Always wanted a minivan!

[beavernation]

Well I shoulda "not listened to the gf before I purchased the last SUV. I wanted a minivan for it's but she didn't think it was too cool!!!..d%#mn women!!..I do a lot of different stuff (target shooting, hauling lumber, hauling my special needs child, camping...you know "stuff") that is really made for a van. AWD would be nice but not sure I will use it. I am gonna trade the Grand Cherokee soon and get what I really wanted in the first place!!!....a boring (not) minivan! oh yea and get a new GF!!

[loopie]

Welcome and I support your decision
If style in the eyes of the uninformed plays a role...a little lift and some beefier tires(whether you need it or not) REALLY sets these vans apart so much so that said uninformed people actually notice all on their own! Pretty cool.(and the lifts are so cheap compared to most vehicles...so why not?)

[ihatemybike]

Mini-vans aren't cool. That's okay cause Astro/Safari vans are truck based mid-size vans. They have more in common with a SUV than a car. Since you have a GC now get the AWD, you'll kick yourself if you get the mod bug. I have a RWD and a AWD and currently the RWD only beats the AWD's MPGs by about 1 MPG. I'm wishing my RWD was AWD, because I'd like to have a nice van to do a 4" lift on. Show your GF some pics of the nice lifted ones, she'll come around.

[JaxSPL]

Thank God I got A Mid-Van.

This sounds like one of those sayings.

My Girlfriend said it's either her or the van. I'm gonna miss her.

[beavernation]

Thanks for the encouragement guys!!...Ihatemybike by the looks of your sig it appears you have 320k on Grumpy with only a new fuel pump???..OMG that is outrageous!...I know you are not afraid of high mile Astro's as I saw you said somewhere else it had a pile of miles on it when you got it huh?...I am narrowing the focus to AWD as they are plentiful out here, but I got a checklist!!...Gotta be freakin patient!! .....Thanks again!!...

[beavernation]

http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/ctd/2279854189.html Whatcha think guys....HELP, I am afraid!!!...I fall in love easily!!!

[loopie]

Seems worth a look to me.

[ihatemybike]

LOL, no. Grumpy has had more work than that, mostly wear items. There have been a few bigger things, but mostly things breaking due to me being cheap/lazy.

The front diff blew cause I didn't swap the seals out as soon as I noticed them leaking. This caused me to remove the CVs and front prop shaft to keep driving it. I believe having the CVs out caused the front wheel bearings to wear out. Bought an AWD parts van and fixed all that. Running without the front prop shaft was said to hurt the viscous clutch, but when I put all the front drive system back in it still worked and did so for a while. It started locking up during my Route 66 run last November and I pulled the front prop shaft again to finish the trip. I already have the parts van's transfer case in the garage and will be installing it soon. So as you can see some things can snowball. I would have saved me a lot of work if I would have just swapped a pair of $10 seals.

Aside from the me being a dumb, the only things have been the fuel pump, heater core and brakes/tune-ups. Really need to do the cap and rotor again as it has Green's stock ones and has quit starting when it's humid.

Oh, thanks for pointing out my sig. Grumpy now has over 331k.


The 2000 you posted looks CLEAN. Since it's at a dealer, I'd be a little bit of a pain and insist on inspecting the front sub-frame mounting points as they are a known hidden rust point. They are located above the bumper's mounting points on the sub-frame and removing the grill is probably the easiest way to get a good view of them.

[beavernation]

Thanks Loopie. I gotta get up the nerve to go down and look/drive/examine it. I fancy myself as an amateur wood butcher with enough power tools to make a lot of sawdust! The idea of designing my own interior with simple cabinets arranged as I see fit fascinates me. I have always like organizational projects and with the help of the photos on this site and others I have some great ideas. I am not a great mechanic but know just enough to keep an Astro running well. Not intending to get a crazy "rockcrawler" here but something that stresses versatility.........I will keep you posted .............."Ride hard, shoot straight and always speak the truth"....who wrote these words??....Just saw your advice Ihate, I will be suspiciuos about that area. I think Grumpy is remarkable!!!...

[ihatemybike]

Around here we think Grumpy is ridiculous, but we still love him.

[crash]

http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/ctd/2279854189.html Whatcha think guys....HELP, I am afraid!!!...I fall in love easily!!!

looks great. i'll take it LOL bonus: no rust being from oregon... if it only had quad buckets

[alexalexanders]

Welcome to the forum!

[beavernation]

Well went and looked at my first Astro today. Actually a Safari AWD SLT. It was an 02 with 124k and loaded up including the four Captains chairs (which is probably my only "gotta have"). Only problem was it was rode hard and put away wet. Not the kind of condition I am looking for!!.....At 5K it needs to be in better shape!!.This is ok though as it is forcing me to be patient. I will keep looking out here in the West!!!!.....

[rastafari03]

Hey, welcome to the site! I too am new to the world of Astro/Safari vans and have received all sorts of jabs from friends and neighbors. I say piss on them, these vans are cool. I think was is so fun about them is you can personalize them especially if your a tinkerer. I first saw them on a site just like, or maybe this site two years ago in Oregon. Really like the lifted look like a minnie Sports Mobile.

Anyhow, it's a great site for the doityourselfer, These guys have a wealth of knowledge. Welcome