FS: 1985 Ford Extended Sportsmobile

cspargo · 09-09-2013, 09:11 AM

We bought this van about 6 years ago to take to the racetrack with us. We race vintage motorcycles, and having a nice low profile camper like this was perfect for race weekends. As much as we love the platform, the miles we were covering were killing us, and we finally broke down and bought a Sprinter van instead.

We did a bunch of preventive maintenance on it as we were planning to drive it cross country on a regular basis.

Fresh Radiator
Rebuilt Carb
Water Pump
Fuel Pump
Steering Box
Brakes all around
Very good tread on the tires, we replaced all four with new Kumho AT.
New Van Battery last year
LED replacements for the house lights

Only stuff the van could really use:
The front seats are a little rough and could use recovering/replacement.
a/c isn't working, we never really looked into it. Being an '85, I imagine it can't be that complicated.
Some body rust on the rear fenders and the passenger door, paint is tired.
House battery is toast from freezing last winter.

Gets about 11mph no matter what it's doing. All the RV stuff seems to be in great shape and unmolested - we pulled the propane tank off it when we bought it, as it wasn't looking the best, and planned to just hook up to a grill tank if we needed it. We never did. The fridge works great, and will run for a full weekend without a problem with a new house battery.

We're asking $3500 or best offer for it. If we didn't drive cross country all the time, we'd keep it - the extra comfort easily makes up for the extra fuel prices if you're only going a few hours.

I'll get some pictures uploaded - I've got some on FB now if those are available to some users.
https://www.facebook.com/christopher...3396870&type=3

cspargo · 09-17-2013, 02:41 PM

Finally got some pictures sized correctly.

cspargo · 09-17-2013, 02:42 PM

More pics.

larrie · 09-17-2013, 05:35 PM

The AC may be easier to fix than you think. Took my 89 RB to my mechanic and had him look at the AC. $100 later it was blowing cold air.

Nice looking van. Good luck with the sale.

cspargo · 09-19-2013, 06:42 PM

Bump for price drop. $2800 OBO. Would really like to sell before winter, frankly. Make us an offer.

cspargo · 09-24-2013, 09:58 AM

Hm. Crickets. Any selling/pricing feedback? Hate to go to Ebay, but will do so I suppose. I don't need to get rich off this thing, just need to make room for the new one. I see stuff not much better than this for $10k.

Any advice appreciated. This thing is not in bad shape, and I would drive it anywhere tomorrow.

86Scotty · 09-24-2013, 10:15 AM

I think some cheap hubcaps would help a lot, including on the spare. The E350 ones are on EBay cheap. I think that alone would make a big difference. First impressions of a van with no hubcaps aren't memorable IMHO.

**BroncoHauler** · 09-24-2013, 10:45 AM

The exterior is rough, no question about it, but the interior looks like it's in great shape. Makes me think it didn't see a lot of use and was stored outdoors. For your asking price, it appears to be a tremendous bargain in my opinion.

Worst case, that pop-top and interior could be transplanted to another van. All depends how quickly you want to sell it. For that asking price, I'm surprised it hasn't sold.

Herb

cspargo · 09-26-2013, 03:42 PM

Tell your friends.

http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/hnp/r ... 82865.html

BrianW · 09-26-2013, 05:39 PM

+1 for the hubcaps. Definitely would up the curb appeal 200% at least. I'd also consider sanding down and touching up some of the rust spots. Not to hide them from a buyer (you should disclose anyway), just so that people won't get scared off when looking at a photo.