Short story:
It's a 1996 Ford E-350 12-passenger with just a few miles on it. A little more than we need, but lots of people and/or cargo space. Well maintained, and in great shape for its age.
Long story:
We had decided that if we had to get a new vehicle anyway, it would be nice if it would hold our whole family (7 as of this coming November) plus at least one more in case we needed to take a friend with us. It's amazing how many 8 passenger vehicles there are not. Lots of them are Toyotas and Hondas, which, while wonderfully reliable, are out of our price range--way out! (Sorry, Cripple Chicken.) Anyway, after lots of looking, we realized we were to big vans or SUVs. Ben has very fond memories of the Ford van they had growing up. We also realized that most Ford vans available are conversion vans--with the oh-so-coveted captains chairs that reduce seating from 8 to 7! I'd rather have another Dodge Caravan. We also found a lot of 15-passenger vans, which would be just a little much. We found an awesome Diesel 15-passenger Ford van for only $4,000--not including the minimum $1,000 required to bring the interior to a state in which we would feel like we could put our children in it. We decided 12-passenger would be ideal--plenty of room for people, and we could even remove the back seat for tons of cargo space if necessary and still have room for our family. They also tow just about anything.
We found this van a week ago, and after much contemplating and prayer decided it was right for us. It's not new--it's 1996! The interior, exterior, and working parts are all in fabulous condition for its age and mileage. Is it perfect? No. Would I rather have a newer car? Sure--but I don't want the payments. We plan to fix up (if we can cheap) the Chrysler and the Vanagon. We will save up, and hopefully by the time the Green Beast dies, we will be able to afford something a little newer and nicer the next time around.
I love the power the engine has, and the kids love the space. They can practically each have their own bench at this point! I also love the color. So, thanks to the great family who sold it to us (my dad has heard stories about piling everyone into this thing for football games--he went to high school with the original owner). Here's hoping we get a lot more miles out of this baby!
1 comment:
It looks great! We had a big van like that when I was a kid and I loved it. I have good memories of it. So here's to many happy upcoming memories for you and your family for years to come!
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