We all know about the Caravan and Voyager but Dodge also produced a mini van destined to be a work van called the Ram Van.  Yes, it had the same name as the full size Dodge van but it was based on the mini van platform.  In fact, it was just a Caravan with a filler instead of the rear windows and sealed beam headlights instead of composite headlight assemblies. They didn’t have much of an interior either. They also made an interesting option for conversion van manufacturers who could start with the barebones mini Ram Van platform, and that’s exactly what this is.  If you’re interested in a k-platfrom conversion van (with cooler!) you can find this near Cincinnati here on craigslist for just $800!

The seller only gave us three pictures of the van and managed to not be able to fit the entire van into any of them.  Let’s see what we can determine about this conversion van. First of all, we can see that the third window has been cut back into the fill panel by the conversion company. The original third window in these vans were very conveniently opened by either mechanical linkage connected to a knob in the ceiling or a power switch.  Based on the size of the rubber gasket, this window is permanently closed.  We see that the chrome color handle above the license plate has fallen off due to rust (they all did eventually). The running boards look good, tire looks like it has decent tread, there is a custom roof rack, and the name of the conversion company is Van Patton Vans. I couldn’t find this company on the internet but maybe someone knows what this is.  I also spy some rust at the bottom of the rear glass.

Here’s a fun fact for you: the 1987 Caravan/Voyager received a huge improvement over the prior design in the dashboard layout. The cupholders actually hold cups! The 1984-1986 vans looked like they would hold cups, but they wouldn’t. Insane, right?  No company could get away with that today. The dashboard looks good except the radio that is falling out. We don’t get to see the seats but we also see that the plastic surrounding the door handle is broken away, but that’s a very common problem and easy to fix. (The screw at the handle comes loose and then the plastic surround breaks. Tighten the screw, replace the plastic and you’re good.)

We have to rely on the seller for the rest of the information about this van and he says the interior is mint (yeah, Freiberger), it has 4 captain chairs and the rear bench folds into bed. It has custom wood trim and lights everywhere.  It has a built in cooler and if that isn’t enough it also has cold AC!  It has 170,000 miles and “runs excellent”.  He says it has a 6 cylinder engine which would mean the 3.0 liter Mitsubishi V6 which has plenty of power but was known to burn oil. I would have assumed the 2.6 liter 4 cylinder or 2.5 liter 4 cylinder but the 125 mph speedometer means a V6. Regardless, if it really does run well and has cold AC you are getting a lot of van for $800!  And here’s an 80’s Mopar joke: When is your van not a van? When the door is open, it’s ajar!