Originally posted by neon_duke
What has it done to you? The 3.0 6 cyl / 31TH auto drivetrain has never given me a lick of trouble. It was due for some suspension bushings, but the only thing I ever put on that car in 12 years was oil, plugs, and brake pads.
I'd still have the old 'Van if some schmuck hadn't rear-ended me last summer. It was perfect: 90,000 trouble-free miles, garaged for most of its life, clean and shiny inside and out. Not fancy but perfectly suited to its job. It would have lasted another 10 years doing its duty of weekend hauling and long trips, at a cost of almost nothing. That would have meant a chance to buy something really fun for my wife to drive (though she loves the 2.4-swapped Neon).
Instead, the measly insurance check was about 1/3 of the down on the replacement (which is admittedly much nicer, but threw a wrench in my best-laid car buying plans):
It's a 2.2 liter 4cyl. At the time we bought it it was the right price, and fit our needs. I
wanted the V-6 but it was quite a bit more expensive.
Anyway, I guess it's 10-12 years of abuse to a vehicle that is much larger than the engine can deal with.
But in it's tenure, it has had a major valve job at 60,000 miles, bottom of the engine rebuilt at a bit over 100k miles, Full blown rebuild at 180,000 miles. At the moment it needs something done to the front end, as it "shimmies" at 37-40 mph, then stops at about 42 mph and is fine the rest of the way up.
It is my son's car now, and we use it for hauling crap. It has been a Godsend for getting the house ready to sell. It has hauled boxes and smaller furniture to the storage bin, and larger trash to the dump.
And after I get my truck (the light at the end of this tunnel
), I'll be using the van, or my third son will be using it to transport brothers 4 thru 6 to their respective schools.
BTW, Your Van is a "Sexy Beast" as Vans go.
It is definitely the coolest looking of the "mom-mobiles".👍
Also, if I hadn't just put all that money into the van, I might
consider putting a grand into the 'Scort to get it back on the road proper. Right now I'm just hopin' someone will give me 8 bills or so for it, so I don't have to deal with it anymore.
Sold it for $110 with a bad starter, guy who bought it fixed the starter and it's still going.
