Safety & Certifications
- TIG Welded Joints
- Designed for the sheer forces produced in a moving vehicle.
- Rigid structures to prevent collapsing.
- All Aluminum Cabinet Frames
- Cabinet panels are fastened with machine screws
- Aluminum frames are mounted to the body of the van for SAFETY
Meets FMVSS (“Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards”) rating for United States & Canada Installation method has been Pull Tested, & exceeds all safety standards Inspected & Certified
All Grit Overland Van Models are inspected, certified & receive a serial number. (Our manufacturing exceeds all fire safety, electrical & plumbing industry standards.)
Materials (Cutting Edge)
Aluminum: We use it throughout our builds.
Not all aluminum is equal. We use aerospace-grade alloys & increased wall thickness when needed to create the perfect balance of durability, strength & lightness.
UV-rated marine board
- Stands up to the elements without absorbing moisture.
- Doesn’t require edge band finishing or coatings to seal it & make it look good. (These are 2 major points of failure we totally avoid.)
Top-of-the-line vinyl flooring
- We’ve tested dozens of flooring materials & this is the best we’ve found thus far.
- The flooring material is only half of the durability equation. We also consider the compatible methods for adhering it.
- Will it stay adhered under extreme conditions? (Like: cold, heat, direct sunlight).
- What does it look like after heavy use? (Scratched, dented, under heavy items, after wet items, etc.)
Marine-grade upholstery material
- Even our tweed includes a water proof layer, to prevent moisture from penetrating into the underlying substrate.
Lighter panel material
- Because our framing creates the needed structural support, we can use lighter panel material in many places.
Insulation (3 layers)
- Sound Deadening: We apply sound deadening on every flat open area in the empty van. We even pull down the Factory over cab ceiling/shelf & sound deaden & insulate behind it before putting it back together.
- Radiant Heat Break: We use a closed cell foam with foil on both sides to create a radiant heat break all around the inside of the van cargo area.
- Comfort insulation: We install 2″ to 4″ of anti-microbial non-water absorbing insulation, with a fabric backer, everywhere we can fit it. The fabric backer helps it stay where we put it, instead of vibrating down the walls & gathering at the bottom of the wall cavities.
Lighter, Stronger & Quieter
Infrastructure Welded Joints
- No fasteners needed for joints in the infrastructure.
Bolted to the body of Van for Safety.
- We bolt infrastructure directly to the body of the van. Using nuts, bolts & rivets.
Single sheet of upholstered aluminum
- Our overhead cabinets are made from a sheet of upholstered aluminum.
- Additionally, we attach UV-rated marine board with machine screws directly to this aluminum.
We use machine screws tapped straight into the aluminum
- For attaching our cabinet panels, hinges & drawer slides.
What you won't find:
- Wood cabinet infrastructure with nails, screws, and/or glue attaching cabinet panels, These cabinets, under normal driving conditions (vibrating vehicle, accelerating, braking, etc.), will rattle lose the fasteners to:
- At Best: Cause squeaking & rattling noises.
- At Worst: Causes a serious Safety Hazard.
TIG Welded Aluminum (Real World Example)
Real World Example: This is a peek into our design consideration process. Below you’ll find a list of materials we considered using for cabinet infrastructure. We were seeking material & assembly methods that would provide: lightweight, strength, sound deadening & 20+ year durability… Under the extreme forces of a driving vehicle that can be taken off-road.
(Read about the different Material Options and why we believe TIG Welded Aluminum is the superior choice.)
- The Lightest
- Strength far exceeds all requirements
- Rigid tube structures are safer
- Non-corrosive
- All Machine screws are on the outside panels. Easily accessed for tightening & maintaining. (No wood screws/nails that will rattle loose & no machine screws at inside joints to rattle loose.)
- Our Experience: TIG Welded aluminum infrastructure is the best material & assembly method we’ve found thus far.
- Heavier
- Strength far exceeds all requirements (With proper aluminum alloy & while all screws are tight/secured)
- Can make rigid structures (while all screws are tight/secure)
- Non-corrosive
- Machine screws at every joint, make it impossible to maintain.
- Our experience: These screws come loose over time riding in a vibrating vehicle. Yes, even when using Loctite type screw adhesives.
- Big Challenge: When they do come loose, they are impossible to find and/or maintain/tighten again.
- EXAMPLE: Every joint inside a cabinet like the Galley, has 4 to 6 screws. Our galley would need 150+ screws just to assemble the inside joints.
- Once loose, these hidden screws can:
- At best: cause rattling noises
- At worst: cause a safety hazard
- Can be the heaviest (depending how it’s used.)
- Strength far exceeds all requirements
- Rigid tube structures are safe
- Corrosion causes rust & a break down of structural integrity. (Every tapped screw is an exposed steel corrosion point)
- If you use thick-wall steel, Machine screws can be tapped directly into the steel. But thicker means heavier.
- Our Experience: Thin wall steel can be used for certain purposes, as long as it is coated properly & the coating is not likely to be damaged.
- Can be the heaviest. Especially when considering all wood cabinets need thicker wood panels to be equally rigid.
- Not very strong or durable under normal driving conditions. Under normal vehicle accelerating & breaking, the side to side sheer forces loosen wood nails, screws & glue. Forces in a home are top down, but forces in an adventure van are top down when stopped & side to side while driving.
(Example of force in a moving vehicle: A 100 pound item in a vehicle moving 30 mph, that comes to a sudden stop, becomes a 3000 pound force.) - Wood joints with screws/nails are the least durable/safe
- Absorbs water & becomes damaged.
- Wood screws/nails will vibrate loose & damage the wood structure. Not maintainable/tighten-able over time.
- Once loose, these wood nails, screws & glue can:
- At best: cause rattling noises
- At worst: cause a safety hazard
- Our Experience: Wood can be used as panels. It is easy to work with & can be easily machined. Don’t use for infrastructure & protect from potential water damage.
Warranty & Service
We’ve been making warranty repairs happen in DAYS NOT MONTHS!
Designed Different:
Our Electrical System is like no other! It includes:
- Smart system: All components are interconnected
- Built-in Remote Diagnosis (beyond the component level)
- Designed with high quality, readily available, off the shelf parts.
All of these design features mean:
If you have trouble, we can diagnose it remotely, source parts quickly & repair it in days . . . not months.
Warranty & Service
We strive to provide warranty repairs in days not months.
Every Grit Van Owner gets:
- Direct Phone Support with a Technician, not a customer service rep.
- GRIT Hassle Free Warranty 12 month Unlimited miles, (On non-chassis items).
GRIT PROMISE: “More Days on the Road & More Years of Adventuring!”
LONG LASTING DURABILITY
We are constantly refining our systems & materials.
We measure success by:
- Days per year you are out using your van
- How many years your van functions like new.
- Less time fixing stuff & more time adventuring in awesome places.
GRIT PROMISE
- More Days on the Road
- More Years of Adventuring
- Exclusive GRIT Warranty
- Direct Phone Support w/ a Technician
- GRIT Hassle Free Warranty (unlimited miles)
2025 Link 144/148
Enjoy all the things that make a Grit Overland vehicle different in the new 2025 Link Adventure Van.