Vehicle Recommendations

It surprises me that this has not been discussed very much. Your vehicle is for many the largest and most important purchase related to the pursuit of this hobby. This is especially true if you have to travel to remote sites for observing and you have major equipment to haul.

A few years ago I had a Dodge Caravan as a company vehicle and it sure came in very handy for astronomy. While I am not a dobsonian owner, I do manage a large star party so once a year I have to haul tables and tents as well as door prizes, my own equipment and provisions for 4 days. The Caravan was great for that.

My next company car was a 2000 Toyota Camry. Not much capacity but great on gas mileage, comfortable and fine for my relatively small fast refractors. The daytime running lights were easy to disable with a one click pull on the emergency brake with the engine off first.

My new vehicle is a 2003 Jeep Liberty. It is still fine for my equipment but will not allow me to haul the star party tables as I have in past years. I have had the opportunity to sleep in it over two weekends. The rear seat does not lay completely flat but that is ok. Do have to sleep with knees bent as it does not have the room of a Suburban or an Expedition. It is not a vehicle for any of you with a large dob or long focal length refractor.

One additional problem that bears a warning is the susceptability to windshield cracks. I cracked one badly within the first 6 weeks, had it replaced and badly cracked the replacement 5 days later (both on Interstate 55). I had never replaced a windshield before over a 20 year history of company cars, 9 prior to this one. One possible contributing factor is the windshield angle. It is steep in the Liberty, about 43 degrees from the horizontal. (In my wife's Crysler Concord the windshield is only angled at 22 degrees from the horizontal.) Rocks have to be slamming into the Liberty windshield at a pretty steep angle causing all the damage. This may be a purchase consideration for some.

I am curious to hear from others that have good recommendations for vehicles specific to astronomy.

Barry Simon

Have had 2 Escort wagons and one Caravan since I got into this hobby. I could get everything I wanted to carry into the Escorts, but the Caravan does it with more room left over, and I can even sleep in it if I need to. I vote for the minivan.

If fuel economy is a consideration, my recomendation is for an economy wagon. I can fit my 10" F6 tube newtonian, its equatorial mount, my smaller refractor, its eq mount, tripod for the smaller scope, lounge chair, couple eyepiece cases, and observing stool in my Honda Civic wagon. Even with all of that gear, I still have room for a passenger. Average highway/ city mix mileage is 34 mpg or better. Yes, minivans are nice for hauling lots of gear and sleeping in with the seats removed but a decently designed wagon can also work quite well.

Joplin

Barry, I just recently purchased a Pontiac Vibe. One good feature is that the back seats fold down flat as well as the passenger seat, so supposedly one can carry an 8' ladder lengthwise. DR

I bought a used '99 Suburban specifically for my astronomy habit and it's been great. Plenty of room for all my gear, plenty of room for sleeping. Only drawback is fuel consumption (and no room for it in the garage!), but at 17-19 mpg highway I can live with it.

VW Passat Wagon. 30+ MPG, great handling, solidly built, roomy on the inside yet compact on the outside, highly rated by Consumer Reports and other magazines. AWD available if you need it (I don't, even in Minnesota!) On the negative side, more expensive than some competing wagons.

Wagons in general are great for hauling long narrow things like telescopes. Lower floor height than some other vehicles so lifting is easier. If you need to carry something on the roof, wagons are ideal because you don't need to lift as high and the center of mass is lower.

1976 Toyota Chinook

Holds all my gear and sleeps 2 comfortably. It is built on a small truck platform, and can get to many hard to reach places, and is much lighter weight than a cabover (also with a lower center of gravity.) Heater keeps me warm at 0 degrees. 17mpg. It is quite old, but still very reliable.

-Jake

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Used to tell myself I would never be caught driving a mini-van. Have to admit, my Voyager has lots of room for a big dob, a couple refractors, camping equipment and it rides alot nicer than the old Blazer I used to own. The kids and wife like it better too (nice car for long trips/vacations).

My favorite vehicle is my Honda Goldwing motorcycle with my trailer. I can put my GP/DX, Televue 85, observers chair, and eyepiece case in there with room to spare. The trailer doesn't match because I got it used.
Ralph

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