maximum minivan day

posts about #maximumminivanday more →
PCH, Maximum Minivan Edition: Toyota 4x4 Or Turbo Caravan?
Soccer Dad Lives Life a Quarter Mile at a Time
The Ten Greatest Minivans Of All Time
Mystery Nissan Minivan-ish Wagon Down On The Austin Street
Behold The Self-Parking Volkswagen Minivan!
What's Your Favorite Minivan Experience?
Maximum Minivan Day: All Hail The 25th Anniversary Of The Minivan!
1990 Dodge Caravan LE
What's The Greatest Minivan Of All Time?

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günter macbeetle, codename: chrystlubitshi
11/15/08

In reply to What's Your Favorite Minivan Experience?
i would take back what i said previously.. but apparently astro-vans aren't really mini-vans.... other wise it'd be something like this:

==hey Yasu...want to take us for a cruise??

-hmmm... will you pay me for gas?

==one way or another...

==clan we pray you wif grass???

-hmmm let me think.... ... .. ... ... ...

.. ... ... ..

umm YES!

and we 'hotboxed' the astro... regularly... gravel roads in rural nebraska can kick ass...in any car... and even more so in an AWD "small" van...
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günter macbeetle, codename: chrystlubitshi
11/15/08

In reply to What's Your Favorite Minivan Experience?
best time in a mini-van... hmmm probably my dad saying "i miss my v8" as he took us to school the 1st week day of having a rental '95 dodge minivan..... 4 banger (hamster-wheeler...)

a slug would have beat that thing off the line..... and then we put people in it...
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CSX321
11/12/08

In reply to Soccer Dad Lives Life a Quarter Mile at a Time
Here's in-car footage of me getting beat by that woody...

Me vs. Paul's van
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acarr260
11/13/08

@CSX321: So what goes through your mind as a wood-paneled minivan pulls away from you on the drag strip?!
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MushyHeirloom
11/12/08

In reply to Mystery Nissan Minivan-ish Wagon Down On The Austin Street
Long hood is loooooooooong.
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MushyHeirloom
11/12/08

In reply to PCH, Maximum Minivan Edition: Toyota 4x4 Or Turbo Caravan?
I'd love that Caravan. It'd probably be easier to make nice, too. Not that you'd want a nice Toyota van.

Now, I voted for the Toyota, for one reason and one reason only: the damn thing's in Michigan, and the guy says it's rusty. That's an old picture of it, for Christ's sake, and half the rear quarter's oxidized already. When a Michigander says something is "rusty", he means that it won't pass any sort of safety inspection.

So, Toyota, because you'll have to repair everything below the beltline, and then the frame will snap in half when you hit a frost heave.
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MushyHeirloom
11/12/08

@FuzzyPlushroom: Though the temptation's certainly there to find a nice Rampage and stick the Caravan's engine/trans into it.
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SundaySunday
11/12/08

In reply to PCH, Maximum Minivan Edition: Toyota 4x4 Or Turbo Caravan?
Chrysler liked to shoehorn that 2.2 in the tightest space possible. Even on my Charger, you had to remove parts just to access other parts. Perhaps, this is why the owner was taking apart the engine. He may have dropped his screwdriver down there somewhere.
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Mr.choppers - Delenda Carthago Est
11/12/08

In reply to The Ten Greatest Minivans Of All Time
Awww, no Lancia Zeta? It was Italy's answer to the Oldsmobile Silhouette (a question no one had asked, I'm sure) and it too had a stick and a Turbo.

I'm going to sit down and make my own list now, so there!
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something_unique_and_descriptive
11/12/08

In reply to PCH, Maximum Minivan Edition: Toyota 4x4 Or Turbo Caravan?
The Caravan does nothing for me... sure it's a turbo, but the engines out so who cares, might as well save the money and just buy a normal Caravan with a toasted engine (actually you could probably find someone willing to give you one if you've got a trailer) and put some nutjob firebreather in there.

I went with the Toyota, mid-engine(ish), four wheel drive, and you can get Euro badges and have a "Space Cruiser".
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Plecostomus [Tyrrell]
11/12/08

In reply to PCH, Maximum Minivan Edition: Toyota 4x4 Or Turbo Caravan?
Try "Could be the headgasket" ;)

Toyota, due to sheer difficulty of working on that engine
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w1ngnut
11/12/08

In reply to PCH, Maximum Minivan Edition: Toyota 4x4 Or Turbo Caravan?
While neither are really exciting, as a child I was (un)fortunate enough to ride in both, and I think the Toyota isn't worth the effort. It's almost as though they set out to design the least-stable chassis in existence. Highway speed in one of these, if memory serves me right, was noisy and terrifying.

Just on availability of parts alone, I'd say the Caravan is less of a hell, despite its turbo. Plus, I would always have a lingering fear of rolling over in that Toyota.
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Paul Y. can't get in the club; gotta parking lot pimp
11/12/08

In reply to PCH, Maximum Minivan Edition: Toyota 4x4 Or Turbo Caravan?
The Toyota is probably vastly more hellish, at least by Toyota standards. The Caravan is, ultimately, a K-car, which isn't a bad thing if you have to piece one together, but where's the fun in that?

As an aside, what 80s Toyota isn't rusty?

Here's the tailgate of the 89 4Runner I had:

Everyone I knew who wasn't from western NY was astonished at how rusty that truck was (and that I drove it and loved it-- it smelled bad, too). I loved it dearly until a head gasket failure killed it.
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Paul Y. can't get in the club; gotta parking lot pimp
11/12/08

@Paul Y. can't think of a better, shorter handle: Hey, when did I get a star? I haven't been COTD since before stars were invented/
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smalleyxb122
11/12/08

@Paul Y. can't think of a better, shorter handle: Welcome to the club. There are some hazing rituals that you'll have to endure, but we can address those at a later time.
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MushyHeirloom
11/12/08

@Paul Y. can't think of a better, shorter handle: I call bullshit on that photo. The rear bumper's not rusted nearly in half, you see, and an intact 4Runner rear bumper is like a unicorn north of the Mason-Dixon line.
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asaturn
11/12/08

In reply to PCH, Maximum Minivan Edition: Toyota 4x4 Or Turbo Caravan?
I knew a guy who put a turbo'd celica engine (6 cyl) into a toyota van with a 5 speed and 4WD.
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Six Flags Over Tomsk
11/12/08

@asaturn: If it's a six, wouldn't that be a Supra?
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zeet
11/12/08

In reply to Soccer Dad Lives Life a Quarter Mile at a Time
So that means this is a LeMons candidate, yes? --> [seattle.craigslist.org]
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Paul Y. can't get in the club; gotta parking lot pimp
11/12/08

@zeet: Haha, "surprise the ricers." Perfect.
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LTDScott
11/12/08

In reply to PCH, Maximum Minivan Edition: Toyota 4x4 Or Turbo Caravan?
Having owned two GLH turbos, I can attest that 2.2L turbo sleepers are great fun. Add the utility of a minivan and I'm there. Mopar or no car!
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smalleyxb122
11/12/08

In reply to PCH, Maximum Minivan Edition: Toyota 4x4 Or Turbo Caravan?
The Caravan shows $300 now...

That Toyota is so close to me....

And it's only $700

Shit. I hope I can hold myself back until someone else buys it. I really don't need it. It's not even something that I knew I wanted until just now.
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SwapMeat
11/12/08

@smalleyxb122: The Jalops will do that to you. At least it's a $700 Toyota Van and your not trolling around Citroen DS Forums wondering which monetary black-hole will strip you of your friends/fiance/weekends/life... Jalopnik should come with a disclaimer.
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smalleyxb122
11/12/08

@SwapMeat: Sure it's a Toyota van, but knowing me, I'd be trying to figure out how to drop a Jag V12 into it.
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something_unique_and_descriptive
11/12/08

@SwapMeat: Yeah, don't get me started on the events they've got me wanting to participate in... LeMons, 2904, Woodward Dream Cruise...
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TheTooth
11/12/08

@something_unique_and_descripti...: With the same car?
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smalleyxb122
11/12/08

@TheTooth: That would rule! New goal: A Woodward Dream Cruise worthy, 2904 mile reliable, $500 beater.

Dammit. I don't think I'd trust my Jag for 2904 miles. I'm always a bit happy when I make it home after my 32 mile round trip to work. But with a quick wash and wax, it wouldn't be the shittiest car at the Dream Cruise, and it was bought for a LeMons friendly $500.
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