Chevy & GMC Vans

I have lived in Alaska to long! Time to go. Need to get out of my money pit house by may 1 and move into a van with a dog for the remainder of the summer. I'm a camping/fishing/backpacking kind of girl and van life isn't weird or scary to me, but I do expect a vehicle that can get me where I want to go. ...sometimes down touch roads to the beach and sometimes up slick mountain roads. The AWD in a van on a budget attracted me to these guys and I am comfortable with the decision.

But, I have some questions. When picking out my van from the limited stock available to me here, how many miles is too many? I plan on working on this thing through the end of august then driving the alcan down to the west coat and putzing my way all the way down to Cabo and then who knows where from there. Probably Colorado. I'm seeing good solid vehicles in my very limited price range with 100k to 190k miles on them. What tends to go first? I will be able to suss out issues and spend a few roams on repairs and improvements (lift kit! Roof rack! Ceiling vent!) But would hope to generally avoid very costly mechanical repairs, even though there are lots of parts available around here.

Thoughts?

Welcome!

Personally, I'd be looking at the vans closer to 100K miles, expecting it to run to 200K without any major drivetrain failures.

After purchase, a complete change out of fluids would be a priority. Air filter, new plugs, wires, cap/rotor, new serpentine belt and hoses, along with a new fuel filter. New idler arms if they aren't already nearly new.

My question would be, what items can fail and leave me stranded? Two things top my list. One, from personal experience, is the serpentine belt tensioner. Mine went before 100K and nearly stranded me. I'd change it with the belt and toss the old one on board for a spare. Second is the fuel pump. I'm not sure I'd change it now, but I'd make sure I had a spare with me... actually, in your case, I might go ahead and change it... unless you are up to wrestling around dropping a full gas tank later on!

If you were in most of the lower 48, I wouldn't worry about a lot of this stuff and just fix stuff as it starts to fail or fails. But the thought of being in remote locations and having to be self-sufficient, I'd take more preventative measures.

Good luck in your search!

Carbon up EGR valves are pretty common.A screened EGR valve gasket prevents that from happening.

If I were looking for a new Astro/Safari I would be looking for 100k miles and below if possible, though a lot depends on condition. I'm also partial towards the 03-05 years with the upgraded brakes, tow/haul button, no egr valve, etc.

In addition to what mdmead said, I would also check/replace the distributor drive gear(whole billet alum dist w/cap/rotor can be had for $50), check the engine mounts, and possibly add a transmission cooler to the list.

Along with whats been mentioned make sure you have a proper sized spare, also make sure to either install a second battery for running electrical items ( lights, cell phone/tablet charging, small appliances etc ) you never want to run your main battery down because you want that van to start when it's time to move on. If you could afford it my big 5 would be...

New battery
New starter
New alternator
New fuel pump
New cap,wires,rotor

Learn how to take the doghouse off, it's handy to know, here's a quick how to on a 2003 viewtopic.php?f=39&t=4813&p=75598&hilit ... val#p75598

Camping in the vans is no problem you can set them up pretty nice, living in them is a different story ( been there,done that ) it's doable but its no house. If possible, stay in touch with the forum to let us know how you're making out and if you need any advice on repairs etc... good luck with everything

I just got back from spending a week in the van at a park with few facilities (Big Bend NP). a week was fine with some facilities but I don't know how I'd do living in the thing that would be a lot different. I'm sure some people have done it. Several web sites dedicated to van dwelling.. Might be worth checking them if you haven't already. Miles aren't everything. I'd prefer a van with more miles from someone that took care of it than a commercial low mile van driven by someone that didn't own it... Good luck with the search and trip.

Good list going here my friends. One thought on fuel pumps. Spend the money on oem. Aftermarket is bad news here.