Used Commercial Minivans for sale?

[chris]

Mister E's van conversion got me thinking and surfing the web, looking for used delivery or commercial minivans. According to the EPA website, the Chevy Uplander, Dodge Caravan, Honda Odyssey, and Saturn Relay have the best gas mileage.*

I'm interested in:

1. hearing about people's personal experience driving these vehicles.

2. leads to track down used commercial sales (has anyone bought from the "Park and Sell" lots?). Why can't I find information on the internet?

* Yes, I know that the EPA's formula's are messed up, but lets assume - at least - that they are evenly messed up and that these models have the best mileage for their class, OK?

[EWolfe]

MiniVans will not accomodate weight well, if you are going to be packing gear, people. It's the equivalent of a 1971 VW Bus fully loaded: slow for you, very hard on the engine.

 

Cargo vans are the next step up. Commercially, the Chevy Vortech engines are the best thing going, but other options I pursued over tha last 3 months are:

 

Mercedes Cargo Van (very rare)

Ford diesel (5.9 liter, I think, but still ~20-22 MPG, and they call it the 500,000 mile engine). Price is escalated for the diesels by 2-3000 dollars.

 

The Park and Sell was inflexible and not invested in their clientel, in my experience. I went through an established local dealership, as I could not find them on private party listings ( but I AM in Bellingham.

 

Hope my research helps!

 

sickie E

[chris]

Thanks E!

My logic is that 2 people + climbing gear = 7 people with no gear (and a lot of mini's still have space for that!). Especially if I go for a no-frills interior. Nothing quit as decked out as yours. As I imagine things, it be used for long weekends to month long trips, but not to live out of long term. Putting the trip into road trip.

 

What I want in my dream van:

1. insulation on the walls, foam on the floor, and removable insulation inserts for the windows

2. carpet floor

3. veneer paneling

4. a minimal bedframe for a mattress

5. plastic storage bins

6. maybe an electrical system to run a laptop and a dome light

7. a hook from the roof for a hanging stove

8. a stereo with an USB port

[EWolfe]

Nothing out there is insulated, unless you get into the high-end RV's. I can vouch for the man-hours involved in the process. Not cost-effective. That is why I started from scratch. Hell, I had a 20K Eurovan Camper and...no insulation.

Therein lies the crux: buy a mini-van, tear out and replace the finish to install insulation, or start from scratch.

Edited December 8, 2006 by MisterE

[Off_White]

It's still too early to find much in the used Dodge/Freightliner Sprinter department, but that would be pretty grand. 27 mpg with a 5 cylinder Mercedes diesel, and they handle really well. They've only been importing them a few years now, though they have a long track record in Europe as a Mercedes delivery van.

[DPS]

Hi Chris,

 

When I was working construction, the vans we used came from Park and Sell. While they were not the cheapest option, they had a good selection of vehicles and we had no major problems with them.

 

Dan

[chris]

Nothing out there is insulated, unless you get into the high-end RV's. I can vouch for the man-hours involved in the process. Not cost-effective. That is why I started from scratch. Hell, I had a 20K Eurovan Camper and...no insulation.

Therein lies the crux: buy a mini-van, tear out and replace the finish to install insulation, or start from scratch.

Yeah, that's why I was looking around for used commercial models instead - less to rip out!

 

It's still too early to find much in the used Dodge/Freightliner Sprinter department, but that would be pretty grand. 27 mpg with a 5 cylinder Mercedes diesel, and they handle really well. They've only been importing them a few years now, though they have a long track record in Europe as a Mercedes delivery van.

Completely agree, Oly. Those Sprinters are the ideal, but they're still too new.

 

When I was working construction, the vans we used came from Park and Sell. While they were not the cheapest option, they had a good selection of vehicles and we had no major problems with them.

Yeah Dan, that's the only source I'm finding so far. I even tried to look up rental fleets for sales. I'm just going to have to get off this computer, make some calls, and look around.

 

 

[glassgowkiss]

also consider this. if you are willing to spend somewhere in about 10K you can fly to germany, buy used mercedes (like 320 van), stick shift/diesel and transport it over here for about 800usd.

[Mr_Phil]

Of course, you can't get it licensed.