (The tailgate also doubles as a ramp for wheelchairs, dollies, or stretchers.)

You can use it to ease the guilt your closed and selfish world has fostered, all while having fun.

Who wants to go to the developing world and build charity houses when you can go and build charity trucks? It’s therapeutic, right? Imagine flying to Africa, using your mechanical skills to train some locals to weld and rivet for a week, then flying home. You can clear that polluted well you call a conscience for at least a month or two. Or picture this: Arrive at a shipping hub in Africa, buy an OX, build it, and race against other teams to deliver it to a village. Your social media followers will be so impressed!

And building anything this simple and straightforward will be relaxing and fun. Over-the-counter off-roaders have become so horrifically complex. Extensively modifying one seems to take an engineering degree. But something made of square tubing and composites, with a simple, FWD power unit? So refreshing.

GTV is currently looking for financial backers to start mass production, so if you know any billionaire gearheads who want to help millions of people in the developing world you look cool romping around in a field, share away.

(In case it didn’t come through, no, I wasn’t serious about putting our own needs above those of people in developing nations, and while it would be very cool to get access to the OX here in America, it would be put to much better use bussing kids to school in Africa, delivering medicine in India, and so-on. So share this around and drum up some support for the OX! Also, I had to write this disclosure first so I didn’t feel bad while writing the rest of the article, which, by the way, originally appeared on !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! .)

For Sweden > Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig 09/08/2016 at 12:44

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But can it tackle the Rubicon Trail?

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig 09/08/2016 at 12:52

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The only thing I’m suspicious on here is the front axles. I don’t see if they’re CVs (which *will* get torn) or U-joints, which will be a bit bumpier but can at least be rebuilt. In either case, service could be an Achilles’ heel.

RallyWrench > Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig 09/08/2016 at 12:54

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You left out one key benefit of the front-biased weight distribution and cabover design: this thing should do world-class stoppies.

Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig > RallyWrench 09/08/2016 at 13:01

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They need you on their media team.

Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 09/08/2016 at 13:02

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Good point.

Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig > For Sweden 09/08/2016 at 13:02

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Only one way to find out.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig 09/08/2016 at 13:15

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This is good Oppo. I also happen to want one for selfish reasons.

Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 09/08/2016 at 13:18

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Me too. I identify with almost all of the above reasons.

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig 09/08/2016 at 13:20

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This would in fact be an excellent farm vehicle. More powerful and with greater payload than a fancy side-by-side at a similar, possibly lower price.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 09/08/2016 at 13:23

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The hubs, brakes, and drivetrain come from a Transit so I’d imagine that the axles do too.

415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) > Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig 09/08/2016 at 13:32

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.

bhtooefr > Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig 09/08/2016 at 13:33

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One thing worth noting is that the powertrain wouldn’t be legal for kit car registration. (The typical standard for kit cars is that the engine must be emissions legal in the US for the year in which the engine was produced.)

The vehicle is also fundamentally designed around an inline engine, so no cramming V6s in there. Looking at the FWD Transit’s engine options in Europe, I’m thinking the most expedient engine option would be the Duratec 25 - current production for the US market, and it looks like there’s hardware to mate it to the FWD Transit running gear that this truck is using.

Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 09/08/2016 at 13:47

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I was thinking the same thing as I researched it. Once in a while I see kei trucks in use as farm vehicles. This would be better by far.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 09/08/2016 at 13:50

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Transit Connect, I assume, since it’s transverse FWD and the full size Transit is no longer (that I’m aware) a mixed mode transverse FWD/longitudinal RWD platform family and a full size Transit drivetrain would be overkill. Probably a cheap CV, and hopefully not too bad - though the pictures I’m seeing indicate some minor WTF in how they’re moored:

Looks like you have to dive into the diff, knock off some circlips, and (depending) replace a bearing on each side to get them loose. Insane.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 09/08/2016 at 13:53

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Supposedly they might going with a chinese 5 speed instead of the Ford’s 6 speed. Could that improve the repairability?

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 09/08/2016 at 14:04

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If the Chinese trans has a diff with flanged or externally splined stub axles. In other words, the third-world repair capacity may depend on being able to uncouple the axles without getting into the trans.

^AMC MB1 transmission, with splined and roll-pinned stubs.

The trouble with a setup like one of those is that it means more machined and treated surfaces. Either you have to have two splined ends on a piece, a much larger spider gear forging, or a piece with a machined flange, and then all the same pieces for the opposite side that you unbolt or whatever. Money, money, money, money. Not really cripplingly so, since the MB1 above was used in the astonishingly cheap Renault Alliance, but I barely expect the Chinese supplier to not cheap out if they can, and that could cripple the whole thing.

On the other hand, if it *is* flanged (a better option than splined due to corrosion and other factors), then everything is fine.

There’s a reason that the Series Land Rovers and old LandCruisers have a chromed protective ball over the U-joint or CV joint in a fixed front axle - off-road damage taking out drive could literally kill.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 09/08/2016 at 14:07

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On the other hand, they may be going with the drivetrain from the previous gen of FWD fullsize Transit, which... I’m not sure how that would work. Also, it probably has similar limits on CV replacement. Might also be supply problems going forward, since it’s been superseded for a couple of years.

Snuze: Needs another Swede > Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig 09/08/2016 at 14:18

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How about a BOGO (Buy One, Give One) deal? There have been a few charitable companies doing this, the one that comes to mind is Tom’s, the online shoe place. You buy a pair shoes, and they give another pair to someone who needs shoes. Same idea, but with OXes.

Justin Hughes > Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig 09/08/2016 at 15:12

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I’d love to have one. Seeing that ramp makes me think this would be excellent motorcycle transport. I could take one to a rally and camp out in the back while performing sweep or towing duties. And I’d have to try it out off-roading, just because. Even with an EPA pre-approved gas engine, this would be awesome.

Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig > Snuze: Needs another Swede 09/08/2016 at 15:17

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That would be awesome. And I almost feel like you could sell them here for enough to still make it profitable. I mean, people pay insane prices for Unimogs and such.

Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig > Justin Hughes 09/08/2016 at 15:18

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And so many engines could fit in here. Maybe a bigger 2.4, if you wanted to go gas.

Justin Hughes > Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig 09/08/2016 at 15:24

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Yep, exactly. I’m fine with diesel, too, especially in a truck application. But diesel isn’t exactly a popular fuel in the US these days.

Andy Sheehan, StreetsideStig > Justin Hughes 09/08/2016 at 15:26

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Yeah. There aren’t many options for approved small diesels. Not after this year.

Ed, for the old good times > RallyWrench 09/23/2016 at 09:57

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Check 2:33