REAR SEATS - these are removable, which makes the cargo area huge. TRUCK - It rides like a truck. I like that. My wife doesn't. VISIBILITY - You sit up much higher than other minivans, which allows for a fantastic view of the traffic ahead.

ACCESS - This thing needs a dang driver's-side rear door. I struggle to put my 3 boys in their car seats. CHEAP FINISH - I know this is not a Mercedes, but things keep falling apart inside. Plastic fittings, plastic seat belt protectors, plastic seat moldings, they are all falling apart, because plastic can only be kicked so many times by boots as you are entering/exiting the vehicle. LEGROOM - I am over six feet tall, and my legs ache whenever we travel for longer than half an hour. GAS MILEAGE - Even when I baby this van along, the best mileage I can get is 14mpg. When I don't baby it, the worst mileage I got was 10mpg. Either way, that's pretty horrible...and expensive.

I like our Astro Van. I have 3 boys (all still in car seats), and it has been a very good and reliable utilitarian vehicle for our family. We have a had a few minor problems, but overall we are happy. We regularly have preventative maint. performed, so I suppose that helps. While I like the vehicle, it certainly has some drawbacks that I will list. I guess what I am saying is that I know this is a minivan. If I wanted better acceleration, better gas mileage, or the ability to carry a sheet of lumber, I would have bought something else.

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Dodge Caravan

4.3L V6 is plenty strong,even for an extension van.Plenty of room for everyone.Good look and feel about it.

Suspension problems out the ying-yang.AWD not all that empressive and the cost for the parts on the drivetrain are compared to a two week vacation in Hawaii.

I've had it about three years now and love it.It has more than enough room(8 passengers)and the back two seats come out to convert into a work van if needed.It has 116,800 miles on it.Sometimes it has a puff of smoke on start up.I will probably need to replace the valve seals.The idle arms and the pitman arm are already worn out.The front differential for the AWD is also bad.I don't know if it's a factory weakness(the front suspension and drive train)or if it's the age of the van or the road conditions etc.. I would still buy another one.I probably would'nt get another one with AWD.The parts are very expensive for the front drivetrain and hard to find.

The 4.3 engine is rock solid dependable and if you take care of it properly you may never wear it out. The transmission works as good as it always has. Original exhaust system from stem to stern is pretty incredible. ( aluminized exhaust) General motors doesnt believe in grease fittings on the u-joints but there original too.

Although it looked great new the qaulity of the paint is substandard which I think is an industry wide problem at least for the domestic models. They did away with the short (original) version of the van which cost them my buisness

I was really impressed with the looks of the Astro van when they came out in 1985 and four years later I bought a new 1989 Astro cargo van. Ive been driving it ever since. It was a real plane jane model so I put the upgrade aluminum wheels on it and the upgrade bucket seats which are really comfortable. This has been the most dependable vehicle I have ever owned. I have 248000 miles on it and it just past the much more stringent emissions inspection. I still have the origanal exhaust system and the original transmission which has never given me any problems at all. I have used Mobil1 synthetic oil, transmission fluid, differential fluid and grease which I think has really helped in the longevity department. I have taken cross country trips at speeds of 75 to 85 mph all day long without a whimper from the drive train. I did have a head gasket start leaking at 238000 miles which I got fixed and while the heads were off they replaced the valve guide seals which cured the blue puffs of smoke on startup. I have always gotten the advertised gas mileage and then some. Cosmetically the van is showing its age but that engine still runs as good as it ever has so this now being my work truck I believe it will last until I retire.

This is a truck not a van like dodge. The ride is good for a truck because of the great seats. It is powerful, attractive, and has great utility. So far, the good outweighs the bad. Would buy another onme.

Fuel milage is embarassing on the AWD. The EGR-VALVE malady. Car tires instead of LT-tires. No rear stabilzer bar. DUTCH DOORS are handy but, FLIMSY. Not up to FISHER BODY standards or mine.

This is overall a very good vehicle. It does have some quality control problems. The door handles are POT METAL, the Idler ARMS are low quality and the the shocks. The factory needs to put rear sway bars on ALL of them. Performance complaint; GM refuses to improve the EGR-VALVE on these vans. That causes them to die out at high loads causing the transmission to downshift abruptly. This is hard on them and causes them to fail. The disk rotors are too small for the load these TRUCKS can carry. The ABS is dangerous giving very limited stopping power unless you are KING KONG.

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Have not owned but have driven the CHRYSLER PRODUCTS. They are cars and not in the same class at all.

Room for all my wife's artwork and setup and canopys. You sit up high. Fair amount of power. Reliable engine.

Door handles, front leg room, handles like a truck because it is. Needs a V8 option.

In 1992 we bought the 1986 Astro Van with about 65,000 miles on it. At 99,000 some jerk left the oil filter loose and killed the engine. Company paid for a new factory engine. Selling vehicle tomorrow with 212,000 miles on the orginal transmission. I have used Mobil 1 since getting the new engine and change my trans fluid every 30k. I loved this van so much, yesterday bought a new 2003 LS model. Hope to make it last just like to last one.

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Own a transmission shop so I drive a whole lot of vehicles. Most drive better than the Astro, but none can haul as much.

1) lots of room..... important if you're always on the road, or drive alot of people around.... 2) good gas mileage 3) very reliable 4) low end maintenance. 5) if you're a music fanatic..... lots of options to get the "boomin' system" in your ride!!!!!!

transmission needs to be refined/revised..... could afford to lose some of its "weird" riding noises...... electrical systems could be tweeked.

This is my third van. the first two were both GMC Safari vans (an 89, and a 93 EXT model). the 89 i sold to my cousin, who then sold it to a girlfriend of his, & she's still driving it with over 200,000 miles on it. the second i traded with a friend, for the one i'm driving now. I'm an enthused astro van owner, and wouldn't trade it for anything. It has lots of room, relatively low maintenance done, and is a good overall vehicle. i do have a couple of complaint's however....... first off, there are transmission concerns, as i have had to change 1 for each van I've owned except the most recent one. like other people, i also feel the front passenger legroom leaves alot to be desired. another interested fact is that with all three vans, after a cold start, they all smoke for a couple of seconds then clear up. i've come to find out, also, that the base model vans are alot easier to deal with than loaded models. my first 93' was loaded and i dealt with various electrical problems ( driver window motor failing... front & rear a/c not working.... non-functioning power dorr lock, etc.). i've noticed some people complaining about gas mileage, and offer a little insight..... if you own a van with a towing package, your rear end gearing ratio is going to be different from a regular van, therefore slightly changing your gas mileage, so take into consideration when you purchase a van. all in all though, i recommend this vehicle to anyone who is seeking a mini-van, they're plenty out there, but there's only one astro van!!!!!!!

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1989 & 1993 gmc safari vans. both real good rides. 1995 ford windstar- my mom's van. runs pretty good, but is actually a car with bigger windows!!!

Beware - My Chevy Astro has a problem with the transmission practically since the year I bought it. When the car got hot, driving on the freeway for more than 1/2 hour with 80+ degrees of weather started the problem, the car went into a mode of very hard shifting, enough to set off the "Check Engine Light". I took it under warranty to Glendora Chevrolet, who looked at the van. The mechanic, around summer 1997, said that he had seen it before, and said "don't be concerned", as he would drill a hole into a part to release pressure in the system. This seemed to make the problem better and he said that I could bring it back at any time, as this was covered under the warranty and they would stand behind this issue, regardless of the warranty, as it was a maunfacturer's flaw in the design. He also told me that the hard shifting, which did continue on hot days, would not harm the van. In 2003, I took the car in because the problem got bad enough again to setoff the "Check Engine Light". I took it back, as the menchanics in 1997 told me they would note the issues on their computers. GLENDORA CHEVROLET FAILED TO HONOR THEIR WORD ON THIS ISSUE. NOT ONLY DID THEY DENY ANY RECORD OF THE PRIOR ISSUES, THEY CHARGED ME $72 JUST TO LOOK AT IT.

Great for families, but beware of the transmission, as they really are not well designed and Glendora Chevrolet did not stand behind their repair work.

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aely, I loved and still like my van. Just be aware that GLENDORA CHEVROLET did not honor this issue, and they had the nerve to tell me it wasn't a big deal in 1997, now the same problem, off of the wa

First of all, I love this van's torque. I don't do less than 80Mph commuting to/from work every day and this thing absolutely flies (for a van of course!) I don't have a clue what gas mileage I get, I burn about 1/4 tank a day (I'm assuming from going so damn fast!) I'm thinking about installing a Gibson exhaust (I like that deep powerful sound and wouldn't mind a couple extra horses and possibly better gas mileage). I've got 64K miles on it now, and expect to put at least another 64K on it with no problem. I don't do any towing, although there was a U-Haul installed hitch on it when I got it, I'm actually thinking about having that removed--sometimes it scrapes when coming off a sidewalk ramp (NY streets are horrible!)

I've recently noticed the oil guage is shaky around 20psi while idling, and goes up to a little past 40psi while driving--was told this is also common Astro/GM thing. Also recently noticed it pulls to the left--on most roads, sometimes it drives on a razor sharp straight line. (go figure). I changed the factory cassette stereo and speakers--they're crap. I'm not even gonna complain about that because I prefer aftermarket stereos anyway. I would say the biggest weakness would be the front brakes, the rotors warp too quickly/easily. Also I did notice the wear on the outer edge of the front tires (I upgraded my wheels & tires to 17") so I have to spend $120 for a tire.

My dad bought this van for me Jan 2000 with 32,000 miles. We also got a 3 year/60,000 mile extended warranty (STRONGLY SUGGEST). I'm a DJ and needed the space to transport my stuff. I've made every effort to keep it well maintained, and I've had my share of Astro/GM headaches. First, let's start with the idler arm issue. Upon taking the van for it's first inspection, the guy tells me the idler arms were bad and needed to be replaced. It was one of those situations where if I decided not to fix it, I would still have to pay for the inspection, and on top of that, it would have failed so I would have to take it somewhere else and pay to have it inspected again and maybe end up in the same situation. I wasn't sure if I was being jerked, and had no one to consult, so I said 'What the hey?', after all I didn't pay for the van so I might as well shell out the $300 to have the idler arms replaced. I'VE HAD TO REPLACE THE ARMS 2 TIMES SINCE. The last time my mechanic suggested I put on MOOG idler & controller arms, he informed me that this is a common Astro problem and he has seen lots of them come in and out of the shop suffering with this issue. He claimed that MOOG was the best, and my idler & controller arm problems will be solved because they will last much longer--I SURE HOPE SO!!! (I'm glad I came across that other post from the alignment tech that also recommended MOOG, very comforting!) Now to the list of other issues I've had (all covered by the warranty). My differential was making a howling noise, took it to the dealer and they determined it needed new bearings and all that good stuff. Yes I've also experienced the driver's side power window motor not winding up--had that changed twice. Winshield wiper motor--changed. Alternator--chaged. Daytime running light indicator had a short--fixed. Headlight lens had condensation--changed. The check engine light was on when I test drove it, they changed the oxygen sensor, and shorty after I bought it the fuel guage wasn't reading correctly--had that changed as well. Also suffered brake headaches, the shoes used to lock up on the drum, the rotors warp after about a year--maybe less.

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This is my first vehicle, the only other van I've driven is a U-Haul and wasn't really conscious of it's performance.

big engine that accelerates quickly

big engine uses lots of gas. Poor workmanship and quality. Should be taken off of market now. Safety issues that may kill passengers. There is a reason they are being given away at dealerships.

I purchased this van in 2001 with 14,000. miles on it. It was loaded and the kelly blue book was close to 20,000 so the price of 16,900 was a deal. At first it was great. AT 17,000 the oxygen sensors went out in a torrential rain storm on a busy street. I was told when I brought it in that I was running on 2 cylinders. I barely got it in to the service dept. At 19,000 I noticed something corrosive leaking out of the van. The battery had burst. At 26,900 I replaced the 70,000 mile "tiger paw" tires that came on van. At thirty thousand I was floored by the scheduled maitience cost of 450.00. At 50,000 thousand my drivers side window started failing to go up. At 52,000 the rear windshield wiper stopped working, and a seat belt broke off in my ten year old sons hand when he tried to connect it. At 55,000 my tires needed to be replaced despite regular rotations and alignments. And last but not least.... MY entire back end blew out with my three kids in the van. Had we not taken a detour we would have been on the interstate and killed since the van came to a halt. Fortunately we were in a neighborhood where traffic is low. Thank god for the extended warranty I had the good common sense to purchase. I will be trading this peice of junk in once It is returned. DO not buy this van at all. If you are considering it and reading this website look at mazda mpvs or vw's much better track record.

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none first van last chevy

Good power, I get decent gas mileage, looks good, fits all six of my huge kids.

Poor leg room on passenger side, weak brakes, poor shocks in rear, needs beefier suspension in front, eats tires

I thoroughly enjoy driving this van. It looks and handles great. Had the whistle from the front, but that was cured by vent visors. I also have the rear end clunk, which was minimized after I had to replace the pinion bearings. It does shift hard between first and second, as did our Chevy truck. The worst problem we are having is brakes. I am having the rotors replaced at 44,ooo miles and I am not happy! We have only replaced the pads once, and I feel that we should have been able to resurface the rotors at least one more time before replacing them. The rotors seem to be too small for this vehical. We also need new shocks and are going to get beefier shocks.

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1993 Dodge Caravan- hated! too small, ate trannies for lunch