Dodge Caravan

Chrysler started work on its minivan at the end of 1977, aiming for a low floor, car-like quietness, and a body that would fit in a normal garage. After Hal Sperlich and Lee Iacocca moved from Ford to Chrysler in late 1978, the design settled on front-wheel drive. The Caravan went on sale alongside the Plymouth Voyager in November 1983 as a 1984 model, with controls and engines borrowed from Chrysler's K-cars. The two vans are considered the first mass-produced vehicles with built-in cup holders. Early engines were a 96 hp 2.2-liter four and a Mitsubishi 2.6-liter four, and a five-speed manual was offered with the fours, even the 150 hp turbocharged 2.5-liter that arrived for 1989. The long-wheelbase Grand Caravan followed in May 1987.

Chrysler kept adding tricks. Stow 'n Go seating, introduced in 2004, folded the second and third rows completely into the floor of long-wheelbase vans and won a Popular Science "Best of What's New" award for 2005. From 2008 Dodge sold only the Grand Caravan, and that year it added Swivel 'n Go seats that turned to face the third row. Volkswagen sold a rebadged version as the Routan from 2009 to 2014. Every Caravan was built at Windsor Assembly in Ontario, and from 1987 to 2007 at Saint Louis Assembly in Missouri as well. Chrysler has sold more than 14.6 million minivans since late 1983, counting all its brands and rebadged versions.

In its last years more than 60% of Caravans went to fleets, and it was the second best-selling vehicle for rental fleets. It was still Dodge's best-selling vehicle in 2018. The final Grand Caravan rolled off the Windsor line on August 21, 2020. Chrysler then reused the Grand Caravan name for a Canadian version of the Chrysler Pacifica, sold in the US as the Chrysler Voyager.