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Dodge Tradesman B300 maxi van

  • Price: Ask a price!
  • Location: Los Angeles, California, United States
  • Condition: Used
  • Make: Dodge
  • Model: Other
  • Year: 1977
  • Mileage: 40,500
  • VIN: b35bf7x235537
  • Number of cylinders: 8
  • Fuel: Gasoline
  • Transmission: Automatic
  • Vehicle Title: Clear

1977 Dodge Other Description

COSMETICALLY A LITTLE ROUGH AROUND THE EDGES, BUT HAS HAD A MAJOR MECHANICAL OVERHAUL AND RUNS EXCELLENT!!
I'm very reluctantly selling my beloved project van "Big Ben" but I'm heading out of town this summer and I just don't have the space or money to keep it stored while I'm gone. The more I work the less I'm able to use it and I hate to see it sit and go to waste.
In the last 2 years, my amazing mechanic (Bussard's Auto in Highland Park) has put a ton of work into it to make it safe and road trip ready. When I brought it to him I said fix everything you need to in order to make it safe and drivable and so I don't have to worry about it. Those improvements include:
1) All new brakes
2) New fluid hoses
3) New windshield wipers
4) New lighter for USB charging
5) Repaired the choke
6) New horn
7) New fluids (transmission, brake, oil)
8) Clean air filter
9) Full lube
10) New gas gauge
11) Full inspection
12) New seat belts and rear view mirror
13) Rewired all the dash components for working gas gauge etc.
14) One year old battery
15) Clean title and tags will be up to date (my smog guy hasn't been able to take it but we can talk further about that)
16) New Tires
17) BONUS: mechanic believes the engine to be rebuilt and in excellent condition
(I can show you detailed descriptions of the work done and itemized receipt if you'd like)
That's over $2500 worth of work that I put in to it so you don't have to! You could hit the road today!
Here are the cons:
1) There's a little bit of rust around the windshield. I've patched and filled it so it doesn't leak when it rains. It's not rusted through or anything, it's just a little worn away. You can choose to get it fixed professionally, fix it yourself, or just leave it, but it's certainly not a repair that must be made in order for it to drive or be safe. Other than those two spots, there are no rust holes on the body and there's no rust on the underside.
2) There's a sizable dent to the passenger sliding door but it doesn't effect the way the door opens and closes in any way.
3) It's got a bunch of dings and dents, and the paint job is just a spray paint, and a sloppy one at that. It used to get tagged a bunch with graffiti which was annoying but ever since I covered it with spray paint it's been left alone.
Here is everything I can tell you about the history of the van:
I purchased it July 2015 from a gentleman who got it from a police impound in Venice Beach and owned it for several months. He used it as a daily driver and said it took to the freeway like a real champ. He was a vintage car enthusiast and put some work into it himself, new battery, oil change, basic tune up, and simple adjustments. He no longer had the space for it so he decided to sell. At the DMV, I learned I am the 3rd owner, meaning the 1st owner bought it new and had it up until this year when it was impounded. It passes smog testing, and I have the title in hand. There's an over cab compartment for storage, the captain's chairs swivel to face inwards, and all the interior lights work. I custom built a full size platform bed in the back with a really comfortable mattress. There's room for storage underneath. I stripped the inside and replaced the old paneling with carpet walls. There is no stereo system currently but I've been using a portable Bluetooth speaker with my Iphone and it's been just fine. There is no working A/C but it does have the capability, you'll just have to install that system yourself. I've taken it on adventures camping up to Angeles Crest, Joshua Tree and El Mirage dry lake bed, where it handles the freeway perfectly and the dirt roads with no problems whatsoever. It isn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be on gas, for instance I've made it to Joshua Tree and back on a tank and a half and it was around $60 for the entire trip. Cosmetically, it's not perfect by any means but I never cared much for how it looked. I just wanted a van I could safely camp in with my little dog with a full bed to be comfortable in and space to haul my camping equipment and bikes. This is perfect for that. For being almost 40 years old, there's nothing a little elbow grease can't fix. It's not pretty but the good news is that you can only improve upon it. If you have 2 thumbs and a screw driver, that's all you'll need. It always starts right up and chugs along beautifully, and the brakes have never failed me. All the interior lights work. Sometimes you have to jiggle the sliding door handle but it opens and shuts and locks. In the first picture it had a temporary flying tiger paint job on the side for a film shoot but it was washable paint and came off already. There are some little quirks here and there but nothing that actually effects it's ability to drive or be safe. I'm no mechanic but I think this thing could last you for a long time. I'm really going to miss it.
I would love for this to go to a good home, someone looking to take it on some camping adventures. It would also be a perfect burning man vehicle, ice cream truck, surf van, off the grid home, picture car, or an excellent work truck too. If you're into that #vanlife this thing is Instagram ready!
My schedule is flexible but please, serious buyers only. And please no low-ballers, it's so insulting. Make a reasonable offer if you're actually interested. I have put a lot of time and money into fixing it up and it's very reasonably priced. You can put $10,000 into it to make it look fancy, or you can drive it away and not put another penny into it, that's up to you, but the amount of money you want to put into it after the fact will not change my sale price. These are valuable classic vans that sell for on average $6,300 and more and aren't easy to come by in as good mechanical condition as this. I don't know if I can be more honest, but if you have any other questions please don't hesitate to ask!
NO SHIPPING -- LOCAL PICK UP IN LOS ANGELES ONLY