Mrs Logdog and I have decided to add a full size van back into the fleet. We currently have a minivan that we bought about a year ago to replace a Savana that had been around a few years. The minivan works pretty good as the dog hauler/hardware store runner/camper/racetrack van but we really miss the room of the full size. The search has just started and already I am reminded of how much I hate dealing with Craigslist. We are also using Facebook Marketplace but its all the same headaches. I think in a lot of ways its easier to deal with an enthusiast type vehicle, even if the seller is clueless, than a general market vehicle. You deal with some crazy when Jeep shopping, but a general market vehicle seems so much worse.
Im in the north, I have realistic expectations of what a 2-4k van will be. I know it will have some rust and other issues. I expect it to need things like brakes/battery/tire/etc. I try to buy the best body I can find and worry about the mechanicals later. But dealing with the sellers is already driving me nuts!
Van 1- 2000 Ram 1500. Contacted and asked if the vehicle was a 6 or 8 cylinder. Was told they "didn't know". It was advertised as "rust free", which I take with a grain of salt, but the pictures looked promising and it wasn't too far away so we asked if we could come and look at it. Im assuming the seller was abducted by aliens because they seem to have dropped off the face of the earth. That was 3 days ago.
Van 2- 1999 Ram 1500. Pictures looked ok. Seller was unable to answer any questions so we schedule a trip to look at it. We get there and it actually looked decent at first glance. Then the seller started telling us all the things that weren't in the ad or said on the phone/email. The sliding door doesn't open (no biggie), It wont go above 55mph (kinda important), there is a light on the dash (actually the MIL, ABS, Brake were all on), It "idles weird" (I believe it was only running on 3 cylinders), wipers don't work (their "mechanic" friend said it was "just a wire somewhere"). Mechanicals aside, it was priced good and the body seemed ok. They also forgot to mention they painted the inside. The owner was a Ithica NY free spirit and the cargo area was decorated with glitter paint, finger paintings, carpet shapes glued to the wall and miscellaneous other decorations. Ok... Its nothing that cant be fixed. So I start looking under it and it looked really solid until I got to the front frame horns. They were so far gone Im pretty sure I could have ripped the bumper off by hand. The upper control arms looked like they were a pothole away from being a free spirit themselves. So we passed. The pictures they posted online were taken before the interior was decorated.
Van 3- 2002 Chevy Express - Seller said it needed a couple things to pass inspection. They posted a single picture but the rockers still looked present so we contacted them to ask what they were told it needed to pass. Never heard back.
Van 4 - 1998 Chevy Express - Several pictures, van looks good, its fairly close, we decide to just try and go look at it. Contact seller and ask if we can come see it today if they have it. We get back "yes". We ask what time and are told their cousin is driving it so they have to see what is up but maybe we can see it tomorrow if the cousin gets back with them blah blah blah. So we are waiting to see how that goes.
Apparently the easiest way to scare off a seller is to ask if you can come look at the thing they are trying to sell.
Once we find one we still have to deal with the meetup at Sketchy Joes Discount Tag & Title/ Bait Shop to do the paperwork that PA requires (I really miss the Michigan title transfers but that's a whole other rant)
Maybe we will buy a van, maybe we will not.
If there are any GRMers selling a solid body full size van let me know. Prefer GM or Dodge. Ford if its older. I always hated working on 4.6/5.4s. Im totally willing to travel far away if I have a deal lined up, I cant hop on a plane to Atlanta without having something set up first.
Wish me luck!
