Anyone have a dodge Durango? or KIA Van And do you like it? how many crates can you get in there 400-30" high crates.
Have a windstar which has been excellant for roominess and comfort. But the miles are adding up so looking for a new ride.Can't afford a Tahoe.!!! or a new pathfinder.!!! But kinda looking at the durango Suv or the KIA Van??
please let me know your thoughts on these or if there is another brand that has done well for you regardless of the amount of miles.

I always look for something low and easy to load, some of those vehicles are too high for me, especially the Tahoe I had a heck of a time with that one.

yes I keep that in mind.Think if it's a van like the one i have electric doors are not an option.Because ours seem to open automactically when your not pushing the button????

As long as we are talking about vehicles - what do you all think about the Chevy cargo vans and GMC's. I am just doing the research and would like to be able to carry as many as 6-8 dogs . I know about adding rear AC and also been told about leaving the inside top open (no cushioning on the ceiling) so that crates can be stacked. What about the difference between having a slider or reg side doors// or maybe having whatever type of doors on both sides? I also know about adding windows that pop open.

Cargo vans have no windows...yuck. Also, the side doors should be barn style, not sliding. The barn doors can be left open with a sunscreen draped over the top, and it will keep out sun and rain. Sliding doors do not offer that option. If you can afford a high top van, with a roof window that can open, that is your best bet. Then you can stack, and the van will remain much cooler than any other vehicle. Also, a light color is better. Also, make sure that there is an on/off switch for the interior lights so you can leave the doors open without killing your battery. Also, you can always get an extended van. You can get tons of crates into an extended high top. Not having any insulation on the top may give you more room, but it will be harder to keep cool.

We have a Chev express 15 passenger. It is not a cargo, we heard that they get condensation on the inside and are cold in winter and hot in summer. We can fit 4 400's along the wall facing in from the side doors and we still have the very back seat in. WE could take that seat out and put 2 500's at the back facing the back doors. You can still get 300's stacked on the 400's. We love the rear air, keeps the dogs very cool. I agree with the barn doors and the draping, plus the sliders tend to break down. We have a one ton, and we find the gas mileage the same as our chev Astro AWD. We love it.

Cheers, Colleen

I have owned Dodge Caravans for years and love them. I can get 3 large crates in it plus other stuff.

I glad some talking about the tall vans to.Cargo type I would like to get a vehicle with onstar,Any one had to use there on star for dog emergancies or there own.?Worth the price I know it's kinda expensive but what isn't. Will be purchasing in the near future.+ The dogs have to approve it also.!!!

I have on star in my Yukon XL and although I have not had to use it for an emergency of my own, it has been used to contact authorities about accidents etc. With the GPS they can track exactly where the incident is.

Also, my friend was on a very long trip to a show with three dogs and she blew a radiator in her vehicle on an extremely hot day. She really wished she had on star to assist her as she was stuck a very busy freeway.

Take a look at the Ford Vans... I LOVE THEM ! I looked at the checy and GMC... take a hard look at hte back space... ford is more room back there for crates..Also go sit in them... the dodge, checy you are almost sitting on top of the front wheels... so the footing for you while driving isn't great... the Fords you sit behind the front wheels.. much more comfy for you. I have had 4 in the past 20 yrs and put over 150,000 on each... no problems..

Depending on haw many dogs you transport, take a look at the Honda Element. Low deck, rear seats fold to the sides or can be removed completely. High roof. Some models' interior can be completely hosed down to clean. Some have a skylight over the cargo area that can be opened for air to circulate. Cargo doors on 3 sides. Inexpensive and dependable.

depends on how many dogs you'll be traveling with. We adore our Subaru Outback. Nice and low for the dogs, and plenty comfy.

Ditto. Wouldn't own any van or pickup that is not a Ford.

I am on my 2nd Honda Odyssey. When I bought the 1st one, I swore I would never buy a van again, because I just wasn't "a van person". However, when it came time to get a new vehicle (after having put over close to 100,000 on the first one), I ended up getting another Odyssey. I looked at every mini-van and SUV on the market. I physically measured the cargo room on each -- nothing beat the Odyssey. To beat the room on the Odyssey, you have to go to a full-size (cargo type) van, or to something as large as a Suburban. Ford now makes an extended Expedition which is as large as the Suburban. However, the quality of the Odyssey is hard to beat. It is probably a pricier vehicle than the KIA or the Durango, but well worth the money. BTW my first Odyssey is still around as a co-worker bought it from me and has been driving it for the past year and hasn't had a problem yet! If I want more room next time, I think I'll go with a Canine Traveler and have them build it on the Ford full sized van. Hope this helps.

I have an Odyssey and as the other poster never thought I'd drive a van but this is an awesome vehicle for people and dogs. I jazzed mine up with a new sound system and chromed wheels.

I had a Dodge Grand Caravan for years, but it started to severely nickel and dime us at 120,000, so I got a Honda Odyssey. It handles so much better than the Caravan did...really quiet and hugs the road. I had to adjust to the different interior set up, but all in all I have been very happy. There is a "cut-off" switch in my 2003; however, I don't know if the later models have that option. The Honda cannot fit 2 side by side 23 1/2" wide crates because of the sloping roofline and braces that protrude on both sides in the rear interior. I tried to remove them. Even though the floor is 48" wide I had to buy an SUV crate from a catalog and use that and one of the larger ones in the rear. This is OK because a bit*h can fit comfortably in the smaller crate. I can still fit 2 more crates either side by side facing one slider, or 2 side opening crates. I have leateher seats which is also good for keeping hair off the seats. Altogether with assets and flaws the Honda Odyssey gets my vote.

So looks like most of you are into vans.Who cannot afford a motor home. !!!! I have thought of a cargo type van. But a car isn't just used for the dogs.
I will check into the honda.I'm not much of a dodge fan. The Ford winstar is our first van and other then the sliding doors being pocessed? Its been a very nice car. I can get 2 30" crates with the bench seat out and and 2 more if the buckets go + room for gear.
Does anyone have a KIA Van.?

I'm a BIG fan of the toyota sienna, i have mine pimped out for the dogs, no rear seats and a platform that holds crates on top, storage below, I can turn it into a ton of shade and a number of chairs and tables in no time at all, perfect for hanging out ringside. Spare clothing, raingear, boots etc all stash underneath the platform. Its a joy to drive, gets about 27mpg. I LOVE it and I never thought I'd be a mini van person
barb

We just bought a Pontiac Torrent SUV. We looked at a lot of cars/SUVs and test drove them all. Consumer Reports lists its reliability as better than average. We were really interested in a vehicle with stability control as many experts are saying that it will save as many lives as seat belts.

It drives really well and is very comfortable. The back seat slides up and down 8 inches to give more room in the back. The front passenger seat also folds down if more room is needed. Rear seats also completely fold. Doors swing open extra wide for easy entry and exit. It is not as wide as some SUV's though. On a recent highway trip to Delaware (about 126 highway miles), we drove extremely conservatively to see what kind of gas mileage we might be able to achieve. Never went over 55 mph. We got 31.7 mpg. Pretty impressive for a SUV.

We were also interested in a Toyota Highlander. Siimilarly equipped, our Pontiac was about $6500 cheaper. Can get OnStar with it also. Very nice safety feature.

I too am on my second.

My AWD Toyota Sienna is the BEST!!! Easily fits 4 crates and has electric hatch and doors, which is great when you have your hands full. Also has built in sun screens for the all of the back windows(yes the side windows actually go all of the way down)The third seat is a stow away and the middle row captains chairs are easily removable. Rear heat and air and a AC plug in the way back.

I have the older Dodge Durango and I don't think I'd ever buy anything else. It has over 100,000 miles and I've never had any problems . I cried for weeks when I had to sell my Bronco for this SUV, but with kids on the way I didn't have much of a choice. I love the fact that it handles great, it's fast and sounds like a truck. If I fold down the middle seat I could fit 2 crates or if I had the side by side crates they'd fit. I'm already planning on getting the new one as it's larger and has a Hemi!!

Do you have pictures ofhow you worked yours so well?

Having grown up with a diehard Ford family, I personally am not a fan of the Ford car line, I am a Chevy girl. However, before we made a dog van purchase I rented all 3 makes (Ford, Chevy, Dodge)of the big passenger vans over time for different shows. The Ford vans have more height for stacking crates and have better user friendly space. So yes, I am driving a Ford 16 passenger Super Club Wagon. If need be, I can get 12 midwest crates in it (would be handy for evacuations, etc). It is routinely set up to travel with the two captains chairs in front, the first bench seat, 8 crates, enough for me and a travel companion to have 6 dogs with us total and a crate for our luggage and a crate for the dog's luggage. It is a V-10 and we get 14mpg and have excellent horsepower to get in and out of traffic conditions. I would not like to drive a vehicle that big with a smaller engine in it, I would not feel safe. So, for the purposes of a dog vehicle, I do like the Ford.

How many crates can you fit into the Subaru Outback? My next vehicle will need to be AWD or 4WD, and I like the Subaru... but it doesn't look large enough for my needs. Thanks! nt

I currently have a Grand Caravan with 135,000 miles on it. I will get another one when this one dies. I can easily get 4 big wire crates in it(comparable to a 500 varikennel) all of my expens, chairs and all of the extra stuff I bring--I always overpack!! I did like my Yukon for a dog mobile, didn't like the old style Durango(too narrow) but I do like the ease of getting stuff in and out of the mini van.
Sheila

I'm considering a Suburban as my next lab vehicle. Anyone have opinions on the Suburban good or bad?

We also thought about the surburan. But I have to have enough money to fill the gas tank as well. ha

Re: Suburbans, I am not sure how the new ones work but I know that in the older ones the rear seats had to be completely removed. They did not fold down.

I have a Ford Expedition and am able to fit 4 400's in it (with luggage on top of course :-). I like that the Expedition is lower to the ground as well.

I did have a Kia Sorento for about a year, I traded it back in after it left me stranded on the side of the road. When the tow truck driver arrived he told me that he towed A LOT of Kia's.... Minivans included. I do know that their Minivan was rated very high in crash tests, I believe that they have the same engine as my Sorento....so that would not be a positive for me. (due to the size of the engine in the Sorento, I get about the same gas mileage in my Expedition...with twice the room).

I do feel that if I had the extra money I would buy a Chevy Cargo Van for a dog rig. My husband has a Dodge Extended Van for work and from experience I can tell you that his van stays alot cooler inside without all of the extra windows to let in the sun. (his partner has one with windows). Just my opinion though.

If you want windows, than you don't want a cargo van. A cargo van has no windows.

My 2006 Dodge Grand Caravan has a power liftgate along with power slider doors. The power sliders I can live with. With my previous Pontiac Montana that had a power side door on the passenger side, it was difficult to only open the slider door part way. With the GC, both side doors can easily be left only part way open if you desire so I definitely do prefer the GC over the Montana in this respect.

My biggest complaint with the interior is that having the power lift gate creates a LARGE bulge (for the motor) in the trim piece 3/4 of the way up on the driver side pillar. This does not allow a General Cage 23 1/2 x 35 1/2" x 26 1/2" to be set towards the very back of the vehicle as far as would be preferable. The bulge gets in the way of the top of the crate such that it can't be placed more towards the rear.

If you only put two crates in your van, this probably isn't a problem. I have 4 crates in mine (use side door crates in the second row). However, because you can't slide the rear most driver side crate back further, the crate in the second row, behind the driver seat, can't set very far back and thus restricts the driver's seat from going back all the way. I'm short so it's not a problem for me. But, if someone taller needs to drive, they will probably have to drive with the seat uncomfortably close to the steering wheel and/or make the seat back more vertical than they might ideally prefer. For long trips, this is certainly not comfortable.

My other complaint with the Grand Caravan is that the floor is not level in the back. Chrysler raised the floor for the third row passengers. My Montana had a ~slight~ raise in the floor for the third row but it coincidentally was right between where the crates in the second row and the crates in the third row met up so was not a problem. With the GC, that rise is further back which places it well underneath the crates in the third row so I rolled up some towels and placed them under the front portion of those crates to keep them from rocking. This makes the crates in the back row set up about two inches higher than the crates in the second row which can affect how you pack and store luggage and such if you place it on top of the crates.

As for gas mileage, mine does okay, but not great. I have Stow and Go seats which affect the amount of ground clearance and headroom inside the cabin. It is nice not to have to remove seats from the van and find somewhere to store them, but I don't like having to sacrifice the ground clearance and headroom. I can't stack nearly as much on top of the crates in my Dodge as I used to in my Montana. I'm not positive, but I think the Stow N Go option makes it necessary to have a smaller gas tank which bothers me as I have to stop more frequently to fill up.

Just traded in my Pilot for an Odyssey - tons of room for crates! Rides great!
Gretchen

I think you can special order a cargo van with windows that pop open (not roll down).

Maybe so, but I think the definition of a cargo van means no windows. If you are going to special order windows, you may as well get the passenger van. Also, cargo vans without windows are not allowed on parkways.

Great info endeavor about your caravan. I would of never thought of that. My windstar is sounding better all the time with little over 70,000 miles. And 25 MPG.So if anyone is interested it's going to be up for sale soon. Runs great. Just want something with less miles and little newer. Its a 2004

I buy Honda. Even though I can get discounts from both Ford and GM I will not buy them. Give me a Honda any day.

I have been looking at the element AWD. How many crates can you fit into it...will it fit two wire crate 36 x 24s, and still have room for traveling gear, and maybe one passenger? I loved the hosing out feature, and your tip about the skylight is a plus.

OK all of you Odyssey fans, what do you do about the uneven floor? My daughter just bought a new one - fits 4 - 400 crates and still has room for more stuff, the windows on the doors slide down into the door (super neat) and it drives beautifully. BUT the crates either rock from side to side or forward and back depending on where they are located. We have tried folding up blankets and stuff to even out the floor, but it is a pain.

My old Caravan has over 170,000 miles on it, still runs great and the floors are flat! But the sliding door windows do not open and it does not have a back up camera.

What to do?

Does the back up camera come std. As I don't need that. I back just fine with or with out a trlr in tow.

Hey, don't ferget the small motorhomes eh? they are nice and pretty cheap, yah hey

That is nice to know about the Stow-n-Go seats not leaving the floor flat. I was pretty excited about not removing seats next time around!! Looks like I will get a plain one and have to remove seats!
Sheila

Here is a link to pictures of my "pimped" toyota sienna
barb
http://pictures.aol.com/galleries/hawkesmom

slideshow view gives the best view

I love this topic. It comes at a perfect time, after attending a specialty with two dogs in crates, 3 puppies, an ex-pen, etc. in my volvo wagon. It was a crunch....so I'm looking at other automotive options. This is very helpful!

Wow, you put a lot of thought into that. It looks great!

I have a Honda Pilot and I just love it! I can fit three Large Vari crates w/ the two back rows of seats laid down, though the middle row doesn't fold completely flat. Worked great for my 300+ mile trip to a show over Memorial Day. Left plenty of room for everything else, though I could only fit one other passenger besides myself. Drives great, handles snow wonderfully. It's been a great car so far. Hondas rock! I also like the features of an Element, being able to wash it clean easier. Carpet is a silly thing in a vehicle that hauls dogs. lol

>"I buy Honda. Even though I can get discounts from both Ford and GM I will not buy them. Give me a Honda any day"

Amen Laura. Great automobiles. 200,000 miles without a major problem.

I have a Town and Country LX and a Chevy Astro van. The T & C is an awesome vehicle for long highway trips. Very comfortable and great on gas mileage. I have 6 captains chairs and can make all sorts of configurations. I can fit 4 500 size wire crates and a lot of other stuff. The Chevy Astro is a more rugged- higher clearance AWD vehicle that we use for for hunt tests and off road. If I had to keep one over the other I would have to keep the Astro as the T & C does not have enough clearance for some of the ruts and ditches we drive through at test sites.

I had a Honda Civic that I drove for years-over 450,000 miles on the original engine just changed the oil every three thousand miles. I could fit 3 400 crates or 2 exlarge wire crates.

I have also wondered about the T and C to.
Gosh thanks for all the great ideas. Need to watch out for the ones with the raised floors.Never thought about that. my winstar has rear heat/ac and also plug in's for fans or whatever I will check out all the makes and models. Yes a small motor home would be great. But it doesn't justify me to hop in the motor home to drive to town for a gallon of milk!!!!
But i have seen some nicer smaller ones.
Hope others got great ideas to on new rides.

You should consider the Dodge Sprinter Van. It has a Mercedes diesel engine. Tall interior for stand up room. Great gas milage. Original had a five cylinder engine. It now has a six and runs great also very quite.

I was hoping to hear about the Sprinter vans. I know they come in a variety of sizes with an array of options. Can anyone provide more specific info especially about number of crates and options that should be considered?

Easy solution. My husband cut a piece of 3/8 plywood and used drywall screws(flat headed) to attach it to a piece of 2x6. It was cut to be slightly longer than the length of the crate and this keeps the crate totally stable. I just leave it in my van to use it when I need it. Things that I felt at first were annoyances with the Honda are really not and the positives far outweigh.