I like the finger in the fluid reservoir test! Thanks for that. It would be the perfect check to see if any brake parts were replaced in the last couple of years (which would certainly include bleeding lines and wiping out the reservoir).
I have a 1992 GM 2500 van which I bought new. Never changed any brake parts and the fluid got very dark, black stuff in the reservoir. I tried flushing it yesterday and the proportioning valve (never heard of it before) locked out the rear brakes. Lucked out, after playing with it all day I managed to reset it. That van has had three crises in the last year - heater core, water pump/alternator/idler bearings and now brakes. I suppose it would have cost $2000 if I hadn't had mechanic friends. It only went a few hundred km in the year. it still needs new tires. What next? I wouldn't trust it for a long trip.
Susan, I think you made a wise choice. Your mention of everyday use AND a trip to Alaska reminds me of a friend who had a minivan for everyday use and also enjoyed a good camping trip to Alaska with it. It happens that a standard single bed fits into a Dodge Caravan (not even a Grande one). He made wire frame screens to put in the window openings for warm nights. An advantage of the vehicle not looking like an RV was that he could overnight free in towns, at a hospital parking lot or whatever.
