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By New Car Test Drive
Roomy and versatile.
Introduction
The Chrysler Pacifica helped launch a trend known in the industry as crossover vehicles. Crossovers are designed to combine the best attributes of sport-utility vehicles, sedans, and minivans. The Pacifica drives more like a minivan than an SUV or sedan, but doesn't have the sliding doors or uncool stigma of a minivan.
Pacifica has four sedan-like doors and the wide rear liftgate you'd expect on a sport-utility vehicle. Inside it's roomy and comfortable, whether upholstered in fabric or leather. Getting in and out is easy. It rides like a sedan and handles well for a vehicle of its heft, and it's more enjoyable to drive through suburbia than just about any truck-based SUV. On the highway, it's smooth and quiet.
The Pacifica line offers a range of models, from well-equipped to luxury-class with all the bells and whistles, and it's available with two or three rows of seating. The five-passenger base model has two bucket seats in front with a split folding bench in the second row that seats up to three. Six-passenger models swap the middle-row bench for two folding bucket seats, and add a 50/50 split bench in the rear. Either changes from people mover to cargo hauler in a matter of seconds, and in both cases maximum cargo capacity exceeds that of the typical mid-size SUV.
The Pacifica earned outstanding scores in government crash tests. All-wheel drive is available, making it a good choice for snow country. Towing capacity is 2600 pounds, which is enough for personal watercraft, dirt bikes or camping trailers. It's stylish and handsome, and it doesn't fit easily in any particular mold.
After changes aimed at power and refinement for 2007, 2008 models are little changed. Base models are now called LX, and content is slightly altered model by model.
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