My turn for a "what van/Wagon thread"

My '98 Chrysler T7C is approaching the "throwing good money after bad" point rapidly, and with laser precision.

Candidates for replacement include:

MY VAN—Fixed. Of course, that would take some lucky gueses to track down a problem that dealershis run five figure bills up not fixing beore the owner just washes his hands of it. So,maybe, but I'm gettng less and less interested.

Later model used something about 8-10K—PROS: It'll mostly do everything it's supposed to when you want it to d it, but for more money, and crappy resale as depreciation take a toll.

$3-5K used van. This is where mine would be on a good day when it started and ran perfectly. There's plenty og those days. Unfortunately the next one will probably end as soon as the new owners take the keys and it goes into "no-start" mode.

1992-96 Caprice or Roadmaster wagon with an LT1. Currently mu fave choiuce. Tell me why not.

jg

2001 and later Town and Country/Caravan.

We had an 01 replaced it with an 05, we love both.

John Brown wrote: 2001 and later Town and Country/Caravan. We had an 01 replaced it with an 05, we love both.

My mom has an '01 I should totally try to buy

jg

Does Tom still have the 300 TE for sale?

That way, when something goes wrong, you can go in and pimp slap him...or just act like something was wrong...and still pimp slap him.

Just sayin'...

Low budget:
Astro!
Roadmaster!

High budget:
Transit Connect
Mazda 5

Aaaand now I'm hunting for an LT1 Roadmaster wagon. Argh. I can't believe they get as good gas mileage as I'm reading. Sound like a great choice.

Mazdaspeed3? Seriously, your minivan has been practical. Well, when it runs.

JG Pasterjak wrote:

John Brown wrote: 2001 and later Town and Country/Caravan. We had an 01 replaced it with an 05, we love both.

My mom has an '01 I should totally try to buy jg

If you dad really loved your mom, she'd be driving a newer car. (Feel free to use that line during negotiations.)

Volvo Turbo Wagon.

/end thread.

One of these with the dual sunroofs, refrigerator, and a 5 speed. Have you ever done donuts while sitting ON the front axle/axis point? It's awesome.

Oh yeah, also available it 4WD. If you shop north of the border you might be lucky enough to find a 4WD 5speed turbo diesel version.

"North of the border" would have been exposed to a lot of salt over the years. Any time I've seen one of these recently it was a crapcan here in Michigan.
Just go find a nice used Astro.

Is that Astro working out for you Warren? There are definitely times when I miss it.

I have this bad ass wagonvan:

http://web.me.com/cdirado/Diradosite/Ironhyde.html

Maybe not as cool as the Toyota but I like it.

16vCorey wrote: Oh yeah, also available it 4WD. If you shop north of the border you might be lucky enough to find a 4WD 5speed turbo diesel version.

Salt and snow-free southern state bias here, but, having owned one, I can say there is much truth to this post.

I want another.

DeadSkunk wrote: "North of the border" would have been exposed to a lot of salt over the years. Any time I've seen one of these recently it was a crapcan here in Michigan.

That's probably true. The one I had in the late '90s in Indiana was starting to get a little rusty. Add 15 years and serious winters and that thing would probably disappear. That doesn't make me want another one any less though.

You could go with the great-grandfather of your T&C:

Or you could list the problems wrong with the current one here and see who might know the fixes for those issues.

Drive an Astro before you buy one. While I love them for practicality and utility, the pedal position was offset so far to the left, I couldn't get comfortable in one.

I'm with JB: Grand Caravan. Cheap, plentiful, well developed. Just keep the transmission fluid fresh. We don't call my 2000 the "Battle Bus" for nothing.

This could be fun, but likely to be a project similar in scope to your current van:

Supercharged, midships, RWD/AWD...

there is no why not for a 91-96 caprice/roadmonster/cruiser.

it is indeed the only answer, everything else is just not cool compared to that choice.

In reply to EastCoastMojo: It needs to go in to have the belt changed (I don't work on my vehicles in the winter!), but otherwise it's been perfect, Ashleigh. I haven't driven it a lot when there's snow because of the tires,but I'll get snow tires on it next winter.

My van has what appears to be a known issue with ChryCo vans of that era. It will occasionally go into a "no start" condition. You always know it's going to do it, because when you first turn the power on you get no odometer and no PRNDL. When that happens, it will crank, start and immediately die. It will give you about five of those before it won't crank. No clicks, no power drain, just no crank at all. The condition appears seemingly at random. It won't do it for six months, then it does it twoice in a week. The only cure seems to be waiting an indeterminate amount of time.

Some folks say PCM. We tried that. No luck. Some folks say BCM. We're currently trying that. The new one was worse than the old one.

Roadmaster and Caprice wagons are VERY intriguing because of their six-seatedness and LT1-ness. Can Volvo wagons tow anything?

jg

P.S. On a completely unrelated note, anyone in the market for a '98 T&C in excellent condition? Very reliable.

How about one of these?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1986-NISSAN-STANZA-WAGON-VAN-5SPD-4CYL-RARE-ALL-ORIGINAL-RUNS-LOOKS-DRIVES-GOOD-/230747339334?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item35b99cfa46

Very cool like an early Mazda5!!

I can't believe I'm gonna do this, but I'm gonna actually recommend a Honda Odyssey. Ours has been very very very useful and functional and reliable, even if it is a bit soul-sucking. Still, I've hauled serious amounts of lumber, furniture, garage stuff (engine hoist, stand, shelving, etc.), and even a complete small block in it. Not inspiring, but at least tolerable while driving, and has ample power. Look for an '05 in good condition and you should be able to score one for around $5-6k and get 10 more years out of it.

JG Pasterjak wrote: My van has what appears to be a known issue with ChryCo vans of that era. It will occasionally go into a "no start" condition. You always know it's going to do it, because when you first turn the power on you get no odometer and no PRNDL. When that happens, it will crank, start and immediately die. It will give you about five of those before it won't crank. No clicks, no power drain, just no crank at all. The condition appears seemingly at random. It won't do it for six months, then it does it twoice in a week. The only cure seems to be waiting an indeterminate amount of time. Some folks say PCM. We tried that. No luck. Some folks say BCM. We're currently trying that. The new one was worse than the old one. Roadmaster and Caprice wagons are VERY intriguing because of their six-seatedness and LT1-ness. Can Volvo wagons tow anything? jg P.S. On a completely unrelated note, anyone in the market for a '98 T&C in excellent condition? Very reliable.

Wife called me on that - car seats specifically say in them that you cannot use them (forward or reverse facing) in the rear rear facing row of those wagons, otherwise I'd own one. I don't think it's unsafe, but if your wife if a believer in silly booklets (and you have kinds you intend to put back there in car seats) it's something to think about.

Do the Roadmaster, though if you want the LT1 it'll have to be 94 or newer. Mine is a 93 with a TBI 350, because I wanted simple and cheap. I paid $1200 for mine.

This is what's hooked to it now. Towing isn't a problem.