Performance

There are four engines to choose from - a 2.4 and a 3.3-litre petrol and two diesels with 2.5 and 2.8 litres. The petrol engines provide decent enough performance but you need to work them hard to get the best out of them. The diesels, especially the 2.8-litre, have much more torque and are more relaxing for motorway cruising.

Driving

On a tight corner the Voyager's mass and height conspire to make it behave as if every bend were off-camber. As in all American vehicles, the steering is a bit vague around the straight-ahead position and especially cussed in long A-road sweepers. On winding roads it does weight up a little, but it's still no match for Newton. The limited dynamic envelope dissolves into understeer very quickly, but at least it's predictable and safe, if not fun. The ride quality isn't great and it doesn't absorb the bumps very efficiently meaning many can be felt inside.

Space

This is where you'll really benefit from buying a Voyager because it is vast inside, with plenty of room. The Grand Voyager is the one to go for, though, with clever Stow 'n' Go seating. The seats fold into the floor creating an enormous, van-like interior - 4,690 litres. In the standard model the seats have to be heaved out - a heavy and time consuming task. Plus there is much more room behind the Grand's third row of seats for extra luggage. Head and legroom is excellent all round plus sliding doors are a benefit for ingress and egress in tight spaces.

Build quality

On the whole the car feels very solid with the interior using good quality plastics. Even the handles for Stow 'n' Go seats in the Grand Voyager don't feel like they'll snap off in a hurry. The engines also feel sturdy, but it's worth remembering the car finished in a poor 81st place in Top Gear's latest survey.

Equipment

There's a solid set of equipment on each model, including aircon, a CD player and alloys. The Limited spec gets leather and all the 2.8 and 3.3- litre models automatically receive, erm, an automatic transmission.

Safety

Anti-lock brakes are standard as are the six airbags that act differently depending on the severity of the impact. The Voyager recently lost an EuroNCAP star due to right-hand drive cars not having a driver's knee airbag. This brings the total down to just one. Poor.

Owning

The car is costly to insure and economy is poor too. Company car drivers will curse the day they had kids after paying the full 35 per cent tax on the Grand Voyager. It's still very popular so private owners will enjoy its good used values.

Value

Priced competitively against their rivals with the top of the range 3.3-litre Grand Voyager being roughly the same as a Renault Espace 3.5 V6.

Verdict

A large, easy to live with, full sized people carrier that's pleasant to drive and extremely practical (especially the Grand Voyager with the space-enhancing stow-in-the-floor seating). The only downsides are the high running costs and poor safety measures.

Chrysler Voyager rivals
Ford Galaxy
Citroen C8
Peugeot 807

Chrysler Voyager road tests
Chrysler Voyager 2.4 - March 4, 2002
Chrysler Voyager - March 1, 2001
Chrysler Voyager - February 20, 2001
Chrysler Voyager 2.5 TD - December 1, 1998