Why?? I could do this conversion in my garage!

Not worth it

wouldn't it have been better to make a cargo van based of the durango/grand cherokee chasis or ram chasis? lol a car based caravan became a ram before the nitro and durango.

you know, why do we need all those italian weirdo vans when all they need to do is make a utility journey, utility caravan, and utility durango?

Why is there a rear view mirror and no back window?!

Is that back panel made of some hi-tech transparent aluminum?

A 2.5-3.0L diesel under the hood makes this a solid choice for its potential audience. Even with the Doblo coming, this makes a good mid-size cargo van for those who would find a Doblo or Transit Connect too small, and a full size van unnecessary.

Just as there is a need for midsize cars, there's a need for midsize cargo vans. The Ram CV fits nicely between the Doblo and Ducato, and gives customers the opportunity to buy the best van for their needs.

@Brad - maybe the mirror is to make sure your make up and "comb-over" are all perfect before you get out of your work van.

It's there for the same reason there are rear seat cupholders when there are no seats. It's jury rigged.

@ Roadtrip - agreed. It does fill a need. It just isn't new or ground breaking. The flat black grill looks cool. That should be an option on the regular vans.
I wouldn't be able to trust a Grand Caravan as a work vehicle as I hadn't much reliability out of the family van we used to own.

The Ram may be a RAM, but keep the CARavan a DODGE!!!!! It makes the Ford Transit Connect look like a truck!

@ Mike Levine Are you sure about the August sales date? I'm in central Alberta and one of these showed up last week at our dealership.

@ Everyone else You asked for cargo van coverage. Now suffer the consequences. HAHA.

lost a house..lost a truck..bronco went down.. I do construction/remodeling been working out of my wifes 00' ford winstar.. Not idea but with seats out and access on all sides, its gotten the job done a plenty.. This thing will sale units..not record breaking but they'll move units if its been beefed up.

Lou - Just because you had problem with your van 20 years ago doesn't mean the problem still exists. These vans are bullet proof. Think outside of the box and stop being so biased.

Great choice for people that do not want the "Euro Look" van.

@ Dodge Tec - it wasn't 20 years ago. We had a 2001 Dodge Grand Caravan bought brand new in the spring of 2002.

Same difference. That's 10 years ago.

I wouldn't call the caravan bullet proof but it is a good over all vehicle. The 02-07 body style suffered from week sway bar links and bushings and power steering leaks. I wouldn't be afraid to own one and would recommend them even to friends and family. Sorry to hear about your problems Lou. The new V6 is pretty nice. I don't get all the people getting worked up over this van. Think flowers or groceries. I don't think Ram is aiming for HD use.

@Dodge Tech - 'same difference' ?
Yeah, right.
First you say it was just the Mitsubishi ones were junk - now you saying the caravans that came after were junk too?
Like you said "same difference".
You telling me the new Grand Caravans are better?
I haven't seen any real positve statistics in that regard.
I would have a real hard time buying another one.
Everyone that I know that has owned one will not buy another one.
We have friends with a 2010 Grand Caravan.
I'll see first hand how it holds up and I won't need to pay for the repairs.
There is only one "Dodge Tech" on this site that I would trust and you ain't him.

@ Jordan L -
We did have plently of problems with what you described. We also had lifters replaced right before the warranty came off, we didn't seem to get much life out of the brakes even though the local service manager told us we faired better than most for brake life. Add to that multiple problems with rough shifting from the tranny, the rear hatch power release failed like clockwork every 18 months. We lost a few power window motors. Lots off annoying nickel and dime stuff. Nothing really major but enough to make me not trust buying another one.
Thanks for the feedback.

I never said anything about Mitsubishi. That must have been someone else. The new Dodge Grand Caravan gets a revised suspension and interior, and is powered by the new 3.6-liter V6 engine and six-speed automatic transmission introduced in the Jeep Grand Cherokee. How many of each have you driven? None? Then stop talking about vans from 10-30 years ago! That is not relevant now. A lot has changed. People change. Everyone can change. I too would have no problem driving or recommending one.

To all the Dodge Techs:
You can try to sell us on the Dodge Caravan, that it is ok now and the problems are behind them. But there were major problems in the 80's, 90's, 2000's. As late as w010 did they finally get it right? Nope! 2010 Dodge Caravan is listed as the "worst of the worst" on CR. No Chrysler vehicle besides Ram is on a CR reports recommended list. Not one. This speaks for the quality. Families were having trouble just driving down the road in their Caravans. How is a business owner supposed to use this for work when families can't even drive to the store without worrying if it is going to start or not? How is a business owner supposed to take this van seriously when it is the worst of the worst? You can say that a lot has change and we haven't driven the 2011 refresh, but neither have you. You wanna recommend it for your friends and family? Good for you. This is your pride talking and as a Dodge employee I can understand how you would feel this way. But I'll pass on it for my business. Thanks.

@ Lou you definitely got a real lemon. Most don't have many problems other than the ones I listed previously. One thing I have noticed since Fiat got control is the number of updated parts coming out. It seems like they are identifying problems sooner and reengineering the parts. Thanks for the kudos as well.

I work for Chrysler and have owned a lot of Chrysler vehicles and never had any problems with them.

I don't trust Consumer Reports. I would have to say your and their information is fictional. You don't get repeat buyers of vehicles (esepically the vans) if they were junk. Look at how many people buy a Caravan van, use it, and then buy another one.

I own a Durango and Jeep now and they have been problem free, but I do change oil regularly and when a problem arises I take care of it right away. People tend to exaggerate when they have a problem with a vehicle, my brother-in-law has a Jeep Grand Cherokee and said there was a problem with the trans. I drove it for a week and never had any problems with it, he still has it and it has 160,000 on it and still runs great.

Lou - Thanks for the kudos, too.

Dodge Grand Caravan:

a Consumers Didgest Best Buy

2009 "Most Dependable Van," from
J.D. Power and Associates

Best Minivan - MotorWeek's Drivers' Choice Awards

http://www.dodge.com/en/2010/grand_caravan/innovations/trophy_room/

http://www.dodge.com/en/2011/grand_caravan/virtual_tour.html

crock of crap I say. Employees will support each other and they will side with company that signs their paychecks. If the employee acknowledges that quality is not up to par, he also has to acknowledge that he sells a poor product. People don't like to admit their faults, so they tend to ignore and downplay problems.

@ Dodge tec - quote "I would have to say your and their information is fictional. "
Fictional ?
Do I have to post the repair bills?

I stated clearly the problems I've had.
That is why I do not trust the Caravans.
Have I driven the new ones?
- Yes I have.
We did take a look at them and did some research before buying a new minivan.

They would had to have perfect ratings and we would of had to love the new ones to overcome our distrust.
Didn't happen - we didn't like the fit and finish, we didn't like the salesman, the price was the only attractive component.

You can say a problem is in the past but anyone with marketing experience will tell you that it is very difficult to overcome a bad image.
Dodge, Chrysler, Ram, Jeep has had a quality problem in the past. Many sources says it still exists.
Products will have to have a stellar reputation to overcome any past problems.
Look at Ram trucks and the frequency that guys mention crappy trannies.
Might not be a new problem but it still hurts sales.
keep up your excuses and you will cause further harm to the product you are defending.

Have I driven the new ones?
- Yes I have.
We did take a look at them and did some research before buying a new minivan.

No, you haven't. Those were the old ones. And you know as well as I that a test drive wasn't what I was talking about.

"we didn't like the fit and finish"

new Caravan has a new interior.

"we didn't like the salesman,"

so pick another one or buy through the internet.

"the price was the only attractive component."

Because you weren't shopping for the new ones. The new 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan gets a revised suspension and interior, and is powered by the new 3.6-liter V6 engine and six-speed automatic transmission introduced in the Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Maybe you got a lemon but I think you are the kind of guy who exaggerates. Because the only problems with Caravans were minor and most don't have any. Lets not trash a company for what happened 10 years ago. If that was the case nobody would buy Tacomas or Tundras today because they rusted in half.

Good day.

@ Dodge Tec - test drove a 2010 Grand Caravan in fall of 2009. Brand new. We were not interested in anything used.
Why would I talk to someone else when we didn't really care for the one we drove?
The next closest dealership is an 80 minute drive away in good weather.
We had 110,000 miles (176,000 km) on it after 7 years of driving.
It was maintained exactly as outlined by Dodge.
I don't exaggerate.
You are starting to sound like the Dodge version of Bob.

"@ Dodge Tec - test drove a 2010 Grand Caravan in fall of 2009. Brand new. "

Again, you test drove the old model. The 2011+ is the new model. Sound like Bob? No, that would be you.

Let me tell you something, Lou, since you obviously missed it. The new 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan gets a revised suspension and interior, and is powered by the new 3.6-liter V6 engine and six-speed automatic transmission introduced in the Jeep Grand Cherokee. How many of each have you driven? None? Then stop acting like Bob and talking about old models with no experience with current models.

@ Dodge Tec -
Why would I test drive a 2011 when my wife and I were in the market for a mini-van at the end of 2009 when all of the 2010 models were out.
We looked at all of the 2010's.
We boiled down the list to a Honda Odyssey or Toyota Sienna. We didn't like the seats in the Honda and it was more expensive than the Toyota.
We won't need to look at a new family vehicle for another 6-8 years.
You're pretty defensive about Chrysler products.
What kind of coolaid do they serve in your lunchroom?
(Just in case you missed it - that was a joke!)

That is my point. You have only driven the old models and have no experience with the new. First, you said you had problems with your caravan but that turned out to be a 10 year old model.

Then I said you haven't drove the new ones. Then you said you drove the "2010. brand new".

Like I have been trying to tell you the 2010 is the old model. You weree ragging on the Caravan ride, interior, engine and whatnot but you haven't driven the new one with the new engines suspension and interior. You are pretty defensive about your Sienna and a 10 year old Caravan. I don't care what you drive. If you have experience with new Carvan, please share. If don't have any experience with the new Caravan you need to cool it. This article is about the new vans.

What you're doing would be like if for every post about Tacomas someone brought up their rusty Tacomas from 2000 that rusted in half? Yes, Toyota had some problems 10 years ago but they are fine now. I'm sorry you had a bad experience but your 10 year old info is totally outdated and uncalled for.

You had some problems with the engine/tranny 10 years ago, didn't care for the fit or finish of the 2010. Again I ask you, the new 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan gets a revised suspension and interior, and is powered by the new 3.6-liter V6 engine and six-speed automatic transmission introduced in the Jeep Grand Cherokee. How many of each have you driven? None????? Then you need to cool it and get up to date with your info.

@ Dodge tec - you make a valid point, but they don't look all that different to me.
Anyone who has had negative experiences with a product will have a hard time trusting something from that brand.
Chrysler/Dodge has had a bad reputation for quality and reliability.
That kind of track record is hard to shake.
I still hear guys complain about Dodge truck trannies. How long ago was that problem?
Guys like yourself blame Chrysler/Dodge's problems on Mitsubishi. I pointed out that I owned a Grand Caravan that was a pile of crap and it did not have Mitsubishi components in it.
That is where our disagreement started.
We can keep on arguing with each other every time we post or start fresh.
I can play hardball with the best of them or I can play nice.
It's up to you.

All vehicles have had problems. Show me one that has zero problems and i'll call you a liar right to your face. Get over yourselves.

I'm now selling my beloved 1989 Dodge Caravan CV, the classic rarity with the back barn doors. I logged 320k miles on the original 3.0 it came with and then reolaced it with a low mileage 3.0 from a 1998 Caravan. Yes, everythiing has been replaced and updated through the years as well as a high quality remanufactured trans from TRC in Kent WA.

Purrs silky smooth, drives silky smooth, all is perfect, looks like new the day I bought it in 1989. However, the newer Ram C/V Cargo Van with all the bells and whistles is turning me on so I'll be getting one soon.

Thank You
Dean Jackson
Retired Teacher
Ellensburg, WA