Minivans: Dodge Caravan, Plymouth Voyager, Chrysler Town & Country

Chrysler invented the minivan - twice. Richard Moss pointed out that Chrysler Europe was working with Matra on a minivan; but just as it was about to go into production, Chrysler Europe was sold to Peugeot-Citroen (PSA). Matra took the design to Renault, and the result was Europe's most popular minivan - introduced in the same year as the Plymouth Voyager and Dodge Caravan. While there had been numerous small vans in the past, the modern minivan - the vehicles known by that name - are generally acknowledged as being the Voyager/Caravan and the Renault (née Matra) Espace.

Chrysler had been working on a minivan in the early to mid 1970s (see our section on early minivan development.) Had the minivan been introduced earlier, it would probably have had rear wheel drive and a bigger engine, and might have been a failure since the small engine bay and large interior were key to its success.

From 1987 through 2007, there were two varieties of Chrysler minivan: the standard variety, and the longer "Grand" version (which includes the Town & Country). In 2008, only the Grands were left. Engines now range from a 3.3 liter flexible-fuel V6 to a 4.0 liter six, with a diesel sold outside North America; transmissions are a four speed automatic for the 3.3 and a six speed automatic for the 3.8 and 4.0.

Strengths of the Chrysler minivans (including the Dodge Caravan) include state-of-the-art ergonomics, carlike cornering, power liftgates, all sorts of entertainment features, swivel seats, lots of hidden storage (or hidden seats), and cupholders, combined with an aesthetically pleasing instrument panel and gas mileage far better than similar sized SUVs.

Click here for detailed minivan development and historical information, from the 1970s to 2001.

Minivan information: Dodge Caravan, Plymouth Voyager, Chrysler Town & Country

• Electric | CNG minivans
• Repairs and performance.
• Details on the creation of the 1984-1990 minivans
• Detail on the 1991-1995 minivans
• 1994 model-year changes and additions
• Reviews: 1998-99 | 2000 | 2003 | 2005
• 1984-2000 minivan powertrain table, courtesy of Drew Beck.
• 1996-2000 minivans overview | Body details | Powertrain and chassis
• Dodge Caravan SST
• 2001-2007 minivans | 2005-2006 minivan changes
• 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan / Chrysler Town & Country | 2008 cargo vans
• Preparing the Windsor factory for the 2008 minivans: flexible manufacturing, work teams, and more

European minivans

We have a brief review of the European minivan field, as it stood in the mid-1990s, including four-cylinder and diesel Chrysler Voyagers, with updates to 2005. Click here to visit.

The diesel engine in the 2002 export Voyager is a 16-valve DOHC and makes 142hp (104kW) @ 4000 rpm and a whopping 320 Nm of torque @ 2000 rpm (this only comes with a five-speed.) (Thanks, Chris Krisocki).