Pics of your VAN! Post up!
- Thread starter adventureduo
- Start date
kccourtney
Observer
She's workin' today. Hauling home the latest member of the family.
sakurama
Adventurer
I will come back and update this when I start a build thread but after a year of casually looking and two months of daily refreshing Search Tempest I finally found exactly what I was looking for:
I wanted a 7.3 for reliability, extended body for space and motorcycles, big windows that opened so we could get some fresh air in back, a higher roof for space and hopefully something in good shape. This van showed up in Nashville and I found it only hours after it had been posted. It was a former airport shuttle that had been abandoned for 5 years and everything about the deal was sketchy. They wouldn't take a paypal deposit, they didn't trust a bank transfer and they wanted to be paid immediately. I have never used Western Union but I sent half the money and then found a local friend to deliver the other half in person so I could at least confirm it wasn't a scam. Oh, and pick it up before someone offered more and stole it away from me - which has happened with three other vans in the last two months.
But it worked out! I got the van for $3800 and flew in to Nashville having no idea if it was a rust bucket, a wreck or if some other catastrophe awaited me. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the van was in near perfect shape with only a 166,000. Dirty has all hell, sticker residue from it's former life as a shuttle still stuck to the side and missing a hubcap but the engine was smooth, the body straight and the underside without a single speck of rust. It looked almost new under there! I had a local mechanic drain all the fluids, replace all the filters and check it over. It had new tires and brakes already so there wasn't much else to do.
I got on the highway and started driving home to Portland, OR hoping beyond hope that all the stories of these vans getting 18mpg were true. My first tank got 18.5 so I slowed down from 65-70 and I got... 16mpg? I slowed down farther and got... 14? What?!? I put my foot in the pedal and burned my next tank at 75-80mph and low and behold - 20.6mpg! What the heck? I guess this engine needs to be in it's zone. I have a lot to learn but I am thrilled to be part of the club and to finally have scored a deal.
Next stop is MG Metalworks...
Gregor
I wanted a 7.3 for reliability, extended body for space and motorcycles, big windows that opened so we could get some fresh air in back, a higher roof for space and hopefully something in good shape. This van showed up in Nashville and I found it only hours after it had been posted. It was a former airport shuttle that had been abandoned for 5 years and everything about the deal was sketchy. They wouldn't take a paypal deposit, they didn't trust a bank transfer and they wanted to be paid immediately. I have never used Western Union but I sent half the money and then found a local friend to deliver the other half in person so I could at least confirm it wasn't a scam. Oh, and pick it up before someone offered more and stole it away from me - which has happened with three other vans in the last two months.
But it worked out! I got the van for $3800 and flew in to Nashville having no idea if it was a rust bucket, a wreck or if some other catastrophe awaited me. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the van was in near perfect shape with only a 166,000. Dirty has all hell, sticker residue from it's former life as a shuttle still stuck to the side and missing a hubcap but the engine was smooth, the body straight and the underside without a single speck of rust. It looked almost new under there! I had a local mechanic drain all the fluids, replace all the filters and check it over. It had new tires and brakes already so there wasn't much else to do.
I got on the highway and started driving home to Portland, OR hoping beyond hope that all the stories of these vans getting 18mpg were true. My first tank got 18.5 so I slowed down from 65-70 and I got... 16mpg? I slowed down farther and got... 14? What?!? I put my foot in the pedal and burned my next tank at 75-80mph and low and behold - 20.6mpg! What the heck? I guess this engine needs to be in it's zone. I have a lot to learn but I am thrilled to be part of the club and to finally have scored a deal.
Next stop is MG Metalworks...
Gregor
Wow! $3800? Congratulations!
I appreciate you telling us how much you paid. Guys on here often talk about what a great deal they got, but usually they leave out the actual numbers. They probably have their reasons - and I'm not faulting them for it - but it's nice to see what a good deal actually is. Damn! For that kind of money I might just have to start looking soon.
Very cool. I wish you luck.
I appreciate you telling us how much you paid. Guys on here often talk about what a great deal they got, but usually they leave out the actual numbers. They probably have their reasons - and I'm not faulting them for it - but it's nice to see what a good deal actually is. Damn! For that kind of money I might just have to start looking soon.
Very cool. I wish you luck.
KeyserSoSay
Adventurer
Yeah, please post a build thread link here when you get it going...
sakurama
Adventurer
I think these vans in particular are sort of all over the place in regards to price. The yard where it was had printed out a Auto Trader page that put the value at the middle of what was essentially blue book probably expecting to drop the price. If I'd been local and had cash I'm guessing I could have done better but having several not quite as good deals snatched away from me my priority was to simply secure it so I didn't haggle.
One of the reasons I felt comfortable getting the van was that the van itself promised... well, I'll let the van tell you:
I mean, how could I not get it. My satisfaction was guaranteed. 100%! Plus it came with three sets of jumper cables which was either an omen or a score.
There are deals out there but they don't last long. The deals are basically people who don't realize that these vans are extremely popular and that the actual selling prices are much higher than blue book. I almost bought one with higher mileage for $5000 and one with lower milage for $8500 - and I thought they were both good deals. We all see how much the price goes up once they're converted to 4x4 or if they already are. Add bumpers and a roof rack and the price goes up another $10000 which I think explains all the California vans.
Right now the van is at a mechanic addressing a few small things (hopefully small) and then I'll have it detailed.
Anyway, I will certainly do a build thread - it's in my nature.
Gregor
brianjwilson
Some sort of lost...
I will come back and update this when I start a build thread but after a year of casually looking and two months of daily refreshing Search Tempest I finally found exactly what I was looking for:
I wanted a 7.3 for reliability, extended body for space and motorcycles, big windows that opened so we could get some fresh air in back, a higher roof for space and hopefully something in good shape. This van showed up in Nashville and I found it only hours after it had been posted. It was a former airport shuttle that had been abandoned for 5 years and everything about the deal was sketchy. They wouldn't take a paypal deposit, they didn't trust a bank transfer and they wanted to be paid immediately. I have never used Western Union but I sent half the money and then found a local friend to deliver the other half in person so I could at least confirm it wasn't a scam. Oh, and pick it up before someone offered more and stole it away from me - which has happened with three other vans in the last two months.
But it worked out! I got the van for $3800 and flew in to Nashville having no idea if it was a rust bucket, a wreck or if some other catastrophe awaited me. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the van was in near perfect shape with only a 166,000. Dirty has all hell, sticker residue from it's former life as a shuttle still stuck to the side and missing a hubcap but the engine was smooth, the body straight and the underside without a single speck of rust. It looked almost new under there! I had a local mechanic drain all the fluids, replace all the filters and check it over. It had new tires and brakes already so there wasn't much else to do.
I got on the highway and started driving home to Portland, OR hoping beyond hope that all the stories of these vans getting 18mpg were true. My first tank got 18.5 so I slowed down from 65-70 and I got... 16mpg? I slowed down farther and got... 14? What?!? I put my foot in the pedal and burned my next tank at 75-80mph and low and behold - 20.6mpg! What the heck? I guess this engine needs to be in it's zone. I have a lot to learn but I am thrilled to be part of the club and to finally have scored a deal.
Next stop is MG Metalworks...
Gregor
Sweet deal!
Diesels can be funny. Even the little 2.0l TDI that was in my wife's 210 VW golf got much better when I drove. I'm more aggressive and run it harder at higher RPM. And the engine loved it. I actually pulled and enclosed (and loaded) uhaul trailer with it from Kentucky to Oregon, 80mph almost the entire drive. Hauled *** up the passes in Wyoming over 8700'. All the while it managed 30mpg! They just like to worked harder and run at higher temps.
Michael won't steer you wrong. I'm excited to see what you're doing with it in the future.
bknudtsen
Expedition Leader
Welcome! Been following you for years over on GJ. Excited to see how this develops. MG is a good friend, so I am a bit biased, but he's really dialing in his product. Great choice!
Brad
ohpyramids
Adventurer
Replaced the 14 year old air intake box on my 7.3 today.
Camped in Death Valley
Camped in Death Valley
Randall Dee
Huge Member
Nice compilation of vans; some getting after it.
https://youtu.be/HphZ5I6gR6c
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
https://youtu.be/HphZ5I6gR6c
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk