I'm in a need of a vehicle for my upholstery. My first choice is one the new ford transit connect vans. They're too expensive for me right now. I'm looking for something easy to load, gets 25+ mpg. What's everyone driving?
Thanks
We use a 2013 GMC van. Extra long and can fit lots of furniture in it. I bought it used a couple of years ago. It's a good van. I have other employees drive it and couldn't afford new and didn't want to anyway. Years ago I would buy new Chevys every 2 - 4 years for the write offs. I drove them for my personal vehicles also so I knew how it was treated.
I don't think anything beats a van for this kind of work. Mine is ford 250. If you need 4 wheel drive that's another consideration. My van is 15 years old and runs great. I have M+ S tires - the rear has slip differential - sliding side door - v 8 -
I had the chevy van before this one and wasn't as happy.
SA
2003 Ford E-150 with a v6. This is the first vehicle I bought new and couldn't be happier. We bought it at the end of the model year and got a great price. At 185k miles it still runs great. Original transmission shifts good and the engine runs smooth and doesn't leak oil. For big jobs we tow an 8' covered trailer. It'll also pull a pop-up camper in the mountains with little problem. If I ever buy another I would be tempted to get the v8. It gets 16 to 18 mpg. I'm not sure about gas mileage these days but it may be difficult finding a van that gets 25 mpg.
Thanks for the input. Luckily I have a uhaul guy right down the way that rents vans like those fords.
I've been driving a Honda Odyssey for about 5 years. 22-24 mpg around town, up to 32 on expressway.
The middle seats come out and the third row folds down into the floor.
When I bought it I brought it home, took out the seats, picked up a couple of sheets of 5/8" BCX plywood, next day I made some racks & drawers that fit behind the front seats and have accessibility on both side doors.
Prior to that, I had a 2003 E-150, smaller V8. I got 12-16 mpg. I decided to give it up when it needed tires and brakes, and I'd spent $4000 the prior year on fuel. I could carry a lot in it, but rarely needed all the space.
If you do a lot of driving, and occasionally need to haul multiples of large pieces, I'd opt for a more efficient vehicle and a cargo trailer.