Sold my van tonight

scatterbunny

New member
To a friend, for $2000. It's a 1994 Mazda MPV.

Now I'm looking at a 96-99 Ford Taurus (can't believe I found a 99 for 2K), or a 96 Ford Windstar. I want better gas mileage and a CLOSED trunk, that's why I like the Taurus (and it's wide enough to fit the Husky comfortably, maybe even with three-across, if I'm lucky). But I love being able to fit more passengers and I love a bigger vehicle, for that feeling of extra safety, which is why I like the Windstar. Both get pretty good crash scores for vehicles of that era.

I also found a 92 Toyota Camry that I love, because it's the same body style as my mom's 96 Camry, but it's a few hundred more than the Fords I'm looking at, and older than what I really want to get.

So for now we're down to one vehicle, a 1993 Ford F-150 single cab. We all can't go anywhere together unless I can fit the Husky in the center, which I haven't gotten around to trying. Good thing we live in a tiny town with a grocery store about 5 blocks up the street, and the hospital is right across the street. :p
 
ADS

lynsgirl

New member
Whoop! Cheers for you and I hope you find the perfect "Jenny" vehicle! :D

((Hugs)) and a very belated congrats on being a super new tech!
 

beeman

Active member
Good luck on installing the Husky in the center seat of the ford 1/2 ton. I've got the 95 version of your truck, and there is no way that I would want any carseat in the center seat (passengers are a big enough pain there!) My Grandpa had an early 90's camary when they were new, and he hated it, so I won't recomend spending the extra money on it. Check the fuel milage on the windstar before you buy it, because fords do love their gas. The other thing with mini-vans over cars is that the mini van has a higher center of gravity and is easier to roll than a car because of that. Being a truck lover, if your looking for that feeling of extra safety from a bigger vehicle, I'd stick with the 1/2 ton (my farm side is showing). Oh yeah, is your 1/2 ton a standard or automatic? Shifting would be fun if its a standard and theres a car seat in the center (especially the biggest of them all!) Just out of curiosity, I haven't had any harnessed seats in my truck, and don't plan on it for a few years, but where did they put the tether bolt in the standard cab, and if it's behind the seat, how do you find it is for access and getting a good tight install (and getting stuff out from behind the seat when the husky (or any other seat) is installed)?
 

scatterbunny

New member
No tether in the truck yet, but Hayley's still light enough that I can do the recline bar/lapbelt-only/no tether for now. Not that I LIKE it that way, but she's too tall for the Futura in the truck (still even with the top slots when it was installed in the van). It's an automatic.

The only way we'd get another truck is if it was a crew cab, and I really don't want another truck anyway--we need something with better gas mileage. Which is why I'll probably go with a Taurus, even though I'll feel sooo unsafe in a car after being in a van for almost two years. :rolleyes:

Thanks for the congrats, Amy. I'm STILL on cloud 9 because of it! :p
 

amy919

New member
Congratulations, Miss Tech!

When we bought my Freestyle, the car salesman made me test drive a Windstar. I'm one of those people who swears that they will never drive a minivan. He kept telling me to face the facts since my list of requirements for the Freestyle were all standard minivan features and we were having a really hard time finding the exact model I wanted.

That said, I did test drive a fully loaded, (and dirt cheap) Windstar. It was black on black with the dark tinted windows, navigation system, 6 disc CD changer, entertainment package, leather interior, etc. It was gorgeous and it drove like a dream. I loved driving it, it was less than 1/2 the price of my Freestyle and for a while, I really wanted it. I loved it from the inside, but when I got, I remembered it was a minivan and I just couldn't do it.

But truthfully, I did love the van and there's a part of me that every now and then wishes I would have just bought it. I think I would have loved it and gotten over the anti-minivan feelings.

I'd seriously look into it. It would be hard for me to give up all the space you're used to.

Good luck car shopping and congrats on seling your van so quickly!

Amy
 

Victorious4

Senior Community Member
I like the Taurus, especially for the Husky + other passengers, but Toyota seems to fair better in the long run.... I'm dying to pay off enough on my Freestar to sell it & can't bring myself to recommend the Windstar because of that (although I do prefer Windstar/Freestar to Caravan for the Switchable/ALR) *CONGRATS!*
 

AdventureMom

Senior Community Member
Hey, congrats! That's awesome... :D

I'd say go with what you *enjoy* driving/being in. We talked ourselves into the Outback b/c we couldn't justify a minivan. Well, you know how that turned out! So just go with your gut feeling rather than trying to reason through it :)
 

Cindy&Connor

New member
I have a 2003 Taurus and I love it. My mom had a 1989 Taurus and she sold it to someone she knows and it's still running. I'm pretty sure it has over 200,000 miles on it. I think it's a great car. Good luck with your decision.
 

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