Good morning!
I know there is a lot of talk on here about what type of van to buy, but my question is WHERE you buy them!
Here in the UK it’s all about Gumtree.
What about the US? Where do you shop for vans in the US?
Best,
Z
Greetings!
I just use whatever online classifieds I can find for the area I’m in, usually Craigslist…
Cheers!
"Swamp coolers for the win to beat the heat." ~Road Warrior
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Thanks @Van_Dweller!
Have you had good luck buying vehicles on Craigslist? I’ve been burned there once before so am a little reluctant to go back.
Zac
Greetings!
I’ve had good luck, but it’s always buyer beware. If you’re not mechanically inclined, you can get a pre-purchase inspection.
I generally buy stuff cheap enough that if it winds up needing a new engine or tranny, even paying a shop to do the work, it’ll still be a good deal. I’ve put over 300k miles on my current $700 van that I bought 11 years ago, and it has needed nothing but normal maintenance. It was a gutted high top 1973 Travco Dodge camper van. I spent ~$300 on the new interior, and have been happy with it ever since.
So I spent under $1100 for my full featured, fully self contained, super comfortable home on wheels. I did drive 600 miles to buy it, but it was the year, body, engine, and transmission that I wanted. I’ve had really really good luck with 1973 Dodge vans and motorhomes. You just can’t kill them, and in most places they’re smog test exempt. I’m getting 18 mpg on the road, and 15-16 around town. Better than an Astro I had got, and 5000% more reliable and comfortable driving. (Living too!)
I have learned to really appreciate the pre-computerized vehicles. There’s just so little to go wrong with them, and they were built in an era when quality still meant something.
Cheers!
"Swamp coolers for the win to beat the heat." ~Road Warrior