Need bigger vehicle - 07 Dodge Caravan? Input Please

[thewoahna]

Hey all! Well, my wife and I are going to expecting our 3rd child in a few months and we are going to have to upgrade our family vehicle. I still drive my cb7, but my wife has been driving an HHR over the past year and loves it. Well, the thing is there is no way we are going to be able to fit 3 kids (with seats) in the HHR with us. I work at a Chevy dealer and we just took in on trade a 2007 Dodge Caravan SE Short Wheel Base with 3.3 V6 and the basics (power windows CD and A/C) and 48000 miles.

I am able to pick this up for $8200 plus tax. I am a little nervous about buying a Dodge, but I have to keep in mind that if I keep up with the scheduled maintenance with the van where I work, we have a Warranty Forever that would cover all drive parts.

What do you think I should do? Sounds like a good deal on this van, anyone have input?

Thanks

[deevergote]

Yo man, good to see you around!

My stepfather owned a Chrysler dealership... and to be quite honest... I'm NOT a fan of Chrysler quality!

I also bought a used car, a Grand Prix GTP, with 48,000 miles on it. I meticulously maintained that thing, and it STILL crappd out on me. If you don't know how a used car was treated before you bought it, it might be too late for careful maintenance to matter!


For reliability and safety for the family, your best minivan bets are Odyssey and Sienna. You'll need to go older or higher mileage to stay within that price range, most likely... but I think I'd trust that more than a Caravan. (plus, if you get an Odyssey, you can still be cool in a minivan!)

[AaronRVegas]

idk about dodges. my buddy has a 06 2500 turbo diesel and the a/c is already broken, it has tons of other problems and literally 4 or 5 things broke less than 200 miles after the warranty for that part expired.

[deevergote]

And those trucks are what I would consider the best Dodge offerings!

[AstroVannin]

I would get an older model Sienna (no really, thats exactly what I did) . Just because its "newer" dosent mean its "better".

If you can find one that the same year and milage for the same money, by all means, go for it, but typically the Sienna will have to be a bit older or have a few more km to be the same price.

Even that being considered, they really do seem to last forever.. I had a customer at teh branch I used to work at that had 500,000km on it, only replaced tires and brakes.

[deevergote]

The Odyssey is cooler... but I'd trust the Sienna just as much.

Caravan... not so much. The old ones weren't terrible for their time, but the newer ones are garbage.

[wed3k]

go for the sienna, the v6's are super clean just a bitch to work on. put in iridium spark plugs on those back cylinders so you dont have to change it for another 100k miles.

['93CB7Ex]

odyessy ftw i want a 1st gen lol

[bobbycos]

question this

why was an 07 Caravan traded in.

go with an Odyssey, you"ll be pleased

[AstroVannin]

The Odyssey is cooler... but I'd trust the Sienna just as much.

Caravan... not so much. The old ones weren't terrible for their time, but the newer ones are garbage.

Ha ha ha ... Suffice it to say I didnt get it for the cool factor. Nothing says awesome like a sage green Toyota minivan, ha hah . My wife just prefered it out of the 2 vans (Sienna and Ody). She said she liked the interior and that it felt like it had more room.

I thinks its really just a personaly preference thing. The only thing I might worry a bit about on the Ody would be the transmission, it seens that Honda auto`s can be somwhat fragile, but for all i know its been resolved for the Ody, its more just a passing thought.

[lil_dcb7]

I kinda skimmed through your original post. Congrats on the new kid!

You mentioned about not having to worry about parts?

Even though that may be the case, do you really want your family relying on a car that may be down SO MUCH? Parts may be free, but you dont want to put your family through the hassle of having a car down, do you?

I myself wouldnt want an Odyssey either. That may be personal preference, but Honda didn't do too well with the newer stuff then how they built stuff in the days of the CB and CD.

For a family, I wouldn't need to think twice about getting a Tahoe/Suburban/Yukon etc. Those things are bullet proof, CHEAP to find parts and easy as shit to work on (not that you'd need to very often.)

Any Chrysler should ONLY be owned during its warranty. The last year you're covered, run away FAST.

And the Mileage you'd get with a well kept yukon would be just as shitty as any average Caravan.

[lil_dcb7]

Ha ha ha ... Suffice it to say I didnt get it for the cool factor. Nothing says awesome like a sage green Toyota minivan, ha hah . My wife just prefered it out of the 2 vans (Sienna and Ody). She said she liked the interior and that it felt like it had more room.

I thinks its really just a personaly preference thing. The only thing I might worry a bit about on the Ody would be the transmission, it seens that Honda auto`s can be somwhat fragile, but for all i know its been resolved for the Ody, its more just a passing thought.

A Sienna or previa would probably be the ONLY mini van I would consider owning.

Not a supercharged Sienna though. hunks of TRASH.

You like the Caravan? How about a Lumina Van!? You'd love one of those!

[Nurega]

I'll have to agree with most of the responses here. My friend bought a Grand Caravan brand new in 1996, and it was somewhat dependable until around 2003 - right after the warranty expired. Since then, the vehicle barely runs and has broken down twice on highway trips. The last straw for my buddy occurred when he woke up one morning to find a Valdez-size oil slick on his garage floor when the oil pan decided to come loose. The van was well-serviced by a friend mechanic of ours.

Although most people find it too small, I'd like to recommend a Mazda 5. Seats 6, has sliding doors, and best of all, a 5-speed manual is offered. I highly advise you to take a look at this minivan if you're considering larger, more expensive minivans. It's thrifty, has an inline four, and will likely be big enough for a family on a budget.

Odyssey, Sienna or (current gen) Quest will be solid workhorses if you decide to go that way, but I would avoid a Chrysler product at all costs.

[AstroVannin]

For a family, I wouldn't need to think twice about getting a Tahoe/Suburban/Yukon etc. Those things are bullet proof, CHEAP to find parts and easy as shit to work on (not that you'd need to very often.)

As far as price point, I agree, they are getting pretty cheap. For reliability, yeah, that makes sense too, GM trucks are decent. From a practicality standpoint, not a chance. Smaller rear doors, more difficult accessability, higher listover for cargo, much smaller rear seat (if any) worse fuel milage and higher maintenance costs (assuming the maint on the 4wd system).

Unless you live somwhere where you MUST HAVE a 4wd truck, I cant imagine that being preferable to a GOOD minivan.

I put snows on the Sienna last year and it was fine, and we are FAR from the first area to see the snow plow.

[thewoahna]

Wow... There is no love for the Caravan