I wish I'd known about these years ago. I'd only learned about the Turbo vans when they were already disappearing from the roads. I didn't know until now it came with a stick in the turbo variant. I'd love to know more from a driving test/review.
I had a 1991 Plymouth Voyager AWD LE with the red velour, two removable bench seats, Harmon Kardon stereo, 3.0L V6 and the fancy side-mounted faux woodgrain-applique racing stripe. It was a great van but not much of a chick magnet. One of the best, most reliable and useful cars I ever owned.
@@InTeCredo I remember her writing as Jean Lindamood. Apparently, she knew how to weld, according to an intro penned by one of the other Car and Driver writers.
I was a Tech in a Chrysler Plymouth Dodge dealer when these vehicles were new. The most dependable drive train was the 3.0 V6 with the 3 speed automatic. As far as the 2.5 Turbo we didn't sell very many. I did own a 89 Plymouth Acclaim LE with the 2.5 Turbo and a 3 speed automatic. We bought it new and it proved to be a trouble free car. I did replace the head gasket once. That car was a real sleeper for the time. My wife loved to pick on 5.0 Mustangs!
I worked on my share of those vans as well. I agree, the 3.0 was a good mill. The only turbo I worked on was in the Lebaron, and that thing would lift the front, torqued steered, and planted smiles for miles
I had a 1987 Caravan with the 2.6 Mitsu and 3 Speed. If Chrysler had not quit making this size, I would have continued with short version. The Grand versions just didn't fit my plans with just my wife and myself the only ones in the family. I think the Caravan actually was more comfortable on long trips than my 1998 Continental. By the way my Caravan was the same color inside and out as the one you are featuring. I did get rid of the Caravan at slightly over the 200,000 mile mark as it had cracked another cylinder head and I was tired of changing them, about 30,000 to 35,000 miles per head.
We took many many long trips in an 86 with that powertrain, also the shorter non-Grand version. With the middle bench removed and the rear one moved forward to an intermediate set of anchors you had all the legroom in the world for the rear passengers and tons of cargo room. More than 2 decades after it was sold Mom still talks about how she misses that van. Of course you had to choose between that Mitsu engine running right, and passing emissions. The carb was useless in its factory configuration. To give you an idea about how powerless that van was despite having the more powerful Mitsu 2.6, the first time Mom drove its replacement, a 91 Previa (which had no supercharger option yet), Mom remarked "wow this thing has some pick-up!"
@@jblyon2 I understand your pain my mom had 84 new yorker with this engine. I had some buddies in a dodge service dept who helped me out and showed me how to rig this thing. If you look at it closely it has an electric solenoid stuck to it and one of procedures was to bend the linkage from said solenoid and switch a couple vacuum lines. it cost around 10 to 12 HP, but mom was no street racer and never noticed. but it passed emissions and all was well
The factory (Mitsubishi) head was crack prone. There was an aftermarket head by AMC that solved the cracking issues and you could buy another head without the "jet valves" for even better longevity. That 2.6 found its way into several different vehicles from multiple manufacturers. The most impressive version came in the Mitsubishi Starion/Chrysler Conquest with an intercooled turbo. Some of those Starions could be modified to make a solid 400hp with some turbo and fuel injection upgrades.
Unfortunately the buying public decided that the crossover - with 25% less space and 25% worse fuel economy - fits better in the same footprint than the minivan.
I don't believe the crossover was the choice of the buying public. I see it more as a concept pushed on the buyers by the car companies and government regulations.
@@davidparker9676 yep, it was the chicken tax and the cafe standards that made trucks and vehicles based on those trucks have less restrictions to build and sell. The og idea was to give work vehicles a brake because they were nessasary but less efficient with more emissions. The manufacturers could spend less to produce with more profit in the end. They took advantage of the policies and basically killed sedans and wagons by producing something worse in all aspects except head room, they have lots and lots of useless stupid headroom. Now stupid SUVs are everywhere. Hate them and want wagons back. Now no one can see anything around the SUV in front of them sitting in traffic
The original T115 minivan is pretty small - it had to be. The 2.2 Chrysler four and 2.6 Mitsubishi lacked oomph. The Mitsubishi 3.0 v6 eventually helped. The original is basically a crossover by another name.
My sister and her husband had the turbo in two tone blue, a great vehicle for them. I got a Dodge Caravan for a couple of years as a company car and loved it for long distances here in Texas. Dead reliable, and while not cool looking, it was superbly comfortable and a joy.
In 1994 I got my ass handed to me by a completely stock looking 2.5 Turbo Caravan at US-131 Dragway in Martin, MI. I was driving my modified '78 Pontiac Sunbird with a transplanted 383 stroked Chevy Small Block/TH-350-shifted V8 on nitrous. Despite "treeing" him at the light, he walked right on by me by mid-track. I was shocked at the time. LOL
They are an interesting van. There are people out there that drag these thing into the 11's. still today. I would have loved to see your face when he passed you.
@@moejr1974 Dude, I was all cocky when we lined up. I was so confident that I had this in the bag I didn't even light the nitrous. I just ran it NA. LOL
Owned a 1978 Olds Starfire with a hopped up 307 in it! A 1982 Rabbit pulled up next to me at an intersection known for drag racing. I knew the lights very well since I lived there. The light turned green And that Rabbit was through the intersection Just Like real life! I did pass him halfway before the next intersection! He followed me into the McDonald's and we talked? He had a Compressor on it?! His was a Blown/ Supercharged garage build! Never Underestimate your opponent!
@@mikeks8181 I'm assuming you mean the Chevy SB 307, and not the Olds 307, right? I've actually never heard of anybody going through the effort to "hop up" a Chevy 307, considering a 350 is a direct bolt in for the Chevy 307. I mean, I'm just blown away that anyone would take the effort to convert a Starfire to V8 status and only put a 307 in it. It's just a weird combo, but, like all Chevy SBs they all accept the same hop up parts, so something is better than nothing, right? I love a Monza/clone V8 conversion no matter what engine they put in it.
I went through four Chrysler mini vans as company vehicles over the years. I just retired and loved them so much that I went out and purchased a 2020 Pacifica with only 30,000 miles on it. Already had it out camping and use it regularly to stuff full of RC airplanes. Love those stow and go seats !
2.2 4 cylinder turbo fuel injected in the vans. Plenty of power. I had one of these engines in my 87 2 door coupe lebaron. Powerful motor for 4 cylinder. The motor gave me no trouble, no head gasket issues. The dealership did tell me to do one thing....change oil every 3000 miles no matter what. Turbo was hot, and to save the bearings in it, keep clean oil in it. I did, and never had any issues.
Thanks for mentioning the 1989 transmission issues, that validated a childhood memory! I was 13 years old, learning about the Lemon Law from my dad after our Grand Caravan had two replaced in a fairly short span...
I had an 89 Caravan with the turbo and an automatic, I loved it. Drove it o Florida quite a bit and it was fantastic on the open road. It got good mileage and had plenty of power. Good video.
There was almost no choice but to drive rear wheel especially before the 80s. American cars didn't offer but a few in front wheel drive like gm with Toronado and Eldorado. Front wheel drive will always be better in bad weather than rear drive, that's why now 90% of the vehicles are front wheel drive.
Same thing on K-cars with an automatic transmission lever in the center console rather than on the steering column. They also had a blank covering up where the PRNDL indicator would go.
exactly ! i had a 1988 plymouth voyager SE (short wheelbase van) with the automaitc transmission and the 3.0 litre mitsubishi engine. Now i have a 2010 toyota camry LE . It has the 2.5 lire 4 cylinder and 6 speed automatic.
The mitsubishi 3.0 had valve guides that were made out of soft bronze that wore like butter. I remember those smoke belchers well. As a baby auto mechanic and machinist i replaced many a set with manganese bronze replacements. The 2.5 was where its at though.
I had an 87 Dodge Mini Ram Van Royal. Love the giant interior - added a varnished 4’ x 7’ luan sheet to the deck, a hatch in the roof, and headed 3,000 miles from Boston to Los Angeles car camping each way, climbing the CO Rockies on return.
My 1988 Plymouth Votager 3.0L chucked the harmonic balancer after the keyway sheared in half. Chewed up the end of the crankshaft too. Cobbled it all back together with some JB weld and drove it until it started "mosquito fogging" out the neighborhood. Using oil from dollar tree, likely accelerated an already inevitable outcome.
Yes these were tiny by today's standards. I saw one on the road the other day (rare sight) and I was amazed at how small it was. Great vehicle for the times!
Brings back good memories of the 1990 Voyager we had growing up. Had the 3.0 Mitsu V6 and one time on a family vacation, I closed my hand on the sliding door on the inside!
I had an 86 Dodge Caravan, and to date it was the easiest vehicle I have ever owned to get in and out of. Mine had the Mitsubishi 4 cylinder engine in it that I never could quite figure out (all kinds of vacuum lines and various gizmos), but it ran fairly well and was great for running the paper routes I had at the time. It seemed that anyone with more than one child had a minivan back in those days. Mine was used for everything---the paper routes, grocery getter, family car, fishing wagon---you name it. We eventually moved on to a full sized van because we ended up making 4 children and a minivan just wasn't big enough for all of us, but I have to say I really enjoyed that Caravan when we had it.
I still own my second generation, 1994 Plymouth Grand Voyager, 3.3 litre v6, 4 speed automatic. I've never had any transmission problems, but I have always used +4 ATF.
My '94 Dodge Grand Caravan ES lasted 225,000 miles before its 2nd transmission gave up. At that point, it didn't owe me anything else. I should've fixed it and kept it, though. Best van I've ever had.
In 2024, I added a dedicated transmission cooler, something I should have done years ago. I dislike dual purpose radiators; if the barrier fails, coolant will ruin the transmission, and transmission fluid won't do the engine any favours. ATF now flows only to/from the dedicated cooler.
@@HemiChryslerI did the same on my 99 grand cherokee 5yrs ago. Except I by passed the stock cooler altogether. The trans started shifting better immediately. The other downfall of the cooler inside the radiator is that the trans fluid can only get as cool as whatever the coolant temp in the radiator is. So most likely still well over 150 degrees prob closer to 200. With my little external cooler in front of the the condenser and radiator it keeps things much cooler. The only down side is on really cold days like under 15 degrees Fahrenheit my jeep won't shift into overdrive/4th gear until the fluid hits a certain temp. It usually only takes about 5mins at 50mph though. Luckily I don't live close to a freeway as that would be a issue with 3.55 rear diff.
You’re in the minority. The A604 was a time bomb. I had a ‘92 Grand Voyager and a ‘97 Town and Country. Both had the A604, both were meticulously maintained & both ate the trans. The A604 was a turd. I’m glad you’ve got a good one.
While I'm sure they could have done it as some kind of insane concept, there is probably no way to fit a V8 HEMI engine, especially the Hellcat variant, in a Pacifica that would pass safety regulations for a passenger vehicle.
A stick shift minivan! So cool! I had no idea these Chryslers also had a manual transmission. These things ruled the roads in the 80s, then the updated type with plastic bumpers all through the 90s. Thanks Adam
I'll never know how the minivan went from "Hey, this is a damn good idea"... to "This is a horrible, embarrassing emasculating vehicle I cannot be seen in... stupid soccer mom!" As a kid, these things were a super comfortable way to travel. Comfy seats, room to move, air conditioning that blasted into the rear of the vehicle, reading lights, decent audio, lots of cubbies and storage, plus room for cargo at the rear... and it got similar fuel economy to a front drive sedan. It just makes so much sense. I've always liked the frontal treatment of the early Mopar minivans, from the stacked headlights of the first ones through the composite lamped 1987-90 models. The rear was pretty plain, and the piece of trim over the license plate lights went missing on at least 50% of them. I also remember circa 1994, that there was a first gen Caravan/Voyager slowly puffing blue smoke at every intersection, waiting to fog for mosquitos as soon as the light turned green. One of the Mistabushi (what my elderly neighbor called them) 6G72's hidden... features? that seemed precisely timed to deploy itself 5000 miles after the 7/70 warranty ran out. And the Ultradive transmission. Despite these foibles, I still really like 'em. ...and a turbo with a manual trans would circumvent both of these problems.
You have to imagine the cabin filled with throw-away candy wrappers and seats stained with kiddie-drinks, and the windows rattling with the cross-talk of four or five or six screaming little girls. Anathema.
I always liked these since they were new. I never see them around anymore on the road, living in California. When they came out it was the cool family car and I had several friends whose parents sold their station wagons to buy the new Dodge/Chrysler minivans. My family owned a 2nd generation Plymouth Voyager for a short period of time before it was totaled in a major freeway crash. I have nothing but fond memories of these early minivans and their practicality.
@@richard169 Oh yes. I've seen and been in those vehicles. Perhaps I was an exception to the stereotypical kid-dom, but I was strictly forbidden from touching glass with my greasy fingers, spilling drinks, poking unauthorized buttons, or sticking my used gum inside an ashtray. If mistakes were made, I got to clean up the mess. Screaming would've gotten me beaten for sure. So I was pretty much smaller statured adult the majority of the time. Most of my friends were a little less reigned in, but I don't remember many of us being able to get away with that.
Suv and truck advertisements drove the message home minivans were lame, and the much more profitable trucks was way cooler. People just accepted it. In other parts of the world that did not have these advertisements nor the same SUV and truck sales, do not have this stigma attached to the minivan. It's uniquely American made up stigma, for profit.
Bought a new fully-optioned 5-seat ‘85 Plymouth Voyager (We liked the grill better than the Dodge Caravan version… otherwise they were identical vehicles). The longer wheelbase version was not yet available and ours had the 2.6 Mitsubishi 4-cylinder. It was perfect for a family of two young children and a dog. Only issue before 70k miles, when fully loaded with the family, luggage, and Christmas gifts on a long road trip through mountainous regions, it would take full throttle to maintain 60+ mph. Blew the head gasket at 70k and replaced the engine with a rebuild, then finally traded it for the large Honda Odyssey that came out in ‘99. Overall it was a good purchase that bring backs great memories.
Perspective is everything. Vehicles are generally far larger today. My perspective got jolt when I was at a Honda dealer that had a 1978 civic hatchback. It was shockingly small - hadn’t seen one in many years. Hard to believe that I travelled in the station wagon version thousands of highway miles back in the day.
Way back when I had a 1981 Honda Accord. At the time, it was the largest vehicle Honda offered in the US - and it was smaller than a 2001 Fit, which was the smallest car Honda offered that year.
I had the 1989 Civic 4dr LX and then the 91 Civic SI hatch. They seemed plenty roomie for my 6'3 frame in my 20s. And I had come from my 1st car a 1974 Chevy Impala coupe. So I had size comparisons. I was recently in an 89 Civic at an auto show and was shocked how small it seemed. I swear I haven't added that many pounds in 40 years 😢😂
I have an 83 civic wagon and it is way smaller than even a honda fit. Cars have gotten to big but they waste a ton of space with huge dashes and gian consoles
the mitsubishi turbo colts , with the 5 speeds were absolutely my fav car to buy for next to nothing , and have fun with til the wheels fell off .perfect balance of power and design ,gave my nephew one for his first car he loved it
@@12yearssober maybe thats what i had -all rusted but ive owned literally 100's of cars and this one was simply legend .and yes ive looked for another one and none have come up since
My racing buddy neighbor had one. I think he would say it was one of his favorite all time vehicles. We were late for a softball tournament one time in a neighboring town, and I remember we made up some time in that little screamer! 😂
My parents bought one of these in July 1989, and took 11 yr old me along to the dealer to help them pick one out. They liked the short wheelbase SE. I asked my dad to consider the turbo. He took my advice! They’d still have it had they bought the manual.
My great grandparents LOVED their Caravan, it was from the last year of the 1st gen. It was a small, fuel sipping box that did everything they asked of it, including driving cross country a few times!!
I grew up riding in the back of a ‘87. The first year of the extended body, it was produced before it was officially a Grand Caravan and just had Dodge Caravan badges. With the 2.5L and a 5 speed manual it didn’t accelerate quickly, but it could cruise on the highway just fine. I would have loved some turbo, but my father would never have paid for such luxuries. But it was dead nuts reliable and easy to maintain. We drove that thing all over the country, including to Alaska and back one summer. My dad drove it for 18 years and more than 200k miles before buying a 2005 Grand Caravan. And yes, the shifter is the lowest I’ve ever driven. It’s almost at the level of the seat!
I drove one as a rental vehicle back in 1990 with the Turbo engine. It was really pleasant to drive. I don't know about long-term ownership, but I had fun with it for the week.
Adam, the 3.3 had 158 hp, and the 3.8, 166. Loved my 3.3 and Ultradrive; yes, it failed at 146k and I had it rebuilt, but it shifted QUICK! and the 3.3 screamed to redline, much to the surprise of V6 Camaro, Firebird, and Mustang drivers, along with V8 pickups. Yes, I won most of the time.
Very nice! They were actually very good, utilitarian vehicles and served their purpose quite well. I bought a used one for my out-of-town car and it served me well for a number of years, until the Chicago winters took their toll. It was clean and ran like a top. An excellent video, as always.
Well, this past spring my 2021 Pacifica easily did 105 MPH on a straightaway stretch of eye-80 in western Pennsylvania. But when not moving that fast, the 3.5 registered 30.2 mpg on a 700-mile trip east. 'Course, I wasn't hauling anyone or anything 'cept myself.
When i was in my teens I remember these vans. I'll admit I've always been a chevy guy but back in this day I liked the dodge minivans best...especially the turbo version.
I loved the looks of it. We had one and it never gave us any problems, and it was super practical, whether people hauling, work or camping, that thing just went even with just 4 cylinders and no turbo. It was like part of the family.
I have 4 kids and had even more Caravans. I've owned 5 over the years and loved them. When I had my first two kids I would take the middle seat out and leave the rear seat in the rear. I loved having all that space in front of the rear seat.
I inherited my dad’s used 1989 grand caravan and drove it through high school and part of college. It had the Ultradrive transmission and, yes, it was terrible. Replaced the transmission 3 times before finally leaving it on the side of road when it failed again. When the transmission was working, however, it was great for road trips. Lots of room of my band’s road gear!
One of my work vans was a 1989 DODGE GRAND CARAVAN cargo version. It was sure nice to drive when new but it developed horrible problems over time. It had the 3.0 V6 and 4 speed automatic. You name it when it came to problems. The engine burned oil to make a steam locomotive to take notice. Lost track of how many transmissions we had to replace. Then people wonder why CHRYSLER had to be bailed out a couple times.
My first real job, summer 1989, I was 16 years old. I was working for a Chrysler-Plymouth dealership as a service department porter. I was super excited to drive the newly launched turbo minivans. There was something exciting and special about them, especially to a 16-year-old with a brand new drivers license.
Those second row seats fit perfectly in street rods. These definitely didn’t survive as well as other vehicles of the era did I think they were pretty well used up before they rotted out in most cases.
I worked at a Dodge Dealer at that time. And as good fortune would have it, I just sold my Daytona demo and asked to try out the turbo Caravan as my next demo. My favorite sport became hunting for pickups with loud exhaust that the would-be gearhead driver thought was fast. It was truly a happy day to catch one at a red light and to bate them with whistle from the turbo while holding the brake. It would bury any full-size pickup, just watch out for the 4-liter 5 speed 190 HP Jeep Comanches those little trucks were fast. At that time Dodge had some fun vehicles like the Stealth R/T turbo with 300HP and all-wheel drive you could hunt Corvettes with those. Or for a truly terrifying experience try a Sprit R/T which competed with the Taurus SHO. It had a 2.2 liter with a Lotus designed 4 valve DOHC head and a turbo it made 235 HP and 295 lbs. of torque and was only available with a 5-speed stick, it could spin the front tires in second gear if you really stood on it. Those were truly the happy days.
They don't make hot minivans anymore, WHAT? I've got a 2017 Sienna SE Sport turned suspension, Sits an inch lower than the other models, 19'inch gun metal grey wheels. 296 horsepower, 8'speed transmission. 4 perforated leather captains chairs, dual air, Power windows, seats, etc. Magazines have tested it at high 6s to low 7s 0-60 And it looks good doing it.
@@howebrad4601 Every car is bigger now. Compare a 1980 Honda Civic to a current one.... totally different cars. the new ones are huge in the same model.
And... they don't actually make the Sienna like that anymore at all. All trim levels now come with a 245hp turbo 2.5L hybrid powertrain connected to a CVT. Toyota decided with the most recent generation to drop the V6, lower the horsepower, and build a full size minivan that gets 40mpg+ instead. It's still a fairly luxurious vehicle, as are pretty much all minivans still in production, honestly. But it's easily the slowest minivan out there now.
@@howebrad4601 As noted in the video, the Corolla is bigger than the OG Chrysler minivans. Those original minivans would seem small compared to current compact cars.
I was in Anaheim, CA having dinner and reading a car magazine. There was an article about these new minivans. I thought, "Well, this is really cool." Memory is fuzzy, the Mazda Miata may have been introduced in same magazine--either R&T or C-D. Then a few years later, there is a scene in David Halberstam's "The Reckoning" about how Hal Sperlich and Lee Iacocca adapted Ford's unused plans for a minivan. Ben Bidwell, ex-Ford and now Chrysler was having dinner and spotted Gene Bordinat of Ford a few tables away. Bidwell wrote a note and had waiter deliver to Bordinat: "Gene--Thanks for the minivan. It was very generous of you. We'll do 160,000 pieces this year." Halberstam devotes several pages to the minivan in that book. One of my favorite sections.
A friend's parents had one of these back in the day. I loved how you could always hear the Chrysler turbo spool up, sounded like a spaceship to me as a child. My parents also had a 5-speed Mazda MPV in the early 90's. You can't buy a minivan unless it has a CVT these days.
We had a 91 Caravan LE AWD for years. It has the 3.3, long wheelbase, and the Ultradrive. White, gray cladding, and a comfy blue velour interior. The transmission started to act up, and mom promptly sold it.
I owned an 88 Voyager and it was my first minivan but the best of 3 different ones I had. I also had an 88 Aerostar which was a tough hauler. I moved family members several times and it handled it perfectly. But it was helpless in snow. My 3rd minivan was a Mercury (Nissan) Villager. That one was pretty good too. The original Chrysler minivans should have been kept close to the original platform and size. My Voyager was very comfortable but my Aerostar had air ride seats! It was a great long distance runner with 145 horsepower 3 liter Vulcan V-6.
I drove rear wheel drive vehicles up in New Hampshire. It's not as bad as people say. Remember, before the 80s very few cars were front wheel drive and people got along just fine.
Yes, I remember borrowing my sister's Aerostar many years ago to move with. I drove it home in a snowstorm with all its back seats removed and no weight at all in the back. That thing was a wild ride. You're probably not supposed to drift a minivan down a highway on-ramp. It was one ridiculous ride home.
@@megachonk9440 one other thing.. today's RWD cars aren't as bad. they are more balanced as the engines are now aluminum. In the old days the engine was cast iron so the rear was much lighter in comparison to the front end. My Trailblazer is actually quite balanced so in RWD mode it's not bad at all.
I live full-time in a 2021 Ram Promaster City compact van. It has great performance both in power and fuel economy. I have fitted it out very similar to an Amtrak sleeper compartment. I have some amenities like a large ultra HD flat screen, a snack bar and a propane cooking surface. 71 years old retired a perfectly good cottage on wheels.
The horsepower and torque CURVE was what engineers were looking for when they chose engines in old cars, ive seen so many old car shows and even a couple times on this channel where someone says something like "the car had a 120hp 2.0 engine in 1990, but for some reason in 1992 it was replaced with a 2.4 that also made 120hp"
Had one that was awd. That 4 cylinder was decent on fuel economy even while driving additional drive train. Averaged 20mpg hwy and 16 around the city or off road. Yes...off road. We used our for hunting and fishing. The belly pan was able to slide over snow drifts during ice fishing trips. The issues that killed it was under the dash board. The Guage cluster would go out on a regular basis. The only competition was the Chevy ASTRO van. With its v6, the fuel economy wasn't anywhere near the turbo 4. If they brought this van back with basic mechanical gauges, and duel overhead cam systems. It would rule the industry. It could also haul a bunch for the chassis. Pulled a host of trailers with it from boats,four wheelers, snowmobile, and lawn mowing tractors. We had to scrap ours when we hit 285000 miles from rust. Best vehicle purchase I ever made. $6000 used with 20000 original miles on it.
Friend of mine in university had one identical to this. I thought it was pretty neat that he went for the manual option. From what I remember, he really liked it. Dad had an '84 Voyager with the 101hp 2.6L Mitsubishi and 3 speed slushbox as the only option. No AC and only pop-out rear windows meant you baked sitting in traffic. With 7 people abord, it was an absolute dog.
My friend had one of these turbo 5 speed mini-vans. With 2 people in the vehicle, it was clunky with cable shift but sporty. Loaded up with people, hot day, and a/c on, made it a total dog that required high octane fuel to prevent engine spark knock.
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I drove a "cargo" version of a 1986 model of these, eight to ten hours, five to six days a week, in Vancouver's horrible traffic, delivering for a boutique bakery, in 1987/88. Never once had a mechanical problem.
You could find any Chrysler product back then by following the blue smoke billowing out of the tail pipe. Mom loved Oldsmobile then fell in love with these. We had an 85 & a 90 growing up
I think these minivans were just a great cars. They look nice in my eyes. Had a soft ride like a limousine. And comfortable seats. Could be used as a family or utility car in the same day. Lot of room inside. My chief used it as a family cruiser. Then removed rear seats ad used it as a service car, full of tools. And also pulled trailers. Car of gold.
While in the car business in the 90's, I took in trade one of these short wheelbase vans (with woodgrain no less) that was actually 8 passenger, because it a bench seat in the front. I wish I'd kept it, because it was in great condition, and I have never seen another so equipped!
I was an engine design engineer at Chrysler from 1985 until 2009. I remember the 2.5L turbo 5 speed minivan. We had one as a department car and it was such a hoot!
My Dad bought a wheelchair modified minivan of this generation when Mom was in a care home in 2006 so he could take her out for family functions, and it was pretty comfortable and actually felt nimble.
I had an 89 turbo caravan that me and a friend heavily modified. 3" exhaust, header, bigger turbo, LSD insert, etc. Had nitrous on it for awhile. Had more plans for it but life happens. Best ET 14.47@96 mph.
The little Dodge Omni turbo was really quick. With very little modification they would run 13 second quarter mile times. I had one back in the 90s and it hurt a lot of people's feelings 😆 I also had a 71' Z28 at the time that ran a low 12 second quarter mile but I drove the Omni on the weekends more than the Camaro because it was so fun 😂
I was a certified master auto technician working for a Chrysler Plymouth dealer in the heyday of these minivans, around 1992. The turbo chargers were absolute trash and usually lasted about 40 to 50,000 miles. Yes, there were quite a few head gasket issues with both the 2.2 and the turbo charged 2.5. The 2.2 was also notorious for wrist pin noise. I did many piston replacements to satisfy customer complaints. Overall, the engines would keep running and were pretty tough, but had a lot of nuisance issues. A notable issue with the 3.0 Mitsubishi engine was that the cylinders would become oblong and they would start burning oil pretty badly. In my opinion, none of the Mitsubishi engine offerings were good engines overall. The most stout offering was undoubtedly the 2.5 L fuel injected four cylinder. We really had hardly any issues with those at all as long as they were minus the turbo. That was your most reliable configuration. I think they were originally usually paired with a three speed overdrive auto transmission. Those were very solid vehicles overall. A little later on they introduced an electronic five speed transmission that was a catastrophe. Sometimes they would come in with only 10 or 15,000 miles on them needing to be rebuilt. It was honestly a pretty embarrassing time to be a Chrysler technician. I will say, though, that the minivan was an excellent idea for families, and that overall the product delivered what the customer wanted. It’s just too bad that they couldn’t have been a little more careful with their engine choices and configurations. 🤷🏻♂️
Growing up, our family had an 89 Plymouth Voyager SE short wheelbase with the 3.0 V6. It was burgundy with the same color interior as the van in this video. It had the dark gray aluminum lace wheels and ribbed lower rocker moldings. It was decently quick for a van. I took my driver's test in it when I was 16.
As a kid in the 80s I wanted my parents to get a minivan. I was super envious of my friends whos parents had them. However my parents said they were unsafe. Why unsafe I asked. They argued that because the sliding door was only on 1 side that if there was ever a collision on that side or the van fliped onto that side rear occupants would be almost trapped. The drivers door and rear hatch (could you open it from inside?) Would be the only ways out and if you were in the 2nd or 3rd row i could see the danger. And so they stuck with station wagons, gm a body then tauruses. By the time chysler added the drivers side sliding door in 96 we were grown and they didnt need a minivan anymore. Looking back I wonder how many collision deaths could have been prevented with a rear drivers side sliding door. Anyway I always loved minivans and when my 3rd kid was on the way we got a Honda Odyssey thats now 9 years old and Ive been super happy with,,,despite the tranny issues...they just had to copy chrysler in every way lol
Most Mopar minivans from 1984-95 had two ways to open the hatch - key in the hatch itself, or a dash button. Base models did not offer the inside release until '91, when it was packaged with the optional 7-passenger seating. 5-passenger seats were standard.
This Caravan is a very rare bird… I’d love to have one of these first gen turbo Caravans with the five-speed. When I was a kid my mom had an 84 with the 5 speed and then an 85 with the Mitsubishi 2.6/3 speed auto and the rare front bench seat, making it an 8 passenger minivan.
My father bought an 85’ Grand Caravan brand new. It had the 2.6 Mitsu. It was a a dog. It had no power, blew smoke used oil. He got in a big screaming match at the dealership. Went across the street bought a new iroc and showed up at home with it to my mom’s dismay. My brother and I were all about it. 😂. The minivan was nice though, I liked the interior.
Had 3 different Caravans/T&C. Great vehicles! Would buy another today (if not overpriced) if available. Sadly, Chrysler replaced Caravan with Pacifica - a hard NO!
My first van was an 84 dodge mini ram which was a caravan cargo van. It came with no rear windows but mine was a conversion with a bed in the back. Later i got an 89 Plymouth voyager with a manual transmission. I dropped a LeBaron turbo engine in it. I never knew they made a turbo version.
Our 1984and 1994 SWB Dodge Caravans (@84 with the Mitsubishi 2.6L 4cylcinder, `94 with the V6, were arguably the best, most capable car for a family with two children ever made. Each of them lasted well over 200,000 miles with minimal issues. The `84 did need one transmission replacement at about 40,000 miles, but the replacement lasted the rest of the vehicle's life. Great highway cruiser, handled Pennsylvania back roads just fine, carried anything we wanted to put into it, and sipped gas.
We had an 89 Plymouth Voyager with the 3.0L bought brand new. It started burning a lot of oil after my Dad bought a boat and started towing it, It was only 7-8 years old at that time but it got short tripped a lot as a family car. I think that optional Mitz V6 might have been a stop gap seeing as they eventually turbocharged the 2.4 and offered them alongside each other. I wish my Dad had optioned it like this one with the 2.4 turbo and the manual trans. It's crazy that they only had 100hp, they must have been really light. The first and second gens are the best, they cheaped out a lot once they had to complete with Honda and Toyota.
My parents bought a 1990 Plymouth Voyaget 5 passenger 2.5L Turbo brand new. Very similar to the one featured here, except it was a column shift automatic The "front wheel drive" plaque on the dash was there on the featured car because it's a block-off plate for where the PRNDL indicator would be for the automatic vans. On more than one occasion I borrowed the van to "help a friend move some furniture" on wedsnay nights for about a month in the summer time. We didn't live far from New England Dragway and weds nights were street/grudge night. I can attest that the automatic version completely stock regularly did low 15 second quarter mile times at about 92mph. There used to be a guy named Gus who ran an 1989 2.5L turbo Caravan there that was heavily modified and ran in the high 11's. Yes, these things were faster than they should have been for what they were. The 1990 we had stuck around longer than it was supposd to......dad had a 1995 3.0L mitsu powered one with the 4spd auto...yeah, horrible combo....that replaced the 1985 Voyager he had handed down to my mom. She got the 1990 when he got the 1995. Well the 95 had a transmission failure at 230k and 7 years of ownership and wasn't worth fixing. He traded it in on an '02 Voyager and mom still had the 1990. Well when dad passed in 2005, she took over the 2002, but held onto the 1990 for a while. She finally sold it in 2007, reluctantly. I had considered taking iton as a mild restoration project at the time, but I had no where to store it or work on it at the time, so it was sold on. Wish we had kept it as it really was a rare and fun van. Thanks for sharing this video, it brought back some memories.
Never realized that there were short wheel based versions, and long wheel based versions back then. Both my grandmas had these when I was little (born in 93).
I like the first gen Chrysler minivans. When I started working as a mechanic, they were everywhere. If they were well maintained, they ran forever. If not, they were easy and profitable to repair.
What's funny is, this actually looks more like the one Ford was going to use for Ford Aerostar. Lee Iacocca stole it from ford and gave it to mopar. If you know you know
Covered many miles in Ford, Dodge and GM mini-vans as a small-market TV news reporter from 1989 to 1996. Although the best vehicle we had at the station for highway winter driving was an 89 Nissan Pathfinder with 4wd.
9:45 Yup! I had an '89 Caravan Turbo with the 3-speed automatic. Just cruising down the highway at night with the cruise control on at a steady 65 MPH, I noticed a sudden cloud of white steam in the rear view mirror and knew exactly what had happened. :-( I also had an '87 Plymouth Caravelle with the normally aspirated 2.5L and can attest to is reliability and longevity. You just had to carrry around a spare mass air flow sensor in the glove box.
Three pedals and a turbo? Yes, please! Red velor interior is icing on the cake. Nice!!
I wish I'd known about these years ago. I'd only learned about the Turbo vans when they were already disappearing from the roads. I didn't know until now it came with a stick in the turbo variant.
I'd love to know more from a driving test/review.
@@davidparker9676 tell adam to test drive the turbo caravan and make a video of it! Can adam drive a manual transmission ???
I had a 1991 Plymouth Voyager AWD LE with the red velour, two removable bench seats, Harmon Kardon stereo, 3.0L V6 and the fancy side-mounted faux woodgrain-applique racing stripe. It was a great van but not much of a chick magnet. One of the best, most reliable and useful cars I ever owned.
David E. Davis! Now there's a name I haven't heard in 20 years. Love the video.
Did you know that Jean Jennings passed away a few days ago?
@@InTeCredo I remember her writing as Jean Lindamood.
Apparently, she knew how to weld, according to an intro penned by one of the other Car and Driver writers.
@@InTeCredo Thank you for letting me know. She was a wonderful automotive journalist.
I was a Tech in a Chrysler Plymouth Dodge dealer when these vehicles were new. The most dependable drive train was the 3.0 V6 with the 3 speed automatic. As far as the 2.5 Turbo we didn't sell very many. I did own a 89 Plymouth Acclaim LE with the 2.5 Turbo and a 3 speed automatic. We bought it new and it proved to be a trouble free car. I did replace the head gasket once. That car was a real sleeper for the time. My wife loved to pick on 5.0 Mustangs!
I worked on my share of those vans as well. I agree, the 3.0 was a good mill. The only turbo I worked on was in the Lebaron, and that thing would lift the front, torqued steered, and planted smiles for miles
Adam, The size comparison with today's subcompact cars is a 'reality check'.
I had a 1987 Caravan with the 2.6 Mitsu and 3 Speed. If Chrysler had not quit making this size, I would have continued with short version. The Grand versions just didn't fit my plans with just my wife and myself the only ones in the family. I think the Caravan actually was more comfortable on long trips than my 1998 Continental. By the way my Caravan was the same color inside and out as the one you are featuring. I did get rid of the Caravan at slightly over the 200,000 mile mark as it had cracked another cylinder head and I was tired of changing them, about 30,000 to 35,000 miles per head.
We took many many long trips in an 86 with that powertrain, also the shorter non-Grand version. With the middle bench removed and the rear one moved forward to an intermediate set of anchors you had all the legroom in the world for the rear passengers and tons of cargo room. More than 2 decades after it was sold Mom still talks about how she misses that van. Of course you had to choose between that Mitsu engine running right, and passing emissions. The carb was useless in its factory configuration.
To give you an idea about how powerless that van was despite having the more powerful Mitsu 2.6, the first time Mom drove its replacement, a 91 Previa (which had no supercharger option yet), Mom remarked "wow this thing has some pick-up!"
@@jblyon2 I understand your pain my mom had 84 new yorker with this engine. I had some buddies in a dodge service dept who helped me out and showed me how to rig this thing. If you look at it closely it has an electric solenoid stuck to it and one of procedures was to bend the linkage from said solenoid and switch a couple vacuum lines. it cost around 10 to 12 HP, but mom was no street racer and never noticed. but it passed emissions and all was well
They still have simple Caravan with Mitsubishi V6 from 1987.5 to 2007. Some were Chrysler 60 degree V6.
The factory (Mitsubishi) head was crack prone. There was an aftermarket head by AMC that solved the cracking issues and you could buy another head without the "jet valves" for even better longevity.
That 2.6 found its way into several different vehicles from multiple manufacturers. The most impressive version came in the Mitsubishi Starion/Chrysler Conquest with an intercooled turbo. Some of those Starions could be modified to make a solid 400hp with some turbo and fuel injection upgrades.
Unfortunately the buying public decided that the crossover - with 25% less space and 25% worse fuel economy - fits better in the same footprint than the minivan.
It's because millennial women REFUSE to be caught dead in them.
I don't believe the crossover was the choice of the buying public. I see it more as a concept pushed on the buyers by the car companies and government regulations.
@@davidparker9676 yep, it was the chicken tax and the cafe standards that made trucks and vehicles based on those trucks have less restrictions to build and sell. The og idea was to give work vehicles a brake because they were nessasary but less efficient with more emissions. The manufacturers could spend less to produce with more profit in the end. They took advantage of the policies and basically killed sedans and wagons by producing something worse in all aspects except head room, they have lots and lots of useless stupid headroom. Now stupid SUVs are everywhere. Hate them and want wagons back. Now no one can see anything around the SUV in front of them sitting in traffic
The original T115 minivan is pretty small - it had to be. The 2.2 Chrysler four and 2.6 Mitsubishi lacked oomph. The Mitsubishi 3.0 v6 eventually helped. The original is basically a crossover by another name.
It's about image. Soccer moms don't want to look like soccer moms.
My sister and her husband had the turbo in two tone blue, a great vehicle for them. I got a Dodge Caravan for a couple of years as a company car and loved it for long distances here in Texas. Dead reliable, and while not cool looking, it was superbly comfortable and a joy.
We had a 1989 Plymouth Voyager! Turbo with wood grain panels. I called it the Turbo Wood Grain!!
9:25 the "Front Drive" indication was really a filler panel for the PRNDL if it was a column-shift car.
In 1994 I got my ass handed to me by a completely stock looking 2.5 Turbo Caravan at US-131 Dragway in Martin, MI. I was driving my modified '78 Pontiac Sunbird with a transplanted 383 stroked Chevy Small Block/TH-350-shifted V8 on nitrous. Despite "treeing" him at the light, he walked right on by me by mid-track. I was shocked at the time. LOL
They are an interesting van. There are people out there that drag these thing into the 11's. still today. I would have loved to see your face when he passed you.
@@moejr1974 Dude, I was all cocky when we lined up. I was so confident that I had this in the bag I didn't even light the nitrous. I just ran it NA. LOL
Owned a 1978 Olds Starfire with a hopped up 307 in it! A 1982 Rabbit pulled up next to me at an intersection known for drag racing. I knew the lights very well since I lived there. The light turned green And that Rabbit was through the intersection Just Like real life! I did pass him halfway before the next intersection! He followed me into the McDonald's and we talked? He had a Compressor on it?!
His was a Blown/ Supercharged garage build!
Never Underestimate your opponent!
@@mikeks8181 I'm assuming you mean the Chevy SB 307, and not the Olds 307, right? I've actually never heard of anybody going through the effort to "hop up" a Chevy 307, considering a 350 is a direct bolt in for the Chevy 307. I mean, I'm just blown away that anyone would take the effort to convert a Starfire to V8 status and only put a 307 in it. It's just a weird combo, but, like all Chevy SBs they all accept the same hop up parts, so something is better than nothing, right? I love a Monza/clone V8 conversion no matter what engine they put in it.
I went through four Chrysler mini vans as company vehicles over the years. I just retired and loved them so much that I went out and purchased a 2020 Pacifica with only 30,000 miles on it. Already had it out camping and use it regularly to stuff full of RC airplanes. Love those stow and go seats !
2.2 4 cylinder turbo fuel injected in the vans. Plenty of power. I had one of these engines in my 87 2 door coupe lebaron. Powerful motor for 4 cylinder. The motor gave me no trouble, no head gasket issues. The dealership did tell me to do one thing....change oil every 3000 miles no matter what. Turbo was hot, and to save the bearings in it, keep clean oil in it. I did, and never had any issues.
@@tommywatterson5276 I had an '87 Dodge Daytona Shelby with the 175hp turbo II. Ran it to 210,000 miles with no issues. Mobil 1 every 5000 miles.
Thanks for mentioning the 1989 transmission issues, that validated a childhood memory! I was 13 years old, learning about the Lemon Law from my dad after our Grand Caravan had two replaced in a fairly short span...
I had an 89 Caravan with the turbo and an automatic, I loved it. Drove it o Florida quite a bit and it was fantastic on the open road. It got good mileage and had plenty of power. Good video.
There was almost no choice but to drive rear wheel especially before the 80s. American cars didn't offer but a few in front wheel drive like gm with Toronado and Eldorado. Front wheel drive will always be better in bad weather than rear drive, that's why now 90% of the vehicles are front wheel drive.
It says front drive because that was where the PRNDL would go but since it's a manual transmission it's a blank
It would have been cooler if it said "turbo" or even cooler if it had a "boost" light like the turbo Toyota trucks of the same age.
Same thing on K-cars with an automatic transmission lever in the center console rather than on the steering column. They also had a blank covering up where the PRNDL indicator would go.
exactly ! i had a 1988 plymouth voyager SE (short wheelbase van) with the automaitc transmission and the 3.0 litre mitsubishi engine. Now i have a 2010 toyota camry LE . It has the 2.5 lire 4 cylinder and 6 speed automatic.
The mitsubishi 3.0 had valve guides that were made out of soft bronze that wore like butter. I remember those smoke belchers well. As a baby auto mechanic and machinist i replaced many a set with manganese bronze replacements.
The 2.5 was where its at though.
Other than that the 3.0 was a dependable engine
Saw many a blue cloud behind those vans. I would think... that must be the 3.0. Nice vehicles overall.
We had lots of issues with valve spacers
People always made fun of these (and I occasionally did too), but there were good looking for the day and quite practical.
I had an 87 Dodge Mini Ram Van Royal. Love the giant interior - added a varnished 4’ x 7’ luan sheet to the deck, a hatch in the roof, and headed 3,000 miles from Boston to Los Angeles car camping each way, climbing the CO Rockies on return.
You just convinced me to watch "Planes, Trains, and automobiles" again.
The 3 liter Mitsubishi V6 seemed to have some durability problems - I remember seeing lots of them huffing blue smoke, like an old small block Chevy.
Valve stem seals and guides would go bad early like 70-80k miles.
My 1988 Plymouth Votager 3.0L chucked the harmonic balancer after the keyway sheared in half. Chewed up the end of the crankshaft too.
Cobbled it all back together with some JB weld and drove it until it started "mosquito fogging" out the neighborhood.
Using oil from dollar tree, likely accelerated an already inevitable outcome.
My uncle worked for Chrysler on dyno testing and swore by how good they were.
Practical family hauler. They weren't made to be beauty queens
Yes these were tiny by today's standards. I saw one on the road the other day (rare sight) and I was amazed at how small it was. Great vehicle for the times!
Brings back good memories of the 1990 Voyager we had growing up. Had the 3.0 Mitsu V6 and one time on a family vacation, I closed my hand on the sliding door on the inside!
Ouch! 😫
I had an 86 Dodge Caravan, and to date it was the easiest vehicle I have ever owned to get in and out of. Mine had the Mitsubishi 4 cylinder engine in it that I never could quite figure out (all kinds of vacuum lines and various gizmos), but it ran fairly well and was great for running the paper routes I had at the time. It seemed that anyone with more than one child had a minivan back in those days. Mine was used for everything---the paper routes, grocery getter, family car, fishing wagon---you name it. We eventually moved on to a full sized van because we ended up making 4 children and a minivan just wasn't big enough for all of us, but I have to say I really enjoyed that Caravan when we had it.
I still own my second generation, 1994 Plymouth Grand Voyager, 3.3 litre v6, 4 speed automatic. I've never had any transmission problems, but I have always used +4 ATF.
My '94 Dodge Grand Caravan ES lasted 225,000 miles before its 2nd transmission gave up. At that point, it didn't owe me anything else. I should've fixed it and kept it, though. Best van I've ever had.
In 2024, I added a dedicated transmission cooler, something I should have done years ago. I dislike dual purpose radiators; if the barrier fails, coolant will ruin the transmission, and transmission fluid won't do the engine any favours. ATF now flows only to/from the dedicated cooler.
@@HemiChryslerI did the same on my 99 grand cherokee 5yrs ago. Except I by passed the stock cooler altogether. The trans started shifting better immediately. The other downfall of the cooler inside the radiator is that the trans fluid can only get as cool as whatever the coolant temp in the radiator is. So most likely still well over 150 degrees prob closer to 200. With my little external cooler in front of the the condenser and radiator it keeps things much cooler. The only down side is on really cold days like under 15 degrees Fahrenheit my jeep won't shift into overdrive/4th gear until the fluid hits a certain temp. It usually only takes about 5mins at 50mph though. Luckily I don't live close to a freeway as that would be a issue with 3.55 rear diff.
@beavistechrock yeah, I excluded the original radiator portion cooler too. ATF flows only to/from the dedicated cooler.
You’re in the minority. The A604 was a time bomb. I had a ‘92 Grand Voyager and a ‘97 Town and Country. Both had the A604, both were meticulously maintained & both ate the trans. The A604 was a turd. I’m glad you’ve got a good one.
I was hoping they'd fit the 392 in the Pacifica and call it a Hellcat. I love minivans. They are arguably my favorite cars.
Why it would be a meme machine that torque steers through the first 4 gears.
Considering the fact that the Pacifica is FWD-based they’d have to reengineer the entire thing to accommodate a Hemi 😂
I'd rather see them bring back the Magnum, that would be a great platform for this.
@ronsmith4325 the issue is no one buys wagons.
While I'm sure they could have done it as some kind of insane concept, there is probably no way to fit a V8 HEMI engine, especially the Hellcat variant, in a Pacifica that would pass safety regulations for a passenger vehicle.
A stick shift minivan! So cool! I had no idea these Chryslers also had a manual transmission. These things ruled the roads in the 80s, then the updated type with plastic bumpers all through the 90s. Thanks Adam
Asto vans has manuals as well early on.
I'll never know how the minivan went from "Hey, this is a damn good idea"... to "This is a horrible, embarrassing emasculating vehicle I cannot be seen in... stupid soccer mom!" As a kid, these things were a super comfortable way to travel. Comfy seats, room to move, air conditioning that blasted into the rear of the vehicle, reading lights, decent audio, lots of cubbies and storage, plus room for cargo at the rear... and it got similar fuel economy to a front drive sedan. It just makes so much sense.
I've always liked the frontal treatment of the early Mopar minivans, from the stacked headlights of the first ones through the composite lamped 1987-90 models. The rear was pretty plain, and the piece of trim over the license plate lights went missing on at least 50% of them. I also remember circa 1994, that there was a first gen Caravan/Voyager slowly puffing blue smoke at every intersection, waiting to fog for mosquitos as soon as the light turned green. One of the Mistabushi (what my elderly neighbor called them) 6G72's hidden... features? that seemed precisely timed to deploy itself 5000 miles after the 7/70 warranty ran out. And the Ultradive transmission. Despite these foibles, I still really like 'em. ...and a turbo with a manual trans would circumvent both of these problems.
You have to imagine the cabin filled with throw-away candy wrappers and seats stained with kiddie-drinks, and the windows rattling with the cross-talk of four or five or six screaming little girls. Anathema.
I always liked these since they were new. I never see them around anymore on the road, living in California.
When they came out it was the cool family car and I had several friends whose parents sold their station wagons to buy the new Dodge/Chrysler minivans.
My family owned a 2nd generation Plymouth Voyager for a short period of time before it was totaled in a major freeway crash. I have nothing but fond memories of these early minivans and their practicality.
@@richard169 Oh yes. I've seen and been in those vehicles. Perhaps I was an exception to the stereotypical kid-dom, but I was strictly forbidden from touching glass with my greasy fingers, spilling drinks, poking unauthorized buttons, or sticking my used gum inside an ashtray. If mistakes were made, I got to clean up the mess. Screaming would've gotten me beaten for sure. So I was pretty much smaller statured adult the majority of the time. Most of my friends were a little less reigned in, but I don't remember many of us being able to get away with that.
Suv and truck advertisements drove the message home minivans were lame, and the much more profitable trucks was way cooler. People just accepted it. In other parts of the world that did not have these advertisements nor the same SUV and truck sales, do not have this stigma attached to the minivan. It's uniquely American made up stigma, for profit.
Bought a new fully-optioned 5-seat ‘85 Plymouth Voyager (We liked the grill better than the Dodge Caravan version… otherwise they were identical vehicles). The longer wheelbase version was not yet available and ours had the 2.6 Mitsubishi 4-cylinder. It was perfect for a family of two young children and a dog. Only issue before 70k miles, when fully loaded with the family, luggage, and Christmas gifts on a long road trip through mountainous regions, it would take full throttle to maintain 60+ mph. Blew the head gasket at 70k and replaced the engine with a rebuild, then finally traded it for the large Honda Odyssey that came out in ‘99. Overall it was a good purchase that bring backs great memories.
Perspective is everything. Vehicles are generally far larger today.
My perspective got jolt when I was at a Honda dealer that had a 1978 civic hatchback. It was shockingly small - hadn’t seen one in many years. Hard to believe that I travelled in the station wagon version thousands of highway miles back in the day.
Way back when I had a 1981 Honda Accord. At the time, it was the largest vehicle Honda offered in the US - and it was smaller than a 2001 Fit, which was the smallest car Honda offered that year.
I had the 1989 Civic 4dr LX and then the 91 Civic SI hatch. They seemed plenty roomie for my 6'3 frame in my 20s. And I had come from my 1st car a 1974 Chevy Impala coupe. So I had size comparisons. I was recently in an 89 Civic at an auto show and was shocked how small it seemed. I swear I haven't added that many pounds in 40 years 😢😂
I have an 83 civic wagon and it is way smaller than even a honda fit. Cars have gotten to big but they waste a ton of space with huge dashes and gian consoles
the mitsubishi turbo colts , with the 5 speeds were absolutely my fav car to buy for next to nothing , and have fun with til the wheels fell off .perfect balance of power and design ,gave my nephew one for his first car he loved it
I had an 84 turbo colt 4 speed with the split transaxle option. One year only option. I wish I knew what I had when I had it.
@@12yearssober maybe thats what i had -all rusted but ive owned literally 100's of cars and this one was simply legend .and yes ive looked for another one and none have come up since
My racing buddy neighbor had one. I think he would say it was one of his favorite all time vehicles. We were late for a softball tournament one time in a neighboring town, and I remember we made up some time in that little screamer!
😂
My parents bought one of these in July 1989, and took 11 yr old me along to the dealer to help them pick one out. They liked the short wheelbase SE. I asked my dad to consider the turbo. He took my advice! They’d still have it had they bought the manual.
My great grandparents LOVED their Caravan, it was from the last year of the 1st gen. It was a small, fuel sipping box that did everything they asked of it, including driving cross country a few times!!
I grew up riding in the back of a ‘87. The first year of the extended body, it was produced before it was officially a Grand Caravan and just had Dodge Caravan badges. With the 2.5L and a 5 speed manual it didn’t accelerate quickly, but it could cruise on the highway just fine. I would have loved some turbo, but my father would never have paid for such luxuries. But it was dead nuts reliable and easy to maintain. We drove that thing all over the country, including to Alaska and back one summer. My dad drove it for 18 years and more than 200k miles before buying a 2005 Grand Caravan. And yes, the shifter is the lowest I’ve ever driven. It’s almost at the level of the seat!
I drove one as a rental vehicle back in 1990 with the Turbo engine. It was really pleasant to drive. I don't know about long-term ownership, but I had fun with it for the week.
Adam, the 3.3 had 158 hp, and the 3.8, 166. Loved my 3.3 and Ultradrive; yes, it failed at 146k and I had it rebuilt, but it shifted QUICK! and the 3.3 screamed to redline, much to the surprise of V6 Camaro, Firebird, and Mustang drivers, along with V8 pickups. Yes, I won most of the time.
Very nice! They were actually very good, utilitarian vehicles and served their purpose quite well. I bought a used one for my out-of-town car and it served me well for a number of years, until the Chicago winters took their toll. It was clean and ran like a top. An excellent video, as always.
Well, this past spring my 2021 Pacifica easily did 105 MPH on a straightaway stretch of eye-80 in western Pennsylvania. But when not moving that fast, the 3.5 registered 30.2 mpg on a 700-mile trip east. 'Course, I wasn't hauling anyone or anything 'cept myself.
When i was in my teens I remember these vans. I'll admit I've always been a chevy guy but back in this day I liked the dodge minivans best...especially the turbo version.
I loved the looks of it. We had one and it never gave us any problems, and it was super practical, whether people hauling, work or camping, that thing just went even with just 4 cylinders and no turbo. It was like part of the family.
I have 4 kids and had even more Caravans. I've owned 5 over the years and loved them. When I had my first two kids I would take the middle seat out and leave the rear seat in the rear. I loved having all that space in front of the rear seat.
I inherited my dad’s used 1989 grand caravan and drove it through high school and part of college. It had the Ultradrive transmission and, yes, it was terrible. Replaced the transmission 3 times before finally leaving it on the side of road when it failed again. When the transmission was working, however, it was great for road trips. Lots of room of my band’s road gear!
Back when they were sold new, they came with a bag of soccer balls in the back storage area.
One of my work vans was a 1989 DODGE GRAND CARAVAN cargo version. It was sure nice to drive when new but it developed horrible problems over time. It had the 3.0 V6 and 4 speed automatic. You name it when it came to problems. The engine burned oil to make a steam locomotive to take notice. Lost track of how many transmissions we had to replace. Then people wonder why CHRYSLER had to be bailed out a couple times.
A 2.2 turbo 3 out of a Spirit R/T in one of those would have really been fun. Really a easy swap.
My first real job, summer 1989, I was 16 years old. I was working for a Chrysler-Plymouth dealership as a service department porter. I was super excited to drive the newly launched turbo minivans. There was something exciting and special about them, especially to a 16-year-old with a brand new drivers license.
Those second row seats fit perfectly in street rods. These definitely didn’t survive as well as other vehicles of the era did I think they were pretty well used up before they rotted out in most cases.
Yeah these turned into work vans and got well used after they were done family hauling.
My mom had an early year 1987 with the newer style lights, 2.2 and a 5 speed. Rare bird. Lasted 10 years before she upgraded to a newer caravan.
I worked at a Dodge Dealer at that time. And as good fortune would have it, I just sold my Daytona demo and asked to try out the turbo Caravan as my next demo. My favorite sport became hunting for pickups with loud exhaust that the would-be gearhead driver thought was fast. It was truly a happy day to catch one at a red light and to bate them with whistle from the turbo while holding the brake. It would bury any full-size pickup, just watch out for the 4-liter 5 speed 190 HP Jeep Comanches those little trucks were fast. At that time Dodge had some fun vehicles like the Stealth R/T turbo with 300HP and all-wheel drive you could hunt Corvettes with those. Or for a truly terrifying experience try a Sprit R/T which competed with the Taurus SHO. It had a 2.2 liter with a Lotus designed 4 valve DOHC head and a turbo it made 235 HP and 295 lbs. of torque and was only available with a 5-speed stick, it could spin the front tires in second gear if you really stood on it. Those were truly the happy days.
They don't make hot minivans anymore,
WHAT?
I've got a 2017 Sienna SE
Sport turned suspension,
Sits an inch lower than the other models, 19'inch gun metal grey wheels. 296 horsepower, 8'speed transmission.
4 perforated leather captains chairs, dual air,
Power windows, seats, etc.
Magazines have tested it at high 6s to low 7s 0-60
And it looks good doing it.
I drove my brother's Sienna and was shocked how much torque and HP it had. Very quick van!
Technically what you have is a minivan but they are way bigger than the original chryslers
@@howebrad4601 Every car is bigger now. Compare a 1980 Honda Civic to a current one.... totally different cars. the new ones are huge in the same model.
And... they don't actually make the Sienna like that anymore at all. All trim levels now come with a 245hp turbo 2.5L hybrid powertrain connected to a CVT. Toyota decided with the most recent generation to drop the V6, lower the horsepower, and build a full size minivan that gets 40mpg+ instead. It's still a fairly luxurious vehicle, as are pretty much all minivans still in production, honestly. But it's easily the slowest minivan out there now.
@@howebrad4601 As noted in the video, the Corolla is bigger than the OG Chrysler minivans. Those original minivans would seem small compared to current compact cars.
I remember when my parents bought a 1986 Plymouth Voyager brand new. Ah the memories...
Chevy Astro had manual transmission w/ 4.3L V6.
3/4 of 350 V8. Family van that can burn rubber.
Add HD springs + tires, it handled well too!
All - wheel drive?
I have an 86 Astro with a 2.5 5spd manual. Moves halfway decent for a 4 cylinder.
I was in Anaheim, CA having dinner and reading a car magazine. There was an article about these new minivans. I thought, "Well, this is really cool." Memory is fuzzy, the Mazda Miata may have been introduced in same magazine--either R&T or C-D. Then a few years later, there is a scene in David Halberstam's "The Reckoning" about how Hal Sperlich and Lee Iacocca adapted Ford's unused plans for a minivan. Ben Bidwell, ex-Ford and now Chrysler was having dinner and spotted Gene Bordinat of Ford a few tables away. Bidwell wrote a note and had waiter deliver to Bordinat: "Gene--Thanks for the minivan. It was very generous of you. We'll do 160,000 pieces this year." Halberstam devotes several pages to the minivan in that book. One of my favorite sections.
A friend's parents had one of these back in the day. I loved how you could always hear the Chrysler turbo spool up, sounded like a spaceship to me as a child. My parents also had a 5-speed Mazda MPV in the early 90's. You can't buy a minivan unless it has a CVT these days.
We had a 91 Caravan LE AWD for years. It has the 3.3, long wheelbase, and the Ultradrive. White, gray cladding, and a comfy blue velour interior.
The transmission started to act up, and mom promptly sold it.
I owned an 88 Voyager and it was my first minivan but the best of 3 different ones I had. I also had an 88 Aerostar which was a tough hauler. I moved family members several times and it handled it perfectly. But it was helpless in snow. My 3rd minivan was a Mercury (Nissan) Villager. That one was pretty good too. The original Chrysler minivans should have been kept close to the original platform and size. My Voyager was very comfortable but my Aerostar had air ride seats! It was a great long distance runner with 145 horsepower 3 liter Vulcan V-6.
I've owned a 1998 Caravan, 2001 Caravan, 2001 Chrysler T&C, and 2001 Grand Caravan. I purchased all used but got reasonable service from them.
One big selling point was driving in snow, if you ever drove a RWD van in snow...
I had a grand marquis. It was driving 2 cars at rhe same time. Steer the front then countet-steer to get the back end lined back up.
I drove rear wheel drive vehicles up in New Hampshire. It's not as bad as people say. Remember, before the 80s very few cars were front wheel drive and people got along just fine.
Yes, I remember borrowing my sister's Aerostar many years ago to move with. I drove it home in a snowstorm with all its back seats removed and no weight at all in the back. That thing was a wild ride. You're probably not supposed to drift a minivan down a highway on-ramp. It was one ridiculous ride home.
@@megachonk9440 one other thing.. today's RWD cars aren't as bad. they are more balanced as the engines are now aluminum. In the old days the engine was cast iron so the rear was much lighter in comparison to the front end. My Trailblazer is actually quite balanced so in RWD mode it's not bad at all.
I live full-time in a 2021 Ram Promaster City compact van. It has great performance both in power and fuel economy. I have fitted it out very similar to an Amtrak sleeper compartment. I have some amenities like a large ultra HD flat screen, a snack bar and a propane cooking surface. 71 years old retired a perfectly good cottage on wheels.
I'm stuck in a house. Sure would be nice to head for some sun in the winter months.
The horsepower and torque CURVE was what engineers were looking for when they chose engines in old cars, ive seen so many old car shows and even a couple times on this channel where someone says something like "the car had a 120hp 2.0 engine in 1990, but for some reason in 1992 it was replaced with a 2.4 that also made 120hp"
Had one that was awd. That 4 cylinder was decent on fuel economy even while driving additional drive train. Averaged 20mpg hwy and 16 around the city or off road. Yes...off road. We used our for hunting and fishing. The belly pan was able to slide over snow drifts during ice fishing trips.
The issues that killed it was under the dash board. The Guage cluster would go out on a regular basis. The only competition was the Chevy ASTRO van. With its v6, the fuel economy wasn't anywhere near the turbo 4.
If they brought this van back with basic mechanical gauges, and duel overhead cam systems. It would rule the industry.
It could also haul a bunch for the chassis. Pulled a host of trailers with it from boats,four wheelers, snowmobile, and lawn mowing tractors. We had to scrap ours when we hit 285000 miles from rust. Best vehicle purchase I ever made. $6000 used with 20000 original miles on it.
Friend of mine in university had one identical to this. I thought it was pretty neat that he went for the manual option. From what I remember, he really liked it.
Dad had an '84 Voyager with the 101hp 2.6L Mitsubishi and 3 speed slushbox as the only option. No AC and only pop-out rear windows meant you baked sitting in traffic. With 7 people abord, it was an absolute dog.
Friend of mine had a Plymouth Voyager Turbo which was really fun to drive.
7:44 - no no - *four* pedals, sir.
Don’t forget that foot-actuated parking brake!
Good catch. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a mass-produced four pedal vehicle. Gotta have a handbrake with a manual!
My friend had one of these turbo 5 speed mini-vans. With 2 people in the vehicle, it was clunky with cable shift but sporty. Loaded up with people, hot day, and a/c on, made it a total dog that required high octane fuel to prevent engine spark knock.
I drove a "cargo" version of a 1986 model of these, eight to ten hours, five to six days a week, in Vancouver's horrible traffic, delivering for a boutique bakery, in 1987/88. Never once had a mechanical problem.
You could find any Chrysler product back then by following the blue smoke billowing out of the tail pipe. Mom loved Oldsmobile then fell in love with these. We had an 85 & a 90 growing up
I think these minivans were just a great cars. They look nice in my eyes. Had a soft ride like a limousine. And comfortable seats. Could be used as a family or utility car in the same day. Lot of room inside.
My chief used it as a family cruiser. Then removed rear seats ad used it as a service car, full of tools. And also pulled trailers. Car of gold.
While in the car business in the 90's, I took in trade one of these short wheelbase vans (with woodgrain no less) that was actually 8 passenger, because it a bench seat in the front. I wish I'd kept it, because it was in great condition, and I have never seen another so equipped!
You need to find a Super clean low mileage example for the collection. Every once in a while, I see low mile Caravans out there for sale
I was an engine design engineer at Chrysler from 1985 until 2009. I remember the 2.5L turbo 5 speed minivan. We had one as a department car and it was such a hoot!
I love the sound of the 2.2/2.5 K engines. Especially with the whinny three speed automatic.
My Dad bought a wheelchair modified minivan of this generation when Mom was in a care home in 2006 so he could take her out for family functions, and it was pretty comfortable and actually felt nimble.
I had an 89 turbo caravan that me and a friend heavily modified. 3" exhaust, header, bigger turbo, LSD insert, etc. Had nitrous on it for awhile. Had more plans for it but life happens. Best ET 14.47@96 mph.
These were quick
The little Dodge Omni turbo was really quick. With very little modification they would run 13 second quarter mile times. I had one back in the 90s and it hurt a lot of people's feelings 😆 I also had a 71' Z28 at the time that ran a low 12 second quarter mile but I drove the Omni on the weekends more than the Camaro because it was so fun 😂
These were everywhere on the roads until about 15 years agp😊
Had the Plymouth Voyager and loved that van.
The caravan had AWD around the early 90s. I was able to find a used 94 awd Astro. Gave it away at 318,000 miles. The awd was great.
I was a certified master auto technician working for a Chrysler Plymouth dealer in the heyday of these minivans, around 1992. The turbo chargers were absolute trash and usually lasted about 40 to 50,000 miles.
Yes, there were quite a few head gasket issues with both the 2.2 and the turbo charged 2.5. The 2.2 was also notorious for wrist pin noise. I did many piston replacements to satisfy customer complaints. Overall, the engines would keep running and were pretty tough, but had a lot of nuisance issues. A notable issue with the 3.0 Mitsubishi engine was that the cylinders would become oblong and they would start burning oil pretty badly. In my opinion, none of the Mitsubishi engine offerings were good engines overall. The most stout offering was undoubtedly the 2.5 L fuel injected four cylinder. We really had hardly any issues with those at all as long as they were minus the turbo. That was your most reliable configuration. I think they were originally usually paired with a three speed overdrive auto transmission. Those were very solid vehicles overall.
A little later on they introduced an electronic five speed transmission that was a catastrophe. Sometimes they would come in with only 10 or 15,000 miles on them needing to be rebuilt. It was honestly a pretty embarrassing time to be a Chrysler technician. I will say, though, that the minivan was an excellent idea for families, and that overall the product delivered what the customer wanted. It’s just too bad that they couldn’t have been a little more careful with their engine choices and configurations. 🤷🏻♂️
Growing up, our family had an 89 Plymouth Voyager SE short wheelbase with the 3.0 V6. It was burgundy with the same color interior as the van in this video. It had the dark gray aluminum lace wheels and ribbed lower rocker moldings. It was decently quick for a van. I took my driver's test in it when I was 16.
As a kid in the 80s I wanted my parents to get a minivan. I was super envious of my friends whos parents had them. However my parents said they were unsafe. Why unsafe I asked. They argued that because the sliding door was only on 1 side that if there was ever a collision on that side or the van fliped onto that side rear occupants would be almost trapped. The drivers door and rear hatch (could you open it from inside?) Would be the only ways out and if you were in the 2nd or 3rd row i could see the danger. And so they stuck with station wagons, gm a body then tauruses. By the time chysler added the drivers side sliding door in 96 we were grown and they didnt need a minivan anymore. Looking back I wonder how many collision deaths could have been prevented with a rear drivers side sliding door. Anyway I always loved minivans and when my 3rd kid was on the way we got a Honda Odyssey thats now 9 years old and Ive been super happy with,,,despite the tranny issues...they just had to copy chrysler in every way lol
Most Mopar minivans from 1984-95 had two ways to open the hatch - key in the hatch itself, or a dash button. Base models did not offer the inside release until '91, when it was packaged with the optional 7-passenger seating. 5-passenger seats were standard.
I would buy this (even without the turbo) before I would buy anything else currently on the market.
This Caravan is a very rare bird… I’d love to have one of these first gen turbo Caravans with the five-speed. When I was a kid my mom had an 84 with the 5 speed and then an 85 with the Mitsubishi 2.6/3 speed auto and the rare front bench seat, making it an 8 passenger minivan.
My father bought an 85’ Grand Caravan brand new. It had the 2.6 Mitsu. It was a a dog. It had no power, blew smoke used oil. He got in a big screaming match at the dealership. Went across the street bought a new iroc and showed up at home with it to my mom’s dismay. My brother and I were all about it. 😂. The minivan was nice though, I liked the interior.
I really liked these vans.
Had 3 different Caravans/T&C. Great vehicles!
Would buy another today (if not overpriced) if available.
Sadly, Chrysler replaced Caravan with Pacifica - a hard NO!
My first van was an 84 dodge mini ram which was a caravan cargo van. It came with no rear windows but mine was a conversion with a bed in the back. Later i got an 89 Plymouth voyager with a manual transmission. I dropped a LeBaron turbo engine in it. I never knew they made a turbo version.
Our 1984and 1994 SWB Dodge Caravans (@84 with the Mitsubishi 2.6L 4cylcinder, `94 with the V6, were arguably the best, most capable car for a family with two children ever made. Each of them lasted well over 200,000 miles with minimal issues. The `84 did need one transmission replacement at about 40,000 miles, but the replacement lasted the rest of the vehicle's life.
Great highway cruiser, handled Pennsylvania back roads just fine, carried anything we wanted to put into it, and sipped gas.
We had an 89 Plymouth Voyager with the 3.0L bought brand new. It started burning a lot of oil after my Dad bought a boat and started towing it, It was only 7-8 years old at that time but it got short tripped a lot as a family car. I think that optional Mitz V6 might have been a stop gap seeing as they eventually turbocharged the 2.4 and offered them alongside each other. I wish my Dad had optioned it like this one with the 2.4 turbo and the manual trans. It's crazy that they only had 100hp, they must have been really light. The first and second gens are the best, they cheaped out a lot once they had to complete with Honda and Toyota.
My parents bought a 1990 Plymouth Voyaget 5 passenger 2.5L Turbo brand new. Very similar to the one featured here, except it was a column shift automatic The "front wheel drive" plaque on the dash was there on the featured car because it's a block-off plate for where the PRNDL indicator would be for the automatic vans. On more than one occasion I borrowed the van to "help a friend move some furniture" on wedsnay nights for about a month in the summer time. We didn't live far from New England Dragway and weds nights were street/grudge night. I can attest that the automatic version completely stock regularly did low 15 second quarter mile times at about 92mph. There used to be a guy named Gus who ran an 1989 2.5L turbo Caravan there that was heavily modified and ran in the high 11's. Yes, these things were faster than they should have been for what they were. The 1990 we had stuck around longer than it was supposd to......dad had a 1995 3.0L mitsu powered one with the 4spd auto...yeah, horrible combo....that replaced the 1985 Voyager he had handed down to my mom. She got the 1990 when he got the 1995. Well the 95 had a transmission failure at 230k and 7 years of ownership and wasn't worth fixing. He traded it in on an '02 Voyager and mom still had the 1990. Well when dad passed in 2005, she took over the 2002, but held onto the 1990 for a while. She finally sold it in 2007, reluctantly. I had considered taking iton as a mild restoration project at the time, but I had no where to store it or work on it at the time, so it was sold on. Wish we had kept it as it really was a rare and fun van. Thanks for sharing this video, it brought back some memories.
That stainless steel dual tip exhaust. Let the world know you had turbo power.
Great content as always. I would love to hear content regarding the 1988 Mazda MPV. Thank you & Happy Holiday Season. 🫡
Never realized that there were short wheel based versions, and long wheel based versions back then. Both my grandmas had these when I was little (born in 93).
I like the first gen Chrysler minivans. When I started working as a mechanic, they were everywhere. If they were well maintained, they ran forever. If not, they were easy and profitable to repair.
i really dig that Ford van prototype. Born to Boogie!
The door is ajar comment killed me! 😂. Good one
Adam has a career on the Vaudeville stage waiting for him...!
What's funny is, this actually looks more like the one Ford was going to use for Ford Aerostar.
Lee Iacocca stole it from ford and gave it to mopar. If you know you know
Covered many miles in Ford, Dodge and GM mini-vans as a small-market TV news reporter from 1989 to 1996. Although the best vehicle we had at the station for highway winter driving was an 89 Nissan Pathfinder with 4wd.
stick shift old Plymouth minivans are SUPER FUN to drive
9:45 Yup! I had an '89 Caravan Turbo with the 3-speed automatic. Just cruising down the highway at night with the cruise control on at a steady 65 MPH, I noticed a sudden cloud of white steam in the rear view mirror and knew exactly what had happened. :-( I also had an '87 Plymouth Caravelle with the normally aspirated 2.5L and can attest to is reliability and longevity. You just had to carrry around a spare mass air flow sensor in the glove box.