1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post photos, video of your van
Post Reply

Topic author
manyon
I am smitten with my van
Posts: 26
Joined: Tue Dec 16, 2008 10:18 am
Location: Cranford, NJ

1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by manyon »

Here's my newest toy. 1990 Astro RS. Runs pretty good but needs some work. Gonna be a project for the summer. I bought it as it looks in the pictures. The guy who had it before me did the matte black paint and the boxes on the interior. It was originally red. He also did some LED lighting inside and outside. Ill take some pics at night soon with the light show going and post them here. Its got an aftermarket exhaust on it (Thrush?) Its got a pretty deep tone. Not sneaking up on anybody in this thing.

Work that I already did to it:
- Water pump
- Radiator and hoses
- Front brake lines

Work that needs to be done:
- High idle problem in Park and Neutral. Have to check vacuum lines and IAC
- Front end (right side) needs work. Not sure if its tie rods or ball joint
- Needs new windshield
- Replace driver's door handle
- Latch on sliding door not working properly
- Rear doors stuck in locked position
- Speedometer/odometer not working (Was hoping to replace with a digital dash out of another '90 Astro. Not sure how much work is involved with that.)
- Driver's window weather strips

Custom work plans
- I bought a set of Blue Captain's chairs. Not sure what kind of van they came from. Didn't come with bases so i had to drill out the 1" steel crossmemebers on them to fit the astro bases. That actually went surprisngly well. Thought it would be a pain to drill through the steel with a hand held drill. Haven't done the driver's seat yet because I have to deal with the electric seat mechanism. Its first on the list though because I need symmetry.

- I have a pair of gray touring seats with the fold down armrest/cupholder for the back that I was going to put in my old 93 astro. Im thinking about ditching the boxes in the rear. Right now the boxes in the rear are built on top of a piece of plywood that runs from the rear doors to right behind the front seats and is carpeted with speaker box type carpet over it. I'm going to take the boxes and plywood floor out and put an exact fit carpet kit in (front and back) and just use one row of seats. Going to have to install seatbelts in the roof too.

- GrantTech 3" dish 12" diameter steering wheel going in.

- Stereo in there now is stock delco crap. Going to do something simple with a new headunit, rear pillar speakers and mids and tweeters in the doors. Not a fan of dash speakers because of sun abuse, bad imaging and dirt accumulation. Maybe a simple sub and amp setup down the road too.

- I want to give the van a wider stance. Trying to figure out what i can do to make it wider without putting spacers on as well as not interfering with the slider and rubbing in the front. I'd like to fill out the wheel wells right to the lip. I have 245/60/15's on it now.

- The RS does have the front and rear sway bars and the RS steering box, but this one is missing the cowl that goes under the front bumper. I'd like to either get one of those or an after market bumper cover that could house the fog lights.

- Replacing dash cover (cracked)

- Building a console

Thats all i can think of right now. Pics taken from my phone. Ill try to get some real camera pics up soon. Thanks for looking.

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image
2000 Astro LT

1990 Astro RS 2WD, 175,000 miles (divorced)

1993 Astro Shorty 2WD, 213,000 miles (divorced)
User avatar

LaGrasta
I sleep in my van
Posts: 724
Joined: Fri Jan 19, 2007 2:07 pm
Location: Mission Viejo, CA
Has thanked: 2 times
Been thanked: 3 times

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by LaGrasta »

Hey, WOW! That's pretty cool.
1998 Astro, 246,000 miles

K&N air filter
TruCool trans cooler
2" Overland lift & 15" BFG Terrain, 3.73 gears
JET Performance SCU-2000 (Speed Control Unit)
Gabriel Ultra shocks, rear AirLift bags & sway bar
Draw-Tite Dual Port Hitch System, hitch-mounted bike rack (4), hitch-mounted cargo tray, Thule roof-mounted cargo box

LiftedAWDAstro
I have my van tatooed on my cheeks
Posts: 4379
Joined: Sat Sep 09, 2006 3:35 pm
Location: New Haven, NY

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by LiftedAWDAstro »

Really nice shape for a 90 in NY! Good luck with the build.
Current rides:
2013 Toyota Tundra DC 4x4
2008 Dodge Nitro 4x4
2005 Nissan Sentra 1.8S Special Edition

Mileage spreadsheet

Vans owned:
1986 Safari 2.5L 4 speed manual - scrapped
1995 Astro 2WD conversion 4.11 posi, shift kit, DHC rock rails - sold to Skippy
1998 Astro 4x4 D44, D60, NP231, full hydraulic system with 9k# Milemarker winch and snow plow - sold to Lockdoc
2003 Astro AWD all stock - traded for a 3/4 ton truck
2005 AWD, 4.10's - sold to skippy

astrozam
I have my van tatooed on my cheeks
Posts: 2770
Joined: Fri Sep 08, 2006 2:57 am
Has thanked: 1 time
Been thanked: 2 times

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by astrozam »

Lookin good especially for that yr like Lifted said, also has a slight sinister look about it :yikes:
User avatar

Smiliesafari
ASV Supporter
ASV Supporter
Posts: 2667
Joined: Sat Dec 02, 2006 12:34 pm
Location: Orlando, FL

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by Smiliesafari »

I was thinking the same thing. It made me think of our deathmetalhead gal Gwendolyn. Come to think about it she's been missing for a while. \:D/
1996 Safari SLX Hotair balloon transport vehicle
User avatar

mdmead
ASV Supporter
ASV Supporter
Posts: 2153
Joined: Sun Sep 10, 2006 6:45 pm
Location: Selah, WA
Been thanked: 1 time
Contact:

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by mdmead »

=D>
Matt
Selah, WA
-96 GMC Safari AWD Hi-Top Conversion -->Stalled 5.3L swap & 5" lift
-74 Ford Bronco -->Far from perfect but mine!
-99 V-10 Ford Super Duty Super Cab 4x4 -->Stock with 285 Cooper ATs
-00 Ford Focus Wagon -->The Red Turd
-95 Ford 24' Class C Motorhome -->My big block sleeper
-07 Can-Am Outlander XT -->My yellow 4x4 quad for work & play
-04 Ski Doo REV Summit -->Still several chassis behind!


No new projects until the current ones are done!
User avatar

crash
ASV Supporter
ASV Supporter
Posts: 1289
Joined: Thu Sep 21, 2006 11:18 am
Location: Woodstock, Ontario

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by crash »

manyon wrote:Here's my newest toy.
Image
very cool. congrats!

can you let me know if it's me or the van. in this pic that i left in the quote above it looks like it's two tone matte. upper black, bottom dark blue..... ??? yay or nay??

also... are the wheels gloss or the same black matte?

looks very 'mad max' like \:D/
Rob Image

current rides:
04 Mazda 6 V6 5spd

vans owned: Image
97 Astro AWD (selling by summer .. i think) SOLD
99 Astro LS Sept 08 ASV VOM
94 Astro LT
93 Astro LT
96 Astro LT AWD * parts van*
User avatar

justice
I sleep in my van
Posts: 875
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 1969 4:00 pm
Location: Keeping a good eye on all you yahoos

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by justice »

apparently, flat black is the color of my jealousy... :bounce: :axe: :peep: :supz: :heart:
I have a ban hammer and I ain't fraid to use it!


Current - 2004 Astro Cargo


Former
95 Safari (money pit - sold)
93 Astro Cargo (totaled)
85 Astro - (Bought for parts and scrapped)
92 Astro Conversion (sold)
87 Safari Shorty (sold)

rlsllc
I sleep in my van
Posts: 901
Joined: Thu Sep 21, 2006 6:35 pm

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by rlsllc »

I really like the color, or lack there of. Stealthy. Nice van...I'd drive it.

Yeah, where has d3athm3talh3ad been lately???
User avatar

crash
ASV Supporter
ASV Supporter
Posts: 1289
Joined: Thu Sep 21, 2006 11:18 am
Location: Woodstock, Ontario

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by crash »

rlsllc wrote:Yeah, where has d3athm3talh3ad been lately???
yeah, i miss her updates... she was making real good progress lately

flat black with envy :yawinkle:
Rob Image

current rides:
04 Mazda 6 V6 5spd

vans owned: Image
97 Astro AWD (selling by summer .. i think) SOLD
99 Astro LS Sept 08 ASV VOM
94 Astro LT
93 Astro LT
96 Astro LT AWD * parts van*

rlsllc
I sleep in my van
Posts: 901
Joined: Thu Sep 21, 2006 6:35 pm

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by rlsllc »

crash wrote:
rlsllc wrote:Yeah, where has d3athm3talh3ad been lately???
yeah, i miss her updates... she was making real good progress lately

flat black with envy :yawinkle:
I dropped her a PM, cross fingers...

Topic author
manyon
I am smitten with my van
Posts: 26
Joined: Tue Dec 16, 2008 10:18 am
Location: Cranford, NJ

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by manyon »

Crash, Its not two-tone. All matte black. Rims are the same matte black. Most of the interior panels are matte black too.
2000 Astro LT

1990 Astro RS 2WD, 175,000 miles (divorced)

1993 Astro Shorty 2WD, 213,000 miles (divorced)

draggnastro
I am smitten with my van
Posts: 50
Joined: Fri Aug 27, 2010 10:03 am

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by draggnastro »

what type of flat black did you use on it?

Lusterkaboom
I am merely driving my van
I am merely driving my van
Posts: 4
Joined: Mon Feb 05, 2018 4:18 pm
Location: Phoenix, AZ

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by Lusterkaboom »

Wow, that thing looks awesome!
1989 Astro RS shorty

tomas
I am merely driving my van
I am merely driving my van
Posts: 21
Joined: Tue Mar 06, 2018 11:07 pm

Re: 1990 Astro Rs - D'Astro

Post by tomas »

That Astro really looks great back then. Wonder how's it now.
Post Reply