Allow me to introduce The Van

[sixsix]

Hello, My name is Mike. My wife and I are the Caretakers of a 1992 Astro LT that we were granted Stewardship of in 1994.
We anticipated a long road trip out west back then and started with "The Van" 6 months prior to Iron out any Kinks.

There were no Kinks and the 6,000 mile trip was an enormous success.

... Well that was 200,000+ miles, 6 other big trips and 20+ years later. We have taken very good care and PMed the heck out of it - so, here it is - still kicking. But needing a bit of "Out of the Ordinary" care and repair and could use a little updating.

Now - here we are - looking for tips and ideas to better our "Old Ride". We have been to other Forums and belong to a couple as members. I am looking for some "FRESH" thoughts.

Here are a few photos of "The Van" prior to our Retirement and it's "Revival":






One of the Major areas that We were concerned with was the Front end Plastic, Grille, Lights, etc.:


All of the Top Tabs had to be reconstructed and all 3 major Parts had cracks and parts missing - Paint was horrible, Silver all but gone. A lot of work was done under the Hood - And it Shows. We also did an Enormous amount of work on the Interior - Headliner, Overhead Console, Lighting, Carpet, etc - rinse and repeat as needed...



Mike

[doyoulikeithere]

every time i see a pic of the engine bay and firewall, like that, I think holy cow,,,,
that just looks so naked without a clutch master cylinder sitting in that empty spot.... ;)

[WoodButcher]

You know you can buy the grill and bezels for the astro new on ebay. When I got the one to cut up for my phantom grill I think it cost less than $100 shipped.

[sixsix]

Oh... I'm sorry... nodded out there for a day or so. Good to hear from you Woody !!!

Uh, thanks for the advice - next time ( yeah, right... ) I will order it or them online or buy one locally.
FLEABAY has them way, way cheaper than $100 - even "Already Broken" ones. Such a deal awaits you...
A few hours repair, sanding, $20 in paint & supplies - these 3 look like new. The Masking for the Silver sucked monumentally, tho.

Now, let me get back to my nap while I wait for the next post...



Mike

[sixsix]

... sitting in that empty spot.... ;)

Now that's really funny - 1st I have ever heard anyone say "empty spot" when referring to under the hood of these vans.
Believe me - as soon as the engineers saw where that vacuum canister sat - they had plenty of things in mind.
There is NOT ONE SPOT that a baseball could fit or sit easily.

It's a good thing these older Vans don't have much go wrong with them under the hood. You would never be able to fix them.



Mike

[ihatemybike]

Nice looking 92.

Almost makes me miss my 94, almost.

[okie1]

Very nice van, you should be proud.

[bruce27]

Darn nice. and I thought my daily driver '92 was clool with the 108,000 miles on it.

[Smiliesafari]

Really nice shape. You take good care of it.

[sixsix]

Nice looking 92. ...

Very nice van, you should be proud.

Darn nice. and I thought my daily driver '92 was clool with the 108,000 miles on it.

Really nice shape. You take good care of it.

I thank you all from the guy who's head is too big
now to fit on the EDIT/COMPOSE page anymore

So... next is ALL the doors - Electrics & Mechanical.



Mike

[sixsix]

Hello, My name is Mike. My wife and I are the Caretakers of a 1992 Astro LT that we were granted Stewardship of in 1994.
We anticipated a long road trip out west back then and started with "The Van" 6 months prior to Iron out any Kinks.

There were no Kinks and the 6,000 mile trip was an enormous success.

... Well that was 200,000+ miles, 6 other big trips and 20+ years later. We have taken very good care and PMed the heck out of it - so, here it is - still kicking. But needing a bit of "Out of the Ordinary" care and repair and could use a little updating.

Now - here we are - looking for tips and ideas to better our "Old Ride". We have been to other Forums and belong to a couple as members. I am looking for some "FRESH" thoughts.

Here are a few photos of "The Van" prior to our Retirement and it's "Revival":


E03 The Van Front Left


E04 The Van Front Right


E05 The Van Back Left


E06 The Van Sliding Door Open

One of the Major areas that We were concerned with was the Front end Plastic, Grille, Lights, etc.:


E01 1992 Astro Fr End
All of the Top Tabs had to be reconstructed and all 3 major Parts had cracks and parts missing - Paint was horrible, Silver all but gone. A lot of work was done under the Hood - And it Shows. We also did an Enormous amount of work on the Interior - Headliner, Overhead Console, Lighting, Carpet, etc - rinse and repeat as needed...



Mike

[WoodButcher]

Such a clean little van. I have never been able to keep any vehicle clean and tidy for more than a day.

[augidog]

If I had been here ten years ago, I would have said "I love 2-tone on a 1st Gen van. That's a great looking LT."

Anyways, I wasn't, so I'm saying it now.

(but also ten years ago, i didn't really know jack about astro's, only that i liked 'em)

[sixsix]

Thank You so much aug.

You may be responsible for me using what little energy and ambition I have left to "get back downstairs".
God knows I have nothing else to use it on...

Oh, and thanks for following me around... this time.


ps: so proud of your "Capitals" - hell, I was ready to follow in your steps on that one ( pesky used 'shift' key ).
---- been on the net since '95 and have only "LIKED" one thing - am adamant about starting now... but, how did you "LIKE" my post in the other thread ?

--> I got it !

[augidog]

I've come to view "likes" as rather trite, an important meaningless aspect of social media, so I'm stingy with them. Same thing with "Follow" because being a "follower" feels cultish. One thing I did like about another place was the option to say a post was "Helpful."

I just realized that the thumbs-up here is a "Thank you" and that has a good feel to it.