Call me nuts. It’s enjoyable to drive and reliable as hell. I’ve driven Odysseys and Siennas, felt like big floaty school buses in comparison. I wouldn’t trust an older Odyssey transmission to tow something any further than I could push it.

The outer rocker panel is purely a shell. Inside the massive holes that I “patched” (terribly, no question, the only purpose was to catch bondo) the structural steel was in surprisingly good shape. They seemed to actually protect that stuff, it’s well coated and most of it essentially looked like new. Wish I had some…

Riiight. I’m not claiming to be a body repair professional. These “fixes” are purely cosmetic. All structural/mechanical/safety items have been inspected regularly and are in good condition.

Wow, that sucks. In 6.5 years I’ve never replaced the alternator and we just installed a new battery last winter. The previous one was OK but was starting to sound sluggish on very cold mornings. Either way, the electrical system has been solid for us other than it needing a couple fan controllers over the years. I'm…

Always annoyed me that you couldn’t get manual on the top trim level. Otherwise I might have gone that route for a dadWagon instead of my 2004 Mazda6.

I was already in there to replace the leaky cover, I'd be dumb to not replace the chains and guides. While the originals looked good, the engine did pick up some power with the new ones. I guess chain stretch is real. 

We did buy this one at 126k so of course there’s a chance it got a new engine or other repairs by a previous owner, but I can’t find any evidence of it.

They are fantastic, both when the vehicle is loaded or empty. Highly recommended. I plan to eventually put a set on my 2004 6wagon. Heck, maybe I’ll get some for our recently purchased 2016 Legacy (Outback) wagon.

Dude... my shit is way ghetto, but thanks. Gets the job done.

Here I am, yo.

David’s 92 XJ and the postal Jeep have both been to my house. I should have saved the rust chips to add them to his rides.

MPV plans to stay pavement-focused, especially since we just bought this new DD for my wife.

(Cory’s Miata added to the photo by me)

I bow down to the old minivan king of Jalopnik, Long_Voyager. But you know I got my first taste in a couple old Dodges ;)

It’s a challenge alright. I’m just glad the plastic covers up so much of that rotted rocker panel. Then all I have to keep respectable is the top 1/2" of it that shows above the plastic skirt.

Amusingly before the MPV, we had a 95 Quest as our 3rd/spare car. Got it from my wife’s uncle in 2008, he was the original owner. He sold it to us for $500 because the engine failed. Before 96 Nissan had the crank nose undersized and it would shear off. Although you couldn’t tell it sheared off since the bolt was…

Ha, thanks. I fully accept that it’s a ~$1000 shitbox at best, but to me it’s priceless. It has served us well and I owe it my thanks and efforts to keep mother nature from turning it into dust.

Many things make me love this thing, but the size is probably my favorite. A totally extinct species in North America.

Perhaps I was unclear, perhaps David is a poor narrator. Perhaps both.

We don’t usually load that high, but yeah, safety is a decent idea. I like that my other 04 Mazda (a 6 wagon if you couldn’t guess) has the cargo safety net that pulls upward from the cargo cover.