Reviews
2018 Dodge Grand Caravan Walk Around
A relic, the Grand Caravan has been around in its current form for a decade. Only a glanced is needed to realize that basic fact. Rounded corners and mild curves cannot conceal the basic slab-sided design.
Although Dodge’s elder minivan looks somewhat narrow, it’s almost 79 inches wide. As a result, it doesn’t exactly qualify as lithe in urban driving. Steel wheels on the base SE trim level look especially dreary. On other trim levels, aluminum wheels come in a trio of possible colors.
Interior
Not only does the cabin appear humdrum, lacking in imaginative design, its materials tend to look and feel cheap, if not tawdry. Soft-touch plastic elements are fitted onto door tops and the dashboard. Just about everywhere else, the interior comes across as thoroughly low-budget.
Most controls are grouped within a tall center stack, which includes several pockets. From the front seat, outward visibility is good, and occupants can choose from a variety of seat-adjustment positions.
The Stow ‘n Go seats are a standout feature, available for the second and third rows. As their name suggests, they stow away neatly when not needed, providing impressively flexible space.
Both second- and third-row seats are overly firm. Only SE trim level comes equipped with a second-row bench. The otherwise-standard captain’s chairs are thinly padded, not ideal for long journeys.
In the third row, a three-place bench can be tumbled right into the cargo floor, which is admirably flat, long, and wide. The tracks from the third row can poke and damage some cargoes, but this can be addressed by putting floor mats on tope of them.
