astro's are light duty vans and not built for the task...
astro's are light duty vans and not built for the task...
Chris Rallo "the kid"
-- "wrenching and racing" -- "will race for food!" -- "Onward and Upward"
thats what I was thinking, and the longer wheelbase of E150/E250 would be better.
My 2003 GMC Sierra that I will be selling would be fine for such a use. 5.3 litre engine, ext cab. I'm fearful that while book might be higher than your target, (11K) I'll be selling for less.... a lot less. In other words, in today's market, you should be able to "buy up"...
Jake Gulick
CarriageHouse Motorsports
for sale: 2003 Audi A4 Quattro, clean, serviced, dark green, auto, sunroof, tan leather with 75K miles.
IT-7 #57 RX-7 race car
Porsche 1973 911E street/fun car
BMW 2003 M3 cab, sun car.
GMC Sierra Tow Vehicle
New England Region
lateapex911(at)gmail(dot)com
From experience I have found that you need to buy as much truck as you can afford for towing. If the 3/4 ton E250 is on your list, then don't get an E150 ect. Look also at the GM 2500 or 3500 vans. I would reccomend atleast the 6.0 engine. In the Ford nothing less than the 5.4. The heavier rated trucks have bigger brakes, higher rate springs, heavier duty axles, and so on. The higher the rating, the less likely that stuff is going to brake or wear out using it for towing. I have owned 150's and 1500's that just got used up towing with them. Axles seem to be one of the first things that wear out, which even with the repairs being done by myself, the costs are high.
Chris "The Cat Killer" Childs
Angry Sheep Motorsports
810 417 7777
angrysheepmotorsports.com
IT,SM,SS,Touring, and Super Touring
Sandro, some years ago I bought an E-150 (I think it was an '89?) with the 5.0 liter engine, all to pull my ITA car on an open trailer. It just wasn't up to the task: not enough engine and "iffy" older trans.
I replaced it with a '93 E-350 cargo van with the 7.3L non-turbo diesel engine. That's a pretty good engine, lasts forever, all-mechanical so you don't need to worry about electronics, and the trans was an improvement. The non-turbo engine was plenty for pulling my open trailer with equipment in the back. And, I don't remember paying a whole helluva lot for it, either. The only reason I sold it was because I bought an enclosed trailer...
Later '93s and '94s had a turbocharged version of that same engine (a nice upgrade) before they went to the more-expensive, electronically-controlled PowerStroke engine in '95 (I think).
Vans rock, dude.
GA
Another option to think about would be an Excursion. I bought one two weeks ago off
Ebay. At the time there where 115 of them for sale. I paid $6200 for a V-10 with 95k
on it. The seller still had the window sticker that read $48,500. I know a little more
money than you want to spend but talk to anybody thats ever owned one of these and
they will agree that Excursions are pretty capable vehicles for towing and hauling.
k
Good point. I have an Excursion (diesel) now, and I love the thing. Compared to the V-10 (good engine) van it replaced, the Excursion is far, far more luxurious and more car-like, while the hose-it-out-vinyl interior, 15-passenger van offered a lot more all-around utility.
But, even though Excursions are seriously bargain-priced right now, we're talking about trucks that are starting to get outside his stated budget. But, I'd strongly suggest they're money well spent versus getting an older vehicle, even if you have to get a loan. Hell, didn't we have a later-model, low-mileage, full-up power and leather, V-10 equipped Excursion for sale here in the Classifieds for some stupid price like $5500? - GA
Yes Mike G. was selling his EX. I talked to him many times, dragged my feet and it
was SOLD.
For sure a buyer market right now Sandro, shop around and you will find what you want at your price.
k
I bought a used 95 GMC 2500 conversion van 4 years ago, and it has worked out great as a tow vehicle. It had about 130k on it, and I did have some maintenance expenses - alternator, AC compressor, fuel pump, brakes, tie rods/ball joints. But at $4200, there was plenty of budget left for those items. It tows our 16' open trailer with car/tires/spares easily, and provides a better than tent sleeping space at the track. It also makes it easy to get the kids to the track, and carries lots of people when it needs to.
It is a great option for budget towing. I would recomend that you look at 250 or 2500 variants, and use air shocks (mine came with them).
Sandro, I bought an older U-Haul Cube Van (from U-Haul). They are going for around $3k-$4k. I put a bed on the 'loft' & registered it as a motorhome. In FLA it was very easy. Contacted my Ins. Co. (Progressive) & they sold me a policy that cost me less than $200 per year. It is the 7.3l diesel. The low cost of the insurance off-sets the higher price of the diesel. At one point, I had over 4k lbs of 'stuff' in the back. When I was pulling the racecar, I didn't even know that it was back there. It has enough room inside to sleep a whole crew (4 adults & 2 larger dogs). And you can make a few extra bucks on non-race weekends moving friends or picking-up large items. (still has the loading ramp)............. just my 2 cents
Mark
Montero Racing (CFR)
Plymouth Neon ITA (For Sale)
Dodge Daytona ITB (sold)
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