Chevy Venture Owners: Meet the Members

Karen_S

Please take a moment to introduce yourself and share some details about your Chevy Van!

My name is KarenS and I am the host of the Edmunds.com Owner's Clubs. Please let me know what discussions you would like to see in your Club folder. I will create them ASAP. You may want to take a look through the other clubs to get ideas for discussions.

Looking forward to meeting everyone!

KarenS
Host
Owner's Clubs

offham

Have been using Chevy Venture site since March 2000. Have 2000 LT 8 seater, dark blue via carorder.com. Live in NJ

topsea

I currently have a 2001 AWD Astro LT. I sell medical equipment and drive in the northwest between 50 and 60 thousand miles a year. I bought my current Astro in June and have almost 28,000 miles on it. This is my third Astro, my first being a '96. For what I do, I couldn't find a better vehicle.

catam

Hi, I own an 01 Venture LS ext w/ 8 pass seating. Bought it about 6 months ago used, but I followed these boards for a long time before I bought. Thanks all for your reviews and input.
I live in Salt Lake City, UT. I let you all know how the olympics go. I work right across the street from the stadium for opening and closing ceremonies.

aerofool

I just bought a 2002 AWD Astro. This is my second Astro, and I feel that "Bang for the Buck" they're hard to beat. I'm real happy with the 02, especially the ride. I do have one complaint though. I am having trouble with a carpet defect as you'll find in my postings in "Chevrolet Van Owners: Problems and Solutions", and also in the "Dealer and Service Experiences" discussions.

THANKS for the re-organization Karen.

broph

I own a '00 Venture in burgandy grey interior. Bought used day before Thanksgiving with 26K on it. So far so good put 1k miles on it so far, can't believe how it handles and the smoothness of the ride. Kids want a tv for it, we'll see.
I live in Watervliet, NY

minnbill

of Minnesota. Bought our Venture new in April 2000. Just the "Plus" model, with CD player and roof rack the only options, I believe. Coming up on 30,000 trouble free miles so far. Only problem was the power windows failed at about 18,000. Dealer repaired under warranty and gave me a free loaner while they waited (a Saturday to the following Monday) for the parts. Otherwise, just regular maintenance as per the owners manual. Have taken several 1000+ mile road trips in the Venture with our two small kids, and have enjoyed
driving the van, winter and summer. VERY smooth ride and good gas mileage on the hwy. Only complaint is the heater is slow to warm the interior on very cold (under 20 degrees) days and the fan seems noisy. Otherwise a good value for what we paid for it. It's a minivan, nothin' special.

sguedry

Hi from Louisiana.

Looks like I'm the only big van person. I have a 2000 Express with the now defunct Mark III conversion package. This is my second Express. Had a 1997 Mark III and traveled over 120K miles on it before getting my present 2000. I like the van overall. It's great to travel and haul kids. I will probably buy another (if they're still making them). I would like see some of the amemnities put in these vans that they have added to the minivan field--more safety, auto sliding doors, etc.

rikstr

Another big van person here....:) I have a loaded 2001, 3500, 8.1liter cargo van. So far I have 12k trouble free miles on her, bought it in Sept. 2001. I have heard a person or two say they have had problems with the 8.1 engine and just wondered if anyone had a report on that. I use this one for appliance repair and the power and acceleration, even loaded down as I have it, is unbelievable, rides great and is a dream for a service vehicle.

Karen_S

Last week, Edmunds rolled out new pricing pages. Along with this is a new "consumer ratings & reviews". This functionality lives in the "consumer opinions" area of the new vehicle detail page, and allows users to rate a vehicle on a number of different criteria (1 to 10 scale), as well as add his/her own free-form comments.

If you have some time, we would really appreciate Town Hall members writing a review of their current auto, or a favorite make/model. It takes approximately a week for your review to appear on that make/model.

If you have any questions, please let me know!

Thanks!

KarenS
Host
Owners Clubs

stonewall8

I have a '98 Astro and a '87 Astro. Both are 2WD. I bought the '87 with 37k mi on it and now have 155k. I have replaced the radiator, alternator, starter motor, EGR valve, fuel pump, throttle body gasket, fan control switch (3), water pump, shocks, rear brake pads (once), front disk pads (3 sets) and rotors, idler arms, exhaust pipes and muffler, serpentine belt (2), and 3 different door handles. Have done tune-ups every 50,000 miles and changed oil every 4000 miles. Changed plug wires at 100,000. Due for cap, rotor, and spark plugs before this winter. Van used to get 23 mpg on trips but now only gets 20 mpg with 55000 miles on spark plugs. Have never added trans fluid. Power door locks and windows have problems but basically work. Speedometer cable makes noise in winter. A/C has very slow leak and only hold charge for 6 mos.
My '98 was bought new and has been great until this month. I have a problem that makes the PCM put the trans into 'limp mode', which results in hard shifts from 1st to 2nd gear after 40 mins. of hwy. driving. I am trying to find what the real problem is and not be so quick to drop $1900 for a rebuilt trans. Other than that, the '98 has cost me $30 for a mirror we broke, an air filter, and oil changes. Very good for the year and a half since the warranty expired. There were only 5 warranty repairs in the first 3 years. The most serious was the defective headliner that came with the van. Van gets 20 mpg everyday and 23-24 mpg on trips over 100 miles. My brother spent $9000 more for a Sienna that is much smaller inside, sits lower to road, but has power leather seats and pop out cupholders in rear seats. Other than that we both have rear a/c, alloy wheels, CD and Cassette, rear lift, and power everything.

jdmorton

We've been a Venture van owner for 3 years now, and thought it about time I checked in. Not much activity on this particular board - I wonder if some Chevy Venture owners are too shy or a little too embarrassed to admit they own one? Of course, look how long it took me to add my 2 cents.

Well, we have over 42,000 miles on the van and not a whole lot to really "complain" about. We like it and will keep it around for a little longer. The last two Chevys we owned that we no longer do (we currently own 2 Cavaliers in addition to the van - a 2002 for our daughter at college and a 2003 for my commuting), we kept for 10 years/157,000 miles and 12 years/121,000 miles, respectively, so the van is still a pretty young pup;-).

lilblessing

We absolutely love our 99 LS Extended. Leased it new on 4/15/99, currently has 81,000 miles on it. Besides the few things we have broken, cup holder on seats my kids step on these all the time and the pull down strap on the hatch. We have done nothing to repair this car. I do add the coolant every 3,000 miles when I change the oil (every 2 months). I will miss the van when we turn it in in a year. I only hope that our Tahoe that we will be getting will perform as well.

john29

Found a 2004 Express 3500, I had wanted for a long time. It was in Ruidoso, NM. A 2004 with 6750 miles and a good price of $19,200.
I researched the model and found that they were only getting 11-13 MPG. This kinda turned me off cause I had a 90 dodge 3500 van and it got 18mpg.
   Ended up looking at astro/safari and found an almost new Safari and am now just getting my feet wet with it. So far, so good, getting 20-22 mpg. I realize this a chevy van club but you know...they are the same

jlgilman

Hi Karen,,
I have a 99 venture. I have had a new transmission put in. I have had a new motor put. I think the only thing that hasn't been changed is the muffler - go figure!!
I have recently come across an article on the web, backed up my a few links to government sites that claim that the courts in the US found GM at fault regarding excessive paint peeling. Apparently, the decision stated that it will hold GM responsible for no longer than the end of each respective van's 6th year. I am a victim of this problem, and made my claim, in writing with my GM dealer at about the 5 1/2 year point. GM has refused my claim, and now I have been left with not alternative but to take this to small claims court.
Has anyone else experienced this problem? If so, their experience would be greatly appreciated to know.
Thanks,
jlgilman

crackchecker

In need of a few body fixes anyway so I figured I'd have the whole van repainted anyway. On my van it's the clearcoat that is peeling off.

jwcolby

We bought the 2004 LS extended with 19k miles on it and love it. We bought a 100k 6 year after market extended warranty. Did the transmission flush and put in synthetic oil / synthetic transmission fluid.

We have put about 1500 miles on it so far. It is winter atm and we get about 17-19 mpg "around town" though we live 5 miles out of town so "around town" always involves getting there. We haven't taken any long trips yet but on the two 240 mile trips so far we got 24 mpg unloaded and 22 mpg loaded at 80mph. Not bad in my opinion.

Anyway, so far so good. Nice van, BIG inside. We owned a 97 Taurus (traded in for the Venture) which on trips was stuffed to the gills with 2 kids in carseats. With the Venture everything fits easily in the back with the 3rd row seats folded down.

arthur8

My new 2005 Astro Passenger RWD has a steering problem -- the turning diameter is wide, like 44 feet instead of 40.5 feet. The steering wheel only turns 1 and 1/4 turns from center. The front wheels do not go to the stops on the centering arms (they have almost an inch clearance hard over either direction). I have had it to 3 dealers 5 times, and they say either it is in specs or they have no specs or it goes to the stops or it is not supposed to go to the stops, etc. In other words "We wont fix it." My 2001 turned great, as did my Safari from 99.
Does ANYONE ELSE have this problem?

smedleys

Hi, I'm smedleys and am thinking of buying a 1999 Astro van and have some questions. Any help is appreciated. I do have specific questions about the AWD. Where do I go from here.

Smedleys

smedleys

I'm trying to find some info on this DTC code. CO310. The AWD light is on and none of the mechanics I've spoken with have been very helpful, so as alway I turn to the internet for help. If any of you guys/gals have had experience with this I would appreciate your feedback/help/support, etc.

Smedleys

bassyking

I bought my 1998 Chev Venture when it was a year old and had 26,000 kms. Today I have over 264,000 kms and runs reasonably well. I had to dump a few dollars into it for repairs, but all and all it is still surviving the demand I ask of it.
The only issue I have at this time is I be driving along on a hot day with the air conditioner on and then for no reason the electrical system inside the cabin shuts down. The system shuts down the A/C system, blower fans, radio, door locks and power windows. Everything is quiet. What stays on is the interior lights, signal lights and head lights??? Has anyone ever had this happen to them? If so did you find the cause and what was the fix? Take care all.

Claires

Hi, hubbie,

I've moved your post to the Chevrolet Van Problems & Solutions discussion, where you're more likely to get an answer.

andreweh

Hi. I haven't owned a Venture before but I found this one and it seems to be in great shape with 178000 kms! The van just had complete new brakes, new strut mounts (rubber pieces at top of front struts), the intake manifold gasket replaced, four new tires installed, and a four wheel alignment. We have a severe road salt induced rust problem here in Nova Scotia so I was thrilled to find one practically rust free! We are relocating to Alberta soon and I wanted something larger than my '99 Jetta to haul a Uhaul trailer. I think this will fit the bill. Any suggestions for prepping this van for a 5700 km trip? Thanks for all the useful information on this board!

demonfatcat

Hi,
I am new and have owned my 97 Venture for over 4 years. My wife and I love it for the most part. We have had the typical 3.4L intake issue and for the most part that is really it. I am new to the forum because just yesterday started having problems with my A/C. Hopefully some responses to my posting will prove to be helpful since I don't really want to put it in a shop since I am very particular about who works on my vehicles. My van has around 112,000 miles and still starts, runs and drives beautifully. I know the front struts are ready for replacement again but it is a small price to pay for a paid for vehicle that consistently gives me decent mileage and room for the entire family (6).

scott78

I also dislike shops...best way is to find a good independent AC man and let him fix it.
I love y Venture, 2002 with 89,000 miles.
Having been in the car business for the 20 years I have driven em all as demos...this is as good or better than all of them.
Scott

knselby

We own a 2000 Chevy Venture LS. Bought it in 2001 with 16k on it.... now has over 120k. Besides current fire cracker noise that has recently started we have had no negative issues other than basic wear and tear all vehicles incur.
Your friends in TN

wduson

Does anyone know the wheel well size on a 97 Venture? I kno 22" wheels will fit, but im not sure of the maximum wheel width that it can have without rubbing.

smithy56

Hi
Smithy from Pittsburgh here.
Photographer and musician.
I drive a 2000 Astro.
It's been to the Grand Canyon,Up Mt Washington in NH,
Here's my oldest son taking it up our hill


Recently my Darling Daughter put me in charge of repairs on her 2002 venture.