Cheap minivan recommendations

[rommelrommel]

Looking to spend 2k or less. Won't be driven much, mainly just take kids to school, grocery store, etc.

Anything in that vintage/price range have a decent reliability record? Like at least in regards to transmission/engine? I am pretty handy and can fix minor to moderate issues, just don't have a great work space to be attempting to drop a trans or anything.

Seems to be a lot of late 90's/early 2000's domestics.

Not against a sienna but they hold their value a lot better so what you get for 2 grand scares me a bit. Also the reputation seems to be that once old they break just as much as a domestic and cost much more to fix.

 

[desy]

Don't forget the Kia and Hyundai then, they depreciated like a rock too and less mechanically iffy compared to the Dodges I think.
I had a Windstar it was OK, some trans and rear axel issues on some of the older models which I don't think the Freestar had but I don't think you'd get a freestar for under 2

 

[phucheneh]

Minivans in general seem to drop like a rock in value. Even with Toyota/Honda, I would bet the resale on their vans, while better than most, is nothing like a Corolla or Civic.

I would look at Kia. You can probably get a Sedona that's under ten years old for 2k. Otherwise; Caravan. It's just what Dodge does. May not be the most utterly reliable, but they're pretty decent, and I'm sure it would have the most widely available parts and repair knowledge...you buy a car for two grand, especially with ANY special criteria (other than 'get me from A to B')...it will inevitably need some kind of work.

 

[jagec]

Otherwise; Caravan. It's just what Dodge does. May not be the most utterly reliable, but they're pretty decent, and I'm sure it would have the most widely available parts and repair knowledge...you buy a car for two grand, especially with ANY special criteria (other than 'get me from A to B')...it will inevitably need some kind of work.

Also, those old turbo Caravans with a couple minor mods can embarrass much more expensive cars.

 

[thedarkwolf]

Caravan with a 4 cylinder. Easier to work on than the v6, more reliable trans, and worse resale value.

 

[Dr. Detroit]

Mazda MPV -

Pontiac Montana - the 3.4L and 4T65E will give longevity and the motor has plenty of TQ

 

[rommelrommel]

All the Kia's locally are surprisingly expensive. There's a high mile but clean looking freestar I want to go see, and there seem to be a few reasonable windstars. The GM ones are almost all on lots and I have not had good experiences buying cheap cars off of lots. The dodges are frickin everywhere and it's hard to pick out the good looking ones.

 

[Kaido]

I've had consistently bad experiences with Dodges over the last 15 years, if that helps at all.

 

[SyndromeOCZ]

I've had 5 dodge vans in the family over the years, 1 of them is running still. Though the other 4 all broke over 250k miles and at least 75k of them was fully loaded with tools(took the seats out). Loaded so much that I put air bags on them to help.

 

[DrPizza]

I just sold my first grand caravan last week. Put about 150k miles on it. I hauled my boat with it all the time - 3000 pounds + trailer; got in the left lane on the thruway & went with the pace of traffic in that lane. That was a '01. I now have an '08, and it's half the beast that the original was - I still tow with it, but I notice that something's behind me a little more.

 

[OVerLoRDI]

Dodges are hit or miss. I had a 94 Plymouth grand voyager. It made it to 195k when the trans finally gave out. But my experience seems to be abnormal.

I would avoid anything Ford based on their 90s, early 2000 reputation.

 

[rommelrommel]

Sounds like it's about as much of a crapshoot as I suspected.

 

[phucheneh]

Cheap cars are always a crapshoot.

#1 option: Find a good independent mechanic who will evaluate a prospective vehicle for very little money. The 'good' part makes this hard, though, as a lot of independent people are simple those who couldn't get hired by a shop. But there are good ones around.

#2 option: Find a shop you trust who will charge you a flat fee to rack it up and inspect it. This will cost you more; probably somewhere between 75-150 bucks. If a mechanic knows he's gonna get an 1-1.5 hours or so off an inspection, though, any decent one will be sure to give the vehicle a thorough look and note any issues. When I did them, not only would I note any obvious electrical or mechanical problem (engine, drivetrain, or chassis related), I would go as far as to note damaged interior parts and whatnot that the buyer may not have seen. A skilled person can do a hell of an evaluation in an hour or less...there are things I can diagnose in 5-10 minutes of driving a car that other people don't even notice. That's not bragging; it's just that any decent mechanic, especially one who has had to trace noise/viration problems extensively, will be far more attuned to picking up on certain things than your average driver.

Even if the car checks out as 100% okay...no parts needed at that moment...realize that it's still pretty much luck of the draw as to what will fail afterwards. You've just gotta try and stack the deck in your favor (the mentioned inspection and test drive, plus maintenance records and other history, ect).

 

[jolancer]

My opinion may differ now a bit more then some in this relm... So far iv only ever used cheap vehicals also, and seems its just luck of the draw(usualy not in your favor) unless You know someone personally who is being upfront with you about the vehical and giving it to you at fair or bellow price, or you find one from a mid or old reliable couple who are also honest and perhaps 1st or 2nd owner. The percentage of your luck in contrast to the availability of what type of vehical your looking for i imagine would vary a bit depending on where you live.

In that price range as others have already pointed out, its usualy a crap shoot. what i do these days on my old vehical is if something goes wrong I dont fix it if it doesn't stop me from driving it and its not anything significant such as an Engine/tranny issue that has a high impact on economy or signs of a iminant more serious isssue. That may sound ignorant cause you may often see poor people neglecting ther vehicals, but i dont mean it in that way... I drive it responsibly and do what has to be done, oil changes etc. Its just when you use a vehical in that age/condition it really becomes finacialy pointless to spend money on "ride quality" issues, if your the kind of person who isn't bothered by it. Otherwise in the long run, id say dont go any lower then $4 > $6 grand on the vehical you choose. unless you plan on junking it in a yr or 2.

EDIT: oh yeah, that being said, if you still plan on going that old/cheap, a 95 or earlyer vehical would help in turms of the inspections. if you can even find those these days that dont have a million miles on them or have been crapped on already

 

[thedarkwolf]

There are tons of caravans in the 2000 year ranges for around $2k around here. I would not buy a Kia and Hyundai from that time frame. I'm telling you 4 banger dodge caravan. Most of those will be stripper models with just a/c but that just means less things to break. They have the same engine and trans as neons and by that time are pretty good. Hell until 02 they still used the old 3 speed automatic with virtually no electronics other than the lock up torque converter. These aren't the 4 speed autos from the 90s that died left and right.

 

[jacktesterson]

I own a 2004 Montana with 3.4L.

Its now at 190,000 KMs and is going strong... Never any issues besides the basics. Would recommend. (2003 - 2004 models)

 

[Doppel]

Sounds like it's about as much of a crapshoot as I suspected.

$2k these days buys a junker that may break on the way home but you may get lucky and be ok for years.

$2k will buy you a 1921 honda or toyota, so forget them. You'll have to go domestic or get one of the cheaper imports like mazda or kia.

Personally I'd get a windstar or caravan.

 

[spaceman]

caravan or tc
best one u can find with a good shifting tranny
parts are dirt cheap
boneyard is littered with them
solid vans

 

[mmntech]

Since Minivans have gone out of style, they're pretty worthless. You can get a brand new Caravan for about the same price as a Dart, which is pretty telling. I think your price might be a bit too low. Sienna is the ultimate lame-mobile but at least it should hold up better.

I've driven a lot of Caravans and they're okay. Decent ride, stow-n-go is a big bonus if you can find it. Transmission in them is wonky though. I just don't trust their long term reliability. So if you do get one, plan out how much maintenance will cost as one that old will likely need some work.