Seen at the grocery store

"Spridget" (dustbustervans) 10/09/2016 at 21:55 • Filed to: Dots

4

85

TRANS SPORT

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > Spridget 10/09/2016 at 21:59

1

My neighbor had one in red. A true Dust Buster on wheels

InFierority Complex > Spridget 10/09/2016 at 22:00

5

Please tell me somebody has painted one of these like a Federation shuttlecraft.

edit: The first image for “star trek shuttlecraft car”

OPPOsaurus WRX > Spridget 10/09/2016 at 22:04

1

Dust buster!!

jkm7680 > Spridget 10/09/2016 at 22:10

1

I saw an absolutely mint Lumina APV the other day. Kinda cool looking.

I’ve got a Matchbox car of one from like 1993.

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > InFierority Complex 10/09/2016 at 22:13

1

The Ford Aerostar is an even better fit

shop-teacher > InFierority Complex 10/09/2016 at 22:16

1

An English teacher at my old high school did that to a second gen Oldsmobile Sillouette.

Tristan > Spridget 10/09/2016 at 22:17

3

The color checks out.

Spridget > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 22:18

0

I’m sort of impressed.

shop-teacher > Spridget 10/09/2016 at 22:18

4

Hateful pieces of shit. Everyone who gets nostalgic about these, never had to drive one of those ankle breaking fuckers. I don’t swear much around here, but I’ve actually driven these things.

Spridget > Tristan 10/09/2016 at 22:18

1

They were all this color.

Spridget > jkm7680 10/09/2016 at 22:19

0

They’re kind of dorky-cool.

Spridget > Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo 10/09/2016 at 22:19

0

That’s what makes them good.

Tristan > Spridget 10/09/2016 at 22:20

0

The vacuum or the van?

shop-teacher > Spridget 10/09/2016 at 22:20

0

You have no idea what evil you have just aligned yourself with.

Spridget > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 22:23

0

This is my new automotive fetish.

InFierority Complex > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 22:23

2

Holy crap, this has to be it. I approve.

Spridget > Tristan 10/09/2016 at 22:32

3

Yes.

Spridget > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 22:32

1

But they look cool . . .

shop-teacher > Spridget 10/09/2016 at 22:40

19

You should go buy one, so you can experience pure, unadulterated garbage. The quality of construction exuded by DustBuster vans is rivaled only by Soviet made cars. The comfortable driving position can be favorably compared to things like landing on concrete after a 3-story fall or perhaps crushing your foot in a bench vice. They ride as smooth as a rented mule with a broken foot. They handle easily as well as a sailboat with no keel. I’m not a man of high standards, I’ve driven mostly GM products after all, but the DustBuster vans are an affront to the senses. It’s the third worst vehicle GM ever made, behind the Vega and the Citation. At least Vegas are RWD and can fit a V8, and Citations all have the decency to not exist anymore. These damn vans just keep sticking around and peeing in my Wheaties. Last time I drove one, I actually said out-loud, to nobody else in the van with me, “NO WONDER GM WENT BANKRUPT! THEY FOISTED MILLIONS OF THESE PIECES OF SHIT ONTO POOR, UNSUSPECTING BASTARDS!!”

Can you tell I really don’t like them?

I found a HW version at a flee market a few months ago, and gave it to my father-in-law. It made him laugh. He owned one new, and buying it was the worst automotive decision of his life.

shop-teacher > InFierority Complex 10/09/2016 at 22:47

4

The internets are the most amazing thing. That actually is it, and that is Mr. Hirsh, my sophomore year English teacher.

shop-teacher > Spridget 10/09/2016 at 22:49

0

If you really and truly hate yourself, buy a DustBuster van.

XJDano > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 23:02

0

My brother in law has a olds I think. I replaced the crankshaft sensor, & alternator because he is scared and worried he will break stuff.

I ment elictric turbo.

Logansteno: Bought a VW? > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 23:02

1

So what you’re saying is, my parents buying a Safari over one of these was a blessing is disguise.

wiffleballtony > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 23:03

0

So, how do you really feel.

unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 23:04

0

My math teacher drove one, she was miserable about it. Very relaxed but hated the van. Her daughter rode in it and had the look of disappointment in it. She hated my guts so what do I care.

shop-teacher > XJDano 10/09/2016 at 23:05

0

The one my father-in-law had used to eat alternators like crazy. The last one I drove belonged to my wife’s aunt, I was helping the family out by selling it. The alternator bearings were HOWLING.

shop-teacher > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) 10/09/2016 at 23:06

0

They are rolling regret machines.

shop-teacher > Logansteno: Bought a VW? 10/09/2016 at 23:07

1

Go thank them right now. That was the best vehicular decision they ever made.

Urambo Tauro > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 23:07

1

My fondness for the dustbuster van is based completely on the timeless aesthetic of the first-gen models. But I’ve never driven one, so it’s good to hear the voice of experience comment on it.

RallyWrench > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 23:08

0

This is the best.

shop-teacher > wiffleballtony 10/09/2016 at 23:09

0

Let’s just say I’m not a fan. To tie into our earlier conversation, I’d pick an RX-8 ten times out of ten over a DustBuster van.

EL_ULY > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 23:09

1

Holy hot damn lol

wiffleballtony > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 23:10

1

Lol ouch

unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 23:11

0

You ever been in a chevy aveo. It’s like if a sad happy meal toy came to life. I wouldn’t even wish my enemy to ride in it.

shop-teacher > Urambo Tauro 10/09/2016 at 23:11

0

You can experience the same feeling it feels to put your foot on the accelerator of a DustBuster van by bending your foot so far back, you break your own ankle.

shop-teacher > EL_ULY 10/09/2016 at 23:12

0

Yeah, my feelings are strong on this one :)

shop-teacher > RallyWrench 10/09/2016 at 23:13

0

Thanks :)

shop-teacher > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) 10/09/2016 at 23:13

0

Good point. Ok, they’re the fourth worst GM vehicle ever.

Viggen > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 23:14

1

Oh come on even Soviet cars are better than that!

shop-teacher > Viggen 10/09/2016 at 23:15

0

More reliable anyway :)

Viggen > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 23:18

2

And at least their character is due to a the flawed Soviet system and not just lazy shit manufacturers like GM.

shop-teacher > Viggen 10/09/2016 at 23:22

0

There could be some parallels.

LongbowMkII > shop-teacher 10/09/2016 at 23:23

0

You didn’t even mention the lower intake manifold gasket leak that plagued these even more than other GM 60' V6's.

/still want one

shop-teacher > LongbowMkII 10/09/2016 at 23:24

0

You could go on endlessly about these things. There is no end to how shitty these are.

Frenchlicker > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 00:39

0

I’ve seen one citation in recents years I think. I did a double take because it was clean.

Frenchlicker > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 00:41

1

BS, the Aveo doesn’y lose to this just because it’s the little engine that tries.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 00:44

0

I could rant with as much passion about the Ford Ranger, but the Ranger is probably much more reliable. Yeah, I probably hate the Ranger the most.

for Michigan > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 00:52

0

I know they’re objectively terrible, but they look so retro-futuristic that I can’t help but love them.

It’d also be hilarious to put a 3800SC in one.

shop-teacher > Frenchlicker 10/10/2016 at 05:15

0

That’s always the most amazing thing, when you see a clean version of an old turd of a car. I saw a clean first gen Escort (like an early 80's one) last year, and I was so shocked that I nearly spit my coffee out.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 05:16

0

...GM cars run longer poorly than most cars run at all...

Also, the fifth gen Chevy Malibu would probably give a DustBuster a run for their money, in spite of being a newer design. Especially in another 8-10 years when they are as old as the DustBusters you have been driving lately.

shop-teacher > Frenchlicker 10/10/2016 at 05:17

0

You know what, you’re right. The DustBuster van is back to third on the list. I literally would not take one for free.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/10/2016 at 05:17

0

Interesting. Bad personal experience?

shop-teacher > for Michigan 10/10/2016 at 05:18

0

Yeah, you’ve never driven one, have you?

But yes, that would be hilarious.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins) 10/10/2016 at 05:19

0

I sometimes forget these exist because so many were taken off the road by timing belt/tensioner failures. Unlike most GM garbage, they died before they became even more dreadful. Many of their vehicles are not this merciful.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > Frenchlicker 10/10/2016 at 05:21

0

And dies, which spares the owner and others the long-term suffering of most GM vehicles that continue to run even as the rest of the car disintegrates.

shop-teacher > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 10/10/2016 at 05:24

0

No. My mother-in-law had one of those (my in-laws have a hell of a vehicle history, don’t they?). I drove it around for a while while I sold it for her. While it is a pillar of mediocrity, the fifth gen Malibu is a perfectly OK car to commute around in. I actually considered buying it from her. It was 11 years old at the time, with 41k miles on it. DustBuster vans, on the other hand, I would not accept one of those piles of shit for free.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 05:39

0

That’s not a real representation of a 5th gen Malibu, though. By that age they usually have 150+k hard miles on them. The later ones (after they were renamed “Chevy Classic” and sold exclusively to the rental market) are particularly egregious examples of GM mediocrity, where the interior quality became even worse (as if this is possible), the engines became better, and they will run until someone refuses to replace a transmission, fuel pump, or alternator on them. The last one I had the misfortune of helping someone maintain had electrical gremlins (a sure sign of a fifth gen Malibu is partially-working taillights) that made me think it had to have been a flood car from Hurricane Katrina, except it wasn’t.

shop-teacher > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 10/10/2016 at 07:30

0

A friend of mine had one like you’re describing. He bought it for next to nothing when his nephew blew it up, swapped the motor, and used it as a work car for years. A car that’s bad after getting the shit beat out of it, but still manages to get from A to B, is still respectable to me. The last DustBuster I drove was in near mint condition, and driving it was still pure torture.

DustBuster vans are a whole different level of bad. The aren’t just mediocre, they actively hate human beings. They were built with disdain for their owners and occupants. Just the driving position alone can prove that. To drive a DustBuster van, one sits on the seat, then bends their foot so far back that your ankle nearly breaks, then you press the accelerator, then after much shaking and consternation, some forward movement happens.

If someone gave me a beaten down fifth gen Malibu, I’d say, “Hey cool, rallycross beater!” If someone tried to give me a factory fresh DustBuster van, I would spit on their shoes.

Frenchlicker > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 08:00

1

I,honest to God, would prefer seeing that over any super car or hyper car. Not too many people understand that.

Frenchlicker > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 10/10/2016 at 08:01

0

My friend’s is still going somehow. It’s also not rusting either despite them living about 45 minutes from Lake Michigan. It dries all odds.

Frenchlicker > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 08:02

0

I think I would take a Citation before that van. I’m not sure though. I love vans but have none for that one.

Scimitar7 > InFierority Complex 10/10/2016 at 08:04

0

Ironic... I believe Sir Patrick Stewart did the voice over for the TV commercial. I remember he pronounced “Pontiac” wrong.

shop-teacher > Frenchlicker 10/10/2016 at 08:53

0

I’m right there with you.

shop-teacher > Frenchlicker 10/10/2016 at 08:57

0

I would rather have a Citation. The torturous driving position of the vans is just too much for me to bear. I ranked the Citation worse, because they died very quick deaths. The DustBuster vans are like cockroaches... vicious evil cockroaches.

for Michigan > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 09:09

0

Never been in a first gen, but my grandpa has owned a second and a third gen Pontiac. They made our Grand Caravan seem well put together.

shop-teacher > for Michigan 10/10/2016 at 09:27

0

Perfect. I drudged through thousands of miles behind the wheel of second gen Ventures. They were indeed terrible. Now imagine those, but way worse.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 09:31

1

Terrible to drive. I’ve driven several over the years.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/10/2016 at 09:38

0

I’ve always been an S-10 man myself. Someone offered on in trade to me yesterday, and I was considering it ... until I saw the other side.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 09:42

0

I saw a YouTube video yesterday that had a 4.3L throttle body adapted to a 250 straight-six.

My step dad had a roadster with the straight six from a Pontiac Tempest. Weber carburetors and 104 mph in the quarter-mile. That ‘71 Vandura is going to be a fun project car.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/10/2016 at 09:58

0

I’m looking forward to seeing what you do with it.

That S-10 had the turd.8, but I was still interested.

for Michigan > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 10:06

0

I have driven a first gen Cavalier. I’d imagine they’re of similar quality.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 10:20

0

And I’ll enjoy sharing it with you. But it won’t be much initially. A couple of used tires and a bunch of cleaning and some polishing compound

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 11:09

0

The Dustbusters break down? That seems unusual for GM vehicles. The only thing GM does well is engines (except the optispark - there’s a special layer of hell reserved for the person that came up with that...they share it with the person that decided to put the water pump above it with a drain hole that drops directly on the optispark when the bushings start failing) - they’ll shake your paint forever - which it sounds like these do really well.

I wonder why the ergonomics are so terrible. I guess that is a point for it, since most at least seem to assume a human will sit in them, even if the seats are likely to cause irreparable damage to their backs.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > Frenchlicker 10/10/2016 at 11:22

0

Did they change the timing belt at the recommended interval?

I think GM finally figured out how to rustproof cars they manufacture in the US and Mexico, so the bright spot in these Daewoos is probably that. They were dreadful to drive, had sad engines, horrible handling/suspension, and the successor (Sonic) is only slightly better.

Frenchlicker > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 10/10/2016 at 12:00

0

I honestly doubt it. However they bought it secondhand so it may have been done already. When is it recommended?

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > Frenchlicker 10/10/2016 at 14:26

0

If memory serves, you need to change the belt and tensioners every 50-60k miles.

shop-teacher > for Michigan 10/10/2016 at 14:47

0

Similar quality, but J-bodies are more comfortable.

Frenchlicker > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 10/10/2016 at 15:14

0

Jeez, that seeMs excessive on an economy car.

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > Frenchlicker 10/10/2016 at 15:19

0

Welcome to Daewoo & South Korea. Daewoo went into bankruptcy just before this, the engineers didn’t give a crap, and it needed to be dirt cheap for the GM beancounters.

It’s really stupid, no doubt. Check craigslist sometime for old Aveos. There are literally hundreds listed in most major metros with blown engines being sold for next to nothing.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/10/2016 at 15:45

0

Even that I’d like to see :)

shop-teacher > Eric @ opposite-lock.com 10/10/2016 at 15:48

0

It’s really the ergonomics that make them unforgivable. They eat alternators for breakfast, but most of the stuff that breaks don’t render them inoperable. Damn cockroaches!

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 10/10/2016 at 16:04

1

See it you definitely shall. I’ll be documenting everything and sharing on Oppo. This will not be the fastest nor the tire-smokinest vehicle, but it’ll definitely be cool and it’ll be mine and it’ll be tight . I learnt it has disk brakes up front, BTW... Manual transmission; maybe a 4-sp with a floor shift? Once I get it sound and insulated and carpeted — not a hippy party van, mind you — then I’ll air-condition it.

Electronic ignition, genuine dual exhaust... And there’s this “bump” thing you do to the intake ports. A trumpet player, like Ttyymmnn, for example, arches his tongue upward in his mouth sometimes when he blows, which speeds up the flow of air.

It’ll be differ’nt enough to park at a fan gathering.

I’m stoked.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 10/10/2016 at 16:28

0

Good plan! :)

S65 > shop-teacher 10/14/2016 at 19:24

1

Holy shit

shop-teacher > S65 10/14/2016 at 21:20

0

I know, right? Judging from the age of his kid, that picture was probably taken right around the time I was his student. Which is roughly 20 years ago.