Chrysler Grand Voyager Car Review

Facts At A Glance
Car: Chrysler Grand Voyager range
Prices: £26,995-£35,495 - on the road INSURANCE GROUPS: 11E-13E
Emissions: [CRD] 222-302g/km
Performance: [CRD] Max Speed 115mph / 0-60mph 12.8s
Fuel Consumption: [CRD] (combined) 33.6mpg
Safety: Twin Front, side and curtain airbags / ABS
Dimensions: Length/Width/Height 5143/1953/1816mm

The Grand Family Vehicle

Our Rating: No Rating Available

Smart packaging, seats that slide and collapse, multifarious stowage spaces and other tricks of the trade only buy car designers a certain amount of leeway. In the final reckoning, there's no substitute for size and the Grand Voyager aces most of its rivals in this regard.

Two engines are available. There's a 190bhp 3.8-liter V6 (that you'd probably need to be crackers to sign up for given its thirst and emissions) and there's a very good 2.8-liter turbo diesel that will be the choice for sensible consumers. The difference between the two engines is best illustrated by the fact that you'll need to rev the 3.8-liter petrol unit to 5,200rpm to achieve its peak power figure, whereas you'll need just 3,800rpm on the board to get the best out of the 161bhp diesel. This means that while the diesel is a far more relaxing engine to drive, it feels no slower because the torque figure of 360Nm aces the petrol's 305Nm showing.

The 2.8-litre CRD diesel engine has proven a real winner for Chrysler Jeep and has been rolled out across a number of vehicles. It's not the most refined unit of its ilk but it's big-hearted and good to drive. Visibility out of the Grand Voyager is one of the best in class with big mirrors, short overhangs and a clear commitment to reduce the width of pillars.

Grand Voyager is off to a very promising start. It is seriously big, seating seven with ease and featuring the Stow 'n Go seating system which means that the vehicle can be transformed from a seven seater to a two seater in less than 30 seconds.

There's even the option of a dual-DVD system with two screens available to second row passengers to play games or watch a different movie to those in the third row. The Uconnect infotainment system offers MP3 compatibility, a 30GB hard drive and touch screen and voice controlled sat nav.

Passenger safety comes courtesy of traction control and ESP stability control, tyre pressure monitoring, front and all-row curtain airbags as well as seven full-sized seats with inbuilt fixings for three ISOFIX child seats and active headrests. A Swivel 'n' Go seating system is also available that allows the second row of seats to swivel for 'conversational seating', the third row seats power-reclining into one of four positions at the touch of a button.

Depreciation is an area where the Grand Voyager is going to do reasonably well. It's helped in this regard by upfront pricing that looks very reasonable and by the fact the Grand Voyagers have traditionally been bought by individuals who have come to recognize that viable alternatives are few.

Although the exterior is ultra conservative, the Grand Voyager is so much more livable inside.

Add to this a whole host of comfort and convenience features is the excellent safety provision and here's one that you can't afford to overlook.