AC in van is toast - what now for our drive?

[karinbelle]

Our AC finally breathed it's last this summer and will cost near $1000 to fix. So, we're not fixing it. It's a good vehicle for 3/4 of the year.

We are traveling to FL next month and this is the vehicle we normally drive.

So, what do you think we should do?

Take our 5 person car (medium size trunk).
Take the van and tough it out on the hot days.
Rent a vehicle.

We can fit our luggage in the trunk of the car. The condo already has a single stroller and pack n play, so we don't have to bring those with us.

Our drive is about 14 hours. We usually do it straight through - starting in the evening and getting there mid-morning.

 

[tinatark]

Are there three of you? I would take the car. It is definitely still HOT in Florida in October!

 

[karinbelle]

We are five.

2 adults
12 yo DS
4 yo DD
1.5 yo DS

But the kids all fit in the back (oldest DS is a little crowded - but he's a trooper).

 

[mrsbornkuntry]

We had the exact same issue this summer with our van. I chose to have the a/c in the van charged and go ahead and drive it because we had 5 people riding in it. I wish we had taken the car. The drive there was fine, but on the drive home the coolant ran out and we were miserable. I don't think the drive down would be as bad for you in Oct., especially at night when it's cool.

If you're going to be driving alot while you're there I would check the forecast and see how hot it's going to be, I think it's kind of iffy in Oct. It seems like we wore sweatshirts in the evenings when we were there then, but it's been a few years since we went in the fall.

 

[scrapquitler]

Our AC finally breathed it's last this summer and will cost near $1000 to fix. So, we're not fixing it. It's a good vehicle for 3/4 of the year.

We are traveling to FL next month and this is the vehicle we normally drive.

So, what do you think we should do?

Take our 5 person car (medium size trunk).
Take the van and tough it out on the hot days.
Rent a vehicle.

We can fit our luggage in the trunk of the car. The condo already has a single stroller and pack n play, so we don't have to bring those with us.

Our drive is about 14 hours. We usually do it straight through - starting in the evening and getting there mid-morning.

If fixing the van or borrowing one from someone else was out of the question, I would take the car.

Personally, I would not want to be driving a van without air conditioning that far. It's still hot in Florida and much fo the southeast in October.

Driving with the windows open is no fun (noise, smell, wind of driving with them open makes me miserable) and might not even help depending on your van. I know that my mini van, the driver side and passenger front windows open, the windows for the back row vent maybe 1-3" tilting open, and the windows in the mdidle row do not open at all.
If your van is like the one I drive at work, the windows in the middle row actually open normally (down) and that can provide you with airflow, but like I said before, driving at highway speed with windows down is NOT an option for me (besides the fact that my kids used to throw things out the window if the window was open).

 

[DOOM1001]

Take the car,that's a long ride.If your trip was between December and January you'd be good.Well that's not necessarily true I remember taking my car in January after the A/C went out and with the high around 45 and lows in the upper 20's and a non working A/C compressor also means no heater and I just remember exiting Epcot with the thermometer in the car reading 29 degrees and the car was literally a fridge,living in Florida that's the last thing you worry about,your A/C goes out in December so you tell yourself that you got 4 months that you probably won't need it but with temperatures that cold you really needed that heater bad.

 

[Donnainnj]

We have done the long trips in the Sonata with the 5 of us with no problems. It's tight, but as long as the kids aren't whining the entire time it's all good. We drove to Disney this year during Easter week, and NH last summer, and Hilton Head the November before. This was with kids who are now 18, 14 and 3. I would much rather have the air then the room.
Donna

 

[Plantlady]

I would do the car in a heartbeat. I hate being without AC. Our three sons 14, 12, 9 shared the backseat of a taurus on our vacation this summer. We put over 3000 miles on the car, and they didn't complain once about room. They too, would also rather have AC.

 

[cbg1027]

You do NOT want to be without AC in Florida in October. You'll still need it.

So I would probably take the car. But it wouldn't hurt to price shop on a van rental if the space is really important.

 

[karinbelle]

I really like that no one is suggesting we rent a vehicle.

DH wants to do this. I do not.

 

[Stan Solo]

The cost of renting a vehicle could be close to the price as fixing the AC, plus after your trip you will still have no AC in your van.

 

[SandrA9810]

If you're gonna spend money renting a van, might as well spend it on fixing your AC.

If you were staying on property, then I think it would be fine to take the van (since you're driving overnight) and you could use the buses for any mid day traveling. If the kids were a bit older, they might understand better and could be troopers about it. But two little ones aren't going to be as happy with the accommodations if it's hot out. It's a complete toss up of what the weather is like in October.

 

[rock_doctor]

First what happened to the van. Did the compressor lock up? Bad cooler? Bad fan? Bad hose? If you can find out specifically what went wrong the hubby should try to replace the parts himself and then take it to a shop to install the orifice, receiver and charge the system. If the compress did not lock up then it is an easy fix. If it did then the system needs to be flushed out and that does complicate things. If the compressor goes it tends to send parts down line which is why you want to replace the orifice and receiver... Personally, i would fix the ac and be comfortable. Remember in the end you are driving a long distance and most people are not the best drivers anymore. You will be much safer in the van.

 

[karinbelle]

The van is nearly 12 years old and has over 120000 miles on it. That's why we are not interested in fixing the AC.

I've had it to our reliable mechanic and he's told me that it will be nearly $1000 to fix it. We recharged it last year and early this summer, but now it will not cool at all even fully charged.

If it were only $250 or so, we'd have it fixed. I just don't want to put that much money into something that is probably on it's last year or so of life.

 

[Aurora D]

I would take the car. Our first road trip to Disney there were 5 of us in a Honda Civic. The kids were 17, 15 and 9 and it was a 20 hour drive.
I know I'd rather be cool and crowded than roomy and sweaty!

 

[seashoreCM]

One disadvantage of open windows while driving the freeways is that you have to crank up the radio. It doesn't seem that loud but on an absolute scale it is just as loud as if you were sitting still.

Perhaps that was the reason why my hearing is going bad. Or is it because a coupl'a times the folks next to me on Tower of Terror were screaming so loudly?

Usually a problem with the A/C does not mean that the heater does not work either. You can test the heater for a few minutes (idle the car for at least 15 minutes if you did not just drive it) even in summer. However A/C units are designed in a fashion that you might not be able to test them in the dead of winter say if you are buying a car.

 

[maxiesmom]

Do you have family or friends that have a van they would let you borrow? To me, that would be the best solution. Otherwise I would go with the car. I would not use a vehical without air conditioning, and as much as I hate being cramped for a long drive, that is saying something.

 

[arihillfarm]

We were in a similar situation in July when days before our drive from OH to FL, the front A/C in my Yukon XL Denali started blowing hot air after my husband changed the starter. We test fitted both car seats, my (skinny, thank goodness!) 10 year old daughter and all of our stuff for 5 people (jogging stroller, pack n play, 3-4 suitcases, etc.) in my husband's Chevy HHR and surprisingly, we were able to get most of it in the back of his car. We were out there joking that Chevy should have filmed us for an HHR commercial about how to get all of the people and junk that you'd normally haul in a Yukon XL into an HHR AND get 32mpg.

Anyway, we obviously were not willing to drive to Florida in July without A/C. In your situation, I would take the car UNLESS (and try this before you leave on a warm day) you can set the climate control in the van to defrost only and on the coldest setting and a medium to high fan speed and it cools your car. In most cars we've owned, that has been enough to keep the interior comfortable without using the A/C. This wasn't an option on my Yukon because the hot/cold mixing door was stuck but if you can still get cool air even if your A/C is not working, it's worth trying.

On another note, we did end up taking the Yukon XL. The night before we left, my husband ran down to the auto parts store to buy new wiper blades and a cabin filter for the HHR. In a fit of frustration (after many hours of tearing the dash apart to access the mixing door and still not being able to fix it), he kicked the side panel of the dash where the mixing door was and it dislodged and the A/C started working again and the Yukon XL went on the trip. That was the cheapest automotive fix ever!

-Astrid

 

[Suz D]

The cost of renting a vehicle could be close to the price as fixing the AC, plus after your trip you will still have no AC in your van.

If you're gonna spend money renting a van, might as well spend it on fixing your AC

Both of these

The van is nearly 12 years old and has over 120000 miles on it. That's why we are not interested in fixing the AC.

I've had it to our reliable mechanic and he's told me that it will be nearly $1000 to fix it. We recharged it last year and early this summer, but now it will not cool at all even fully charged.

If it were only $250 or so, we'd have it fixed. I just don't want to put that much money into something that is probably on it's last year or so of life.

Depending how long you'll be gone, the cost of renting a van may be close to the $1000. If you definately are not going to be fixing the A/C then there's no way I'd throw away the $$ to rent a van. Taking into consideration the cost of renting the van plus the extra gas (I'm assuming it will be more energy efficient to take the car), you'll come out WAY ahead to take the car.

 

[AnjieNet]

The van is nearly 12 years old and has over 120000 miles on it. That's why we are not interested in fixing the AC.

I've had it to our reliable mechanic and he's told me that it will be nearly $1000 to fix it. We recharged it last year and early this summer, but now it will not cool at all even fully charged.

If it were only $250 or so, we'd have it fixed. I just don't want to put that much money into something that is probably on it's last year or so of life.

Hm. I'm with the previous poster. I'd still go ahead and fix the AC. We have a 2002 Suburban with 295,000 miles on it. DH replaced the compressor this summer himself and only took it to our mechanic friend to have it charged. Cost about $450 total. Worth it for me for our family to be comfy, even on short rides and we intend on keeping the old beast until she drops with no option but to scrap her.

That long of a car ride with three kids in the back of a car seems awfully cramped, but if they're up for it, by all means, go for it. My brother and I fought constantly on car trips in my childhood, griping over who was on who's side, so I can't imagine it myself but then we weren't the best behaved either. I'd like to think my own kids would do much better.