Posted on 03/02/2020 9:04:52 AM PST by Olog-hai
The Dodge Grand Caravan’s journey is finally ending this spring. The minivan is scheduled to end production on May 22, the automaker has confirmed.
The Caravan was introduced alongside the Plymouth Voyager in 1984 as a “garageable” van that helped kick off the minivan craze that continued through the 1990s, until family car buyers started making the shift to SUVs.
The stretched Grand Caravan was added to the lineup in 1987 and eventually became the only version offered.
The Caravan lived through five generations, with the current one dating back to 2008. U.S. sales topped 300,000 in 1996 and 1997, but have hovered in the 100,000 to 150,000 range for the past decade. …
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
See... SUV’s do indeed kill...
The Sto N Go seats were the best. ...
I bought a new 1984 model. It was great, I had 4 kids and a wife.
I bought a ‘96 when then added the drivers side sliding door. Was a great car for hauling kids around in.
My wife and I bought a new Sienna in 2007. 245,000 miles later it still runs like new with only minor, non-maintenance issues.
I don’t see any of the shorter four-cylinder models anywhere any more. Those were very popular when I was in high school; I was hoping my father would buy one, but instead he got an Omni.
The minivan that seems to still be the most popular is Toyota’s Sienna.
...
My Dad has a 2011 and it drives really well.
Great design, tripped up by lousy reliability. Having to pay the UAW tax is probably responsible for most of Detroit’s quality problems. Couldn’t charge more than the competition, so they had to nickel and dime customers on parts quality, which really turned people off.
Why? Away from the auto plant, parts are more expensive because customers pay retail. In addition, labor hours-wise, problems are really expensive to diagnose and install. Even if you DIY, if you value your time, it’s a serious cost.
Best car I ever had.
My wife and I owned two vans: a ‘96 Plymouth Voyager, and a 2004 Dodge Grand Caravan. Both were super vehicles and perfect when our kids were younger.
I got the 4cyl, could have gotten the V6 had I waited a few months. Plenty of power though.
In my life, I’ve owned 4 of these. Bought them for the wife, while I always kept a pickup.
The 1989 Grand Caravan bought used smoked like a chimney.
The others we bought new, so we traded them in before they started smoking bad!
A former co-irker had one and it lived in the garage.
The transmission was always having problems.
Chrysler Pacifica is still selling fine... as are Honda Oddessy and Kia Sedona....
Dodge basically offered a lot of for the money... based on the previous generation platform... If you needed a good people mover for the price it was hard to beat the Grand Caravan.
Will dodge end up with a branded low end Chrysler van?
So far looks like they are just completely dropping it...
Don’t exist, they went to only the Grand Caravan (slightly longer) with the v6. the 4 was offered the Caravan, not the Grand Caravan.
2019 sales have Honda Odyssey and Chrysler Pacifica outselling Sienna. Sienna’s available AWD may make popular in snow states.
I bought an’08 in ‘13 and it’s been a most reliable commuter vehicle that doubles as a cheap RV. I built a little bed down one side, a seat on the other, and “kitchen” in the tailgate. Best low budget camper ever. Driven and camped from right to left coasts and top to bottom of the USA.
I always wondered how Volkswagen completely missed the minivan boom. The VW microbus was a minivan for all practical purposes. Yes, it would have needed to be completely different, but they managed to transition from the beetle to the golf/rabbit in the 1970s.
You’d have thought that with the good will from microbus nostalgia, and also the camper van, that they would have seen the potential. But no.
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