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2011 Dodge Grand Caravan Salt Lake City

Check Out Our New 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan Salt Lake City, UT

2011 Dodge Grand Caravan Design

Dodge Grand Caravan has been substantially revised for the 2011 model year, and we think the changes elevate this minivan on the consideration scale. The Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Town & Country offer class-leading interior convenience. Grand Caravan is about usable space. Super Stow 'n Go is standard. It offers more comfortable second-row seats that fold into the floor, offering useful cargo space with those seats up or down. The third-row seats fold into the well behind them, and with all the seats down the Grand Caravan can accept a 4x8 sheet of plywood.

The Grand Caravan's unique cargo and entertainment features make it a strong contender in the minivan class, and the 2011 changes only make it better. Families will like it, especially because those entertainment features will make for more enjoyable family trips. That is, after all, the reason the Grand Caravan remains so popular. While some options are gone, there are plenty of entertainment features that will help keep the kids occupied. They include three types of hard-drive radio, Sirius satellite radio, rear DVD entertainment, a wireless cell phone link, and a mobile internet hot spot. If you want more than that, check out the Chrysler Town & Country.

The Dodge Grand Caravan is all about transporting people comfortably, efficiently and safely, while keeping them entertained. Its designers focused on interior creature comforts, such as the popular Stow 'n Go seating system. Stow 'n Go consists of bins in the floor behind the first row of seats, and second-row seats that can be folded into those bins, resulting in a flat load floor for easily carrying larger objects. Or, when the seats are up in the normal seating position, the bins can accommodate toys, games, sporting gear, tools and other small cargo.

Handling of the 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan

Minivans tend to generate pages of notes on the interior but little driving impressions. The Dodge Grand Caravan is a transporting machine, not a driving one. That was especially true with last year's model, which offered a smooth ride but suffered from sloppy handling and indifferent steering. Dodge has made several changes to address those issues for 2011.

For 2011, the ride height has been dropped one inch and the suspension has been completely retuned: The spring rates are firmer front and rear, new low-rolling resistance tires have been chosen, the bushings and shocks are firmer, and the steering is quicker. Those changes make a world of difference in the handling department. Yet ride quality has not suffered.

The suspension still features rear coil springs and a twist-beam rear axle with a track bar. In other words, it's not an independent rear suspension

Interior of the 2011 Dodge Caravan

The 2011 Grand Caravan gets a new interior design, and it's a considerable upgrade versus the 2010 model. The dashboard is still hard plastic, but that's the norm for the class. The look and feel is much better, with a more flowing, one-piece design. The door tops are now padded, adding a touch of comfort, and the cloth and leather upholstery are upgraded. We liked the stain-resistant cloth seats on last year's models, but the cloth seats on the 2011 models look quite good as well.

Up front, the instrumentation is changed for 2011, with bigger black dials offset by blue-tinted graphics and chrome trim. There are big divisions so you can read each 5-mph increment on the speedometer. The shift lever sticks out just to the left of the center stack, an efficient location.

The steering wheel is new on the 2011 model. It incorporates trip computer, phone, audio, cruise control, and, when ordered, navigation controls. That's nice because the 2010 model had the trip computer controls inaccessibly placed on the dashboard behind the left side of the steering wheel. It now telescopes as well, allowing more drivers to find an ideal seating position. As an added touch, its available heated, which is nice on cold winter mornings.

The center console is integral on the 2011 Grand Caravan, instead of removable as it was last year. It offers deep storage, two cupholders and a covered shallow tray. There are also bottleholders in each front door, so the driver and front-seat passenger can each bring along two drinks at once.

The Grand Caravan is designed well for hauling youngsters, with some thoughtful features. Among them is the convex conversation mirror, which is handy for talking to those in the rear seats without having to turn around. We like this clever little feature.

2011 Dodge Caravan Lineup

The 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan is offered in four models, Express, Mainstreet, Crew, and R/T. All come with the new 283-hp 3.6-liter V6 and a 6-speed automatic transmission.

Grand Caravan Express comes with cloth upholstery, tri-zone manual climate control, interior air filter, tilt/telescoping steering wheel with audio controls, Super Stow 'n Go second-row bucket seats, split-folding third-row seat, power windows, power door locks, heated power mirrors, cruise control, remote keyless entry, six-speaker AM/FM/CD stereo, auxiliary input jack, trip computer, and P235/60R16 tires on steel wheels with wheel covers. Grand Caravan Mainstreet adds power rear and rear quarter windows, and alloy wheels.

Grand Caravan Crew gets tri-zone automatic climate control, rearview camera, leather-wrapped steering wheel, eight-way power driver's seat with lumbar adjustment, power-adjustable pedals, power sliding side doors, USB port, Sirius satellite radio, Uconnect Multimedia with 6.5-inch touchscreen and 30-gigabyte hard drive for music storage, Uconnect Phone, wireless cell phone link, universal garage door opener, 115-volt power outlet, fog lights, roof rack and P225/65R17 tires.

Grand Caravan R/T upgrades to leather upholstery, power passenger seat, Infinity 506-watt sound system with subwoofer and three additional speakers, sports suspension and polished alloy wheels. It loses the roof rack.

Conclusion

The mechanical and design changes made to the 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan are all for the better. It's much nicer inside, handles far better, is quieter and has more power with better fuel economy. Grand Caravan offers amazing versatility with one of the most convenient cabins. The flexible seating, abundance of storage space, and impressive entertainment options can make life easier for busy owners.

Some information for this review was obtained from NewCarTestDrive.com