Anyone drive a Mini Van?

[Googer]

"FrankyJunior" How old are you?

 

[Googer]

Originally posted by: nakedfrog
Very dull to drive.

My neighbor has a Ford Freestar, I found the suspension to have a sporty firm feel and the V6 engine had plenty of power on tap.

 

[Chunkee]

we have a 2000 dodge caravan...106xxx and doing great...only thing went bad was window motor...just brakes and oil and tires....and routine service


been on many trips, very comfortable etc...I would NOT GET an Odysseey...high dollar for lots of problems...my folks have a 2001, and my boss has a 2005...problems and crappy gas mileage...get a new grand caravan with the stow and go 3.8 liter...its not a real hoss, but you dont need one...decent gas mileage and all the amenities for thousands less than honda and toyota...i know several who have dodge also and still running strong.

jC

 

[thedarkwolf]

I have a very non-stock 89 dodge caravan turbo and love it. I'm a single dude but need a second car for hauling junk/people and winter driving and it works very well for that. I handles like crap but rides and drives pretty nice, doesn't hurt that is pretty quick either.

 

[dullard]

The minivan has to be the optimum vehicle for most drivers. Too bad most drivers won't admit it because they aren't cool. More room than an SUV, good ride like a car, good gas mileage, can haul a ton of cargo, etc. The biggest drawback is that reliability history has been very shoddy for most minivans. And owner satisfaction is dismal for that reason.

Only the Odyssey and Sienna have average or better reliability and excellent owner satisifcation ratings.

 

[PlatinumGold]

Originally posted by: dullard
The minivan has to be the optimum vehicle for most drivers. Too bad most drivers won't admit it because they aren't cool. More room than an SUV, good ride like a car, good gas mileage, can haul a ton of cargo, etc. The biggest drawback is that reliability history has been very shoddy for most minivans. And owner satisfaction is dismal for that reason.

Only the Odyssey and Sienna have average or better reliability and excellent owner satisifcation ratings.

i'm curious as to how those reliability ratings compare to that of SUV's.

the SUV is a travesty because it does almost none of what it's image portrays it to do.

it is not generally more safe than a minivan.
it is not roomier than a minivan
it gets a lot worse gas mileage than a minivan (even the small SUVs are almost as bad on gas as the minivans, mid size suv's and larger all get worse gas mileage than minivans).

the only place an "SUV" (and not true for all suv's either) is better than a minivan is in the woods or in the mountains.

 

[DurocShark]

The original minivan! The VW Microbus!

<--- Driving a 78 now

 

[BooGiMaN]

dont let anyone talk you into an SUV..a minivan is the ultimate when yo u have a family, the roomy interiors, ease of getting kids in and out and hauling all you need


trust me an suv cannot come close to the practicality and comfort a minivan provides.

 

[PlatinumGold]

Originally posted by: BooGiMaN
dont let anyone talk you into an SUV..a minivan is the ultimate when yo u have a family, the roomy interiors, ease of getting kids in and out and hauling all you need


trust me an suv cannot come close to the practicality and comfort a minivan provides.

when it came time for us to replace our ford windstar, we actually looked at some SUV's (not my speed by my wife was sold on the marketing of SUV's).

after test driving a few of them with all 3 kids in tow, we realized, the SUV could never compete with the minivan for practicality.

 

[engineereeyore]

Chevy Venture. Not too bad. We like it, but recognize the 1998 model is not top of the line anymore.

 

[dullard]

Originally posted by: PlatinumGold
i'm curious as to how those reliability ratings compare to that of SUV's.

the SUV is a travesty because it does almost none of what it's image portrays it to do.

I agree with you entirely. Especially when it comes to room. SUVs are physically as big as a minivan, but with the floor raised so high, interior room and cargo space is far lower in SUVs. In most cases minivan>>SUV. Of course there are rare cases where you really need an SUV.

The reliability ratings for those two classes are all over the board. So generalizations are difficult if not impossible to make. You'd have to compare them model by model to get any rough reliability comparison.

 

[PlatinumGold]

Originally posted by: dullard

Originally posted by: PlatinumGold
i'm curious as to how those reliability ratings compare to that of SUV's.

the SUV is a travesty because it does almost none of what it's image portrays it to do.

I agree with you entirely. Especially when it comes to room. SUVs are physically as big as a minivan, but with the floor raised so high, interior room and cargo space is far lower in SUVs. In most cases minivan>>SUV. Of course there are rare cases where you really need an SUV.

The reliability ratings for those two classes are all over the board. So generalizations are difficult if not impossible to make. You'd have to compare them model by model to get any rough reliability comparison.

my favorite example was when NJ changed the law to require car seats until the child was 8 yrs of age or 80 lbs.

mothers were flocking to buy SUV's because they couldn't fit 3 car seats in the back seat of their sedan.

guess what, most SUV's can't accomodate 3 car seats in the back seat either. and if you are going to use an SUV's 3rd row for a car seat, well good luck trying to get back there to buckly your kids in.


amazing what people will put up with to maintain an "image".