What to look for when sourcing high mileage Express/Savana

[jfman]

Hellos guys and gals,

I am going to go look at 2003 Savana 3500 this Saturday with 327km's on it (roughly 210k miles)

Its a van with 3 rows of seats and a finished interior.

For sale cheap(1000$) because a paint can exploded in the the back, ruining the interior. That dont matter to me because I plan to strip the interior anyway.

Anyway I was wondering what are common problems on these vans when they have higher mileage on them.

It has the 6.0 LQ in it with the 4l80 trans.

Thanks!

 

[4x4sporty]

Check the oil pressure. These motors have a poor design on the pick up tube where over time it can tilt and cause an o-ring failure. It is a fairly inexpensive fix.
There is a video on youtube ( LS Tech: Improved Racing's Oil Pickup Tube Brace Install ) at about 2 minutes in he gives a good explanation.

 

[Len.Barron]

getting one from a warm/dry climate matters more than mileage...they did a poor job of rust protection on the underside so a high mileage van that has spent any significant time winter driving in places where they salt the roads is going to be more work than it's worth..

 

[Choff]

We have a 2005 GMC AWD Conversion Van with 5.3 V8 and fully loaded , been driving for 12 years , it now has 200,000 miles.
Bought it with 43,000 miles.
It's my daily driver and has seen many tough Wisconsin Winters, and with no engine work other than water pump, Alternator.
Does not leak any thing, and no Rust issues.
They just keep running if you take care of them, wash and change oil

 

[jfman]

Check the oil pressure. These motors have a poor design on the pick up tube where over time it can tilt and cause an o-ring failure. It is a fairly inexpensive fix.
There is a video on youtube ( LS Tech: Improved Racing's Oil Pickup Tube Brace Install ) at about 2 minutes in he gives a good explanation.

I just watched the video. It looks like a 2minute job once the motor has the oil pan removed. How hard is it to remove the pan with the motor in the van.

getting one from a warm/dry climate matters more than mileage...they did a poor job of rust protection on the underside so a high mileage van that has spent any significant time winter driving in places where they salt the roads is going to be more work than it's worth..

I live in Canada and I have a shoestring budget so unfortunately not gonna be possible.

 

[4x4sporty]

My van is 4x4 so it was a little more involved than a 2wd. I had a friends help ,we had a rack and we pull all the front grill and core support had radiator flushed, replaced timing chain ,oil pump and all front accessories while we were at it and it took a day and a half.
It has been a few years so I don't remember all the details

 

[jfman]

Well I just got back from test driving the van.

Ran well but had two major mechanical issues.

On the passenger side, a manifold stud was broken or missing and there is a significant leak there. Not a huge deal but the access to the motor is not like in a truck. This could be a major pita to fix.

And second issue I have to thank @4x4sporty the truck has seemingly low oil pressure. At idle it has 160kpa according to the guage and that goes up to 275kpa while driving. That seems low to me as my old Silverado has higher oil pressure when it sat idling.

The winshield was also cracked.

The rust was better than expected(Canada) owner has it oil treated.

I told the seller I had to think about the repairs it needs before knowing if I wanted it and before making an offer if I did want it.

Yes the van is very cheap but two mechanical issues are putting me off.

It drove nicely and braked well and had good tires on it. I think it has a high gear because the motor revs a bit more on the highway than my chevy truck I had.

 

[canuck 1]

For a 1000 buy it

 

[jfman]

I decided to pass on it. Gonna keep looking and spend more for a nicer one.