The GMC astro safari

[harley munky]

hey guys just looking for abit of info.
im looking to buy a day van that is wider than the normal van. been looking at the GMC astro safari, its big its wide and comes in a nice spec having electric seats and mood lights ect.
i dont know anything about them and was hoping someone could let me know if there tidy enough to own. do they have many faults ect.

thanks in advance

tony

[G0HWC]

Hi Tony,

I have a Astro van. not had it too long but so far no problems
apart from a faulty gearbox that the seller did not tell me about.
There is a Astro Safari forum that has given me and many others
loads of help http://www.astrosafari.co.uk/forums/default.aspx

Take a look at my van and what I have been doing with it:

http://www.g0hwc.com/chevy_astro.html
and the work im doing to the inside of it:
http://www.g0hwc.com/chevy_astro_build.html

I am in Clacton on Sea, Essex if you ever get this way
you are welcome to have a look

Paul
http://www.truckcam.tv

[harley munky]

hey paul, vans looking good. what was the gearbox trouble? was it automatic or manual? im loookin at a 1996 model

[Fieldy86]

I have owned an Astro, and here is some of the info I was given by a mate who had a few previous.
It's up to you what info you believe, but his info certainly helped me:-

He advised me to go for the slightly later, rounder, dial dash. If the van has this dash, it will have the 4.3 V6 Vortec engine. Not only is that particular engine extremely reliable, but parts are plentiful as the engine was shared across many platforms of vehicle:-

1985–2005 Chevrolet Astro/GMC Safari
1991–1993 GMC Syclone/GMC Typhoon
1988–1995 Chevrolet Blazer/GMC Jimmy
2001–2002 Chevrolet Express/GMC Savana
1988–2003 Chevrolet S-10/GMC S-15
1994–2001 Oldsmobile Bravada
1985–2001 Chevrolet C/K


The Astros suffer from st dials on the dash generally. Be prepared to have 1/2 a tank of fuel when braking, and a full tank when accelerating lol.

They are wallowy, but nice to drive. Mine got me every where last year in the snow. My wife loved it.

The leather seems to hold value far better, but I purposely went for the cloth as the bed felt better to lie on for my kids.

Anyway, I haven't owned loads so am no expert, but that is my experience.

Edited by Fieldy86 on Thursday 22 September 09:56

[harley munky]

cool thanks for that. im looking at a 1996 model going for £2500

[LeighW]

I've got a 96 Safari, it's been great in the two and a half years I've had it. £2500 is pretty cheap for a 96, if it's a decent van.

As posted above, there's loads of info over on astrosafari.co.uk , including a buyers guide, link here:

http://www.astrosafari.co.uk/forums/tm.aspx?m=8812

Just don't expect it to be great on fuel or handle like a Lotus. I did 1150 miles in a week last month, camping up in Scotland, it never missed a beat. It burnt £350 of petrol, but then it is a 4.3 litre van weighing over 2.5 tonnes...

[harley munky]

what are they like on insurance?

[Fieldy86]

Insurance should be cheap, I never paid more than £300 for me & my wife and that was before I was 25! This year, I turned 25 and it's gone even cheaper.

[LeighW]

harley munky said:

what are they like on insurance?

Pretty cheap. Mine's insured as a second vehicle, 3000 miles, I paid £195 last time.

Edit to add that insurance is much cheaper if it's not your main vehicle.

[OLDS]

Very durable vans. The 4.3 (a Chevy 350 with two less cylinders) are extremely dependable.

Watch for rust where the front fenders bolt to the ruber/plastic, front lower.

[harley munky]

whats the mpg like on motorway?

[LeighW]

harley munky said:

whats the mpg like on motorway?

Mid 20s if you stay below 70mph. Cruise set at 85, I get about 20-21mpg. Anyone who tells you that they'll do 30 (and I've seen a few adverts that claim this), is either a liar or bad at maths. There are a few vans about with lpg conversions, could be worth seeking one of those out if mpg is a concern? You would get the equivalent of about 35mpg cost-wise using gas.

[harley munky]

thanks for that, mpg isnt a big problem as iv always had jap inports (fto's mainly) and i used to get low to mid 20's mpg anyway so thats ok. i was expecting less tbh.

[Fieldy86]

I, genuinely, got about 30MPG on my many runs from Kent to Devon going via M25, M4, M5.

However, I never set my speedo above 60, probably more 55 as I was never in a rush.

[minniewinnie]

Hi I use my van daily and do approx 200 - 250 miles a week and I put approx £60 weekly but it all depends on how I drive it TBH BUT then my last yank motor was a Cadillac Eldorado which was costing me in excess £100 a week to run but I do miss it

I did a run to my brothers place in Cornwall last year which is around 300 ish miles to get there and I used £70 in fuel and £70 To get back LOL so on that working It cost £140 for 600 ish miles so I can live with it.

Part wise I import the majority of my parts from Rock autos but it does pay to check with the uk suppliers as well as the brake pads and shoes were cheaper from the uk but the service kit was a dam sight cheaper from the usa and quicker most of the time. Have just ordered a new belt and Belt Tensioner for my van and including shipping was cheaper than just the Belt Tensioner price from a uk supplier.

you can do a lot of cosmetic modifications to these vans as well and parts are big in Japan...

I still love my van and it pulls like a train and I only get beat from the lights buy the serious stuff up to the speed limit for the road

[irocfan]

WOW!! lurking jsut over 2 years - 1st post on a year and a half old thread!!! Kudos!! lol

[philoldsmobile]

my astro LT passenger van was one of the best vehicles I ever owned - smooth, quiet and extremely reliable. It had just over 210,000 miles and never missed a beat.

Look out for tranny problems (very common) and fuel gauge problems are very common requiring the sender in the tank to be replaced. either live with it or budget a decent amount to replace. I personally would avoid the 4x4 - its no real off roader in standard form, and is a lot less smooth and thirstier.

Buy a good one though, and its a decent enough piece of kit. I prefer the passenger vans to day vans, you get one more person in them, the seats can be removed to make a useful van and they are a bit less poncey. Quicker, better to drive and more economical too, due to lighter weight.

[Captain Cadillac]

If the idler and pitman arms for the steering haven't been replaced with Moog parts then they will need to be.

One caveat, and I could be wrong but I seem to remember that the Astro got horrible crash test ratings back when they were new, so that's something to consider.

[LeighW]

Captain Cadillac said:

One caveat, and I could be wrong but I seem to remember that the Astro got horrible crash test ratings back when they were new, so that's something to consider.

Nah, they're absolutely fine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kuSghb7P7U



All the more reason not to hit anything.