CHAIRS AND GRACES (some text hidden) --NONE--

BY ANDY ENRIGHT

Introductionword count: 101

Chrysler must get a little upset at Renault's blatantly revisionist history when it comes to MPVs. Most people would identify the Espace as the car that pioneered the MPV boom but Chrysler had been turning out Voyagers for years before that. Likewise, Toyota were rather less than gruntled when Renault again claimed credit for the mini-MPV from their pioneering Picnic but that's a different story. The French company even cribbed the idea of a long wheelbase version (shamelessly prefixed 'Grand') from Chrysler. The Grand Voyager arrived in 1997, the Grand Espace in 1998. If you want the original, here it is.

Modelsword count: 17

Models Covered: Chrysler Voyager - 1997-2001: (Five-door, 7-seat People Carrier: 3.3 petrol, 2.5 turbodiesel [LE, LX, SE])

Historyword count: 114

Chrysler rather dipped its toe in the water with the Grand Voyager, initially only offering one trim level and one engine. Back in March 1997, the only variant sold was the 3.3-litre LE petrol version. Well equipped with cruise control, power-adjusted driver's seat, adjustable steering column, alloy wheels, a roof rack and front fog lights, this model soon found favour with UK customers and demand was such that in September 1998, Chrysler added the plusher leather-trimmed LX version. More importantly for buyers with fuel economy in mind, a 2.5-litre turbodiesel variants was also slotted in, with a choice of SE or LE trim. A thoroughly revised Voyager was announced for the 2001 model year.

What You Getword count: 186

All Grand Voyagers comes with seven seats - individual 'captains chairs' for the first two rows and a comfortable fold-away bench at the very back. As usual in MPVs, you can fold, reverse or remove the seats as you wish. Where the Grand Voyager was almost unique however, is in the way that it solved the traditional People Carrying bugbear. It's all very well being able to seat up to seven people but where on earth do you put their luggage? Buy a Ford Galaxy/VW Sharan/SEAT Alhambra (all the same design) or indeed the Peugeot 806/Citroen Synergie/Fiat Ulysse (another joint effort) and you'll probably also have to buy a roof-box. The Grand is different. For a start, the short wheelbase model offers 671 litres, as well as 150mm more cabin space. Take all but the front seats out and the capacity rises to a vast 4880 litres - almost enough to move house with. By today's standards, the Grand Voyager is lacking in safety provision compared to most family-friendly vehicles and it's worth bearing in mind that this vehicle never did particularly well in crash tests.

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