Vannin' Home Forums General Discussion General Discussion Need advice

I didn't want to fill this thread with a bunch of images, so here's an album of them all. https://imgur.com/a/znbvrY5

Need some advice of what to do with this van. When I got it the thing looked nice but had a dent, a rust hole and some scratches and rust spots, and it needed a bunch of work. I've done a bunch of stuff to it, some things i regret, runs great and A/C works well. I'm not entirely happy with it though, just doesn't look great, and has misc. problems. The paint is pretty crap, bunch of scratches and rust spots, and it has body damage. The front grille is tore up along with the bumper. The big side windows have rtv or whatever around them, along with the windshield, my "smart" idea of sealing them sounded like it'd work well but it ended up making my van look very tacky. Antenna doesnt work anymore, rear door power lock no longer works, and it's sitting on a spare. The plastic bezels around the lock and window switches are falling apart, the doghouse cover is barely hanging on. And oh boy does the thing leak, the windshield leaks, the pop outs leak, the backdoor leaks, 2 of the big windows no longer leak because I've resealed them, need to do it again to the 3rd one. I love this van but I feel like I have bit off a bit more than i can chew, I don't have the know how or the money to prep her up. I don't know if I should just give up and sell it to someone that'll make a nice van out of it and buy some other car that would look nice. Advice would be appreciated

Reading this back over its a bit of a mess, but hopefully yall get me.

My advice would be to sell it.
I just did something similar with an old sports car that I had.
It started having several issues that I was getting less and less interested in fixing until finally the fuel pump failed.
There was no way I was doing a fuel pump on that car, as the job was just too big for the payoff.
As much as I loved driving it, I can't tell you how happy I was to see a stranger trailer it away.

My other advice would be to act quickly with whatever you decide.
I waited 2 years to finally sell that little car, so I was just wasting my space (and sanity) all that time.

I've been in your boat a few times. Sounds like you aren't into the van that much, so why keep it around? Somebody out there will take it off your hands (eventually).

Been there done that, i agree with Rusty, your probably never going to fix it up to the point that you enjoy driving it, and it you did it would cost way more than its worth, better off dumping it now, then down the road if you really want one get one that is nice that you can enjoy, out here in california you can find one with zero rust for less than it would cost to fix yours

A 95 Chevy is rusted thru ? I have older than that with NO rust. Salt suks ...

The van is pretty sweet, I enjoy driving it. I've never had any lack of motivation about doing anything to it, if there was something wrong or something that had to be done, I hopped right on it, even done some more modern changes to the accessories. It's just all about money, the parts cost money, a paint job that is nice and will last costs quite a bit too. I picked the thing up for 400 and put around maybe 800 into it already, so I'm not in more than it's worth yet, at least I don't think I am. The little things here in there start to bother me, and I'm always seeing these sweet vans on the road and from many members of the site, makes me quite jealous lol. And I can't get rid of it, it's my daily driver, and I'm 16 currently. Just trying to figure out the plans for it currently. Thanks.
Also frscke, the rust is odd, I have all of the original paperwork and manuals, bought from a dealership in Houston Texas, and landed in Oklahoma. Roads aren't salted very often around here, I believe it's been sitting maybe 3-5 years, maybe that's why..

Remember at your age this will probably hurt,but take baby steps,focus on one single part at a time see it through. If you focus on the whole thing frustration sets in and bam you will give up...start small and you will have a great sense of accomplishment..that applies to body work and mechanical..Keep on Vanning..this coming from an ex vocational teacher and a dad.if you are into the van wow what a project,you could sell it and find a solid roller or with bad transmission this is way easier than sheet metal work.

Well, you've got $1200 into it, and that's probably twice what it's worth (these old conversion vans just don't have much resale value), and with the rust, water leakage, and body damage, it's just a "daily-driver puddle-jumper" until the day it doesn't run. It may be a harsh realization, but enjoy what you can of it for awhile, don't sink anymore money into it, and drive it 'til it drops … then straight to the salvage yard. You are a rare 16-year-old who would even think of owning an old CV, but keep saving your money and then trade up to one that's in much better condition, because like I said, you can find a much nicer van for not a whole lot more money, and you would be better off starting with a van with "better bones".


For example:
https://www.carfax.com/vehicle/1GBFG15R811119658?sourceSiteId=3&partner=CTO_C

Will certainly have to think about it. Maybe I'm getting ahead of my self with vanning, may give it up all together. Thanks for the insight from you all, the decision is still a bit away.