Deal on a new Chrysler Minivan

[jake75]

Really like my Vibe but for our second vehicle we need something a bit bigger.Today got a new 2007 SWB T&C minivan identical to our 2004. MSRP $23,105 - $4,500 rebates -3,088 discount = $15,517; $17,160 out the door including tax etc. The doc fees were $250! Oh well - they have to make some $$$ somewhere. I got the new lifetime powertrain warranty deal and 8 free oil changes. Added bonus was this car was made in Dec. '06 so its MSRP sticker was about $1,000 less than it is now as I think Chrysler bumped the price twice since then. [The identical 2004 I bought Oct. '03 stickered at $24,465 - paid $18,500 plus tax for that one. 3 years later it is $3,000 less.] CarMax offered me $9,000 for my 2004. Dealer only offered $7,000 trade-in. Therefore I am going to attempt to sell it privately. I have had luck doing this before and the 2004 has only 22.500 miles & a 7/70 transferable powertrain warranty - that should be of help. 2007 is the last year for the SWB T&C's. That, the new powertrain warranty, and the deal made up my mind.

[engineertwin2]

Well congrats (I think)!Am I to understand that your primary car is a 2004 SWB Town and Country and your backup car is a 2007 SWB Town and Country? So now you are rolling two mini vans?

[jake75]

No - the car we drive the most is our 2003 Vibe. I am now selling my 2004 T&C, so our back-up, travel with the kids and grandkids car will be the new 2007 T&C.

[high revin]

congrats but sorry to say you will need that warranty in a mopar van those engines are crap if you see a smoke cloud driving down the road its following a 3 litre van form chrysler

[jake75]

Quote, originally posted by high revin »congrats but sorry to say you will need that warranty in a mopar van those engines are crap if you see a smoke cloud driving down the road its following a 3 litre van form chryslerI'll take my chances. The current 3.3L V-6 has held up well according to my mechanic friend. I probably won't own it long enough to see any problems anyway. Since 1994 I have purchased or leased reasonably priced new cars at opportune times to keep my purchase costs low. These include '94 Camry (lease); '96 Voyager (purchase);'97 Corolla (lease); '98 Voyager (purchase) '01 PT Cruiser (purchase); '03 Vibe (purchase); '04 T&C Van (purchase); '07 T&C Van (purchase). The Camry and Corolla leases were highly subsidized at the time making them more attrractive than purchase. Those days appear to be over. Maintenance has been limited to oil changes, tire rotation, wiper blades, and a couple of coolant changes. A lot of that maintenance was done at bargain prices using coupons etc. Ignoring the cost of money (as I have been able to pay cash for purchases) I know that my average monthly cost per car has been well under $200. IMO if you can drive new cars mostly under warranty for no more than $200 a month that is a good deal. It does help that I don't put a lot of miles on a car.I amost bought a new Vibe a month or so ago but the price was just too high. I might keep my 2003 Vibe longer as I do believe it has the quality to go a few more years without anything but wear and tear maintenance such as battery, brake pads etc. For what I paid for that Vibe and what it is worth today the cost is way less than $200 a month.

[joatmon]

I had a 94 dodge caravan, it had >250K miles on it (from here to the moon), totalled by hitting a deer Only engine trouble I had was an EGR valve went bad at about 190K. no pics? How is the interior? Some of those minivans are really comfortable on long road trips

[joholste]

my parents have had two dodge minivans with both of them having over 200K miles so them wearing out i don't think would be a problem...i just don't want to drive a minivan. ha ha j/p

[jake75]

Quote, originally posted by joatmon » I had a 94 dodge caravan, it had >250K miles on it (from here to the moon), totalled by hitting a deer Only engine trouble I had was an EGR valve went bad at about 190K. no pics? How is the interior? Some of those minivans are really comfortable on long road tripsRead the quotes in my signature - appropriate a lot of the time. While Chrysler may have had more problems than expected with their engines, I suspect the incidence was still pretty low. As for pics, I need to learn how to do that, but look at any pic of a SWB Chrysler T&C from at least as early as 2004 through 2007 and except for the position of the logo on the front grill they are identical inside and out. The only difference I can see in the 2007 from the 2004 is the passenger side underseat drawer is not lockable. That probably saved them $1.75. We do like it for comfort on long road trips and I get 24 mpg highway vs. 32 on the AT Vibe. The SWB 2nd & 3rd row seats do not "stow-away" and are more comfortable than the thinner stow-away seats in the extended van. We sometimes remove the middle seat and move the rear 3 person seat to the 2nd row. Then it's a 5 passenger van with lots of hauling space. The only color choices left at this dealer with the Popular Equipment Group I like my 2004 were silver, white and black. I chose the silver. Looks nice. Also - this dealer wisely orders most of his vans with a full size spare that is only an added $25. I think 99% of buyers woudl spend that $25 for the full size spare instead of the 50 mile donut. In my spare time I may check out some salvge yards to see if I can find some mid-row bucket seats to replace the bench seat. I think they are about $900/pr from the dealer.