Nov. 22--The press propaganda for the Chevrolet Venture tells us that the designers of this all-new minivan even employed feedback from mini owners in their tireless efforts to please "time-challenged, family- centered households."
This left me wondering what a "time-challenged" household was. Is it a houseful of graying, middle-aged people like myself? Or is it a bunch of yuppies in a hurry?
I was also curious about the nature of a "family-centered" household. I mean, don't most households contain families? When's the last time you encountered a household consisting of four people who just met 15 minutes before in the Pathmark checkout line?
While it's not clear to me whether or not the Venture is a boon to the time-challenged and family-centered, it is pretty obvious that this thoughtful new van is one nifty way to move people and stuff. It's handsome, comfortable, roomy, roadable and reasonably priced.
The Venture starts at $19,925. The test vehicle, the extended- length model with the second rear sliding door, opens at $22,699.
The Venture is the Chevy version of GM's all-new "global minivan," which is designed for the European market as well as the United States. It is being sold in this country in three variations: the Venture, the Pontiac Trans Sport and the Oldsmobile Silhouette.
Like its domestic siblings, the steel-bodied Venture is a more mainstream minivan than the plastic-bodied vehicle it replaces (the Lumina minivan). And like it siblings, it is available as a standard or extended-length model.
I tested the extended-length, seven-passenger Venture, which is ideal for larger family-centered households -- especially when they go on trips. Like the extended-length Chrysler Corp. minivans and Ford's Windstar, the longer Venture model provides a generous cargo area behind the back seat. This isn't true in regular-length minis. When equipped with seven-passenger seating, the rear cargo space in these vehicles virtually disappears.
I was struck initially by the Venture's good looks. The gently sculpted body has a nice flow, and the egg-crate grille distinctively differentiates the vehicle from its GM siblings -- and the rest of its competition, for that matter.
The interior is also attractive, and proves a comfortable place for a time-challenged motorhead to rest his weary bones. GM has done some serious scientific research on seat comfort, and it shows in the Venture.
As my seat time in the Venture lengthened, I became increasingly aware of the thoughtfulness that went into this vehicle.
The large sliding rear door on the passenger's side makes loading easier, as does the optional driver's-side rear slider. (The latter is available only on the extended-length model for 1997). Side loading is also facilitated by an optional power-door feature on the passenger-side slider.
The Venture's bucket-type rear seats are easy to remove and replace, because they only weigh 38 pounds. (Anyone who's developed a hernia while trying to lift out conventional minivan rear bench seats will appreciate this.)
Slick touches also include a special metallic windshield coating that keeps the car cooler -- and doubles as a radio antenna. There are also double seals around the pop-out windows to reduce wind noise, and an optional dual-mode sound system that allows front seat passengers to listen to the radio while the earphone-equipped rear seat riders play tapes or CDs -- or vice versa.
The Venture also touches all the safety bases, including dual air bags, daytime running lights, and a standard anti-lock braking system. There's even a piece of reflective red tape on the back edge the front doors so that your vehicle can be more readily seen when you open the doors at night.
We shouldn't, of course, allow the Venture's clever features to overshadow the fact that this is an exceptionally carlike minivan. The vehicle rides well, and handles with surprising aplomb.
And thanks to its 180-horsepower, 3.4-liter V-6, the Venture minivan is less time-challenged than a lot of pleasure cars I've driven.
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(c) 1996, The Philadelphia Inquirer. Distributed by Knight-Ridder/Tribune Business News.
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