1995 Dodge Caravan - For Sale?

[pzarquon]

So. This is sort of a "for sale" listing, sort of a request for advice. Does this car sound worth listing on sites like Craigslist? Donating? Or junking?

Up until two weeks ago, I drove it to Mililani and back. I just got tired of putting oil in it and the brakes started sticking "on." So much else is in decent shape, and all the paperwork is current, I figure at least a mechanic-minded new owner could get more life out of it, right? Or am I just too sentimentally attached? I was thinking of asking $1,000.

The Bad News:

• Leaking oil.
• Brakes sticking.
• Rust on hood and roof -- I think it's a GM thing.
• 136,800 miles.

The Good News:

• Air conditioning! The reason I held onto it so long.
• Good body apart from hood and roof.
• Good 7-passenger interior, with removable bench seats (I've moved pianos!).
• Good sound with nice deck (Rockford Fosgate RFX-9xxx CD/MP3/removable faceplate).
• Registration good through Sept. 30, 2008.
• Safety Check good through December 2007.

[mel]

Re: 1995 Dodge Caravan - For Sale?

The Bad News:[LIST][*]Rust on hood and roof -- I think it's a GM thing.

How can it be a GM thing when it's a Chrysler division van?

I would list it for sale on Craigslist. After all the listings are free and I've seen vehicles in worst shape for sale there.

[pzarquon]

Re: 1995 Dodge Caravan - For Sale?

How can it be a GM thing when it's a Chrysler division van?

Er, good point. Heh. I remember my dad grousing that the whole '90s, Chrysler/Dodge and maybe other American manufacturers struggled with their paint formulations, and hence there's a whole swath of cars from the same generation with hoods that look like the surface of Mars.

I would list it for sale on Craigslist. After all the listings are free and I've seen vehicles in worst shape for sale there.

Good point. I just did some browsing, and saw lots of total road disasters, salvages, cars for parts, and fascinating stories about missing titles and out-of-date registrations. I can definitely attest that my old van isn't anywhere near that bad.

Some of those cars reminded me about a friend of mine who bought an old Camaro for $500 off a classified. It hadn't been registered in three years, nor was it really road safe, meaning the nightmare of paperwork and fees quickly made the investment into a black hole.

[Pomai]

Re: 1995 Dodge Caravan - For Sale?

Surely you've already done this, but if not, don't forget to put a 'FOR SALE' sign on the window of the van (perhaps several) wherever you park it; preferably on a the curb of your/a street where there's at least SOME local traffic. Looks like it's parked in your driveway where only your next door neighbor(s) would see it, so that won't but help, but anyway.

I did that with my dad's car after he passed away and within a week someone made an offer and it was sold.

Price-wise, you could make it look like less (and more appealing) by "asking" $999, OBO.

Donating it and getting a tax credit is an option, but really, wouldn't you prefer to have $700-$900 in your pocket to put towards the next few months of credit union car loan payments?

Check out this site for some great car-selling tips, including a free downloadable "Used Car Bill of Sale" form...

http://www.carbuyingtips.com/sellused.htm

[pzarquon]

Re: 1995 Dodge Caravan - For Sale?

The 1995 Dodge Caravan is... er, no longer available.

[Pua'i Mana'o]

Re: 1995 Dodge Caravan - For Sale?

dude, tell me your car caught on fire...wtf happened?

[pzarquon]

Re: 1995 Dodge Caravan - For Sale?

Yeah, she lit her own funeral pyre as I was returning home from a lap around Mililani.

I never did get around to selling or donating the van, as you've likely surmised. I had interest from neighbors but never pushed it. So it just sat on the street. I drove it around every week or so, though it was sitting idle since Christmas until last night, when I found an "abandoned" flier on it. I figured I'd take her out and stretch her legs again.

Then she started smoking. Overheating, I thought. I pulled over. Realized the smoke was black, not white. As I got out and opened the hood, folks in the houses nearby started shouting. They saw flames under the car at the same time I found orange flickering inside the engine compartment. They grabbed a hose, I called 911.

They came fairly quickly, and the fire was just taking its sweet time anyway. They had to pry open the hood to fill it with water. Almost all the damage was there, although the dashboard melted a little (!!!). I collected what little stuff remained and had her towed to the great big graveyard in the sky. Or Waipahu.

Good thing I didn't sell it to my neighbors. That would've been awkward...