We all have particular cars which we associate with times in our lives, whether it be specific memories or just generalized associations with daily life of those years. Personally, my early childhood was very happy and carefree, and naturally seeing cars of this era are often triggers of fond memories of this simpler time in my life. The second generation (1991-1995) “AS” Chrysler minivans are one such prominent car, being as omnipresent as sippy cups, Disney VHS tapes, Raffi sing-alongs, and my snazzy Kettcar tricycle — I guess I was always destined to drive German!
Additionally, I guess one of the underlying reasons I’ve always had such an inexplicable fondness for these Chrysler minivans is that during my early childhood, my aunt who lived in Connecticut always drove them (’90 Grand Caravan, ’95 Voyager, ’99 Grand Voyager). Seeing her minivan, whether when visiting her and my uncle or them coming to our house for holidays or a weekend, was always a happy sight, as it meant getting to see my cousins whom I was very close to during these years.
Despite Chrysler selling hundreds of thousands each year, a quarter-century later, these minivans are now pretty thin on the ground, and finding one with no rust, body damage, or even visible wear and tear is a truly a sight to behold. This 1994 Dodge Grand Caravan SE is one of those such vehicles, and gets bonus points in my book for having the rare burgundy interior (final year offered) and original Mopar accessory running boards and hood shield!
Photographed: Norwell, Massachusetts – August 2017
Related Reading:
1996-2000 Chrysler “NS” minivans (automotive history)
Nice find! The fact the white paint hasn’t flaked off, or as you mentioned rust or body damage is remarkable here in New England.
Yes, these were *everywhere*. The Mrs. and I test drove a new 95, the last year of that generation, but it lost out to the 1 year old Ford Club Wagon that offered a lot more car for the buck. It is funny how something can be so common but not much of a factor in my own life – that was what these were.
I remember sitting in one in a showroom while some service work was getting done on my Colt in the early 90s. I still recall how impressive the interior was in that higher-trim model. But those two instances are my only interactions with these.
And you are right, those cars you associate with good times in childhood remain favorites forever.
Nice find. I have always liked the 84-90 and the 91-95 Caravan/Voyage/T&C minivans. I am just starting to come around to the 1996 generation. To me when I think of minivan, this version of the Caravan comes to mind instantly. It seems to me that most of the current crop of minivans seem to be leaning towards the boxy mini van look that was created by the first generation of Caravan and turning away from the rounded look of the 1996 Caravan and also the Windstar.
The 84-90 and 91-95 versions of these vans were in almost every driveway in my area.
It was interesting to watch Chrysler refresh these vans with continuous improvements. They knew they had something important for them with these, but there is little doubt that the Iacocca era, arguably the (K)hrysler era, harbored that inner death wish that always seems to be within Chrysler’s soul, this time it was running the basic K platform until the stockholders were screaming. You can call this van the “second generation” all you want, but there is no doubt that it was just a healthy refresh of the original 1984 van, and it was really obvious by 1995 when even Chrysler showrooms were sporting the LH and cloud cars. These vans got some “Interesting” treatments in those final years that were questionable.
Some versions of the first gen Chrysler Town & Country van were hard for me to look at, especially as a premium priced vehicle. And, Dodge had some challenging looks as well. The efforts to make these vehicles seem more premium then a fully loaded 1986 Plymouth Voyager seemed indeed to go overboard.
At a time when “monochromatic” was associated with higher end trims, was this the pinnacle of fashion in family transportation? Or was it a cheesy mix of themes from two decades facilitated by copious cladding and premium body colored wheels that looked like cheap plastic? 1996 could not come fast enough…………
The various sub-trim levels and decor packages offered in these second generation (or “refreshed first generation” – you have a valid point and I’m not arguing with you on that) were truly fascinating, and likely one of the big reasons these cars have always captivated my attention and willingness to have become a walking encyclopedia on them.
Chrysler was obviously making a hefty profit on the minivans by this point, so they could afford to add a few interesting touches to generate a little more excitement. The lower body cladding, particularly on the Grand Caravan ES you clipped out above with its sharp, angled crease was rather unusual, but I think it accomplished the more aerodynamic look stylists were going for.
Again, I can’t say I disagree with you that it looks cheesy by today’s standards, but on cars from that era somehow it’s just kind of fitting.
And if the monochrome and aero bodykit wasn’t your thing, you could still get woodgrain paneling on this generation.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/2nd_gen_Town_and_Country_minivan.png
I’m willing to cut them a little slack in this regard because the original iteration had been such a huge hit. From a product planning standpoint, its deficit were really pretty minor and it was making scads of money, which demand some caution to avoid screwing up a good thing. They arguably pushed that a little too far and got away with it in large part because the competition was still struggling to figure out the formula.
Also, to Chrysler’s credit, they did sink a lot of the profits they’d made into the 1996 redesign, which cost them more than $2 billion and was for the most part a pretty astute modernization.
Dubious cosmetic packages have long been a pretty common feature of all manner of cars approaching the end of their lifecycles, so while the results here may have been a little ridiculous, they certainly aren’t unique. (I don’t disagree about the plastic wheels, to be clear!)
Bought a new ’92 GCV with lots options after our third offspring arrived. Kept it for 15 years, 4 transmissions (on Chrysler’s tab) and at least 4 ABS pumps (also on Chrysler’s tab, thanks to a lifetime warranty). Other than these two weaknesses, it was a pretty rugged and dependable hauler, and it was put into all kinds of service in its hard life.
In the end, it became a work-van for me. With the seats out, I could haul 4×8 sheets and my tools in the winter time and keep them dry. When I now drive my Promaster van, it reminds me more than a bit of the Caravan on steroids: V6, FWD, low floor, sliding side door, etc..
I do know a lot of people who kept their Chrysler minivans for many years… My high school cross country coach was still driving his 1992 Town & Country woody through 2009 or so, when it finally gave up.
My aunt’s 1995 Voyager, apparently had problems from the beginning (I have no idea of what kind, as I was quite young), which is why it was rather prematurely traded in for the 1999 Voyager.
I do recall my aunt and uncle were looking at a Honda Odyssey at the time, but it was out of their price range and my uncle was also going through a rather unexplained staunch Chrysler period so they went back to Plymouth.
They kept that van until around 2006 or so when it too was having serious engine issues. My grandmother actually helped them buy a pre-owned 2004 Chrysler Pacifica that replaced it.
Hi, Brendan What did your cross country coach get after his ’92 Town & Country crapped out?
My parents had a ’91 Voyager during my ‘tween and teen years (and an ’84 prior to that). Well longer than that, actually. They kept it until 2008 or so, until after I had finished college and had my first real job. My parents are the kind of people who try to wring every last mile out of their vehicles. By the time they finally got rid of it all the paint had flaked off the roof and hood and those parts were more rust than paint. As Timothy already mentioned, it’s amazing that didn’t happen to this one. Clearly it’s spent it’s life getting parked in a garage every night.
Yes this does bring back fond memories. When I was a young kid around the early 2000’s (currently 20, and sounding like a old fart) my neighbours had one as they had a bunch of kids who I used to play with. I don’t remember whether it was a Plymouth, Dodge, or Chrysler, but probably the latter as Dodges and Plymouths were sold as Chryslers here in the Netherlands. The one thing that fascinated me was the blue tinted stripe over the top half of the front windshield that made it look like there was alsways a clear blue sky above you.
It is strange that you don’t see these things anymore on the Dutch roads, but you can get the generations after it for under 1000 euros…
Though it’s not mandatory, most cars sold in the U.S. do have the very upper portion of the windshield tinted to block out the sun, often times blue, depending on the manufacturer. I’ve seen some aftermarket jobs that are far more extreme though, which may be what you’re referring to.
A lack of a tinted upper portion of the windshield is something I noticed in my rental when I was in Europe recently, and found myself using the visors far more frequently. Could it be that this isn’t as common in Europe? Or just maybe a coincidence?
The tinted windshield was one of those things that was once an extra cost option on the higher end vehicles to something standard on high end and optional on lessers to today where it is pretty much standard on US cars. My lightly optioned 72 Scout has an un-tinted windshield but the 72 Travelall loaded up including the tinted windshield as an extra cost option.
Great find Brendan. This is one is in remarkable condition. Given how well maintained it is, I’m a bit surprised the owner hasn’t replaced or restored the yellowed and hazed acrylic headlight covers. Even if they don’t do a lot of night driving, it would return this Dodge to looking near new. I most associate those alloy wheels with the P-car Plymouth Duster.
Motorweek recently published their ‘Retro Review’ of the second generation Chrysler mini vans:
Remember watching this review a long time ago. Always enjoy the old MotorWeeks!
Excellent find! I had an 87 Voyager, a 99 Voyager and an 01 Caravan. Not many to be seen around these parts (S. Ontario) any more due to rust, emission test screening, and wear and tear.
Somebody has taken pretty good care this Dodge , But , why the frosted over headlamps? This is something That can be avoided or fixed , but the owner thinks not? To see any vehicle this clean with yellowed over hardlamp plastic Kind of takes the glow off. IMO
Excellent styling, they sleeked up the first gen box just the right amount.
I also like these! The first two generations of Chrysler minivan always remind me of the parents of my best friend from high school. I think they owned like three Plymouth Voyagers in succession, all of them silver. While we weren’t ever allowed to drive them (why would we have wanted to as teenagers?? LOL), they’re normally what I rode in when I was along for one of their family outings.
This one is in amazing shape. Between this post and Paul’s one of a toasted, first-generation Caravan from within the past week or so, I’m suddenly realizing I’ll be kind of sad when I haven’t seen one of these for a long time.
My brother just this year gave his well-traveled but not worn-looking 1995 Plymouth Voyager to his brother-in-law!
A Dodge Caravan of that generation, in considerably worse-looking condition but running “like a top” drove past me this morning. It was straight, but someone had been working to strip the delamination of the clear coat paint. It looked kind of ugly but with that kind of attention, it probably has a future.
Same fascinating anecdotes from previous Chrysler minivan owners. What strikes me is while many had experienced not inconsequential issues, they yet returned to buy another! That would seem to be a strong testament to the inherent solid design and hitting the sweet-spot of features. Indeed, Iacocca’s homerun continued to be just so much better than other, admittedly better-built, but just not as useful competitors. I’m talking, of course, of the early Odyssey and Previa. The Chrysler minivan, when it was running properly, well, it was just could not be beaten as the number one people mover for a very long time.
My parents bought a 1994 Caravan V6 with 19000 miles in late 1994. It was never a daily driver, just a hauler for larger amounts of people and stuff. It’s still running fine now with 76k miles. I like the practical design – only 6″ longer than my 1993 Corolla wagon – yet it carries twice as much cargo or 7 people. Not particularly fun or engaging to drive, though. I guess that’s the whole point of a minivan.
Those were EVERYWHERE in Austria in the mid 90s. Locally-built and almost always fitted with the clattery VM diesel, they seemed to be more reliable than the successor (or at least easier to repair). They were very popular with members of certain ethnicities due to their carrying/seating capacities but have now gone through mass extinctions. The few you find usually sell for peanuts with huge mileages on them, but the same applies to the 2000-2007 models which indicates good reliability. So maybe Chrysler’s products were not as crappy as people would have you believe.
My buddy had a 1993 Voyager as a work van that finally died at 300k miles, 2 months ago. [was its umpteenth owner] .
One of Mopar’s “greatest hits”.
I actually quite like the Chrysler minivans but my wife is one of those women who basically refuses to drive one, so it’s pretty much always been some kind of SUV for us. We did have a ’96 Caravan Sport (white SWB with the white wheels on it) 3.3L V6 and I actually really liked it. I found that the engine had plenty of punch and it drove really nice and of course the versatility we had in being able to easily load and unload our very small children couldn’t be beat, but my wife was never fond of it. We kept it a few years and sold it off, never had another since, but I personally would go for one again!