Motor Trend Magazine
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As far as First World problems go, moving is pretty high up in the standings. One of few that rank higher is helping someone else move, which has the pitfalls of moving all of your stuff plus the downside of not having a new place to live in afterwards. Aside from generally being a huge pain, moving also requires a suitable vehicle. Usually a pickup or rented moving van, depending on distance and amount of stuff necessary. I split the difference, opting to use our long-term 2010 Volkswagen Routan since he doesn't own any large furniture.
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He may not own any furniture, but he does own entirely too many clothes, as is evidenced by the filled-to-the-brim minivan you see here. Somewhere behind that pile is a twin-size mattress and nearly a dozen trash bags filled with clothes. Thankfully, the flat-bottomed Routan had enough space for everything, though some creative packing was necessary.
The downside of the Routan in heavy-laden situations is its brakes. Like the mechanically identical Chrysler Town & Country and Dodge Grand Caravan, the Routan is underbraked. Unladen, it needs 136 feet to stop from 60 mph and it does not inspire confidence as it decelerates. Loaded up, it gets considerably worse. On the plus side, the 4.0-liter V-6 didn't have any problems moving the now two-and-a-half-plus ton van along.
Is the Routan the best choice possible for a moving van? Probably not, but its an adequate and stylish one. Now to find some superglue to reattach bottom of the driver-side A/C vent to the dash...
