We were surprised that DaimlerChrysler's minivan entry for this test, the Chrysler Town & Country Limited, finished as far down as it did. Here was one of the most popular minivans ever. And it had just been redesigned, too. But when we added up the numbers in some of the critical categories, the Ford, Honda and Toyota vans finished ahead of the T&C.

But since most on this staff are keenly interested automotive enthusiasts who can even generate a modicum of excitement and intrigue over a minivan comparo, we feel it our duty to report that the Chrysler is the clear victor in what we consider to be an important area -- even for a minivan. The T&C is the best-driving van of the six. In this area, it flat-out trounced the Toyota, Ford and Mazda. It also surpasses the Pontiac Montana by a notable margin. And while the Honda Odyssey comes closer than the Montana, the Honda still feels a bit more ungainly and heavy than the seemingly more nimble Chrysler van.

Backing up our staff's quite positive opinion of the way the T&C behaves when you're behind its wheel is our 20-point evaluation form. The Chrysler handily won this part of the comparison, earning the most points in six out of seven driving-related criteria.

One driver summed up the T&C's impressive road manners thusly: "Unlike the Honda and Ford vans, which are big and feel it, the Town & Country is big but doesn't feel it." The same driver loved the way the Chrysler's suspension performed saying it "felt controlled and nimble through the curves yet it had a cushy ride." Passengers could also tell the Chrysler was a surefooted machine. "There is much less cabin-jostling or bodyroll in the second-row seats than in the Windstar. The compromise between ride and handling is just right in the T&C, and it seems to handle better then even some cars. The suspension never beats you up," concluded this observant passenger.

Despite the fact the Town & Country wasn't the quickest van in this test, the engine and transmission still got high praise among the drivers. One said, "The Chrysler's 3.8-liter V6 is much smoother than the Windstar's engine. It's not nearly as thrashy, and it makes more power, too. Overall, this engine is amazingly smooth even though it's a pushrod design. Of the three American vans (all of which have pushrod engines) only the T&C's was on par with the overhead-cam engines found in the three Japanese vans." The engine was "pretty much the best of the group," concluded another editor. The transmission worked just about perfectly in the Town & Country during normal driving. The main issue was that it would shift up to the next gear well before redline. Otherwise, all seemed well.

So if the Town & Country drives so well and has other things to recommend it, why did it get nudged out of the way by the Windstar, Sienna and Odyssey? Unfortunately, several factors put the Chrysler van further down in the pecking order than where a fresh redesign might be expected to finish.

First up are features. The T&C only squeaked by the last-place Mazda MPV in terms of our editor-voted features list, and it got thoroughly hammered by the Sienna and the category-winning Windstar. Probably the most puzzling feature that didn't make it into the new Chrysler vans is a disappearing (folding) third-row seat. Now that the Honda, Mazda and Pontiac vans have this critical item onboard, we find it almost inexcusable that a brand-new design lacks such a major convenience. And to add salt to the wound, the T&C has the heaviest third-row bench seat of the three vans when you need to remove it for max cargo capacity. It weighs a seemingly unnecessary 128 pounds compared to the next lightest seat in the Ford, which checks in at 105 pounds.

Other items standard or available on the other vans that you can't get here include a navigation system, fore and aft adjustments for the second-row seats, front and rear audio controls and an entertainment system (the latter, however, is available as a dealer-installed option).

The area of safety features also saw the T&C falter a little bit. Although it has such standards as front side airbags (optional on lesser Chrysler and Dodge vans) and traction control, we'd like to see the availability of bits like stability control and a reverse sensing system, too. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration crash-test scores were good for the T&C, as it got four stars for the frontal tests and five for the two side impact tests. Here, the Chrysler van matched the Mazda and scored better than the Pontiac Montana. But it still lags behind the safety-benchmark Honda and Ford vans, and during NHTSA side-impact crash testing, the sliding side doors popped open, sparking a recall of all 2001 Chrysler and Dodge minivans.

The final area that hurt the DaimlerChrysler van the most is, of course, price. At more than 36 grand, it was the most expensive van in this test. Factor in tax, license and all the other requisite playing around during a new-vehicle purchase, and you've got yourself a $40,000 minivan. In defense of its minivan lineup, we'll note that it's the largest range of vans on the market in terms of price. The company offers the most models in the segment (17 in total) ranging from as low as $19,800 to $38,165 for a loaded all-wheel-drive T&C Limited.

But we still tested these vans as loaded up as we could possibly get them, and the T&C checks in at about $1,200 more than the next-in-line Ford Windstar and Toyota Sienna. Compared price-wise to the Honda Odyssey, the T&C is a whopping $7,500 more. And that's with the Odyssey EX's only option, a navigation system onboard. Eliminate that from the picture, and the difference is nearly 10 grand!

The bottom line is that we love how the Town & Country drives and looks. But we're a bit skeptical about its lack of some important features. And it's quite pricey. In the end, this van will basically do anything just as well as the others, including carrying people and cargo in fine style. Ultimately, the issue of price in relation to features -- or lack thereof -- combined with this van's spotty reliability record, poor predicted resale value and less-than-stellar crash scores relegated it to fourth place in our test.

Second Opinions

Senior Editor Brent Romans says:
The Town & Country is a very good minivan, but I would hope so. This was the newest design in our test, and Chrysler has had plenty of time to sit back and study the competition. I would have liked it if the company's engineers had paid more attention to the Odyssey's disappearing third-row seat. I tried removing the single-piece third-row seat in the Chrysler by myself. It was a major struggle, and I can't imagine someone like my 5-foot 2-inch mother trying to do the same thing. Chrysler PR people say they didn't go with a disappearing third-row because the resulting seat well lets in too much road noise. True enough, the Town & Country was certainly quiet, but not amazingly so. No, I think the real reason is that the company didn't want to cough up the additional cash required for designing an independent rear suspension that could accommodate a disappearing seat and the optional all-wheel-drive system. That said, the T&C was the most enjoyable minivan to drive in our test. I liked the sporty demeanor that comes from the responsive steering, the good power delivery and the stable suspension. It's also a good-looking minivan and has a luxurious interior. But minivans need to be practical and functional above all else, and that's where the T&C slips in the rankings. I'm not fond of the control layout, the lack of important features and the unknown reliability record. Chrysler Town & Country? Good, but by no means great.

Executive Editor Karl Brauer says:
The redesigned Chrysler minivan is by far the most disappointing product in this test; and it's not because it is a truly terrible minivan, but because it could have been so much better. For instance, in terms of driving pleasure, the Town & Country is arguably the most fun-to-drive minivan ever made. The engine has great low-end punch, the steering combines ideal weighting with a fast ratio, and the brakes are confident and capable. Honestly, if I were never going to use a minivan for anything more than driving myself around the city, the Chrysler would be my clear choice.

But who buys a minivan to carry only himself around? For me (and, I would assume, most minivan buyers), the most important elements in designing the perfect family-hauler revolve around safety, reliability and functionality. Driving pleasure has to take a back seat (preferably one that folds away) to family needs. When it comes to truly useful features, the Town & Country is missing some key items, among them: a folding third-row seat; second-row seats that can slide fore, aft and sideways; and seat belts with automatic locking retractors for installing child seats. Each of these items greatly adds to a minivan's family friendliness, and with two-year-old vans from Honda and Mazda offering all of them, I can't understand how these brand-new Chryslers have none of them. And if Chrysler thinks that a power liftgate, removable center console and a razor-thin horsepower advantage are enough to overcome these deficiencies, they may be in for a rude awakening. And these are just the big issues I have with the Pentastar offerings. Other items, like the power doors that have to be activated with the key fob rather than the exterior handles, a lack of second-row legroom, and no seatbelt shoulder strap for center passengers in the third row, certainly don't help matters. Add to that the high purchase price, low residual value and spotty reliability record, and I'm left wondering what happened to the company that invented the minivan?

Road Test Editor Ed Hellwig says:

Easily the most comfortable (for the driver) and slick-looking van in the test, the T&C certainly has the others beat in the luxury department. The thickly padded power adjustable captain's chairs were the best of the bunch, and the redesigned dashboard and climate controls would be right at home in an LHS. Drive quality was also top-notch, with plenty of smooth power from the V6 and quick, decisive shifts from the automatic tranny. The suspension is taut even when loaded down with a full load of passengers, yet it still manages a decent ride when you're going solo.

Based purely on my time behind the wheel, I would put the Chrysler at, or near, the top of my list. Problems arise, however, when you begin to factor in all the little things that aren't so apparent from the driver seat. First and foremost is the ridiculous price. The thought of paying 35 G's for a minivan is sobering enough, but when you factor in the lack of feature content (no navigation system, no TV/VCP combo) the T&C starts to really look grim. Then you consider that compared to the Odyssey, the Town & Country isn't really the most spacious van in the group, doesn't provide a disappearing rear seat, and isn't likely to hold equivalent value over the long haul, and I can't help but drop the Chrysler down a notch or two on the ol' depth chart.

Stereo Evaluation - 2001 Chrysler Town & Country Limited