The Dodge Grand Caravan’s journey is finally ending this spring. The minivan is scheduled to end production on May 22, the automaker has confirmed.
The Caravan was introduced alongside the Plymouth Voyager in 1984 as a "garageable" van that helped kick off the minivan craze that continued through the 1990s, until family car buyers started making the shift to SUVs. The stretched Grand Caravan was added to the lineup in 1987 and eventually became the only version offered.
The Caravan lived through five generations, with the current one dating back to 2008. U.S. sales topped 300,000 in 1996 and 1997, but have hovered in the 100,000 to 150,000 range for the past decade.
When the similar Chrysler Town and Country was succeeded by the all-new Pacifica in 2017, there was talk of replacing the Grand Caravan with a Pacifica-based utility vehicle, but Dodge has not confirmed any follow-up models.
Instead, Chrysler has resurrected the Voyager name on an entry-level version of the Pacifica for 2020 that will essentially fill the Grand Caravan’s spot as a low budget option.
The Grand Caravan will be available through the 2020 model year, but is not for sale in California, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington due to the more stringent emissions rules in those states.