Posted by Chris Lube Lublin on Monday, August 11, 2003 at 1:21AM :
Howdy! Got a New Mopar today. As you all know I have a small boneyard going outback of my place. Unfortunatly, it is primarily Ford.... Well anyhow a couple weeks back a neighbor asked me if I had a good running 400M engine for his truck. I said yea, I got one. I told him $100 and he pull (Heck the 351M and 400M are pretty much useless anyhow, and I NEVER sell either one, I normally have to scrap em, even good runners because they dont sell...) Well he asked me if I'd be interested in a '83 Dodge Maxi Van that ran and drove but had some rust and needed some TLC, I asked him when he can bring it over! Well Today I fired up the 400 for him and he likes it, so he brought van and title over. Well It tuns out, the van is a 1983 Plymouth Voyager (yes Dodge made full size vans under Plymouth name for a while) It is a PB300 Maxi-Van. It runs pretty good with a 360 and Thermo-quad 4bbl and automatic. It is a window van with the seats missing (saved me from having to pull them..Cool!) THe engine is healty, but needs a tune up and oil change and the choke dont work right...No Biggie. The 727 has that typical cold 'lag' like all older 727s but it shifts good and dont slip. It has a bit of play in the steering and brakes are excellent. The body is rusty, but I have seen worse on a Dodge van. The undebody supports are solid...and the van has a good bonus! A reese hitch! I needed a work truck to replace the '92 F-250 for a while because it needs to be taken off the road for alot of repairs (needs brakes, tires, water pump, getting a Dana 60 up front etc) So this van is an answer to prayer. I was getting worried for a bit, as I needed a suitable replacement for a while.
I have never had a maxi van. Seeing the way the extra 3 feet on the back are, is this setup sturdy to tow a heavy load?, you know, like a 6000 LB Power Wagon on a 2500 LB trailer? What are some quirks to watch out for on Maxi vans besides the roof noise?
Heck if this van works out, I might just put that Dana 60 front in it, and put in a NP435 and a 205 and dump that flippin' Ford off. Gonna love using it to haul those Ford parts off to the scrap yard in it!
Glad to be back in a MOPAR!
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