Overview & Reviews

At its introduction, the Chevrolet Venture and its corporate siblings were top-notch examples of the hot minivan class. We went so far as to describe it as "outstanding," impressed with its communicative chassis, sharp steering and nimble handling. Well, in a "the 320-pound left tackle was surprisingly nimble" sort of way.

At the time, the Venture matched Chrysler's innovative new minivans by offering a driver-side sliding door and two wheelbases, then added a few tricks of its own to entice families. We weren't so impressed with its toothy chrome grille and uncomfortable modular seating, but in general, we considered the Chevrolet Venture a good buy.

Time and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) was not kind, however, as newer minivans and a poor offset crash rating conspired to sink the Venture's favorable opinion marks. The downturn of all minivan sales also torpedoed Chevy's entry, forcing General Motors to throw together a replacement van using the Venture's body, a long aardvark-inspired nose and raised ride height to create the supposed SUV-like Uplander. Nobody bought the idea of a crossover minivan and for that matter, nobody bought the vehicle either, signaling the eventual end of Chevy's participation in this mom-mobile segment.

Most Recent Chevrolet Venture

The Chevrolet Venture was sold from 1997-2005. Buyers could choose from standard and extended wheelbases, and three- and four-door bodies. The three-door body disappeared in 2000, while only the long-wheelbase model was available in 2005. Seven-passenger "modular" seating with individually removable chairs was standard, while eight-passenger capacity and middle-row captain's chairs were optional.

Standard features included antilock brakes, front side airbags (starting in 1998), a tilt steering wheel and an acceptable quota of cupholders and storage bins. Traction control, a power-sliding door, rear seat audio and climate controls, and a load-leveling suspension were options. As its life progressed, features like leather seating, rear parking assist, OnStar and satellite radio became available. A Warner Bros. special edition featuring special badges and a VHS entertainment system (later DVD) was offered from 2000-'03. Although initially satisfied with Venture's fit and finish, we eventually saw it as increasingly cheap and as just one area where Chevy's minivan was being outclassed by a new generation of competition.

The Venture's safety was also put into question by the IIHS' frontal offset crash test, which slapped a poor rating on the minivan's Pontiac Trans Sport clone. Although it did just fine in the NHTSA's full-frontal crash test, other minivans at the time did better at handling the added structural stresses of an offset collision. However, the Venture was the first minivan to offer front side airbags as standard equipment, while standard antilock brakes and optional all-wheel-drive improved traction.

During its first few years on sale in the late-1990s, the Venture was our top pick in the minivan segment. But once the next millennium dawned, so did other, more attractive family haulers – particularly those from foreign manufacturers. Although a well-equipped Venture could present a good bargain, it would be a wise idea to shop newer minivan designs that have better safety ratings.

Past Chevrolet Ventures

There was only one generation of the Chevrolet Venture. It replaced the Lumina minivan.

User Reviews:

• 

  Intake Manifold Leak / Blown Head Gasket - 2002 Chevrolet Venture
  By Chevrolet Venture - February 3 - 6:18 am

  I bought it new in 2002. My wife drives it to work till now, and she has been using my own 2001 Venture to work now. I took it to Hogan. All they did advise me was to do an engine flush and replace the thermostat. I keep getting warm and cold from my heater even I have it on the higher at all times. I took it to shop, and hopefully will get it in a few days for the Manifold leak and blow head gasket. I have spent about $2,500 for the last couple of months. I will not own any more GMs vehicle in the future.

• 

  2004 Venture - 2004 Chevrolet Venture
  By Bob - January 30 - 10:55 pm

  Great reliability over the last 5 years. Handling is good for a minivan. Road noise is minimal.

• 

  never buy a venture, EVER!!! - 2001 Chevrolet Venture
  By lemonloverx7 - January 29 - 10:10 pm

  It looks nice but its very unreliable. The back seats are so unfordable! Everyone hates sitting in the back two rows. 3 smalls seats jammed in the second row its not comfortable at all. the fronts seat are okay though. we have had so many problem that I cant even remember all of them. But a few big problems were, intake manifold gasket, oil leaks, leaking anti-freeze, temperature regulator, tail light assembly failure, AC stop working randomly, slipping transmission. The intake manifold gasket seems to be a big problem in chevy! Not a good car at all! The LT has to many features that brake alot. The van only has 124,000 miles on it. my friend has a Subaru with 241,000 and its still going!

• 

  GM junk - 2001 Chevrolet Venture
  By looker - January 12 - 8:54 am

  I love the fact that the van gets great gas mileage for a large vehicle 28.5 mpg on avg. Now for the bad it stays in the shop more than on the road, in 8 months I have had to have a new trany, new head gaskets. I have also had to have numerous other small things fixed.

• 

  Excellent mileage,otherwise average. - 2003 Chevrolet Venture
  By Duroch - December 31 - 3:03 pm

  Anything electronic is troublesome. (Daytime running lights only work if it is foggy. Oxygen sensor died.Heater controls intermittently quit.) Heater became weak in year two. No mechanical problems after 6 years driving.I get up to 34 mpg(Can) and I am usually loaded.

• 

  Comfortable, rattling and unsafe - 2004 Chevrolet Venture
  By Steve May - December 24 - 7:01 am

  The GOOD: No doubt this van is comfortable to sit in and looks quite nice. It accelerates quite fast and steers and brakes well too. It is roomy. That is where it ends. The van rattles especially on bumpy roads. It squeals and/or squeaks at speeds over 70 - ok probably not going to happen too often but still annoying. Build quality is not too good as the outside seat plastic switch assembly was falling apart as well as the plastic liner by the trunk. Worst of all, this van has HORRIBLE OFFSET crash test ratings! Most likely you will drive this in town to haul kids...not the safest choice.

• 

  Bought mine NEW!!! - 2000 Chevrolet Venture
  By Purchased New - December 21 - 11:14 pm

  Purchased vehicle new and added a 100,000 mile warranty. Glad I did. After 62,000 miles we had to replace the transmission. Great dealer service and no problems with transmission since! Several problems with what felt like transmission shifting problems. Local mechanic replaced the spark plugs and wires and this fixed the problem. Overall it has been a good, reliable vehicle for a young family of 5. Recently the van has had several mechanical faults costing a total of $2500. Now it has started smoking (from where I have NO idea). Will sell soon but have enjoyed the van.

• 

  No complaints - 2002 Chevrolet Venture
  By Telling the truth - December 5 - 3:11 pm

  Bought new. In 90,000 miles, Ive only had to replace a power steering pump. Everything else has been routine maintenance. The original tires were noisy, but thats easy to fix. We love it, and dont know what well get when its time to get something else. I think a lot of people just like to complain. Not everyone is having bad luck with these vehicles.

• 

  Venture OK - 2005 Chevrolet Venture
  By Gary - December 1 - 4:07 pm

  This has been a very dependable vehicle. I had to downsize from Suburbans I drove in the past so it was a real challenge at first. I have grown to appreciate saving money on gas, tires, and repairs.

• 

  When it starts to go wrong, gets worse - 2001 Chevrolet Venture
  By unhappy - October 26 - 5:09 pm

  Our 2001 Venture has been very well taken care of with regular dealer servicing and low annual milage (about 8500 miles per year). About a year ago, the head gasket started to leak... Since then we had to replace the head gasket, then instrument cluster control module an now - the driver side window mechanism. All in all it about $5000 of repairs on a 8 year old van with about 70K miles on it! Also the dealer - Fisher Chevy in Boulder - treated us very poorly. And the repair cost just snow balled. And now - there is no telling what will be next! Awful reliability and build quality.