Stylish Dodge A100 window van powered by a V8 engine

The advent of the Volkswagen microbus opened the floodgates for the world’s automakers to make their own versions of highly practical small vans for work, fun or family transport.  Dodge was among them, coming out with its sturdy and popular A100.

The Pick of the Day is a 1964 Dodge A100 window van set up with seating for seven.  These vans in any form are fairly rare since they were mostly used up and ditched with little appreciation at the time of their attractive qualities.

This van was apparently owned by someone who did appreciate it, since it seems to have been nicely kept and refurbished.

“The first year of the classic A100 window van, and its distinctive styling is enhanced by the butternut paint and creme interior with chrome accents,” according to the Gladstone, Oregon, dealer advertising the Dodge on ClassicCars.com. “The exterior paint is in decent condition and also the interior.”

The nice-looking example is equipped with a 318cid V8, although the dealer does not say whether the engine is original – the lion’s share of these vans were equipped with the ubiquitous Mopar slant-6 engine.

The engine has been upgraded with Edelbrock aluminum intake and dual Flowmaster exhaust, and electronic ignition, and it should have loads of power for hauling, towing or transporting a full cargo of humans. Or if you were so inclined, the van could be converted into a nice camper.

“This beauty runs and drives awesome,” the seller adds.

The van has been dressed with “15X7 cop car rally wheels with NOS dog-dish caps,” the dealer notes, and the interior boasts a decent audio system with a CD player and a set of large speakers installed in the rear doors.  The seats and dashboard look to be in usable condition.

While some vans of this era had engines in the rear, notably VWs and Chevy Corvairs, the Dodge and Ford Econoline vans had their engines enclosed in large structural boxes set between the front seats – you can see how the designers created the vans using passenger-car underpinnings.

This might seem strange and clunky, but in my experience with a friend’s old A100 van back in the day, there was no extra noise or odor associated with having the engine right in there with you.  And servicing the engine was more comfortable when the weather was cold or rainy.

While there are a few unanswered questions that you’d have to ask the dealer, this van looks like a rare find and worth taking a chance on for the modest asking price of $12,500.

To view this listing on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day.