88 astrology van, manual transmission

Nmna. I've never seen one with a 5 speed

http://kansascity.craigslist.org/cto/4374874860.html

Damn auto correct

I was expecting an awesome airbrushed custom van.

They came in manual with the iron duke.

that is a rare bird. the astro forum guys would crap themselves.

I have seen exactly one other Astro with a manual. It was from the first year or two they were made and it was a 2.5 4 speed.

I have driven a cargo version back when new.
My goodness was it slow.
I did not realize that the passenger version was available with a 4 cyl. If you filled all the seats, it would seem you could overload the carrying capacity.

The T5 in the Astro is the closest ratio of all of them, for what it is worth.

That dash makes me think of star track or whatever. Can you put a SBC in it is the question ?

scottdownsouth wrote: Can you put a SBC in it is the question ?

Yup. Hotrodders have been stuffing SBC's in those vans pretty much since the day they rolled out of the factory.

This van with an LS3/6spd (along with various other upgrades) might possibly be the perfect vehicle.

I remember when when I was 8, my dad was debating between a 5 SPD or auto astro van to replace our 5 speed caravan. The v6 auto eventually won because my dog liked to sit between the seats and put his face in the AC.

I never understood the mid-80's fascination of putting a manual trans in with no tach. My 84 tempo was the same way. The auto's got a tach, the manual did not. Isn't that about 100% backwards?

In reply to Bobzilla: The manuals were generally going in cars for very cheap people. They weren't paying for fancy crap like tachs or passenger side mirrors.

Wally wrote: In reply to Bobzilla: The manuals were generally going in cars for very cheap people. They weren't paying for fancy crap like tachs or passenger side mirrors.

Who needs a tach when you're short-shifting long before the redline?

Well I guess when you hit valve float you knew it was time to shift.

I've never seen a manual in an Astro passenger van before. That thing is so rare it makes unicorns look like deer.

Ian F wrote:

scottdownsouth wrote: Can you put a SBC in it is the question ?

Yup. Hotrodders have been stuffing SBC's in those vans pretty much since the day they rolled out of the factory. This van with an LS3/6spd (along with various other upgrades) might possibly be the perfect vehicle.

...perfect vehicle as long as you don't place a high priority on turning, stopping, aesthetics, and you don't have large feet.

The front suspension is basically B-body. So what you have is a Caprice with a higher center of gravity, an inferior rear suspension and tiny driver/passenger foot wells.