It's not every day that you can reinvent demand for your product, but that's precisely what the marketing folks behind General Motors' full-size vans are trying to do. Let's face it, despite explosive growth in the truck market over the past decade, the popularity of big vans has plummeted ever since Chrysler's minivan and Ford's Explorer redefined our automotive future.
A move to minivans and compact SUVs sparked the growth of extended- and crew-cab pickup trucks before luxury versions of each triggered a boom for full-size SUVs -- and now mini SUVs are all the rage. With nearly 50 different SUV nameplates available in showrooms today, some anti-SUV sentiment is beginning to surface. GM already has so-called "crossover" trucks, such as Chevy's Avalanche, poised to replace the SUV as the next hot trend. But until demand makes them as plentiful as sport-utilities, all eyes are on other SUV alternatives -- both to fit consumers' ever-changing lifestyles and to find those ever-elusive "incremental sales" for manufacturers.
So the marketing guys figured, hey, why battle the big SUVs with yet another big SUV? Why not offer something that's more efficient -- with far more interior space and cargo-hauling ability, adult walk-through capabilities from front-to-rear, and even a lower step-in height? Then they could include all the amenities that luxury buyers demand, add the latest family infotainment equipment available and price it below the big luxo-utes. And what if all this could be done on an existing platform, with a major automotive supplier taking full assembly responsibility for completely upfitting the base vehicle before returning it to the factory for distribution to dealers?
What if, indeed. Enter the 2001 GMC Savana SLT, an all-new full-size luxury van model built to take on bigger family travel duties than even the biggest SUVs can handle. We're not talking merely about the ability to carry seven passengers; even some new midsize SUVs can do that. But we're talking about the ability to carry seven (and all their gear) with gobs of serious stretch-out legroom for everyone. That's because a full-size van's flat floor and tall roof allow seat positions to be optimized over the entire interior, which means even long trips can be enjoyable.
Make no mistake, the Savana SLT is not a sport-utility wannabe. Ground clearance is a car-like 7.2 inches, and there is no all-wheel-drive option -- it is built strictly for the road. In fact, this full-framed beast is based on the same tough commercial van that your plumber, electrician or any number of other service tradespeople may be driving on the job. It's just that most passenger-van models are so bland and utilitarian that you feel like you're driving an airport shuttle bus and, at the opposite end of the scale, some aftermarket conversion vans are so overdone and ostentatious-looking that you feel like you're driving a rolling Las Vegas casino.
If you're old enough to recall the heyday of vanning in the 1970s, then you know that a full-size van can be made to perform nearly any vehicle function imaginable, from workhorse to private land yacht. Big vans had surpassed even famed station wagon nameplates to become the favorite choice of America's road warriors. Yes, it's true that when minivans and SUVs came along, station wagons and big vans began to disappear from driveways across the nation; full-size van sales fell a whopping 50 percent from 1989 to 1999. But just as wagons are on the comeback trail thanks to the Europeans, full-size vans are being positioned for a comeback of their own.
Dodge still relies on conversion companies for the upscale personal-use customer and is currently rethinking its decision to stop building its full-size van line by 2002, as originally announced. But the new Savana SLT isn't the only factory choice out there. As with all GM trucks, GMC shares a similar model with Chevy (called the Express LT), and rival Ford has very quietly been selling a gussied-up Econoline E-150 van along the same lines, called the Traveler.
We're intrigued by the whole idea, but without any of the above-mentioned models available in national corporate press fleets before summer, a test-drive story seemed impossible. That is, until one media-savvy General Motors PR rep was able to wrestle a 2001 Savana SLT away from the marketing types long enough for us to log a week's worth of driving and evaluating. And boy, did we put the SLT through its paces -- our test model had more kids crawl though it in one week than any family van would have in its whole lifetime! But more on that later.
The first thing you notice about the Savana SLT is how understated the exterior modifications come across. No wild multicolor conversion van-type tape-stripe graphics, no hang-off running boards or plastic ground-effects or additional brightwork. Instead, the color-keyed grille and bumpers, front-and-rear fascias, rocker moldings, mirrors and door handles are all set off nicely with halogen headlamps, integrated clear foglamps and 15-inch brushed aluminum wheels. The full-size spare is mounted under the body, so there's no covered tire hanging off the rear door. The look is downright elegant.
But what really sets this van apart is the interior. GM assigned that job to the Lear Corp., the world's fifth largest auto supplier. Lear worked with GM engineers to design, supply materials and even install the complete interior from start to finish. All GMC and Chevy full-size passenger and cargo vans are built in GM's Wentzville, Mo., factory. Those destined to become luxury units are sent over to Lear's nearby facility, where they get the exterior trim and full interiors installed, then are shipped back to the GM plant for distribution to dealers.
The SLT comes with Savana's full complement of features, including power locks and windows, cruise control, leather-wrapped tilt wheel, keyless entry, front and rear air and climate controls, tinted glass, rear defogger, overhead console and underseat storage compartment. Our tester was equipped with leather seating surfaces (a $1,300 option) for the four captain's chairs and rear three-place bench. All second- and third-row seating is removable and interchangeable, but no matter how you arrange it, the legroom in each row is simply astounding.
To that, Lear adds the latest in-vehicle entertainment system, featuring two flip-down 6.8-inch color video monitors positioned in front of the second and third rows. A video cassette player is installed in the center console, and the rear panel features a pre-wired video-game docking station for playing your favorite console games. Also included is a 12-speaker Bose premium sound AM/FM stereo with CD and cassette players, wireless infrared headphones and rear-seat audio controls. Our van came with the optional ($295) six-disc in-dash CD changer. The entire system is fully integrated so that some can listen to music, others watch a movie and still others play a video game all at the same time, because the headphones can deliver all the audio feeds separately. That should keep the whole family happy until the next rest stop.
It takes a little climbing to get into the Savana's driver seat, but the step-in is low and there is plenty of room in the front footwells. Sitting so far forward gives you excellent visibility over the road, and a well-designed center stack keeps controls at your fingertips yet allows room for walk-through access to the rear. Driving this 5,062-pound, 219-inch long behemoth is surprisingly easy, with plenty of V8 power (the 5.7-liter makes 255 horses), a smooth-shifting electronically controlled four-speed automatic transmission and good feedback in the steering. And with a 6,400-pound tow rating you can take along a boat, or a pair of dirt bikes or just about any of your family's other big vacation toys.
The independent Short/Long Arm (SLA) front suspension offers a compliant yet controlled ride, and the rear leaf springs are well tuned to handle bumps, even with a bevy of passengers. The brakes felt somewhat soft with light effort and took some getting used to, but the pedal was easy to modulate and even hard stops were surefooted. Four-wheel ABS is standard. With the van's unobstructed outward view and a pleasantly small turning radius, we found the SLT simple to drive and more maneuverable than you'd expect for a vehicle this size.
After a few days of mundane family travel, our only problem was getting our two boys to stop playing video games once we were parked. Then we pressed the SLT into hockey team-hauling duty. Unlike with the family minivan or the neighbor's full-size sport-ute, the SLT easily handled mom and dad, two goaltending sons and three of their teammates with all of their gear without cramping anyone's comfort. Again, the only down side seemed to be that nobody wanted to stop playing a video game or interrupt their movie to get out once we got them home.
Unlike today's four-door minivans, the SLT's passenger exit is only on the curb side via a set of double (60/40) hinged doors. We'd have preferred that GM offered the single sliding door available on other Savana and Express passenger vans for greater ease of entry and exit, especially when nestled between vehicles in a parking space. Opening the dual rear doors reveals a large cargo hold behind the third-row seat, offering far more room than any full-size seven-passenger SUV has left after every seat is in place. It's here where the SLT's real space advantage becomes compelling.
The serious kid test came when we took the Savana SLT to Seneca Middle School in nearby Clinton Township, Mich., where well over 200 seventh-graders got their chance to crawl in and around the big van as part of a presentation on automotive journalism. Three waves of students were able to evaluate the SLT, with many of them voicing such favorable responses as, "Look at all the room in here" and "I wish we could take this on vacation!" Some students even asked about the sticker price (ours was $37,290, including delivery) and gas mileage (the EPA rating is 14 city, 18 highway, but we averaged slightly over 15 mpg for the week) so they could tell their parents about it. And we thought we would need a flashy sports car to get the kids excited!
Could it be that the time has really come for SUV-weary American families to flock back to the full-size van? After both pickups and sport-utilities successfully (and profitably) evolved from purely functional vehicles to personal luxury transport, it's logical the same could hold true for big vans. "We've watched the trends of other commercial products go upscale, and we think that a more luxurious version of the full-size van is the next phase of the trend," said Dave Kanous, GM's brand manager for Savana and Express. "We expect these vans to be the perfect vehicles for families on the move."
GM plans to send 10,000 to 15,000 Chevy and GMC full-size vans over to Lear this year to transform them into Express LT and Savana SLT luxury vans, which should bring a nice spike in incremental retail sales while serving new customer needs. "Our intent is to attract a new set of customers to this market," Kanous said, "particularly those who want more space than a minivan, as well as uplevel features often found on premium sport-utility vehicles."
It's clear to us that what full-size vans lack in snob appeal, they sure make up for in utility. Yes, we still have our nits to pick. Putting a big video deck in the center stack, for instance, does kill much-needed storage space. And yes, we'd like a chirp from the horn just to tell you that hitting the keyless remote has actually locked the vehicle. But a far bigger issue standing in the road for the big vans' comeback may be this year's skyrocketing gas prices, because the one luxury these vans don't have is the ability to get anywhere near the 20 mpg some minivans can deliver.
For now, there's no question we'd prefer the "factory" feel of GM's new luxury vans over most conversions we've tested, regardless of brand. And while their $37,000 price tag may sound hefty compared to the $25,000 cost of entry-level full-sized passenger vans and even many conversion vans, they're a relative deal when compared feature-for-feature to some of the big luxo-utes on the market. Just don't expect your kids to see much of the USA in their Chevrolet or GMC luxury van -- they'll likely be too comfortable with their favorite movie or video game to catch much of the scenery going past.
A move to minivans and compact SUVs sparked the growth of extended- and crew-cab pickup trucks before luxury versions of each triggered a boom for full-size SUVs -- and now mini SUVs are all the rage. With nearly 50 different SUV nameplates available in showrooms today, some anti-SUV sentiment is beginning to surface. GM already has so-called "crossover" trucks, such as Chevy's Avalanche, poised to replace the SUV as the next hot trend. But until demand makes them as plentiful as sport-utilities, all eyes are on other SUV alternatives -- both to fit consumers' ever-changing lifestyles and to find those ever-elusive "incremental sales" for manufacturers.
So the marketing guys figured, hey, why battle the big SUVs with yet another big SUV? Why not offer something that's more efficient -- with far more interior space and cargo-hauling ability, adult walk-through capabilities from front-to-rear, and even a lower step-in height? Then they could include all the amenities that luxury buyers demand, add the latest family infotainment equipment available and price it below the big luxo-utes. And what if all this could be done on an existing platform, with a major automotive supplier taking full assembly responsibility for completely upfitting the base vehicle before returning it to the factory for distribution to dealers?
What if, indeed. Enter the 2001 GMC Savana SLT, an all-new full-size luxury van model built to take on bigger family travel duties than even the biggest SUVs can handle. We're not talking merely about the ability to carry seven passengers; even some new midsize SUVs can do that. But we're talking about the ability to carry seven (and all their gear) with gobs of serious stretch-out legroom for everyone. That's because a full-size van's flat floor and tall roof allow seat positions to be optimized over the entire interior, which means even long trips can be enjoyable.
Make no mistake, the Savana SLT is not a sport-utility wannabe. Ground clearance is a car-like 7.2 inches, and there is no all-wheel-drive option -- it is built strictly for the road. In fact, this full-framed beast is based on the same tough commercial van that your plumber, electrician or any number of other service tradespeople may be driving on the job. It's just that most passenger-van models are so bland and utilitarian that you feel like you're driving an airport shuttle bus and, at the opposite end of the scale, some aftermarket conversion vans are so overdone and ostentatious-looking that you feel like you're driving a rolling Las Vegas casino.
If you're old enough to recall the heyday of vanning in the 1970s, then you know that a full-size van can be made to perform nearly any vehicle function imaginable, from workhorse to private land yacht. Big vans had surpassed even famed station wagon nameplates to become the favorite choice of America's road warriors. Yes, it's true that when minivans and SUVs came along, station wagons and big vans began to disappear from driveways across the nation; full-size van sales fell a whopping 50 percent from 1989 to 1999. But just as wagons are on the comeback trail thanks to the Europeans, full-size vans are being positioned for a comeback of their own.
Dodge still relies on conversion companies for the upscale personal-use customer and is currently rethinking its decision to stop building its full-size van line by 2002, as originally announced. But the new Savana SLT isn't the only factory choice out there. As with all GM trucks, GMC shares a similar model with Chevy (called the Express LT), and rival Ford has very quietly been selling a gussied-up Econoline E-150 van along the same lines, called the Traveler.
We're intrigued by the whole idea, but without any of the above-mentioned models available in national corporate press fleets before summer, a test-drive story seemed impossible. That is, until one media-savvy General Motors PR rep was able to wrestle a 2001 Savana SLT away from the marketing types long enough for us to log a week's worth of driving and evaluating. And boy, did we put the SLT through its paces -- our test model had more kids crawl though it in one week than any family van would have in its whole lifetime! But more on that later.
The first thing you notice about the Savana SLT is how understated the exterior modifications come across. No wild multicolor conversion van-type tape-stripe graphics, no hang-off running boards or plastic ground-effects or additional brightwork. Instead, the color-keyed grille and bumpers, front-and-rear fascias, rocker moldings, mirrors and door handles are all set off nicely with halogen headlamps, integrated clear foglamps and 15-inch brushed aluminum wheels. The full-size spare is mounted under the body, so there's no covered tire hanging off the rear door. The look is downright elegant.
But what really sets this van apart is the interior. GM assigned that job to the Lear Corp., the world's fifth largest auto supplier. Lear worked with GM engineers to design, supply materials and even install the complete interior from start to finish. All GMC and Chevy full-size passenger and cargo vans are built in GM's Wentzville, Mo., factory. Those destined to become luxury units are sent over to Lear's nearby facility, where they get the exterior trim and full interiors installed, then are shipped back to the GM plant for distribution to dealers.
The SLT comes with Savana's full complement of features, including power locks and windows, cruise control, leather-wrapped tilt wheel, keyless entry, front and rear air and climate controls, tinted glass, rear defogger, overhead console and underseat storage compartment. Our tester was equipped with leather seating surfaces (a $1,300 option) for the four captain's chairs and rear three-place bench. All second- and third-row seating is removable and interchangeable, but no matter how you arrange it, the legroom in each row is simply astounding.
To that, Lear adds the latest in-vehicle entertainment system, featuring two flip-down 6.8-inch color video monitors positioned in front of the second and third rows. A video cassette player is installed in the center console, and the rear panel features a pre-wired video-game docking station for playing your favorite console games. Also included is a 12-speaker Bose premium sound AM/FM stereo with CD and cassette players, wireless infrared headphones and rear-seat audio controls. Our van came with the optional ($295) six-disc in-dash CD changer. The entire system is fully integrated so that some can listen to music, others watch a movie and still others play a video game all at the same time, because the headphones can deliver all the audio feeds separately. That should keep the whole family happy until the next rest stop.
It takes a little climbing to get into the Savana's driver seat, but the step-in is low and there is plenty of room in the front footwells. Sitting so far forward gives you excellent visibility over the road, and a well-designed center stack keeps controls at your fingertips yet allows room for walk-through access to the rear. Driving this 5,062-pound, 219-inch long behemoth is surprisingly easy, with plenty of V8 power (the 5.7-liter makes 255 horses), a smooth-shifting electronically controlled four-speed automatic transmission and good feedback in the steering. And with a 6,400-pound tow rating you can take along a boat, or a pair of dirt bikes or just about any of your family's other big vacation toys.
The independent Short/Long Arm (SLA) front suspension offers a compliant yet controlled ride, and the rear leaf springs are well tuned to handle bumps, even with a bevy of passengers. The brakes felt somewhat soft with light effort and took some getting used to, but the pedal was easy to modulate and even hard stops were surefooted. Four-wheel ABS is standard. With the van's unobstructed outward view and a pleasantly small turning radius, we found the SLT simple to drive and more maneuverable than you'd expect for a vehicle this size.
After a few days of mundane family travel, our only problem was getting our two boys to stop playing video games once we were parked. Then we pressed the SLT into hockey team-hauling duty. Unlike with the family minivan or the neighbor's full-size sport-ute, the SLT easily handled mom and dad, two goaltending sons and three of their teammates with all of their gear without cramping anyone's comfort. Again, the only down side seemed to be that nobody wanted to stop playing a video game or interrupt their movie to get out once we got them home.
Unlike today's four-door minivans, the SLT's passenger exit is only on the curb side via a set of double (60/40) hinged doors. We'd have preferred that GM offered the single sliding door available on other Savana and Express passenger vans for greater ease of entry and exit, especially when nestled between vehicles in a parking space. Opening the dual rear doors reveals a large cargo hold behind the third-row seat, offering far more room than any full-size seven-passenger SUV has left after every seat is in place. It's here where the SLT's real space advantage becomes compelling.
The serious kid test came when we took the Savana SLT to Seneca Middle School in nearby Clinton Township, Mich., where well over 200 seventh-graders got their chance to crawl in and around the big van as part of a presentation on automotive journalism. Three waves of students were able to evaluate the SLT, with many of them voicing such favorable responses as, "Look at all the room in here" and "I wish we could take this on vacation!" Some students even asked about the sticker price (ours was $37,290, including delivery) and gas mileage (the EPA rating is 14 city, 18 highway, but we averaged slightly over 15 mpg for the week) so they could tell their parents about it. And we thought we would need a flashy sports car to get the kids excited!
Could it be that the time has really come for SUV-weary American families to flock back to the full-size van? After both pickups and sport-utilities successfully (and profitably) evolved from purely functional vehicles to personal luxury transport, it's logical the same could hold true for big vans. "We've watched the trends of other commercial products go upscale, and we think that a more luxurious version of the full-size van is the next phase of the trend," said Dave Kanous, GM's brand manager for Savana and Express. "We expect these vans to be the perfect vehicles for families on the move."
GM plans to send 10,000 to 15,000 Chevy and GMC full-size vans over to Lear this year to transform them into Express LT and Savana SLT luxury vans, which should bring a nice spike in incremental retail sales while serving new customer needs. "Our intent is to attract a new set of customers to this market," Kanous said, "particularly those who want more space than a minivan, as well as uplevel features often found on premium sport-utility vehicles."
It's clear to us that what full-size vans lack in snob appeal, they sure make up for in utility. Yes, we still have our nits to pick. Putting a big video deck in the center stack, for instance, does kill much-needed storage space. And yes, we'd like a chirp from the horn just to tell you that hitting the keyless remote has actually locked the vehicle. But a far bigger issue standing in the road for the big vans' comeback may be this year's skyrocketing gas prices, because the one luxury these vans don't have is the ability to get anywhere near the 20 mpg some minivans can deliver.
For now, there's no question we'd prefer the "factory" feel of GM's new luxury vans over most conversions we've tested, regardless of brand. And while their $37,000 price tag may sound hefty compared to the $25,000 cost of entry-level full-sized passenger vans and even many conversion vans, they're a relative deal when compared feature-for-feature to some of the big luxo-utes on the market. Just don't expect your kids to see much of the USA in their Chevrolet or GMC luxury van -- they'll likely be too comfortable with their favorite movie or video game to catch much of the scenery going past.
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