Can we talk about vans?

Having two 90’s era Voyagers and a newer Grand Caravan, I can speak to the Swiss Army knife like utility that these vans provide. Also have had two big vans one a Chev g20 and a Ford e150. Both were real good at what I needed them for at the time.  

If I were to get another big van, I’d try to get an LS motor’d Express. 

Not mine, but a family member just picked this up and wasted no time taking it camping:

When you go around a corner in the winter, all of the cold air in the back half shifts forward. It’s weird and uncomfortable. 

Woody said:

When you go around a corner in the winter, all of the cold air in the back half shifts forward. It’s weird and uncomfortable. 

Really? Or are you yanking our chains? I'll have to watch for that this winter!

In reply to Cadman5 :

It’s 100% true. I used to drive my patients to medical appointments in an E350 (van, not Benz) and I can vouch for it. It’s like the air wants to stay in place while  the van moves around it.

(Ever toss a ball in the air on an off/on ramp while riding as a passenger of course?)

We used to build a bulkhead for our work vans with an upper section just to keep the cold air from rolling over the top onto our necks. 

However, a rear heater solves that issue nicely enough. 

Cooter said:

 

However, a rear heater solves that issue nicely enough. 

Easy peasy!!

Cooter said:

We used to build a bulkhead for our work vans with an upper section just to keep the cold air from rolling over the top onto our necks. 

 

However, a rear heater solves that issue nicely enough. 

van we had at work.. an extended E350, I used to hang a packing blanket from the roof supports behind the seats. Spring/pony clips work well for that and did a great job of keeping the warm air up front with me.

My neighbor is selling a GMC Savana, $1700 179k miles on it.  Crust on the bottom of the side utility doors.

Woody said:

When you go around a corner in the winter, all of the cold air in the back half shifts forward. It’s weird and uncomfortable. 

When I had a 1966 GMC I hung a blanket behind the seats, only heat the front of it.

I'm on the fence about a crew cab p/u, a Suburban or a Van.  I need something that will safely tow a trailer with a car (say, a stock Corvette) but big enough for seating for four.  Not so wild about 4x4 as I wouldn't need it except for one or two days a year.   I'm leaning Ford but could go GM with a sufficiently enthusiastic recommendation.   I'd prefer the van or the p/u to carry motorcycles but that would, in all honesty, be a fairly uncommon event and I could rent a trailer from U-Haul for that.   The van would be easier to load bikes as the bed on the p/u is just too damned high for a ramp.  Any thoughts?  I was thinking 3/4 ton van but it sounds like you guys are towing trailers with car loads using 1/2 ton vans...?

In reply to Cadman5 :

Yep.  I've even had this happen with my minivan.  The main reason I also run the rear HVAC.  Trying to heat or cool the entire space with just the dash vents takes forever. 

Vans FTW.

12' of dry, tall, indoor cargo space and more or less a truck underneath.  Same footprint as a pickup with SO much more space.  Be aware of your particular engine/bonnet configuration.  Some you can get to parts easy with the doghouse off, others, not so much.  7.3L stroke in an E250?  Easy.  LS in a Savannah?  Not so much.

I, for some unknown reason, passed on a mid-90’s gold E-Series Ford van with the Pathfinder 4x4 conversion selling for $3,500 a few years ago.

That and selling my FJ40 are two of my least favorite automotive memories.

Ouch.. 

I've had pickups, I've had vans, currently have a Suburban which lacks the convenience of either, Still miss my E150s

.

I was once the proud owner of a 1990 E150 that I bought for $500 to use as a winter beater in Siberia... I mean Nebraska. It had the 351W/E4OD combo. It was ugly and smelled bad but it was awesome as a "Don't give a Berk" vehicle. I bought it because I couldn't afford a 4wd truck and was tired of driving my Cobra in the winter.

I never got more that 9mpg in it. It had no exhaust past the cat. It would do amazing one wheel brake stands. It leaked coolant from somewhere but I never bothered to fix it. I could tell it was getting low because the temp gauge would read hot. More than once, I would pop the rad cap to find nothing but foam in the radiator.

I used it to tow vehicles and haul all sorts of oily parts, including whole junk yard engines.

Just look at this majestic beast. Not pictured - the fake bullet holes stickers plastered to the driver's side.

I removed the rear bench seat and one of the rear captains chairs. Why only one? Because the pedestal bolts were between the heat shielding and the underside of the floor which was a total PITA to get to, so I just took the seat out. This thing once swallowed a huge sectional sofa, 2 end tables and a floor lamp.

Did you know that strapping a 5L V8 in the rear increases winter traction by 200%? I kept it in there for at least 5 months as I was too lazy to drop it off at my buddies house and it was too damn cold to mess with it. Notice the carpet has a nice color, due to the coolant and oil that it helpfully absorbed over those 5 months.

So yeah, vans are awesome. Especially cheap beaters that you don't care about. Sadly, I had to sell it to the junkyard when I moved in with my then SWMBO because she absolutely despised it. It still ran great and did van things but she failed to see how awesome it was.

10/10- would do again. The van not the ex-SWMBO.

stanger_missle said:

SWMBO because she absolutely despised it. It still ran great and did van things but she failed to see how awesome it was.

10/10- would do again. The van not the ex-SWMBO.

Damn!  9 MPG?  I used to get mid teens with a 5.0 EFI/AOD.  When I blew the engine, I half-thought about getting a 5.8. Probably better I didn't.

my ex- had a similar reaction to the van.  She hated it. 

In reply to Ian F :

Yeah, and that was after I did a tune up (plugs, wires, cap and rotor). Well 7 plugs. That one rear one on the driver's side was too much effort to get to, so it stayed. I picked up 1mpg for all that.

Did I mention that it was never driven at less than 3/4 throttle? Because nothing sounds more awesome than a SBF with a rotted off exhaust 

There is a very big difference, too with 1/2 ton vans versus 250/350 vans.  A V6 with 3.08 gears is very different from a large V8 with 3.73s

My PSD vans pretty typically got high teens/low 20s.  The one gas van I had used a TBI350/700r4/3.42 and it couldn't ever get to 12.  I saw 11.7 once.  They are a brick.

In reply to stanger_missle :

LOL!  Yeah... I was practically a hyper-miler in mine.  The best I did was 18 MPG coming home from the Catskills (mostly downhill) and rarely going above 60 MPH.  

That is one downside to driving a van - you're pushing a big brick down the road.  The faster you want to go, MPG will drop what seems like exponentially. 

stanger_missle said:

ebonyandivory said:

In reply to Appleseed :

I respectfully disagree!

 

I would like to subscribe to your newsletter sir!

If I could find a 4wd full-size van for less than ridiculous money, I'd sell my pickup yesterday.

That tan Sportsmobile in the first pic is pretty much my ideal do everything vehicle; tow, camp, commute and explore.

It only gets better on His website. Big bad 4wd vans at U joint off road.

In reply to Appleseed :

How hard is it to do that stateside ? Cost wise ?