Carburetor failed 3 years ago and I had to replace it. Nobody has been able to set it right, but it still runs strong. The car stutters a bit when idle and it will sometimes turn off when not warmed up. This is bad because the car will want to turn off in the middle of a turn or while braking. It's not the car's fault, it's just that the carburetor was not installed right.
Clutch has been replaced twice, once every two years. It shouldn't die so often, but nobody can install the clutch right either (there aren't that many manual minivans)
Front engine mount arm had a crack, left engine mount got worn out due to the shaking caused by the front mount, this caused the car to shake a lot, making things inside the car rattle, such as the windows. I replaced the mounts rather cheaply due to the fact that I did the work myself.
The cloth on the ceiling got loose and started to sag, I ripped it off and painted the ceiling. I know that that's cheap, but I'm not big on unnecessary money spending.
Blue synthetic leather has started to crack on the bottom sides of the front seats.
Exhaust has a hole that needs patching, this makes the van sound very loud.
Some rust on roof and wheel wells, this can be easily fixed, but I still haven't gotten around to it.
Van is old so it burns some oil, it smokes a little, but it still passes the emission tests.
This car is very reliable despite everything that went wrong in it. The van is extremely dependable. I still own it today.
The only thing that I don't like about the van is that the carburetor and clutch are never installed quite right, but that's not the car's fault. This van has never given up on me.
The speedometer says that the car can go up to 85mph. I have taken it on the highway many times since I got it and it does indeed get to 85 and sometimes the needle gets past 85 and starts getting real close the the bottom of the console. It's fun to pass people in the highway in a packed minivan that looks like it might blow up any minute.
I have driven the van from Maryland to Montreal and Quebec in Canada. I have also taken the van down to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Those are both 10 hour drives at least. My van didn't complain one bit, it drove strong the whole trip.
The van gets between 25-30mpg in highway, and 16-20 in city. That's mot bad for a car that is 18 years old.
The van can pick up at a decent speed, I've raced automatic versions of this van and my van handles itself very well, although it is not meant for racing it still wins.
The van has the original engine and I go it with 145,000 miles in it when it was 11 years old. It now has a proud 295,000 miles and it has not had any engine work done in it other than carburetor and the usual services.
I haven't found any other vans that are manual, such as mines. I guess this makes my van special, or me special, I don't know, but what I do know, is that the van will continue to be under my name for years to come. I'm proud of having an ugly, rusted and loud car because this car takes me where I want to go, when I want to go, and it never lets me down. The only times it fails is when I mess up and don't take care of it.
The 1985 Plymouth Voyager is an ugly duckling. It's a comfortable ride, but definitly not silent. It is a very reliable 7 passenger minivan, and it is also very simple to work on. The engine is a 4 cylinder 2.2 liter, but the manual transmission makes it feel more powerful. I think that my van is still alive due to it's simplicity. It's a simple engine with a simple transmission.
I owned an 1987, 4 cylinder 3.0 liter automatic version of this car and it failed because of the engine (a Mitsubishi engine) that came standards in those vans, also the transmission was starting to die.
Having owned my 1985 Plymouth Voyager with 2.2L engine and 5 speed manual transmission I agree that it has been a reliable car. Your right that no one knows how to get the carburetor just right and it runs a little rough in idle, but get it on the road and it is a fun car.
About going 85mph, that is only a dream unless going downhill. I bought mine in 1988 with 45K and it now has 178K miles with many trips to Florida or Maine from NC.
Engine head gasket blew at 120k, CV Axle broke at 130K, Radiator blew at 150K, and manual transmission 5th gear gave out a few months ago at 175k so I got a new transmission for $1,200 and it is now back better that ever.
I also had the carburetor replaced at around 155k to try and fix the automatic choke. Had to take it a few places before someone know how to adjust it right. That mechanic is now the only one to work on the carburetor. The car still has life, runs a little rough in idle, but runs fine on the road and is a fun van to drive with that manual transmission. It has so much more room than the newer ones. My next task is finally replacing my 18 year old lower radiator hose that looks like it has just about given me all the life it has left.
Its my baby, as I pass it on to my 17 year old son who is now enjoying it.
I got my 1985 Voyager as a hand me down from my dad when I was 21 years old. It was my dad's beat up vehicle, and you could tell when I got it. It was free, but needed some work to pass emissions. Also one of the rear struts had broken off so my step-dad had to drill a new hole for the new strut. Lets just say my dad put a little too much weight in the van going cross country.
Since then I have replaced the CV joint, the alternator, the head gasket, and several belts. Luckily my dad already replaced the transmission before I got it, but I would have to agree that the carburetor has been a problem. I took it in for a tune up two years ago at a major chain auto repair garage, and they totally screwed up my timing and my carburetor. When I drove it there my main problem was the hard start ups. Well it barely made it out of the parking lot. I had them tow it back to work on it again, after I contacted the store owner. And the carburetor was still messed up. So I went to a small mom and pop shop and they got it right.
Since then the only major thing that has went wrong has been the starter going out. I have learned myself to work on the carburetor, and it has helped it run smoother by turning the idle a little higher, especially during the winter. I love my van, and am very glad it is a manual, considering it is also a 2.2 liter.
I have had to kind of baby my van, like changing the oil more frequent, as well as check and maintain the carburetor, but I wouldn't have it any other way. It has made me learn about cars and how to work on them. That is priceless to me, frustrating at times, but priceless.
I had to laugh when I read you had ripped out the ceiling in your van as well. My wife thought it was tacky, but I did paint it too so it matches.
My friend's father owned an '85 2.2L five speed Caravan. It was a real piece of garbage if you looked at it from any viewpoint other than dependability. But dependable? It never quit. It had 639,000km on it when it finally blew up (the head warped, cracked, and blew pressure and nasty goo everywhere) at a gas station. The only thing his father regretted was the tank of gas he had just put in it... and even then, I think he got that back. Siphoned it.
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