VMAC’s Underhood Lite provides on-board air for European-style work vans

In the last few years work vans have surged in popularity thanks to dozens of new contractor focused designs. But when it comes to vans and portable, gas-engine air compressors don’t mix. Wheeled units displace a lot of cargo or tools, and carrying any gas-powered equipment inside a van is a safety hazard and a good way to asphyxiate yourself.

So nobody does it. If you want to carry an air compressor, you use a truck.

VMAC’s solution for vans that solves all these problems. The company makes engine-driven air compressors that fit under the hood of trucks, and recently jumped into the van market with the introduction of a new rotary-screw air compressor designed for European style vans.

The new Underhood Lite air compressor provides 30 cfm and up to 150 psi of air–enough to run a 1/2-inch impact wrench. The 62-pound unit is driven off the van’s serpentine belt and with a small footprint easily fits within the engine bay. The oil-injected, rotary screw design eliminates the need for an air storage tank by providing a continuous stream of air.

Custom engineered for each different engine and chassis configuration the installation kits for the Underhood Lite will fit the 3.6-liter Ram ProMaster, 3.7L Ford Transit and the 3.0L Mercedes-Benz Sprinter.

For safety, the compressor has a thermal protection circuit, a 200-psi over-pressure safety valve and lockouts so that the parking brake has to be engaged and the truck in park for the compressor to start.