Dodge in danger of losing #1 minivan title
AutoBlog.com[/align][/align]The moral of a certain African tale is: no matter whether you're the lion or the gazelle, when you get up every morning you better be ready to run. That counts for rams, as well. One of Chrysler LLC's most profitable divisions is getting run down in a historically dominant specialty: minivans. The Dodge Caravan (and Grand Caravan), specifically, is in danger of losing its best selling minivan title to the Honda Odyssey.[/align][/align]The Detroit Free Press reports that year-to-date, Dodge has sold 154,824 Caravans, which is a 21.4-percent decline from last year. Part of that has been explained with the arrival of a new model and the elimination of the cheaper, short wheelbase version. Honda meanwhile has sold 158,139 Odysseys so far this year, which is only a 2.3-percent decline from last year. Honda also has a new version of the Odyseey this year, introduced in August, and has outsold Dodge for the past six months -- which means the new model picked up where the old one left its marker.[/align]

 

I've also seen far more ads for the Honda than the Dodge......

Dusty

 

Guess thats why Ford and Chevy are giving upon making minivans altogether....

 

I think that the way the new van is selling will keep it on the top of the heap.. The short wheelbase minivan is replaced by the Journey. I know that it is not the same size but the Kia and Hyundai are selling a ocnsiderably smaller minivan and telling the consumer that it is the Caravan beater. Most people hear that and thin Grand Caravan, a few months later the "cheaper" vans are populating the local Dodge/Chrysler delaership lots. We just sell them at auction upon trading for them so they do not gather dust in our inventory.

 

I don't think there is going to be a journey.... as for the minivan, Chrysler keeps making there cars uglier and uglier... The wife and I rented a town and country this year and loved it, that was to be her next car (this spring)... til I saw the new model.

 

The Journey will be another mistake made just like the Caliber. I don't understand why Dodge has even attempted to sell the new Caravan. It's literally a rectangular block of metal with door holes and wheel wells carved out.

 

ViperGTS, my feelings exactly. The old (07') caravan was so nice looking and they left it, just like the cab forward designs they abandoned... the dakota gets uglier with each refreshening, it just drives me crazy that they were so strong in the design area and now it seems like the only cars they make that I don't think are ugly are the viper and the challenger...

 

Exactly. The 2007 model was nearly perfect. The only thing Dodge and Chrysler should have did with that was made it better. Better meaning refining some of the material, focusing on build defects and strengthen reliability. I think Dodge also should have been side by side with other automanufacturers like Honda in MPG competition as well. Dodge could have had a diesel variant of the Jeep Liberty's diesel available in the Dakota, Caravan and Stratus plus some type of hybrid out by now. But instead they decide to make bigger vehicles with bigger engines when a majority of people don't want to drive a house around.

And another thing. People who do buy SUVs overlook the Pacifica tremendously. I think strongeradvertising needs to be done to get models moving quicker.

 

I dont see how the odyssey is competing with the T&C and Caravan. If you drive down the road here, you can literally see 10 of the 01-07 T&C's/caravans in one mile. I hardly ever see any honda vans...

 

well its pretty much inevitable that a forign car maker will make a better vehicle... i think the town and country looks better then the caravan. We have a town and country..its got about 65k on it and havent had a problem yet.