Oh My God…. That was the first thing out of my mouth when I saw this listing on Craigslist. This is one of those plastic GM Minivans from the late 90’s that has been modified… and it’s a perfect entry for a team looking to enter one of the 24-Hours-of-LeMons events. Wait… What?
Think of it, this is a GM Minivan that either had the 3.1L V-6, or the 3.8L Buick V-6, both of which are almost bullet-proof as far as being abused as still coming back for more abuse. The Transmission on the other-hand might need a little care as the lockup feature isn’t working (Though that may be a good thing). All you really need to do is construct a roll cage (much easier since there is no top), and do a little backyard engineering (something I still haven’t mastered by the way), and voila, you have a distinctive race car err van heap. If you can last more than 1/2 the race, it will be an instant IOE contender.
According to the listing:
Up for sale is the best One-off custom Van ever. Its a 1995 Chevrolet Lumina Van that some friends and I converted into a 6-passenger convertible cruiser. It has a V6 and automatic transmission. It is street legal and has a current Mo state inspection. The V6 has high miles but runs strong and starts every time. The auto transmission shifts well although the torque converter doesn’t lock up. This in no way effects the driving and the van cruises great at 70 mph. This van is a real crowd pleaser and gets looks and questions everywhere you go. The best part is that, unlike a regular convertible, all of your friends can ride along! All four rear seats are individually removable and can be latched in backwards, making this a great tail gating vehicle. It has some excellent matching sport buckets in the front which are very comfortable. Another nice thing is that due to the Lumina Vans’ unique shape with the front windows up there is hardly any wind buffeting in the front two seats. The sliding door does still work with some assistance and the rear is setup to have bottom hinges, I just never got around to it. The outside door handles on the front dont work, but dont worry, it’s impossible to lock yourself out! The van has been lowered about two inches and looks Great!! It comes with the 16″ aluminum wheels shown in the bottom right picture. The tires are in good shape.
Asking price for this incredible piece-o-crap is $600. Even if you don’t get to lower the price, simply sell off the extra seats, and you come under the limit. Need a theme? Try painting it as a “Dustbuster” with the dust collector missing. It would be great to install a fan blowing “dust” out the back, but only during Judging…. See the Craigslist ad here.
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