going nuts

[Sagittarius63]

Hello. For reasons, I am stuck on a lease on a place I need to not be at. I arrived at van/rv living as a solution. My budget can't do a fancy one. Nor am I a carpenter. I am a bus driver with a cdl. I am okay at assessing basic mechanical integrity, but I'm not so stupid as to not have an actual mechanic check out a used vehicle for me prior to purchase. I'm oldish, and I have never purchased a new van or car. So far, only one lemon. I've been on a deep dive in my local market for a rolling home and after numerous attempts, am still unsuccessful. Sometimes I lose the bidding war, sometimes it's a time issue (full time job, long commute, etc etc), and then there are the vehicles that just aren't worth the asking price, but the van market is hot and the buyer doesn't want or need to negotiate. When it's a conversion, it seems to.me that sometimes sellers want the value for the conversion components when the vehicle they are in is not worth the asking price. I'm a little worn out by the hunt, the, but I don't have the option to stop. At any rate, I've been consulting the forum here for some time now, and I figured it was time for me to quit stalking and introduce myself.

 

[OptimistInAVan]

Welcome to the CRVL forums! To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips, Tricks and Rules" post lists some helpful information to get you started.

Most of our rules boil down to two simple over-riding principles: 1) What you post should provide good information (like your introductory post), and 2) Any response to someone else's post should make them feel glad they are part of this forum community.

We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[TravelingZombies]

Welcome to the group. We've been looking for a better vehicle for van dwelling and the ones we've found are high mileage or high cost. Good luck with finding the perfect vehicle as I'm sure you'll find it when the time is right.

 

[Sagittarius63]

Good luck to you too, Zombies. It’s a jungle out there.

 

[landyachtman]

Welcome to the CRVL forums! To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips, Tricks and Rules" post lists some helpful information to get you started.

Most of our rules boil down to two simple over-riding principles: 1) What you post should provide good information (like your introductory post), and 2) Any response to someone else's post should make them feel glad they are part of this forum community.

We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[Sagittarius63]

Update: I found my 1994 Chevy Astro in Silverton, OR. It needed a rebuilt transmission, had 126k miles, no rust, insulated, gray water setup and some cabinets and a sleeping platform with storage area underneath. It also had a busted bumper. My mechanic found a good rebuilt trans, I dug up a replacement bumper at a salvage yard, and oh yeah, the steering assembly was original…I had that replaced. In order to get this stuff fixed, I sold my laptop, my solar panel, and solar battery. First things first - why have electricity if the van has dangerous steering?
So now I have a solid van and can get to work on getting a mattress. I’m concerned about the exterior sun damage on one part of the hood and little nicks in the paint on the sides. I have to say, though, I scored a killer sound system without realizing it…it was not my focus when buying it, and the seller really didn’t bring it up. It was a very happy surprise when I popped in a CD. I have a lot of CDs, lol.

 

[closed account]

Update: I found my 1994 Chevy Astro............

Cool! You now have a real place to get started!

Just a few days ago I sold my Jeep Patriot, which I had given up on using due to its small size and my inability to find any suitable changes that would help. In the meanwhile, I bought a much older vehicle with a portion of the proceeds (immediate transportation that will also be sold), which puts me "in the game" of seriously searching for a good van to use. Baby steps in the right direction.

 

[maki2]

Congratulations on solving the vehicle issue.

 

[user 423]

It needed a rebuilt transmission, had 126k miles, My mechanic found a good rebuilt trans,

Just curious...what did that cost you?

 

[kklowell]

Those Astros are tough!

 

[user 423]

Tough? It needed a tranny at only 126k.

 

[Carla618]

Tough? It needed a tranny at only 126k.

I've been curious about Astro vans ever since I learned about the Pan American Highway a few years ago. I wondered why I kept seeing old Astro vans used by so many traveling the highway. Made me think maybe they are especially rugged. Just a guess.

 

[kklowell]

That one has to be the abnormal one. I worked for a company once that used an Astro as a delivery vehicle. Over the 7 or 8 years they used it, it accumulated almost 500,000 miles and had at least a dozen different drivers. I've since heard of many others with 200k-300k on them with no major issues.

 

[scaredycat72]

That one has to be the abnormal one. I worked for a company once that used an Astro as a delivery vehicle. Over the 7 or 8 years they used it, it accumulated almost 500,000 miles and had at least a dozen different drivers. I've since heard of many others with 200k-300k on them with no major issues.

Certain years had transmission problems.

 

[Sagittarius63]

Just curious...what did that cost you?

The rebuilt trans?

Just curious...what did that cost you?

1400

 

[frodo2222]

I've been curious about Astro vans ever since I learned about the Pan American Highway a few years ago. I wondered why I kept seeing old Astro vans used by so many traveling the highway. Made me think maybe they are especially rugged. Just a guess.

They are rear wheel drive as compared to most small vans which are front wheel drive and more expensive to fix, having said that the company I worked for ATT switched to the astros but after 3 years they went back to full size..they could not handle the weight or what we did auto tranny are the achilles tendons of most vans till you get to the econoline 250-350 range

 

[Ripper238]

Those Astros are tough!

Crazy tough. We had a fleet of them with 411 gears, really could roast some tires. We beat them bad and they kept going and going. I think they had the V6 that was a chopped V8?

 

[LargeMarge]

Back around 1992+/-, we had a Chevrolet Astro van.
700R4 tranny, 4.3 V-6 (the short version of the GM 350ci V-8), 3.73 axle.
I vaguely recall getting close to 30mpg on the Interstate at a steady 54mph.
.
We acquired it from a plumbing contractor... half beat to death with about a hundred thousand miles on the clock.
.
We tossed in some car-camping gear, some SCUBA gear, and bailed on an Oregon autumn for Baja beaches.
We wound through Belize and Costa Rico for a half year, then back to work in Oregon.
.
We worked the next few summers, and did a similar route the next three winters.
Our only repairs were the standard serpentine, fluids, filters, tires.
(We strapped two spare tires/wheels on the yupstairs rumble-rack, carried an absurd amount of engine spares, fluids, etcetera.)
.
Had it for probably six years, sold it a hundred thousand miles later for about our acquisition cost.
Solid rig.
.
Thank you for the reminder.
I forgot about it until you mentioned it.

 

[bpdchief]

Cool! You now have a real place to get started!

Just a few days ago I sold my Jeep Patriot, which I had given up on using due to its small size and my inability to find any suitable changes that would help. In the meanwhile, I bought a much older vehicle with a portion of the proceeds (immediate transportation that will also be sold), which puts me "in the game" of seriously searching for a good van to use. Baby steps in the right direction.

Baby steps are always good

 

[user 16179]

Tough? It needed a tranny at only 126k.

Any individual vehicle can suffer from abuse or lack of maintenance and is not reflective of the make or model.