Used minivan for grad student (me)?
pjc30943
09-10-2003, 06:10 PM
Good afternoon,
Perhaps you all can help me? My situation is unique, at least from what I've heard from other people, and I have so far gotten no usable advice.
I'm looking for a used minivan. I'm 23, male, a grad student, and live alone.
Minivans appeal to me because of their ability to carry bulky gear (camping, sports gear, etc), and act as a small room if needed (a covered truck comes close, but not the same). Basically, to me minivans are more versatile except for their lack of acceleration, towing / heavy carrying capacity that trucks have.
I have a silver 93 Chevy Lumina minivan right now, but it is dying away slowly. It does not have the features that I want in the next one.
In order of importance: car condition (can be any year, but should have enough life left), good gas mileage , power (acceleration, etc), and looks. It cannot be one of those curvy teddy-bear vans. For example, Mazda MPV looks good, but has bad gas mileage, and they are very expensive.
Budget is very important, but I will basically not buy a car for any price that is not sufficient. Let's say 3k tops for now:(. I know I am asking for the holy grail, but I'm willing to spend time and energy to find a lucky deal.
Can anyone please suggest a suitable minivan for this? I don't even know what to look for. In all my research, gas mileage was the downfall for all minivans. Would you suggest I look into getting another vechicle type?
Yes I know, others look at me strangely with their souped-up CRXs, etc, but the practicality of minivans to me outweighs the peculiar comments.
Thank you,
Paul
Perhaps you all can help me? My situation is unique, at least from what I've heard from other people, and I have so far gotten no usable advice.
I'm looking for a used minivan. I'm 23, male, a grad student, and live alone.
Minivans appeal to me because of their ability to carry bulky gear (camping, sports gear, etc), and act as a small room if needed (a covered truck comes close, but not the same). Basically, to me minivans are more versatile except for their lack of acceleration, towing / heavy carrying capacity that trucks have.
I have a silver 93 Chevy Lumina minivan right now, but it is dying away slowly. It does not have the features that I want in the next one.
In order of importance: car condition (can be any year, but should have enough life left), good gas mileage , power (acceleration, etc), and looks. It cannot be one of those curvy teddy-bear vans. For example, Mazda MPV looks good, but has bad gas mileage, and they are very expensive.
Budget is very important, but I will basically not buy a car for any price that is not sufficient. Let's say 3k tops for now:(. I know I am asking for the holy grail, but I'm willing to spend time and energy to find a lucky deal.
Can anyone please suggest a suitable minivan for this? I don't even know what to look for. In all my research, gas mileage was the downfall for all minivans. Would you suggest I look into getting another vechicle type?
Yes I know, others look at me strangely with their souped-up CRXs, etc, but the practicality of minivans to me outweighs the peculiar comments.
Thank you,
Paul
ccc880
09-13-2003, 05:32 PM
What about a SUV?
pjc30943
09-14-2003, 01:47 PM
Thanks for yor reply.
You are right, that is one thing I strongly considered.
The cheaper SUVs are usually pretty large, and the gas mileage is not good for all the models I've looked into. Mid-sized SUVs are a good idea, but their gas mileage just seems sub-par to other vechicles, even thought they have the power and space I'm looking for.
I'm actually also considering getting a truck with a truck top. But, I'm having a hard time finding a truck with good gas mileage (25-30 HW) and enough power and acceleration to get by on highway driving, passing, and going up hills...
Paul
You are right, that is one thing I strongly considered.
The cheaper SUVs are usually pretty large, and the gas mileage is not good for all the models I've looked into. Mid-sized SUVs are a good idea, but their gas mileage just seems sub-par to other vechicles, even thought they have the power and space I'm looking for.
I'm actually also considering getting a truck with a truck top. But, I'm having a hard time finding a truck with good gas mileage (25-30 HW) and enough power and acceleration to get by on highway driving, passing, and going up hills...
Paul
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