By Momofsix on 07/25/09 12:34 PM (PDT)
Vehicle
1997 Ford E-150 Van Chateau Club Wagon 3dr Van
Review
This has been our best vehicle. We have owned it for 12 years now hauling lots of kids, drywalling, etc. We have quad seating and added a 2nd bench so that we can carry 10-11 people. This van worked great for vacations-lots of room. I have loved sitting up high and used it to teach my children to drive! We do tend to go through brake pads every 30K. The air still runs cold! No major repairs! Only had to replace the idle arm, battery and tires. I will be sad when we replace the "Vanmobile".
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By MIllers on 01/18/08 17:30 PM (PST)
Vehicle
1997 Ford E-150 Van Chateau Club Wagon 3dr Van
Review
This was the worst vehicle we have ever owned!! We put $6,000 in repairs in it during the 2 years that we owned it. We finally ended up junking it and are still paying for the repairs we did. We hated this van so much that we are very leary of buying a Ford ever again. The repairs we did were timing belt cover seal, alternator, new engine, catalytic coverter (final straw) It let us down on vacation the first summer that we owned it. It was just a terrible, terrible experience!!!
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By Bill I. on 03/15/07 19:12 PM (PDT)
Vehicle
1997 Ford E-150 Van XLT Club Wagon 3dr Van
Review
This vehicle provided many reliable years of service and was our workhorse. Was better than I expected. Would recommend it to anyone. Mileage was better than expected.
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By rooddog on 02/02/06 14:35 PM (PST)
Vehicle
1997 Ford E-150 Van XL Club Wagon 3dr Van
Review
We were looking for a van 3 years ago to replace our Dodge Caravan. I wanted a truck but we had to settle on one vehicle and this was it. Since then we have (a) hauled kids (b) hauled materials, including 4x8 sheets of drywall inside (c) done a lot of camping. This van works good for all aspects. This has been reliable and taken us everywhere we needed to go. The 4.8 V8 works fine, but if you can find one with a 5.3 V8 you'll be happier with the power and the gas mileage will be the same. The V6 is underpowered, even if you are only hauling people, and it gets the same mileage! Repair costs can be above average but the frequency of repairs has been the least of all our vehicles.
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By New Covenant Windows on 09/20/05 15:25 PM (PDT)
Vehicle
1997 Ford E-150 Van XL Club Wagon 3dr Van
Review
Our 1997 Club Wagon 4.2L V6 has 206,500 miles and we still use it frequently for our family. We bought the van when it was a year old and since then have only had a few major repairs -- like a transmission tailshaft seal, alternator replacement and some sporadic brake problems. The motor runs well and has decent power for a V6, but it isn't getting the best economy anymore -- about 16 mpg. It still has the original 4r-70W 4 speed automatic transmission. It slips a little in reverse and shudders at stops once in a while but otherwise no major problems. The brakes aren't the best, we tend to go through front pads frequently (every 30K or so).
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By JACKMI on 10/27/03 00:00 AM (PST)
Vehicle
1997 Ford E-150 Van XLT Club Wagon 3dr Van
Review
We have used the vehicle primarily
for family vacations, which involve
camping, skiing, kayaking, and
hiking. We did get the non-slip
differential which was very helpful in
winter conditions. The fuel "economy'
leaves something to be desired. For
the size it handles quite well on the
highway and is fairly quiet. We have
had on cylinder head replaced, but
we do drive the 5.4L hard and do
tend to load the vehicle down with
camping or skiing gear for as many
as 7.
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By aliston on 08/09/03 00:00 AM (PDT)
Vehicle
1997 Ford E-150 Van XLT Club Wagon 3dr Van
Review
Coolant leaks along with rebuilt engine
at 42,000(Yes,I did have the extended
warranty, it is a Ford!) Van is
slightly underpowered but works for
around town driving. Interior has
large cargo space and removalable seats
make it very flexable.
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By stillbuyinfordsfords on 06/22/03 00:00 AM (PDT)
Vehicle
1997 Ford E-150 Van Econoline 3dr Cargo Van
Review
Luckily I bought the 70000 mile
extended warranty. At 50000 miles the
transmission went out requiring a
complete rebuild. At 65000 miles the
engine leaked coolant into the
crankcase requiring a new
longblock.Most irritating was that the
radiator was replaced by Ford with a
faulty radiator which I drove 18000
miles in 8 months---Fords policy is 12
mo. or 12000---which means I had to Pay.
In one three month period the
dealership had the van longer than I
did!.I hope that this is indicative of
the newer vans--my 1990 has 200000 on
it and going strong.Warning! don't buy
the V6 standard engine---it's
absolutely gutless in every sense of
the word.
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By Colin459 on 05/28/03 00:00 AM (PDT)
Vehicle
1997 Ford E-150 Van Econoline 3dr Cargo Van
Review
This van was a very good work van with
the exception of the transmission. I
put 250,000 miles on this van but went
through 3 transmissions. I did do a lot
of stop and go driving though.
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By Helmut / New York on 09/16/02 00:00 AM (PDT)
Vehicle
1997 Ford E-150 Van XLT Club Wagon 3dr Van
Review
Bought this custom E 150 Van with
4.6/V8 to pull boat and move my family
around on longer trips.
Great vehicle with lots of space and
the TV/VCR keeps things quiet with the
offspring. Beats my SUV I had before
the Van.
Engine is strong enough and gas milage
is around 15-16 MPG on the highway.
Never had any mechanical problems and
winter tires make it driveable in the
snow. Would buy it again!
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