Dodge Caravan

[Thewhite]

a special at Crysler: Dodge Caravan for 18995, LESS than a VIBE!!!! is there something coming up? like a brand new model??

[Raven]

I'd rather die in my Vibe than drive in a Caravan!

[psycho]

Quote, originally posted by Thewhite »a special at Crysler: Dodge Caravan for 18995, LESS than a VIBE!!!! is there something coming up? like a brand new model??Nothing's comin' up, there just selling them for cheap cuz they need sales..American constructor's sales are going down the drain.Another reason why they sell them for cheap is because of the poor resale value, nobody buys them . After a 48 month lease, everyone bring s them back...which means you can get a loaded 2002 caravan for 8k. A 2002 Toyota echo is worth about 10k.

[xrs06]

Couldn't have said it better

[jake75]

Ad in yesterday's COLUMBUS DISPATCH had a 2005 Dodge Caravan 2.4L 4-cyl 4 speed AT SWB for $14,995. In 1996 I paid a little over $15,000 for a Voyager 4 cyl with a 3 speed AT and no CD or driver's side sliding door so almost ten years later you can get more for less. Another ad in yesterday's paper had a 2006 Chrysler T&C SWB that has a 3.3 V-6 and lots of options such as power windows, cruise, remote entry for $18,000. My 2004 T&C SWB had all that plus roof rack, power mirrors, overhead console, CD/Cassette 6 speaker radio etc. etc. and I paid $18,500. Lot of car for the money.

[xrs06]

Hey jake75, you seem to be a voyager/caravan fan, how the reliability for you? I have to admit, even though they don't have the best reputation, for that low monthly payment, after 4 years of lease, you just give back the keys and sayonara. That's really cheap dollars wise for a van for people (family) who need it...

[jake75]

Quote, originally posted by xrs06 »Hey jake75, you seem to be a voyager/caravan fan, how the reliability for you? I have to admit, even though they don't have the best reputation, for that low monthly payment, after 4 years of lease, you just give back the keys and sayonara. That's really cheap dollars wise for a van for people (family) who need it...Reliability has been satisfactory - better than average I would say. I bought a 1987 Grand Voyager and drove it for almost ten years with minimal problems.With the kids gone I next bought the SWB 1996 Voyager 4 cyl with nothing but AC and AT. It had a MSRP of $18,265, bought it for $15,265 less a $400 college grad rebate via taking title jointly with my recent grad son. A trick I have used thrice in my life.I traded the 1996 on an identical 1998 for $5,000. I figured anytime you could drive a new car for about $200 a month that was a good deal and that way avoided any service issues other than oil changes and tire rotations. Drove the 1998 Voyager until August 2001 when I gave it to my son and bought a PT Cruiser paying full MSRP of $18,880. The PT was just something I wanted ever since I read the first article on it and many other dealers were asking $2,000 over sticker so I thought it was a reasonable deal. My son is still driving that 1998 Voyager and it has about 150,000 miles. Considering how he takes care of a car it has held up very well. Had a leaking head gasket at about 70,000 miles and Chrysler treated him right - replaced it for $200 compared to the usual $800 to $1,000 estimates. Bought the Vibe Jan. 2003 MSRP 18,690 for $13,650. Wasn't really in the market for a new car but couldn't pass up the double rebate offer I got from GM. Missed having a bigger car and was taking family to NC for a vacation so in Oct 2003 traded the 2001 PT Cruiser for a SWB 2004 T&C 3.3 L V6 MSRP 24,265 for $18,500 (plus they gave me the $9,400 I asked for the PT sight unseen). Considering it is 8 years later inflation wise, and all the goodies on the T&C vs. that 1996 Voyager the $18,500 was an amazing price.We really could get by with one car but you can't take it with you and it is nice to have two cars when you need it and to have a big car for trips and a small car for local driving though with $3 gas we also now use the Vibe for trips if it is just the two of us. If I wanted the longer van I think I would spring for a Honda Odyssey or Toyota Sienna but that is more than I need. The SWB is easy to park, gets pretty good gas mileage, and is comfortable on long trips. We put about 6,000 miles a year on each car so unless something bites me real hard I may be out of the market a few more years - but I like the looks of the Chevy HHR and also the new Dodge Calibre.

[Toolman]

You can buy a caravan and get 19mpg or a vibe and get(I am getting for the last 3k) 30mpg city. No contest here, I wouldnt own a minivan anyway!

[jake75]

Quote, originally posted by Toolman »You can buy a caravan and get 19mpg or a vibe and get(I am getting for the last 3k) 30mpg city. No contest here, I wouldnt own a minivan anyway!And I wouldn't own a GTO. My ego is not dependant on going from 0-60 in 5.2. Never endangered my or anyone else's life by going 130.My SWB T&C AT gets about 24mpg on a trip and my Vibe about 32 mpg. In mostly city driving the T&C is high teens, my Vibe AT 25-26.

[Toolman]

GTO gets about the same as your minivan, but it(GTO) runs 13.6 in the 1/4(my best), your soccor mobile runs 20's in the 1/4 mile. My GTO is better built and more comfortable than a minivan, and is envied by all the kids at school when I pick my son up. I quote a kid at school "Is that a GTO?" other kid says " they have 350 hp", I nod and give them a big SIG!! Can a Caravan do that?

[Toolman]

Pontiac GTO=24,000$stoplight to stoplight=2.7 secondsLuxury of a BMW, speed of a Vette, and build quality of a Mercades=Priceless

[Toolman]

Never been 130 in the GTO yet, but hope to some day, I mean on the strip though. I am running 105 trap speeds now. At 130 I would be in the 11's, kicking mustang (removed) all over the place. That will take the help of a Procharge though!

[psycho]

I must admit that if you need plenty of room for your family , they are pretty cheap on a lease and a great solution for a low budget.

[xrs06]

I actually traded my sienna for the trix. Have to admit that sometime I miss the ride of the sienna, very comfy and you just can't beat that view on the road when you're sitting that high. Even though on a day to day basis I prefer to drive my trix, I like to do some "sunday driving" which I can't anymore with the custom exhaust and CAI.Beside I traded when the gas was high so I tought I would save a bunch... But in real life, you drive a van normally so you get close to those estimate in books but I don't drive my trix "normally", so I get way less then I should. So the savings aren't really there, yet...On a lighter note, jake75, what do you do in life to be able to change cars so often??? Looking for a co-worker

[jake75]

Quote, originally posted by xrs06 »On a lighter note, jake75, what do you do in life to be able to change cars so often??? Looking for a co-worker :-)Since 1996 I have been a self employed attorney operating out of a home office, having lost my corporate job due to downsizing. Severance pay is good - particularly when your former employer sends you a lot of work at first because they no longer have in-house expertise to handle it! Now they are "out of business" and I am still going strong. But here's the real secret. I didn't start changing cars so often until 1998 when the last of my 4 children graduated from college. After paying for 48 child years of parochial school tuition, and 16+ years of college, all of a sudden I found I had money left at the end of the month. After you meet the hurdle of paying cash for the first one, new car ownership isn't that expensive. Even my PT only cost me about $270 a month. Remember, in the past 10 years the only maintenance expense I have had is oil changes and tire rotations, and I get those cheap. Chrysler sold me ten oil changes for my T&C for $100; Pontiac dealer had an oil change deal - 10 oil changes $119.95.