by "mazda616" (mazda616)
Published 09/03/2017 at 19:05
by "mazda616" (mazda616)
Published 09/03/2017 at 19:05
Tags: Rentals
; Grand Caravan
STARS: 0
If you turn off “Econ” mode, the transmission acts a little less stupid but still jerks and clunks awkwardly. It seems permanently confused.
The Pentastar V6 is a good and smooth power plant, hindered by this clunky/confused transmission.
The interior is cheap, with the “leather” folded awkwardly under the headrests and fresh glue coming off on my fingers from the sides of the sunglasses holder in the overhead console.
The radio could be a lot better, but I’m used to the Bose in my Mazda6. Satellite radio reception is decent, even here in the mountains.
Fuel economy has been decent at 22-ish MPG even with it loaded down to the recommended payload. The A/C gets good and cold very quickly. Remote start and the capability to open/close the side doors and tailgate with the key fob are wonderful features.
This is a mid-level 2017 SXT model with 24,000 miles. Shockingly, it has no DVD player/rear entertainment option.
Overall, if I wanted a van and price was my number one consideration, I’d be okay with a Grand Caravan. Aside from the horrendous small overlap crash test rating...
Oh, and buying one used to let someone else absorb FCA depreciation is probably a safe bet.
"Tapas" (tapas)
09/03/2017 at 19:11, STARS: 0
I imagine they could rent one and never return it. Even Avis would be happy to get rid of these.
"Mergio Sarchionne" (mergios)
09/03/2017 at 19:13, STARS: 5
Nice looking van!
"mazda616" (mazda616)
09/03/2017 at 19:16, STARS: 1
I was happy to get this over the 55,000 mile 2015 Nissan Quest they tried to give me.
"Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo" (thetomselleck)
09/03/2017 at 19:17, STARS: 0
You should rent a Pacifica and compare
"Tapas" (tapas)
09/03/2017 at 19:18, STARS: 0
I guess you’re right. If it’s a newer rental, the issues would only be from the factory. Not the factory and rental car users.
"ranwhenparked" (ranwhenparked)
09/03/2017 at 19:32, STARS: 3
I had a couple of them as company cars. Fine for the purpose, if you need one, but honestly felt like driving a backyard shed around corners. That said, I think the ride quality on the highway is superior to the Escape and the Pentastar is a legitimately good engine, not just by FCA standards, definitely underrated.
When driving a Caravan, I think the most important thing to keep in your mind is exactly how cheap these are new. They are very, very cheap and very functional family vehicles. There are better minivans out there, but not at that level of value.
"Steve in Manhattan" (blogenfreude01)
09/03/2017 at 19:45, STARS: 0
CVT?
And my sister had 2 of these over nearly 20 years and had no problems worth reporting. The family has a Fiat Chrysler connection, and I urged her to replace the last T&C with an Alfa. She bought a Grand Cherokee.
Sisters.
"FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com" (alphaass)
09/03/2017 at 19:49, STARS: 1
As cheap as the interiors are, it’s pretty much par for the course for minivans. The Sienna’s I’ve rented have been equally as bad which is frustrating considering the price premium they command over the Grand Caravan.
"Junkrat aka Rick Sanchez: Fury Road Edition" (realasabass)
09/03/2017 at 20:05, STARS: 0
Another note on the transmission. Here in Oregon it sometimes struggles to maintain speed on the highway from not wanting to downshift. I mean I do live in Oregon, but I notice it more in the GC than in any of the other cars I drive.
"mazda616" (mazda616)
09/03/2017 at 20:13, STARS: 0
It’s a standard six speed auto. The Nissan would’ve been CVT. *shudders*
"fhrblig" (fhrblig)
09/03/2017 at 20:16, STARS: 0
Always leave ‘Econ’ off in these. It makes them shift stupid and you get no increase in MPG as far as I can tell.
Maybe I got the only ones of these with good transmissions. I have 3 in my work fleet (as RAM C/Vs) and I love driving them more than any of the other cargo vans. Of the 3, only one needed a transmission replaced (at 210k) because something severed a trans fluid line and the fluid bled out before the driver realized. Another one has 256k on the original transmission, and the other only has 133k and no problems yet. A fourth one was murdered by a deer at only 86k miles. They have had the cylinder head problems that the early Pentastars had, but other than that they are stupid quick for a cargo van. It helps that there are no seats, so they’re a few hundred pounds lighter. They average about 25 mpg too.
"HammerheadFistpunch" (hammerheadfistpunch)
09/03/2017 at 20:29, STARS: 0
My fil had put 90k on his routan and the transmission has always been clunky and it’s not better with age. The thing that concerns me is the feeling of bad ball joints up front, even new.
"OPPOsaurus WRX" (opposaurus)
09/03/2017 at 20:48, STARS: 0
Doesn’t sound any better or worse than my Quest
"OPPOsaurus WRX" (opposaurus)
09/03/2017 at 20:48, STARS: 0
CVT > auto
"Under_Score" (tomtheatum)
09/03/2017 at 22:21, STARS: 0
Transmission issues? Can’t you just shift it into drive and be good to go? That’s what I always do with my RAV4; I never did the speeds on it until a friend showed me.
"mazda616" (mazda616)
09/03/2017 at 22:42, STARS: 0
I haven’t used manual mode on this. I let it shift itself, but it does a terrible job.
"Under_Score" (tomtheatum)
09/03/2017 at 22:46, STARS: 0
How can you tell? When you floor it from a stop, does it not get up to speed quickly? I’m not very good at determining this; sometimes my RAV4 hits 6,000 RPM and gets up to 50 MPH with ease, while it may not want to go above 3,000 RPM sometimes, even when I’m trying to floor it. Some info on this occurrence would be nice, please.
"Spanfeller is a twat" (theaspiringengineer)
05/16/2019 at 16:10, STARS: 0
Hello, I looked for an old enough post for the email.
It’s
hedgehog(dot) one (dot) fox (dot) many(at)g mail(dot) com