# Chevy 1500 AWD?



## ESRob (May 17, 2014)

I've been kicking around the idea of a 4wd van for awhile now and the Chevy 1500 AWD Savana seems like it would be something to entertain. Reasonably priced and readily available.
But you don't see many on the beach (where I go, anyway), and for all the 4wd's I've had, I've never had an AWD. Not sure how I feel about that...
I've done some googling, but haven't been able to come up with much.

Thoughts? Experiences?


----------



## DaBig2na (Aug 7, 2011)

There is a big difference between AWD and 4WD.... try Googling AWD vs 4WD.. Some beaches (hard packed)you might be able to get by with AWD as long as you're aired down good. There again it depends on what you have for tire and wheels and the amount of sidewall you have.


----------



## Benji (Nov 19, 2014)

You can find used Quigley vans online. You might have to go to Colorado for a good deal on one though.


----------



## ESRob (May 17, 2014)

I'm pretty savvy on the awd vs 4wd, which is why I've owned many 4wd and no awd. Hell, it took me forever to make the switch to push button 4wd. It wasn't done by choice either.

The Quigley's tend to get spendy if you aren't buying a heap, and I'm not convinced I want to drop the coin. I was actually looking around for one when I started noticing all the chevy's.


----------



## hunter1 (Jul 31, 2009)

THe Savana has no ground clearance for the beach. Plus it's FWD with AWD, All it will do is get you stuck at the drive on entrance. They were not made for the beach. Don't waste your money.


----------



## Garboman (Jul 22, 2010)

hunter1 said:


> THe Savana has no ground clearance for the beach. Plus it's FWD with AWD, All it will do is get you stuck at the drive on entrance. They were not made for the beach. Don't waste your money.


A lot of the All Wheel Drive Vehicles are designed so that when a wheel loses traction and starts spinning, power to that wheel is automatically transferred to the opposite wheel, The net effect of this is that these AWD vehicles are highly adept at digging holes in the sand and getting framed out.

Before the ruts got so deep from monster trucks one could drive lower clearance vehicles to the Point, but it can get dicey now especially if rainfall is scarce and vehicular traffic is high, especially right off Ramp 44.

Seen a bunch of those new Mercedes Vans out on the beach and VA Appraiser drives his Three Bedroom Mobile Home out to the Point and on that secret Island to the South, so Quigley is not the only Van in town. I would get VA Appraisers Mobile Home framed out the first trip, but he seems to keep on powering thru.

If you have mechanical abilities just remove the body from an F350 and drop a E350 Van body on top. But if not you have to go Quigley. 

Short Stuff Drum Pro had her designated caster build her out a dream Quigley Barbie Van.

Back in the 1970's I had several Vans, one of the annoying things about Vans for me anyway was if you had to stop and lock up the brakes for any reason, everything in the back of the Van ended up in the front of the Van. The Vans were pretty inexpensive the first Chevy Van brand new was $6500 in 1979 and the next Van I got was a new Chevy Van in 1984 that was $8400. I wish I had kept them....actually I would prefer to have some of the women that rode around with me in those days Circa 1979 of course before the effects of age set in on them.....and they rusted out....


----------



## hpierce301 (Jan 24, 2011)

I'll take the unpopular side of this argument. I had a Jeep Cherokee XJ for a couple of years, and now drive my AWD Escalade out on Carolina Beach all the time. The Escalade handles it much better than the Jeep ever did. Air down, turn off the traction control, and I have had no issues driving where ever I'd like to go. Not all AWD systems are the same, but i'd venture to say the van you're considering probably has the same set up as I do. Go for it!


----------



## Cold_Beer839 (Nov 26, 2017)




----------



## hpierce301 (Jan 24, 2011)

nice Tonka truck, we use Thomas Towing on Carolina beach



https://www.thomastows.com/off-road-towing


----------

