Buying a used car.. dare we buy a minivan?

[Mrs. Charming]

We need a new, well, used car. We have $6000 for a car, and we don't want to finance, it's kinda just a 2nd car for me to get out to the store or for emergencies. We have a Subaru Outback, we looooove it. We were totally determined to buy another one, but unfortunately they retain their value. We've looked at a few, and the 2001-2002's all seem to have a major defect like a blown head gasket in the $6000 range. That, and we have the 6-cylinder LLBean edition, so we're very much spoiled by that! I don't want to go too much older than 2000, so we're just kinda stuck.

I've been scouring cars.com, autotrader, and craiglist, and I started to see a lot of minivans in that range. DH is kind of against it but, do we dare take the plunge into minivan ownership? DH inititally wanted a Subaru WRX, and has even hinted at a motorcycle for himself... so this is in the opposite direction. I told him, well, you take the Subaru to work, I'll use the minivan, he doesn't have to drive it.

I've driven a minivan a few times, they're actually kinda nice, I liked it. They seem to have a definite advantage when it comes to space and toting things and kids everywhere. Some of them even have pretty decent gas mileage that rivals our Outback. They're fairly cheap, too. They dont seem to have AWD or 4WD though, that's kind of a bummer and jacks up the price a bit. Do they drive OK in the snow?

I need your thoughts, DisFriends. I know a good chunk of you have kids and a minivan... so who better to ask, right?

Is there anything I should look for, or stay away from? Any other recommendations?

Thank you all SO much!

 

[luvmy3]

Stay away from the 03 Ford Windstar. Replacing the transmission that will inevitably fail will cost just as much as the car did.

 

[golfgal]

I love the flexibility of our minivan. We have owned a couple of them over the years and you can't beat them for flexibility/gas mileage, etc. I would have to say that it REALLY depends on what kind of a van you are looking at because there are a lot of them out there that are not reliable as they get older.

 

[madge]

Stay away from the 03 Ford Windstar. Replacing the transmission that will inevitably fail will cost just as much as the car did.

we're getting rid of our 1999 Windstar (hopefully today!! ) and our mechanic said he was surprised ours hasn't failed yet. It's just a matter of time before it does.

 

[bigbabyblues]

We broke down and bought a Toyota Sienna a couple of years ago, and I love it! I was dead set against it, wanted no part of it.....and now I'm pretty sure I'll end up with another one when this one is done.

 

[Mrs. Charming]

Cool, keep the advice coming! Looks like they don't last near as long as Subarus, huh?

 

[Kirby]

I have a 1999 Dodge Grand Caravan with almost 180,000 miles on it. We've only had to replace the starter and the front passenger door window motor on it, knock on wood. It has been a great car for traveling. We've been to Disney World twice in it, Chicago and DC once plus lots of other shorter trips. If I still had young kids at home, I would definately get another mini van.

 

[Mrs. Charming]

I have a 1999 Dodge Grand Caravan with almost 180,000 miles on it. We've only had to replace the starter and the front passenger door window motor on it, knock on wood. It has been a great car for traveling. We've been to Disney World twice in it, Chicago and DC once plus lots of other shorter trips. If I still had young kids at home, I would definately get another mini van.

Wow, that's awesome. Good to know a well-maintained Grand Caravan can go that many miles!

 

[mjkacmom]

I drive a 2003 Odyssey, and both of my parents bought 2001 used Odysseys. My sister drives one as well. I plan on keeping it at least another 5 years.

 

[Luv2Scrap]

Another vote for Toyota Sienna here. We have a 2003 and it's great. DH acutally drives it, because he needs more space than I do!

 

[LuvOrlando]

I usually follow Consumer Reports suggestions. When we wanted something bigger than my Concorde we went with an Odyssey which I totally loved. I had 2 little kids and pulled out the middle 2 seats opening up the van like a giant room. I loved all the space & we used to have picnics in the van while watching the portable DVD player. It was easily to be able to slide my double stroller in the far back and all my shopping too. Also, I just LOVED that my kids were a few feet behind my head, the complaining was so much easier to tolerate from a good distance. This was the biggest drawback when we got rid of the mini-van ESPECIALLY for my DH.

We got rid of it when DH switched jobs because it wasn't exactly guy friendly and got a Jeep Laredo instead. I do love my Jeep and it's almost paid for but I really miss the roominess of the minivan.

We will be getting a new additional vehicle soon and I've been checking out deals on Edmunds for comparison. Dollar for Dollar when looking at capacity to seat more than 5 the minivans are drastically cheaper than a SUV, I think this also holds for Insurance rates too. My Odyssey had a V-8 and excellent safety components so it handled just as good as my Jeep in the ice and rain, we'll maybe it couldn't compete in off-roading but since I don't off-road it didn't/doesn't matter. At this point my kids are older with DS12 &DD11 so legroom and space is again an issue especially considering friends & carpooling until they drive at 16. I like SUV's but I can't see spending 10's of thousands more for a 3 row SUV when I could lease a Minivan for about $300/month. I'm not sure what we'll do in the end but I have to say I'm leaning towards another minivan for the next few years.

 

[Kirby]

Wow, that's awesome. Good to know a well-maintained Grand Caravan can go that many miles!

Yes, it's been a great car for us. A friend of mine had the same but a 2000 and it didn't make it three years before it broke down for good. I believe Consumer Reports said that 1999 was a good year for our van.

 

[Freyja]

I have a 1999 Dodge Grand Caravan with almost 180,000 miles on it. We've only had to replace the starter and the front passenger door window motor on it, knock on wood. It has been a great car for traveling. We've been to Disney World twice in it, Chicago and DC once plus lots of other shorter trips. If I still had young kids at home, I would definately get another mini van.

We loved our Grand Caravan too! Thinking of getting a "new" (used) one.