At some point in the late 1990s, the auto industry decided that everything must be a minivan. Especially in Europe and Japan. And I remember that "minivan everything" era. Minivan family hatchbacks, minivan mini cars, subcompacts, they even tried to make minivan luxury cars and minivan sport coupes. But guess what - customers also care how the cars look and drive. Well, mostly look, because many won't recognize driving experience even if they get smacked in the face with it. But still, for many, getting a minivan means your life is pretty much over, just turning into miserable existence filled with soiled diapers and sleeping next to the disgusting snoring behemoth of a wife. So even Jeremy Clarkson couldn't help the minivan image. But the auto industry looked at all the unsold abominations filling their lots and came with the perfect solution. Why not take those desperately uncool white boxes on tiny wheels, lift them, put bigger wheels and some unpainted plastics, call them SUVs and voila - we can mark up the prices and sell them to cool bicycle dads and yoga moms for all their sport utility needs. And the crossover SUV was born.
It was absolutely wonderful working with both you and Mr. Regular! I'm glad that you loathe this car nearly as much as I do, and was thoroughly amused by that opener. Just by that opener I knew that this was going to be a particularly good one. Am I a little biased? Maybe? Nonetheless, great video as always!
yelling at your kids in a Chrysler Town & Country is a huge part of American tradition and a right of passage for upper middle class parents across the country who wouldn't be caught DEAD in a Dodge Grand Caravan...
More people should drive minivans. The idea that people buy 3 row SUV's instead of one of these is insane. The lengths they will deal with inconvenience to avoid driving one of the most utilitarian vehicles shows how the cultural zeitgeist is often more important than actually building the objectively best solution to a use case.
100% agree - I had a suburban, nice, tricked out, all the bells and whistles - but for work when we would take crews here to there - yeah I'd grad the shitty old Caravan - far more comfortable for that many people.
Ha, yep. It’s a funny bit of social psychology. A third row crossover is the closest thing to a minivan; yet trimming away much of a van’s versatility and utility. Many, if not most crossovers, are really just van replacements. The cosplay of an adventurous lifestyle is way more appealing.
I rented a new Durango for a week and I was amazed at how much smaller it is compared to a minivan. Like it's just tall and fast but not really practical compared to a minivan.
It's why some of the contractors I work with use minivans over trucks. Lower to the ground so it's easy to get in and out of and easy to reach and store material. Especially when you get older and can do with less jumping in and out of a pickup truck.
I test drove a 2018 Highlander. Even though it had a 3rd row seat, it was tight as shit. Your legs also felt like they had to be up at your chest. Got a 2020 Sienna instead. Super comfortable and roomy. Fuck SUVs, give me a good minivan any day of the week.
@@miurasvlamborghiniChrysler didn't invent the hemispherical combustion chamber and the "new hemi" isn't even a real hemi. Plus bolting a bigger supercharger onto your truck engine than anyone else isn't exactly groundbreaking engineering.
I own a Routon, paid 7k for it with 65000 miles. My kids have never hit another car in a parking lot with a door, it only started needing parts at 160k. Once one of my munchkins started to “ wash it “ with a rock for a sponge, no soap, no water, no freak out. What a good transport.
My cousin let our family borrow her Town and Country back in 2017 and as soon as we got back to Florida we bought a new Toyota Sienna right away. We realized how amazing it was to own a minivan with all that room and will continue to own them forever. It's like the perfect truck/haulder. Love not being jammed in places can easily slam my kid's car seats in the middle row. Love them.
Friend of mine had a Toyota Tarago (Previa 1st Gen) from around 2000 and it was a remarkably good car when you have 2 adults, 3-4kids. It just all fits, otherwise you have to go full-size SUV now and no one should ever have to go full SUV on anything. The nicest thing apart from space for all the luggage and people was that they were well set out mechanically, easy to service, generally really robust, safe comfortable. The other slightly less well known fact is that Toyota vans seem to hold a lot of value, even the HIACE ones for trades and courier work really didn't drop very far down even with half a million km's on them because once they got a bit tired, people would buy them and recondition them as campers off to go do another 4-500k on the clock
Buy a wagon or suv. They can actually be beautiful. Good choice though. If I was forced to drive a van, it would be a Honda Oddessy or Toyota Sienna or a cool kei van.
I think way more people should be buying minivans over SUVs. A lot of people use SUVs for the purpose minivans were made for and can do much better, and avoiding the "soccer mom" stigma isn't possible since that's now moved over to SUVs. Might as well bite the bullet and get something better for your needs.
Bought an ‘09 beater Honda odyssey off facebook marketplace because my F450 is a terrible daily. This thing is by far the best vehicle I’ve ever owned. Don’t care if the kids spill shit, don’t care if the dogs puke, don’t care if the wife picks up hay bales in it, don’t care if I look out the kitchen window and see my 10 year old son and his buddies ripping it across the the front pasture. The engine vibrates like Michael J Fox because the motor mounts are shot and the automatic sliding doors only close properly if the temp is above 40, but who cares, it cost less than most used golf carts. I’ll never not have a cheap minivan.
The best things about videos crapping on town and country vans is that it keeps their prices low The cheapest most practical car you can buy, even the ones with leather, heated seats are still practical and cheap
100% every company I've worked for when they need a utility hauler I get them to pickup an 80k mileage caravan - they always make it to 150k before something legit falls off ;)
True. My father in law is a car guy. He has some very well kept classics in his garage that he babies and only takes out when the weather is perfect. But his daily driver for hauling stuff and dogs/winter beater is an early 2010's Town and Country. It was cheap, it's fairly reliable, and he can drive it around in the muck without having to worry about it too much. And he's getting older, so he appreciates the heated seats and remote start, things his vintage sports cars definitely do not have.
I love these, with everything folded down and flat. You can put at least 20pcs of 4x8 plywood, sheetrock, foam boards... And an infinite amount of 2x4 beams you can handle. Abuse it however you like and if keeps going, wonderful!
I lost my foot in a motorcycle accident getting t boned by retiree in a silver Chrysler town and country who didnt see me, so I may be more biased in my negative opinions of them. lmao.
The Pacifica is basically a T&C. My cousin is in panic mode thinking the minivan may go the way of the dodo. He is in a wheelchair and the #1 adopted vehicle is the few minivan models left in production. The Honda has a reputation for problematic transmissions, like dying at 40k miles. Hopefully the Sienna is selling well enough to keep it in production
What's even wilder to think is that Volkswagen wanted a piece of the action. In the form of the Volkswagen Routan, a carvan by another name. People sometimes don't even realize it's a Caravan, which is even more bizarre.
I've owned my 2008 Grand Caravan for 14 years, and it has never let me down. I have other vehicles, but the versatility of the Caravan is unmatched in this era of three row crossovers. I also have a beloved (by RCR) 1992 SVX and a 2011 Ram 1500 4x4.
The stow in go was a major breakthrough. Having to move the front seats is minimal effort compared to removing the middle seats. The open space in the back is bigger the the bed of a normal f-150 so not small.
Down the toilet. Water in the bowl will keep the grease away from the pipes. Plus, the discharge from the toilet is (usually) straight down to the septic/sewer pipe so no chance of buildup compared to faucet pipes that have horizontal portions, allowing slower flow and place for grease to buildup.
Another thought on what these vans are “trying to say”… “You can fit your family and their junk in here and drive places affordably” That’s it. That’s all it was meant to be. They church’ed it up a little so the drive isn’t totally soul sucking, but the core principle is in being a reliable(TM), “efficient” family hauler with tons of cargo space for road trips and enough basic conveniences to check the important boxes. If you want to see just how boring, soulless and bland these vans can be, drive one of the 2008-2010 pre-facelift versions. Ugly outside, uglier inside, slow, sloppy, absolutely no redeeming qualities beyond reliability and cargo space. The 2011 refresh was indeed an improvement. SUV’s suck for families. Less cargo space, harder to get in and out of for the kids… minivans survived the SUV era and may wind up taking them over because of how much more practical they are. Also… Caravans and Town and Countries are EVERYWHERE here in Michigan. I see several everywhere I go. Not sure where they’re all hiding in PA.
I've owned 3 different Caravans/T&C's. I live in Michigan, and they just work. Never an issue in the snow or mud. The first two fell victim to SUVs not paying attention at red lights.
I remember shopping for minivans in 2021. The dealer was really trying to push 2020 Grand Caravans onto me. They were practically giving them away but I told them to kick rocks. I got a 2020 Sienna instead and have been very satisfied.
This feels like a dad in management position at first bought a 2005 V6 Camery, but through the financial crisis and increase head count in the household this is what he in the end settle with, and have to carry stuff in this with his second job now
I still drive my 2003 Town and Country Limited and i’ve been using that thing since high school. It’s got 208k miles now but she’s still my favorite point a to point b’er because just like Roman said the reliability on the old 3.8 was amazing and as long as you preform basic maintenance she’ll never act up. That van has watched me learn how to drive, gone through 2 relationships, one transmission and a radiator and she’s still around. It hauls reliably and is very spacious for the time it was around and I love that van.
Hell ya! I have a 2014 that i bought off a salvage auction and rebuilt with a friend. All in cost me $11k. I've put over 100k miles on it hauling lumber, kids, dogs, landscaping material, camping stuff, the kids friends. Its off the charts in cost/utility. When my 22 yo daughters 2008 Freestyle finally dies shell inherit this family heirloom and ill get another van. Owning an SUV is paying way more for less function for the illusion of "cool".
The features in this reminds me of the way that American cars from the 70s-90s tried to trick people into thinking they’re luxurious by just stuffing in a bunch of “snazzy” bits and bobs that serve no purpose
If you've got 3-4 people on a long road trip there's nothing better than a van - fold down/take out the middle seat, load in the cooler and the junk food, stretch out, and set sail. I had a minivan in college and it was a tremendous highway cruiser, just ate up the miles. Fuel economy wasn't great but it wasn't terrible either. Really the only thing I truly hated about driving it was trying to parallel park it on city streets, which was not unlike bringing a container ship into dock.
I WOULD LIKE TO SEE HIM TRY TO CHANGE ATTIRE ON THE FREEWAY WITH THIS MINIVAN.😊 YOU HAVE TO USE A SPECIAL TOOL TO LOWER DOWN THE TIRE AND THEN THE TIRE IS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE VEHICLE GOOD LUCK
8:54 I rented a Grand Caravan with that shifter circa 2017 and it was one of the better automatic shifters I've had to deal with. I was driving the thing through northern New England during winter storms and it was pretty atrocious in the snow with whatever trash "all-season" tires it had. The ability to speed-downshift by speed-smacking the nearby gear lever was helpful while guiding that mess in my more-or-less intended direction in a blizzard on New Hampshire's Kancamagus Pass.
My dad has had several of these as vans to work out of and I’ve had a few myself. They all make it well over 200k with no major issues. My last one was a 2010 Grand Caravan that I sold with over 386,000 miles on it. It’s still on the road with just routine maintenance. They’re painfully boring, but at least they’re roomy and dependable
I remember being enthused by the town and country because of the table and backwards facing seats. I was like 7 but I still got excited about it because it was so novel.
It does get way too repetitive too. You can only go "oh, that's pretty good" like twice per meal choice before you start noticing how badly you're getting ripped off
14:27 that looks like the “RBZ” non navigation MyGig radio; on those early radios the Uconnect was a dealer installed option; later models had it (and Bluetooth audio streaming) built in as standard equipment like my parents’ 2019 Grand Caravan.
I have a 2014 Town and Country with the bigger brakes and wheels. I also have a 2012 Grand Caravan with the smaller brakes and wheels, comparable to the van in this video. Aside from being a cheaply built product made with cheap materials, I find it peppy enough to not make driving a miserable experience, it doesn’t look offensively ugly, it’s comfortable, it doesn’t have a bunch of nanny features or cylinder deactivation nonsense, and the Stow N Go feature alone would make this thing dominate the market if only the van itself were built a little better. I like it because it’s not super over-engineered, parts are cheap, labor isn’t unreasonable, and I can do most repair jobs in my driveway. With brand new brakes, tires and shocks all around, it drives quite good. Stiff enough to give you some road feel, soft enough to be comfortable. It goes through front brakes and front tires faster than your average car, and the 2012 even faster than that, but that’s common on minivans from what I understand. It’s the last of the regular cars. In 2017, they released the Pacifica which has standard automatic emergency braking and stop/start and a host of other super expensive features while also managing to be less reliable. If you’re a mechanic or you have a close mechanic friend, I’d recommend these vans to ANY of you with two or more kids. The conveniences outweigh the uncoolness. Both of mine have been reliable, but it’s a bit of a crapshoot. Pay more for a Honda which also has its problems this generation, or pay a lot more for a Toyota to have peace of mind (but may be the most soulless, boring minivan ever made - if you think THIS is “regular”, drive a Sienna)… or get a lower your standards just a bit, roll the dice, get Town and Country and absolutely love it (until the trans dies because you used the self destruct button labeled as “ECON”).
@@loganmitchell1382 My 2012 Caravan started shifted REALLY weird, had to stand on the accelerator to get it to shift, then it would downshift and immediately upshift again. I thought the PCM was freaking out or the trans solenoids had failed or something. Then I realized I must've hit the Econ button on accident. I turned it off and it drove perfect again.
@@derbydriver I've heard the the Econ function is actually bad for the transmission because it places it under extra stress. And this transmission needs all the pampering it can get.
Best people mover. Practical. Our 2016 lost reverse 3 years ago, then the oil cooler sprung a leak. No problems since. The transmission part that failed was redesigned and TSB’d to the consumer’s pocket and the flying D improved oil cooler/filter housing should make this last as long as our 2006 jello mold grand caravan.
You put the drivability of the vehicle perfectly. I ended up with my wife’s after we upgraded her car & I’ve never driven something so lifeless and benign. Great video!
This review was a long time coming. The spiritual successor to the Oldsmobile Silhouette. The official car of your firstborn finally having kids. Now you're a grandparent. Chrysler Town & Country.
This van has the same redeeming quality as the minivan that was my first vehicle: It was free. When you barely know how to drive and don’t have any money an old but reliable van like this is a blessing. I didn’t particularly like my Mercury Villager, but I appreciated the hell out of it and I was grateful my parents decided it was no longer worth protecting from a clueless new driver.
The 3.6 is one of the best engines they paired with the caravan. I drove my '08 until last year, until I bought my '24 Tucson hybrid and that van Never left me stranded!
I would argue 3.6 is the best v6 you can get nowadays and one of the reasons why stellantis sucks We could have gotten an american gtr with the twin turbo version but they cancelled it to sell anemic big blocks that makes like 100 more hp over twice the displacement of pentastar
yeah that's why I never really got why people ragged so hard on the V6 muscle cars like I get it's not the V8 and it doesn't make the sound and there's a better engine option but really at the end of the day 300 plus horsepower is nothing to sneeze at and was just V8 numbers not that long ago in a rear wheel drive platform if it had a different name and maybe wasn't so heavy people would be all over it@@ozan1234561
@ozan1234561 durability, that engine is almost unbreakable. For example, and this is first hand with my engine, the wife and I took ours camping about 3 hours from home, and when we we leaving to head home, the coolant Y splitter... split (a common issue, as they're plastic). Literally, as we pulled out of the campsite. Coolant sprayed all over the windshield. I got out, checked where it came from, and realized it wasn't something I could repair on a Sunday, hours from home, and my tools. So I dumped what water I had from the coolers and jumped in the drivers seat, and headed home. Not only did it survive, but after replacing the part with a metal Dorman, that van ran until the day it was rolled over the scales at the wreckers. It was scrapped due to front-end suspension issues, and that fact it was used as a roofing vehicle for a majority of its life. The odometer was about 170,000km when the y pipe let go, and it had 268,000km when it was sent to the scrap yard. That is my experience with my very heavily used and abused Caravan. But I have heard from many other people with that 3.6 in their Caravans that have have very little issues with the engine, but like me, have had the common issues that the model had, in general.
My wife and I have owned a lot of Mopar vehicles. The only one that’s been a solid and reliable is our 08 T&C. We bought it at 40k miles and now it sits at 160k and is getting handed down to one of our kids soon. All my other Mopar experiences made me switch to Toyota but I’ve been happy with that one. It still makes me smile when I drive it. Can’t say why, it isn’t fast or sporty but I guess we used it so much with our 4 kids who are now grown it just grew on me.
I have quite a lot of experience driving Chrysler vans and I have to say I don't think them that bad. Sure they're not going to win any races but once you get them up over 40MPH they do get more lively. If you just need/want basic transportation that gets decent gas mileage and can haul things when needed you could do a lot worse than a town and country/Caravan.
Yeah they really aren’t as bad as they’re made out to be… as long as you keep up on maintenance. If you let them start falling apart, they don’t hide it very well. Keep good brakes and tires on it, fix the little issues along the way and they’re honestly totally pleasant to drive. Nothing exciting about them, but there isn’t supposed to be- they’re meant to be a sensible family hauler.
@@derbydriver I've always said they're good vans for the money. They aren't as good as the Hondas IMHO but they also don't cost as much to buy as an Odyssey.
Dude the saddest car I've ever driven had to be my mom's 1995 Chevy cavalier sedan. The car was just the worst. I'm glad we weren't forced to drive it when my brother and I turned 16 the year after they got it. She traded it in cuz she hated it so much. Three-speed automatic, white with airplane economy seat blue interior. no power anything, under powered 4 cylinder. Just an execution of automotive indifference. You definitely are depriving yourself of a masochistic driving experience by not experiencing one.
My only memory with a Town & Country was in 2012 as a rental for the trip home to PA for my grandmother's funeral. That being said, it was a perfectly quiet and compliant vehicle at the time. Being someone who would default to a Sienna or an Odyssey, I find myself coming back to the Pacifica more than I'd like to admit!
I drive an 18 caravan for a company vehicle and yes to all of this. Between the transmission and throttle it feels like im playing telephone at a retirement home; takes a while to get the message through, but it never understands what i actually wanted it to do anyway.
I worked at a plant that had three cars as loaners - a piss-stained tahoe, a clapped out f150, and a really nice Town and Country. I eventually settled on using the TnC for around-plant errands. It drives like a fat Camry and is actually really nice inside.
My dad had a 2019 grand caravan as a work van when it was new, and i have to say, by then, at least in my non professional opinion, they got the van down a lot better by then, it seemed surprisingly quick and nimble, but i think they had a different transmission in it by then. Both of us wish he would have bought it once the lease to his company was up, which was an option to us, but we didn't need it at the time.
Lol I have a 2017 Dodge grand caravan. 0 charisma , but 0 problems in 170k miles and storage for days. Even the Bluetooth works after I googled how to work it lol
My grandparents had an '08 Town & Country, the last in a series of Town & Countries before my grandmother stopped driving. It was our family road trip car. The plastics were hard, the leather was cheap, but it was comfortable and unbelievably spacious. I loved how it would hold first gear out to 4000RPM and that it had a nice floaty ride. I remember those swiveling overhead lights and fold-down screens. Ours had hidden green lighting inside the overhead console and the Indiglo gauges. Ours didn't have Stow-N-Go but instead had the swiveling seats. The only problem it ever had was a TPMS sensor going out and there was no way to disable the warning because Chrysler put half the dashboard on the TPMS fuse.
Until recently I had a 2005 town can country. Moved me out of state, moved someone else out of a scary situation, gave me some great camping road trips. It's currently being used to help someone move lol. Weirdly I had a fantasy of owning a stow n go as a kid and I'm glad I did.
My sister had one when she was raising her two kids. Uninspiring, yes. But it was infinitely practical with its double remote power sliding doors. Sometimes function must be the top priority.
I learned to drive in a 2002 Chrysler Town and Country LXi. It was a long wheelbase with all the bells and whistles. We went from a 1994 Chevy Caprice Classic and a 1988 Mercury Topaz to a one vehicle family. That generation of Mopar minivans drove pretty good. My 2nd car was a 1999 Chrysler 300m cause I liked the 3.5 V6 that was in our minivan and the quality of the leather they used back then
That was a better generation than this. You can't get comfortable in any of these 2007-17 minivans, because the seats SUCK. They are hard boards in back and front that are there to be cheap. The best thing these have going for them is the fold-away seats. My dad uses his Grand Caravan as a truck, and it's a decent truck. It gets no love, and continues on, but the 2001-07 Grand Caravans (2 of them, same colour) that preceded it were far better. Chrysler still has the magic wand with electronics. The blower motor sometimes works, sometimes doesn't. The dash lights come on only when you whack the HVAC binnacle. Glorious.
Just traded my 2014 T&C S Package, 169k with one transmission, two rear ac units, a few brake jobs and struts/shocks. Will be remembered fondly in pictures from many successful road trips, towing a 17' speedboat, hauling couches inside, accidental northern Michigan two-tracking
I wish you would do a review of the third generation Plymouth Voyager. I have a 2000 Voyager and it is an absolute stripped down model with manual windows and everything. But that's what I love about it. It's an honest workhorse and it's not trying to be anything it isn't. It's perfect for people with a lower income because it was affordable and great on gas while still very capable. For a family that doesn't have the money to have multiple vehicles the third gen Plymouth Voyager was a do-it-all vehicle. You can haul things like a truck or you can move your family around. You can also go on weekend vacations to the Jersey shore and still fit all of your luggage in there after your family is loaded up. You are right life is hard and even if your vehicle is not desirable if it makes your life easier it's a welcome addition to your life.
As someone who learned how to drive in the pre-facelift version of this car, a base model with the 3.3 V6 and the 4-speed auto, this was a very fun watch for me. These minivans are slow as hell, shift rough, and stop eventually, but god damn it, they're rock solid vehicles. 15 years old and almost 180k miles and it refuses to quit. Minivans, especially that one, will always hold a special place in my heart, but I would be full out lying if I said that they were fun or interesting in ANY sense of the word. Thank you for taking one for the team and choosing to review one of these.
This thing had an interesting life cycle here in Italy, since at the time Chrysler was "saved" by FCA. First it was sold as the Chrysler Voyager. Then magically it became the Lancia Phedra, then they renamed the Phedra to just be the Lancia Voyager. Confusing af, I've maybe seen 2 of them going around. It's already a sad looking thing by default, but seeing a Lancia badge slapped on it was just depressing.
What they did to Lancia is just depressing in the first place. This van IS modern Lancia. Its customers represent Lancia as a whole. Once upon a time, you were a football player. You played with Joe Namath! You were a stud, tackling defenders, running the ball, scoring touchdowns. But those days are long gone. You've been retired for years. Subject to a life of pointless hobbies to keep your mind ticking along just to delay the inevitable trip to the nursing home. The only thing that remembers your name is the statistic book from the 1972 NFL season when you played with the Jets. Once, you were a hero. People looked up to you. Now, you're just another sad old man. You're no longer the main character. Godspeed. Chrysler Town and Country. You bought this to haul the grandkids around. It ended up being your last vehicle. There's just something really sad about this vehicle. So forgettable.
@cherrypepsi2815 everyone blaming Stellantis right now but FCA started all this tomfoolery way back ago. I agree with you, and I've to say that I'd rather see brands die off instead of seeing them just nostalgia squeezed for having even more bad products. Lancia built the 037, the Stratos, the Aurelia, the Delta, some of the most important cars in history, but no have a Chrysler minivan and sell it under your badge, way to honor such legacy. And the same goes for Maserati and Alfa, that at least they're trying with an halo car but haven't anything valid in their inventory. There's a life cycle to everything, everyone has a right to rest, but damn if capitalism today feels the need to raise the dead just to sell one more product. To live forever is just pointless, and most of the time memories are good only if they keep being memories.
We just traded in the 2010 T&C. Kicking myself for not keeping it. It was in good shape and with 5 grown kids, somebody is always needing a loaner. What was I thinking?
I had a brand new one of these as a company car.Even when brand new, Roman is bang on with the driving experience. The throttle response felt like it made half of the posted HP/torque numbers and the handling felt like the reason they bogged the throttle response
I've owned and or operated numerous small to mid size factories - Caravans are FANTASTIC - Decent mileage, rarely fail and when they do not too expensive and are great for small cargo runs or moving people. I've had big SUV's but when it came to move some stuff - yeah I'd grab the company Caravan . If I was taking a crew somewhere, yep the Caravan was far more comfortable for moving 6 big guys. However yeah, its boring and drives like generic vanilla pudding - but for general utility its great.
I ended up with an 09 grand caravan when i was 19 (26 now) and its held up surprisingly well. I use it for things it was never intended for, like offroading, hauling scrap steel, and pulling a trailer with any number of small machines. Its also big enough for two people to camp in the back. The dodge was definitely made more for abuse than the town and country, its more honest in its plain plastics and shitty headliner, but damn that this is reliable. Its near the end of its life now - I really do abuse the hell out of it but when its gone ill look back fondly, and maybe get another minivan (def 4x4 this time and probably a Sienna)
Yeah, these exist in a weird space. I can't imagine "wanting" one, but damn if they aren't useful AF. We bought a 2011 base model Caravan for making cross-country trips to haul stuff to conventions and it was fantastic. Super comfortable on long road trips, almost 30mpg when you kept it on the highway, and I could fit tons of stuff in it. We would haul tables, chairs, banners, signage, pallets of water in it, and then pack it to the roof with cartons of product. What's that, 3 people are going to arrive late for the convention and I have to pick them up from the airport right now? No problem, give me 30 seconds to bring the seats up and it's got room for people and all their luggage. The thing was a swiss-army knife of a vehicle and I respected the hell out of it for that. Was it fun to drive? No, but the v6 had enough grunt to be entertaining.
I grew up in a Caravan family and learned to drive in one and honestly loved them, but the T&C was a pathetic attempt at dolling them up. 40k for a top trim in 2011 is some devious work
I worked for for an elderly couple at an antique store for several years and they bought one exactly like this because they could no longer sit down into a car. The back seats were permanently folded down and was used as mobile storage because they were hoarders and the house was too full. They also wouldn't allow you to call it a minivan, they were adamant that it was, in fact, a station wagon.
My parents had a 2014? Town & Country and later a 2016 Grand Caravan, and we never had any issues out of either. That v6 also has a pretty good amount of pickup even when fully loaded down
Ex semi driver here. with a massive 15 foot blindspot in front of the truck. Never had a issue with long hoods. no spacial awareness. minivans get a bad rap. omg a reliable vehicle that does what it's suppost to get that outta here. GIVE ME THAT PLASTIC CAR
I still own my 2011 and it just turned over 100,000 miles in December! I have the factory low clearance version with smaller tires and no roof rack, and 1st gear will turn even the highest quality tire bald with a combination of high horsepower, high torque, and wheel spin from EVERY dead stop. It is after all the same engine as the Dodge Challenger base model. From 2012 to 2016 it suffered so many mechanical issues though. I did have an extended warranty. Cam phasers, axel bearings, oil cooler, transmission slip, power control module and so much more all within the first 5 years. All under 60,000 miles. The dashboard was also assembled incorrectly at the factory. However, the last 40,000 have seen only oil changes and expendables needing replaced. Oh, and the transmission is horrible even when it works right. It is never in the correct gear, the torque converter locks too easily, and 1st gear is for towing.
I have always had a soft spot for the Chrysler Town and Country since being in an older one as a rental years ago (it was old even then). It is mundane, but it gets the job done. It is comfortable, holds plenty of people, is affordable, and is decently reliable (despite Chrysler's reputation).
I drove so many of these when I worked for a car rental company in the mid-late 2010s. It really is the worst minivan out of the fleet. When the T&C went out of production, the dodge caravan soldiered on until 2020. This thing survived solely on fleet sales. You're right about these things taking abuse like a champ. We had one at like 30,000km that hadn't received its first oil change.
Waking up the kid to do the Robert Loggia! That was a good one. Remember the trailer for the original Ace Ventura Pet Detective? Jim Carrey, after the bathroom incident says "DO NOT [pause] GO IN THERE!" And that gets the big laugh. I was a chubby 10 yr old and the adults got a kick out of my impression so I totally related to the Robert Loggia bit. Good one Roman.
I'm thinking about buying one to make a vanlife adventure van. Lift it a few inches with the Journey's Off Road lift kit, add some all terrain tires, maybe a couple of off road lights, and make it look cool. You can get into one for cheaper than an Astro van that's 10 plus years older, which is pretty wild, and probably says all you need to know about these vans.
These make a really great camper, or if you're forced into that situation, a stealth cardwelling option. I lived out of mine for 4 years while I was between apartments in this depressing era of rising rents and shrinking wages. I just added tint onto the side and rear windows, put gray blackout curtains behind that and a nice insulated air mattress under my sleeping bag and I was off to the races. It wasn't a full size van but it was close enough and far stealthier, never got bothered by the cops because 'soccer mom vehicle'.
We had a 2007 Chrysler Town & Country Touring Edition, we miss it. It was a little hard for my short mom to get into, but she just packed a step stool. She really misses that shifter on the Dash, She said she felt like she was driving a boat lol. The dual DVD players and built in Power Inverter in the back were nice. And it had hookups so we could connect game systems to the Passenger DVD screen. Also all the back seats being fold flat was nice. Sadly we had to sell it to a junkyard because it developed a coolent leak we just could not find and then melted Cylindar 5. Couldn't source another engine for it, so it sat in our driveway for 2 years until the landlord got on our case.
Man I sometimes think you guys are over critical for sure. Lots of accurate information here but man that ride quality isn’t that bad😂. We bought (on purpose) a 2015 and love it! Not the great vehicle in the world and I have been just waiting for it to break down, but it doesn’t 🤞. As long as it’s got enough getup to merge on the highway or pass someone when loaded up, I’m good. We also have four kids and the sliding doors work great in the garage during winter when the other vehicle is parked inside. We also use the Sto n Go seating all the time. All around I was super impressed with how great and convenient of a vehicle it’s turned out to be. I bought the Chrysler because I liked the way they looked more than the Dodge and couldn’t afford what Toyota and Honda minivans were selling for at the time. As a former Ford mechanic I was also somewhat familiar with most domestic makes. If Ford or GM still made a minivan I most likely would’ve bought one of those. SUVs are hood if you only have two kids, vans are just easier in our opinion. I will say one of my favorite things about the van is indeed the analog clock on the dash, as it makes me feel a bit fancy 😂. Great video guys!
I drove a Dodge Grand Caravan as a work vehicle for a year. Being in IT, it was awesome to make bulky deliveries everywhere of computers and other technical items. 3.6 pentastar had plenty of guts, and I was completely invisible on the roads since it was a white, SXT base model vehicle.
“Avalanche of little things that get in your nerves.” The overactive lanehold aside, my 2019 Rav4 is literally the opposite of this. Everything gets out of its own way and it just “cars” without me having to devote any energy to it.
![Felix "Unfair" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Oswujxm2Ag0/mqdefault.jpg)
Use code REGULAR50 to get 50% OFF First Box and free wellness shots for life with any active subscription at bit.ly/48fuHrz!
God creates minivan. Man disapproves and creates SUV, then spends decades trying to turn them into minivans.
All I can imagine is the kia carnival. That thing looks CONFUSED
@Corkoth55 I imagine any SUV that was redesigned to shoehorn in a 3rd row.
At some point in the late 1990s, the auto industry decided that everything must be a minivan. Especially in Europe and Japan. And I remember that "minivan everything" era. Minivan family hatchbacks, minivan mini cars, subcompacts, they even tried to make minivan luxury cars and minivan sport coupes.
But guess what - customers also care how the cars look and drive. Well, mostly look, because many won't recognize driving experience even if they get smacked in the face with it. But still, for many, getting a minivan means your life is pretty much over, just turning into miserable existence filled with soiled diapers and sleeping next to the disgusting snoring behemoth of a wife.
So even Jeremy Clarkson couldn't help the minivan image.
But the auto industry looked at all the unsold abominations filling their lots and came with the perfect solution.
Why not take those desperately uncool white boxes on tiny wheels, lift them, put bigger wheels and some unpainted plastics, call them SUVs and voila - we can mark up the prices and sell them to cool bicycle dads and yoga moms for all their sport utility needs.
And the crossover SUV was born.
And then they finally accomplish it with the 3rd gen Honda Pilot, recoil at their creation, and go backwards
This is the comment of the video 👍👌🏻❤️
It was absolutely wonderful working with both you and Mr. Regular! I'm glad that you loathe this car nearly as much as I do, and was thoroughly amused by that opener. Just by that opener I knew that this was going to be a particularly good one. Am I a little biased? Maybe? Nonetheless, great video as always!
Thank you for volunteering and generally just being a cool dude! I'm glad you liked the video.
I’m a previous 5th gen owner, if your transmission is shuddering, consider a fluid and filter change! Don’t flush it though!
yelling at your kids in a Chrysler Town & Country is a huge part of American tradition and a right of passage for upper middle class parents across the country who wouldn't be caught DEAD in a Dodge Grand Caravan...
"Kids! Don't make me reach around to..." "Harold! Watch out for that big truck!"
Oh my god you just described my mother
Now they yell at their kids in a Volvo XC90. Or a Toyota RAV4, if they couldn't afford a Volvo.
and turning the radio up to stop hearing the kids bickering
More people should drive minivans. The idea that people buy 3 row SUV's instead of one of these is insane. The lengths they will deal with inconvenience to avoid driving one of the most utilitarian vehicles shows how the cultural zeitgeist is often more important than actually building the objectively best solution to a use case.
100% agree - I had a suburban, nice, tricked out, all the bells and whistles - but for work when we would take crews here to there - yeah I'd grad the shitty old Caravan - far more comfortable for that many people.
Ha, yep. It’s a funny bit of social psychology. A third row crossover is the closest thing to a minivan; yet trimming away much of a van’s versatility and utility. Many, if not most crossovers, are really just van replacements. The cosplay of an adventurous lifestyle is way more appealing.
I rented a new Durango for a week and I was amazed at how much smaller it is compared to a minivan. Like it's just tall and fast but not really practical compared to a minivan.
It's why some of the contractors I work with use minivans over trucks. Lower to the ground so it's easy to get in and out of and easy to reach and store material. Especially when you get older and can do with less jumping in and out of a pickup truck.
I test drove a 2018 Highlander. Even though it had a 3rd row seat, it was tight as shit. Your legs also felt like they had to be up at your chest.
Got a 2020 Sienna instead. Super comfortable and roomy. Fuck SUVs, give me a good minivan any day of the week.
Chrysler went from the inventors of the minivan to a complete shell of what it used to be
Forget all than non-consequential hemi development......😂
@@miurasvlamborghiniChrysler didn't invent the hemispherical combustion chamber and the "new hemi" isn't even a real hemi. Plus bolting a bigger supercharger onto your truck engine than anyone else isn't exactly groundbreaking engineering.
They were never that great to begin with and they haven't made anything good since the 70's.
Well hey, now they only produce minivans!
Renault invented the minivan
Holding onto my 5 speed Echo as an investment. With this channel's help we're headed towards 4 figures, fellas!
There will NEVER be another car like that one, let it live on in all it's glory.
I own a Routon, paid 7k for it with 65000 miles. My kids have never hit another car in a parking lot with a door, it only started needing parts at 160k. Once one of my munchkins started to “ wash it “ with a rock for a sponge, no soap, no water, no freak out. What a good transport.
My cousin let our family borrow her Town and Country back in 2017 and as soon as we got back to Florida we bought a new Toyota Sienna right away. We realized how amazing it was to own a minivan with all that room and will continue to own them forever. It's like the perfect truck/haulder. Love not being jammed in places can easily slam my kid's car seats in the middle row. Love them.
Friend of mine had a Toyota Tarago (Previa 1st Gen) from around 2000 and it was a remarkably good car when you have 2 adults, 3-4kids. It just all fits, otherwise you have to go full-size SUV now and no one should ever have to go full SUV on anything. The nicest thing apart from space for all the luggage and people was that they were well set out mechanically, easy to service, generally really robust, safe comfortable. The other slightly less well known fact is that Toyota vans seem to hold a lot of value, even the HIACE ones for trades and courier work really didn't drop very far down even with half a million km's on them because once they got a bit tired, people would buy them and recondition them as campers off to go do another 4-500k on the clock
So the moral here is to skip Chrysler and go for Toyota?
Buy a wagon or suv. They can actually be beautiful. Good choice though. If I was forced to drive a van, it would be a Honda Oddessy or Toyota Sienna or a cool kei van.
I think way more people should be buying minivans over SUVs. A lot of people use SUVs for the purpose minivans were made for and can do much better, and avoiding the "soccer mom" stigma isn't possible since that's now moved over to SUVs. Might as well bite the bullet and get something better for your needs.
My 10 year old sienna gets compliments from almost everyone who rides in it.
WATCHING IT ON THE TOILET
the greatest and most relatable comment of all time.
World War BROWN
Plop plop
I'm watching in IN THE SHOWER
Same
Bought an ‘09 beater Honda odyssey off facebook marketplace because my F450 is a terrible daily. This thing is by far the best vehicle I’ve ever owned. Don’t care if the kids spill shit, don’t care if the dogs puke, don’t care if the wife picks up hay bales in it, don’t care if I look out the kitchen window and see my 10 year old son and his buddies ripping it across the the front pasture. The engine vibrates like Michael J Fox because the motor mounts are shot and the automatic sliding doors only close properly if the temp is above 40, but who cares, it cost less than most used golf carts. I’ll never not have a cheap minivan.
As an Uber driver, I have been forced to listen to that intro one too many times by passengers who shouldn't be telling me their life story....
It's pretty simple to me. For most of us kids now in their 30s, the minivan feels like home
Can you update your driver profile to say you are deaf?
The best things about videos crapping on town and country vans is that it keeps their prices low
The cheapest most practical car you can buy, even the ones with leather, heated seats are still practical and cheap
🔔🔔🔔🔔
100% every company I've worked for when they need a utility hauler I get them to pickup an 80k mileage caravan - they always make it to 150k before something legit falls off ;)
True. My father in law is a car guy. He has some very well kept classics in his garage that he babies and only takes out when the weather is perfect. But his daily driver for hauling stuff and dogs/winter beater is an early 2010's Town and Country. It was cheap, it's fairly reliable, and he can drive it around in the muck without having to worry about it too much. And he's getting older, so he appreciates the heated seats and remote start, things his vintage sports cars definitely do not have.
cant wait for one with hdmi tvs and all the bells and whistles for 1200 bucks
I will say go for a lower mileage one. At 150k miles ours is starting to have serious troubles.
I worked four years in the Windsor, Ontario factory where these are made. I’m driving a 2012, and still going strong.
Our 2012 is too. 179,000 miles.
Did you work with Glenn Fricker?
I love these, with everything folded down and flat. You can put at least 20pcs of 4x8 plywood, sheetrock, foam boards... And an infinite amount of 2x4 beams you can handle. Abuse it however you like and if keeps going, wonderful!
I can't believe he said it didn't have enough space. Minivans have more capacity than almost all trucks.
0:51 I'm a college graduate turned Kroger courtesy clerk and I feel attacked
I lost my foot in a motorcycle accident getting t boned by retiree in a silver Chrysler town and country who didnt see me, so I may be more biased in my negative opinions of them. lmao.
@@Oni_Teeth oof, I'm so sorry to hear that.
Literal foot in mouth moment
The Pacifica is basically a T&C.
My cousin is in panic mode thinking the minivan may go the way of the dodo. He is in a wheelchair and the #1 adopted vehicle is the few minivan models left in production. The Honda has a reputation for problematic transmissions, like dying at 40k miles. Hopefully the Sienna is selling well enough to keep it in production
Vans are the sensible evolution of wagons. Chrisler products however, suck. I’d almost rather have the mitsubishi V6
The wagon is already peak form
No, wagons are the sensible evolution of wagons for everyone who (a) isn't obese and (b) has 3 or fewer children.
What's even wilder to think is that Volkswagen wanted a piece of the action. In the form of the Volkswagen Routan, a carvan by another name. People sometimes don't even realize it's a Caravan, which is even more bizarre.
I call them Croutans
It is wild seeing a worn out, very REGULAR car bring reviewed by RCR that was made around the time the RCR channel started.
I saw the thumbnail and immediately knew this was a _"Race to the Bottom"_ episode!
Sweet!
As a Nurse that graduated a year ago, the "eight months of nursing school" bit at the beginning is hilarious!
It’s hard to say no to a free mechanically sound ride. Sometimes the point A to B cars are the best choice.
I’m looking forward to RCR’s 2025 season.
I've owned my 2008 Grand Caravan for 14 years, and it has never let me down. I have other vehicles, but the versatility of the Caravan is unmatched in this era of three row crossovers. I also have a beloved (by RCR) 1992 SVX and a 2011 Ram 1500 4x4.
my 09 is bullet proof, had it for about 7 years now and put it through things the engineers would never have imagined
The stow in go was a major breakthrough. Having to move the front seats is minimal effort compared to removing the middle seats. The open space in the back is bigger the the bed of a normal f-150 so not small.
No, really. If there’s a better way to collect bacon grease and throw it out, let me know
Down the toilet. Water in the bowl will keep the grease away from the pipes. Plus, the discharge from the toilet is (usually) straight down to the septic/sewer pipe so no chance of buildup compared to faucet pipes that have horizontal portions, allowing slower flow and place for grease to buildup.
Mix in some flour and put it in the garbage.
Metal can. Save the grease & fats to make explosives.
They have little canisters with a strainer on the top just for this. Save the grease for cooking.
Another thought on what these vans are “trying to say”…
“You can fit your family and their junk in here and drive places affordably”
That’s it. That’s all it was meant to be. They church’ed it up a little so the drive isn’t totally soul sucking, but the core principle is in being a reliable(TM), “efficient” family hauler with tons of cargo space for road trips and enough basic conveniences to check the important boxes.
If you want to see just how boring, soulless and bland these vans can be, drive one of the 2008-2010 pre-facelift versions. Ugly outside, uglier inside, slow, sloppy, absolutely no redeeming qualities beyond reliability and cargo space. The 2011 refresh was indeed an improvement.
SUV’s suck for families. Less cargo space, harder to get in and out of for the kids… minivans survived the SUV era and may wind up taking them over because of how much more practical they are.
Also… Caravans and Town and Countries are EVERYWHERE here in Michigan. I see several everywhere I go. Not sure where they’re all hiding in PA.
I've owned 3 different Caravans/T&C's. I live in Michigan, and they just work. Never an issue in the snow or mud. The first two fell victim to SUVs not paying attention at red lights.
I remember shopping for minivans in 2021. The dealer was really trying to push 2020 Grand Caravans onto me.
They were practically giving them away but I told them to kick rocks. I got a 2020 Sienna instead and have been very satisfied.
0:30 shared facebook accounts are the sure fire indicator of one partner stepping out in the other
The shattered engine cover was very fitting for a Chrysler product.
Chicken tenders
I love how he mentions the torque converter clutch like it’s some thing that hasn’t been in use for over 30 years.
This feels like a dad in management position at first bought a 2005 V6 Camery, but through the financial crisis and increase head count in the household this is what he in the end settle with, and have to carry stuff in this with his second job now
I still drive my 2003 Town and Country Limited and i’ve been using that thing since high school. It’s got 208k miles now but she’s still my favorite point a to point b’er because just like Roman said the reliability on the old 3.8 was amazing and as long as you preform basic maintenance she’ll never act up. That van has watched me learn how to drive, gone through 2 relationships, one transmission and a radiator and she’s still around. It hauls reliably and is very spacious for the time it was around and I love that van.
Hell ya! I have a 2014 that i bought off a salvage auction and rebuilt with a friend. All in cost me $11k. I've put over 100k miles on it hauling lumber, kids, dogs, landscaping material, camping stuff, the kids friends.
Its off the charts in cost/utility. When my 22 yo daughters 2008 Freestyle finally dies shell inherit this family heirloom and ill get another van.
Owning an SUV is paying way more for less function for the illusion of "cool".
The features in this reminds me of the way that American cars from the 70s-90s tried to trick people into thinking they’re luxurious by just stuffing in a bunch of “snazzy” bits and bobs that serve no purpose
as a 29 year old man that daily drives a 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan SXT, i’ve never felt so seen
As a 2012 Town & Country Owner.... that intro was perfect!
If you've got 3-4 people on a long road trip there's nothing better than a van - fold down/take out the middle seat, load in the cooler and the junk food, stretch out, and set sail.
I had a minivan in college and it was a tremendous highway cruiser, just ate up the miles. Fuel economy wasn't great but it wasn't terrible either. Really the only thing I truly hated about driving it was trying to parallel park it on city streets, which was not unlike bringing a container ship into dock.
They’re fleet vehicles, which means tons of parts and people who know how to fix their consistent issues
I WOULD LIKE TO SEE HIM TRY TO CHANGE ATTIRE ON THE FREEWAY WITH THIS MINIVAN.😊 YOU HAVE TO USE A SPECIAL TOOL TO LOWER DOWN THE TIRE AND THEN THE TIRE IS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE VEHICLE GOOD LUCK
merry chrysler
8:54 I rented a Grand Caravan with that shifter circa 2017 and it was one of the better automatic shifters I've had to deal with. I was driving the thing through northern New England during winter storms and it was pretty atrocious in the snow with whatever trash "all-season" tires it had. The ability to speed-downshift by speed-smacking the nearby gear lever was helpful while guiding that mess in my more-or-less intended direction in a blizzard on New Hampshire's Kancamagus Pass.
My dad has had several of these as vans to work out of and I’ve had a few myself. They all make it well over 200k with no major issues. My last one was a 2010 Grand Caravan that I sold with over 386,000 miles on it. It’s still on the road with just routine maintenance. They’re painfully boring, but at least they’re roomy and dependable
Yay! A Roman episode! (also, how ya loving that Camry?)
I remember being enthused by the town and country because of the table and backwards facing seats. I was like 7 but I still got excited about it because it was so novel.
Factor only makes sense with the 50% off box. It’s so ridiculously expensive for such tiny portions with a side you might not like.
It does get way too repetitive too. You can only go "oh, that's pretty good" like twice per meal choice before you start noticing how badly you're getting ripped off
Loved that intro. Kinda terrifying lol
14:27 that looks like the “RBZ” non navigation MyGig radio; on those early radios the Uconnect was a dealer installed option; later models had it (and Bluetooth audio streaming) built in as standard equipment like my parents’ 2019 Grand Caravan.
I have a 2014 Town and Country with the bigger brakes and wheels. I also have a 2012 Grand Caravan with the smaller brakes and wheels, comparable to the van in this video.
Aside from being a cheaply built product made with cheap materials, I find it peppy enough to not make driving a miserable experience, it doesn’t look offensively ugly, it’s comfortable, it doesn’t have a bunch of nanny features or cylinder deactivation nonsense, and the Stow N Go feature alone would make this thing dominate the market if only the van itself were built a little better.
I like it because it’s not super over-engineered, parts are cheap, labor isn’t unreasonable, and I can do most repair jobs in my driveway.
With brand new brakes, tires and shocks all around, it drives quite good. Stiff enough to give you some road feel, soft enough to be comfortable.
It goes through front brakes and front tires faster than your average car, and the 2012 even faster than that, but that’s common on minivans from what I understand.
It’s the last of the regular cars. In 2017, they released the Pacifica which has standard automatic emergency braking and stop/start and a host of other super expensive features while also managing to be less reliable.
If you’re a mechanic or you have a close mechanic friend, I’d recommend these vans to ANY of you with two or more kids. The conveniences outweigh the uncoolness. Both of mine have been reliable, but it’s a bit of a crapshoot. Pay more for a Honda which also has its problems this generation, or pay a lot more for a Toyota to have peace of mind (but may be the most soulless, boring minivan ever made - if you think THIS is “regular”, drive a Sienna)… or get a lower your standards just a bit, roll the dice, get Town and Country and absolutely love it (until the trans dies because you used the self destruct button labeled as “ECON”).
I swear that econ button doesn't work, ours up until about 2020 would just throw a cel, and now it just doesn't do anything
@@loganmitchell1382 My 2012 Caravan started shifted REALLY weird, had to stand on the accelerator to get it to shift, then it would downshift and immediately upshift again. I thought the PCM was freaking out or the trans solenoids had failed or something. Then I realized I must've hit the Econ button on accident. I turned it off and it drove perfect again.
@@derbydriver I've heard the the Econ function is actually bad for the transmission because it places it under extra stress. And this transmission needs all the pampering it can get.
Best people mover. Practical. Our 2016 lost reverse 3 years ago, then the oil cooler sprung a leak. No problems since. The transmission part that failed was redesigned and TSB’d to the consumer’s pocket and the flying D improved oil cooler/filter housing should make this last as long as our 2006 jello mold grand caravan.
I blew the doors off a GMC Envoy with one of these.
1:13 Don’t @ me like that.
We know what you did
You put the drivability of the vehicle perfectly. I ended up with my wife’s after we upgraded her car & I’ve never driven something so lifeless and benign. Great video!
This review was a long time coming. The spiritual successor to the Oldsmobile Silhouette. The official car of your firstborn finally having kids. Now you're a grandparent. Chrysler Town & Country.
This van has the same redeeming quality as the minivan that was my first vehicle: It was free. When you barely know how to drive and don’t have any money an old but reliable van like this is a blessing. I didn’t particularly like my Mercury Villager, but I appreciated the hell out of it and I was grateful my parents decided it was no longer worth protecting from a clueless new driver.
The 3.6 is one of the best engines they paired with the caravan. I drove my '08 until last year, until I bought my '24 Tucson hybrid and that van Never left me stranded!
I would argue 3.6 is the best v6 you can get nowadays and one of the reasons why stellantis sucks
We could have gotten an american gtr with the twin turbo version but they cancelled it to sell anemic big blocks that makes like 100 more hp over twice the displacement of pentastar
yeah that's why I never really got why people ragged so hard on the V6 muscle cars like I get it's not the V8 and it doesn't make the sound and there's a better engine option but really at the end of the day 300 plus horsepower is nothing to sneeze at and was just V8 numbers not that long ago in a rear wheel drive platform if it had a different name and maybe wasn't so heavy people would be all over it@@ozan1234561
@ozan1234561 durability, that engine is almost unbreakable. For example, and this is first hand with my engine, the wife and I took ours camping about 3 hours from home, and when we we leaving to head home, the coolant Y splitter... split (a common issue, as they're plastic). Literally, as we pulled out of the campsite. Coolant sprayed all over the windshield. I got out, checked where it came from, and realized it wasn't something I could repair on a Sunday, hours from home, and my tools. So I dumped what water I had from the coolers and jumped in the drivers seat, and headed home. Not only did it survive, but after replacing the part with a metal Dorman, that van ran until the day it was rolled over the scales at the wreckers. It was scrapped due to front-end suspension issues, and that fact it was used as a roofing vehicle for a majority of its life.
The odometer was about 170,000km when the y pipe let go, and it had 268,000km when it was sent to the scrap yard.
That is my experience with my very heavily used and abused Caravan. But I have heard from many other people with that 3.6 in their Caravans that have have very little issues with the engine, but like me, have had the common issues that the model had, in general.
My wife and I have owned a lot of Mopar vehicles. The only one that’s been a solid and reliable is our 08 T&C. We bought it at 40k miles and now it sits at 160k and is getting handed down to one of our kids soon.
All my other Mopar experiences made me switch to Toyota but I’ve been happy with that one. It still makes me smile when I drive it. Can’t say why, it isn’t fast or sporty but I guess we used it so much with our 4 kids who are now grown it just grew on me.
I have quite a lot of experience driving Chrysler vans and I have to say I don't think them that bad.
Sure they're not going to win any races but once you get them up over 40MPH they do get more lively.
If you just need/want basic transportation that gets decent gas mileage and can haul things when needed you could do a lot worse than a town and country/Caravan.
Yeah they really aren’t as bad as they’re made out to be… as long as you keep up on maintenance. If you let them start falling apart, they don’t hide it very well. Keep good brakes and tires on it, fix the little issues along the way and they’re honestly totally pleasant to drive. Nothing exciting about them, but there isn’t supposed to be- they’re meant to be a sensible family hauler.
@@derbydriver I've always said they're good vans for the money. They aren't as good as the Hondas IMHO but they also don't cost as much to buy as an Odyssey.
Dude the saddest car I've ever driven had to be my mom's 1995 Chevy cavalier sedan. The car was just the worst. I'm glad we weren't forced to drive it when my brother and I turned 16 the year after they got it. She traded it in cuz she hated it so much. Three-speed automatic, white with airplane economy seat blue interior. no power anything, under powered 4 cylinder. Just an execution of automotive indifference. You definitely are depriving yourself of a masochistic driving experience by not experiencing one.
My only memory with a Town & Country was in 2012 as a rental for the trip home to PA for my grandmother's funeral. That being said, it was a perfectly quiet and compliant vehicle at the time. Being someone who would default to a Sienna or an Odyssey, I find myself coming back to the Pacifica more than I'd like to admit!
I drive an 18 caravan for a company vehicle and yes to all of this.
Between the transmission and throttle it feels like im playing telephone at a retirement home; takes a while to get the message through, but it never understands what i actually wanted it to do anyway.
I worked at a plant that had three cars as loaners - a piss-stained tahoe, a clapped out f150, and a really nice Town and Country. I eventually settled on using the TnC for around-plant errands. It drives like a fat Camry and is actually really nice inside.
My dad had a 2019 grand caravan as a work van when it was new, and i have to say, by then, at least in my non professional opinion, they got the van down a lot better by then, it seemed surprisingly quick and nimble, but i think they had a different transmission in it by then. Both of us wish he would have bought it once the lease to his company was up, which was an option to us, but we didn't need it at the time.
Lol I have a 2017 Dodge grand caravan. 0 charisma , but 0 problems in 170k miles and storage for days. Even the Bluetooth works after I googled how to work it lol
Making BROWN to this
RCR only scores a home run when the featured vehicle is BROWN.
My grandparents had an '08 Town & Country, the last in a series of Town & Countries before my grandmother stopped driving. It was our family road trip car. The plastics were hard, the leather was cheap, but it was comfortable and unbelievably spacious. I loved how it would hold first gear out to 4000RPM and that it had a nice floaty ride. I remember those swiveling overhead lights and fold-down screens. Ours had hidden green lighting inside the overhead console and the Indiglo gauges. Ours didn't have Stow-N-Go but instead had the swiveling seats. The only problem it ever had was a TPMS sensor going out and there was no way to disable the warning because Chrysler put half the dashboard on the TPMS fuse.
Until recently I had a 2005 town can country. Moved me out of state, moved someone else out of a scary situation, gave me some great camping road trips. It's currently being used to help someone move lol. Weirdly I had a fantasy of owning a stow n go as a kid and I'm glad I did.
My sister had one when she was raising her two kids. Uninspiring, yes. But it was infinitely practical with its double remote power sliding doors.
Sometimes function must be the top priority.
I learned to drive in a 2002 Chrysler Town and Country LXi. It was a long wheelbase with all the bells and whistles. We went from a 1994 Chevy Caprice Classic and a 1988 Mercury Topaz to a one vehicle family. That generation of Mopar minivans drove pretty good. My 2nd car was a 1999 Chrysler 300m cause I liked the 3.5 V6 that was in our minivan and the quality of the leather they used back then
That was a better generation than this. You can't get comfortable in any of these 2007-17 minivans, because the seats SUCK. They are hard boards in back and front that are there to be cheap. The best thing these have going for them is the fold-away seats. My dad uses his Grand Caravan as a truck, and it's a decent truck. It gets no love, and continues on, but the 2001-07 Grand Caravans (2 of them, same colour) that preceded it were far better. Chrysler still has the magic wand with electronics. The blower motor sometimes works, sometimes doesn't. The dash lights come on only when you whack the HVAC binnacle. Glorious.
Just in time for 420. Bless you lads.
Hallelujah 🙏🏾
Just traded my 2014 T&C S Package, 169k with one transmission, two rear ac units, a few brake jobs and struts/shocks. Will be remembered fondly in pictures from many successful road trips, towing a 17' speedboat, hauling couches inside, accidental northern Michigan two-tracking
I wish you would do a review of the third generation Plymouth Voyager. I have a 2000 Voyager and it is an absolute stripped down model with manual windows and everything. But that's what I love about it. It's an honest workhorse and it's not trying to be anything it isn't. It's perfect for people with a lower income because it was affordable and great on gas while still very capable. For a family that doesn't have the money to have multiple vehicles the third gen Plymouth Voyager was a do-it-all vehicle. You can haul things like a truck or you can move your family around. You can also go on weekend vacations to the Jersey shore and still fit all of your luggage in there after your family is loaded up. You are right life is hard and even if your vehicle is not desirable if it makes your life easier it's a welcome addition to your life.
As someone who learned how to drive in the pre-facelift version of this car, a base model with the 3.3 V6 and the 4-speed auto, this was a very fun watch for me. These minivans are slow as hell, shift rough, and stop eventually, but god damn it, they're rock solid vehicles. 15 years old and almost 180k miles and it refuses to quit. Minivans, especially that one, will always hold a special place in my heart, but I would be full out lying if I said that they were fun or interesting in ANY sense of the word. Thank you for taking one for the team and choosing to review one of these.
This thing had an interesting life cycle here in Italy, since at the time Chrysler was "saved" by FCA. First it was sold as the Chrysler Voyager. Then magically it became the Lancia Phedra, then they renamed the Phedra to just be the Lancia Voyager. Confusing af, I've maybe seen 2 of them going around. It's already a sad looking thing by default, but seeing a Lancia badge slapped on it was just depressing.
What they did to Lancia is just depressing in the first place.
This van IS modern Lancia. Its customers represent Lancia as a whole.
Once upon a time, you were a football player. You played with Joe Namath! You were a stud, tackling defenders, running the ball, scoring touchdowns. But those days are long gone. You've been retired for years. Subject to a life of pointless hobbies to keep your mind ticking along just to delay the inevitable trip to the nursing home. The only thing that remembers your name is the statistic book from the 1972 NFL season when you played with the Jets.
Once, you were a hero. People looked up to you. Now, you're just another sad old man. You're no longer the main character. Godspeed.
Chrysler Town and Country. You bought this to haul the grandkids around. It ended up being your last vehicle.
There's just something really sad about this vehicle. So forgettable.
@cherrypepsi2815 everyone blaming Stellantis right now but FCA started all this tomfoolery way back ago. I agree with you, and I've to say that I'd rather see brands die off instead of seeing them just nostalgia squeezed for having even more bad products. Lancia built the 037, the Stratos, the Aurelia, the Delta, some of the most important cars in history, but no have a Chrysler minivan and sell it under your badge, way to honor such legacy. And the same goes for Maserati and Alfa, that at least they're trying with an halo car but haven't anything valid in their inventory. There's a life cycle to everything, everyone has a right to rest, but damn if capitalism today feels the need to raise the dead just to sell one more product. To live forever is just pointless, and most of the time memories are good only if they keep being memories.
We just traded in the 2010 T&C. Kicking myself for not keeping it. It was in good shape and with 5 grown kids, somebody is always needing a loaner. What was I thinking?
I had a brand new one of these as a company car.Even when brand new, Roman is bang on with the driving experience. The throttle response felt like it made half of the posted HP/torque numbers and the handling felt like the reason they bogged the throttle response
I've owned and or operated numerous small to mid size factories - Caravans are FANTASTIC - Decent mileage, rarely fail and when they do not too expensive and are great for small cargo runs or moving people. I've had big SUV's but when it came to move some stuff - yeah I'd grab the company Caravan . If I was taking a crew somewhere, yep the Caravan was far more comfortable for moving 6 big guys.
However yeah, its boring and drives like generic vanilla pudding - but for general utility its great.
I ended up with an 09 grand caravan when i was 19 (26 now) and its held up surprisingly well. I use it for things it was never intended for, like offroading, hauling scrap steel, and pulling a trailer with any number of small machines. Its also big enough for two people to camp in the back. The dodge was definitely made more for abuse than the town and country, its more honest in its plain plastics and shitty headliner, but damn that this is reliable. Its near the end of its life now - I really do abuse the hell out of it but when its gone ill look back fondly, and maybe get another minivan (def 4x4 this time and probably a Sienna)
Yeah, these exist in a weird space. I can't imagine "wanting" one, but damn if they aren't useful AF. We bought a 2011 base model Caravan for making cross-country trips to haul stuff to conventions and it was fantastic. Super comfortable on long road trips, almost 30mpg when you kept it on the highway, and I could fit tons of stuff in it. We would haul tables, chairs, banners, signage, pallets of water in it, and then pack it to the roof with cartons of product. What's that, 3 people are going to arrive late for the convention and I have to pick them up from the airport right now? No problem, give me 30 seconds to bring the seats up and it's got room for people and all their luggage. The thing was a swiss-army knife of a vehicle and I respected the hell out of it for that. Was it fun to drive? No, but the v6 had enough grunt to be entertaining.
I grew up in a Caravan family and learned to drive in one and honestly loved them, but the T&C was a pathetic attempt at dolling them up. 40k for a top trim in 2011 is some devious work
just looking at the thumbnail, i know tjis one will be a great one
Would a Hellcat engine make this any more interesting? I haven't watched the Rich Rebuilds video yet ...
My understanding was they designed the engine bay to be big enough to hold a gen3 Hemi 😁
I worked for for an elderly couple at an antique store for several years and they bought one exactly like this because they could no longer sit down into a car.
The back seats were permanently folded down and was used as mobile storage because they were hoarders and the house was too full.
They also wouldn't allow you to call it a minivan, they were adamant that it was, in fact, a station wagon.
My parents had a 2014? Town & Country and later a 2016 Grand Caravan, and we never had any issues out of either. That v6 also has a pretty good amount of pickup even when fully loaded down
Ex semi driver here. with a massive 15 foot blindspot in front of the truck. Never had a issue with long hoods. no spacial awareness. minivans get a bad rap. omg a reliable vehicle that does what it's suppost to get that outta here. GIVE ME THAT PLASTIC CAR
ugh not roman
I still own my 2011 and it just turned over 100,000 miles in December! I have the factory low clearance version with smaller tires and no roof rack, and 1st gear will turn even the highest quality tire bald with a combination of high horsepower, high torque, and wheel spin from EVERY dead stop. It is after all the same engine as the Dodge Challenger base model. From 2012 to 2016 it suffered so many mechanical issues though. I did have an extended warranty. Cam phasers, axel bearings, oil cooler, transmission slip, power control module and so much more all within the first 5 years. All under 60,000 miles. The dashboard was also assembled incorrectly at the factory. However, the last 40,000 have seen only oil changes and expendables needing replaced. Oh, and the transmission is horrible even when it works right. It is never in the correct gear, the torque converter locks too easily, and 1st gear is for towing.
the opening monologue was gold
I have this exact model of van. Kids and wife love it. It has been reliable enough. I enjoy the fold down seats for camping.
I have always had a soft spot for the Chrysler Town and Country since being in an older one as a rental years ago (it was old even then). It is mundane, but it gets the job done. It is comfortable, holds plenty of people, is affordable, and is decently reliable (despite Chrysler's reputation).
I drove so many of these when I worked for a car rental company in the mid-late 2010s. It really is the worst minivan out of the fleet. When the T&C went out of production, the dodge caravan soldiered on until 2020. This thing survived solely on fleet sales. You're right about these things taking abuse like a champ. We had one at like 30,000km that hadn't received its first oil change.
Waking up the kid to do the Robert Loggia! That was a good one. Remember the trailer for the original Ace Ventura Pet Detective? Jim Carrey, after the bathroom incident says "DO NOT [pause] GO IN THERE!" And that gets the big laugh. I was a chubby 10 yr old and the adults got a kick out of my impression so I totally related to the Robert Loggia bit. Good one Roman.
"We're out here in these streets playing Edward Groceryhands"
I love this fucking channel
So I noticed you didn't mention the lifter issues 😂 awesome review of a regular car❤
I'm thinking about buying one to make a vanlife adventure van. Lift it a few inches with the Journey's Off Road lift kit, add some all terrain tires, maybe a couple of off road lights, and make it look cool. You can get into one for cheaper than an Astro van that's 10 plus years older, which is pretty wild, and probably says all you need to know about these vans.
These make a really great camper, or if you're forced into that situation, a stealth cardwelling option. I lived out of mine for 4 years while I was between apartments in this depressing era of rising rents and shrinking wages. I just added tint onto the side and rear windows, put gray blackout curtains behind that and a nice insulated air mattress under my sleeping bag and I was off to the races. It wasn't a full size van but it was close enough and far stealthier, never got bothered by the cops because 'soccer mom vehicle'.
We had a 2007 Chrysler Town & Country Touring Edition, we miss it. It was a little hard for my short mom to get into, but she just packed a step stool. She really misses that shifter on the Dash, She said she felt like she was driving a boat lol. The dual DVD players and built in Power Inverter in the back were nice. And it had hookups so we could connect game systems to the Passenger DVD screen. Also all the back seats being fold flat was nice.
Sadly we had to sell it to a junkyard because it developed a coolent leak we just could not find and then melted Cylindar 5. Couldn't source another engine for it, so it sat in our driveway for 2 years until the landlord got on our case.
Man I sometimes think you guys are over critical for sure. Lots of accurate information here but man that ride quality isn’t that bad😂. We bought (on purpose) a 2015 and love it! Not the great vehicle in the world and I have been just waiting for it to break down, but it doesn’t 🤞. As long as it’s got enough getup to merge on the highway or pass someone when loaded up, I’m good. We also have four kids and the sliding doors work great in the garage during winter when the other vehicle is parked inside. We also use the Sto n Go seating all the time. All around I was super impressed with how great and convenient of a vehicle it’s turned out to be. I bought the Chrysler because I liked the way they looked more than the Dodge and couldn’t afford what Toyota and Honda minivans were selling for at the time. As a former Ford mechanic I was also somewhat familiar with most domestic makes. If Ford or GM still made a minivan I most likely would’ve bought one of those. SUVs are hood if you only have two kids, vans are just easier in our opinion. I will say one of my favorite things about the van is indeed the analog clock on the dash, as it makes me feel a bit fancy 😂.
Great video guys!
I drove a Dodge Grand Caravan as a work vehicle for a year. Being in IT, it was awesome to make bulky deliveries everywhere of computers and other technical items. 3.6 pentastar had plenty of guts, and I was completely invisible on the roads since it was a white, SXT base model vehicle.
“Avalanche of little things that get in your nerves.” The overactive lanehold aside, my 2019 Rav4 is literally the opposite of this. Everything gets out of its own way and it just “cars” without me having to devote any energy to it.