The Chevrolet Venture was a minivan produced by the Chevrolet division of General Motors from 1997 to 2004 model years. It replaced the Chevrolet Lumina APV. Visually identical minivans were also was sold in Europe as the Opel Sintra, and in the UK they were badged as a Vauxhall. Opel assisted in the development of the minivan as well. During the 2004 model year, the Venture (along with the Astro) was replaced by the similar new 2005 Chevrolet Uplander. The Venture (along with other GM minivans) was built in Doraville, Georgia.
History
The Venture was introduced to the market in 1996 for the 1997 model year as a replacement for the radically styled Lumina APV. In the United States it was also sold as the Oldsmobile Silhouette and the Pontiac Trans Sport, which was later renamed as the Pontiac Montana for 1999. The Venture and its siblings were powered by GM's 3400 V6, introduced in 1996 in their precessors (Lumina APV, Trans Sport and Silhouette), rated at 180 hp. After 1999 the engine was slightly redesigned to produce an extra 5 hp, for a total of 185. All Ventures used a four-speed automatic transmission. A Warner Brothers edition introduced in 2000 featured a DVD entertainment system, a novelty at the time. The exterior was refreshed in 2001, and all-wheel drive was introduced in 2002. Reviews and sales were generally lukewarm, especially about the relatively narrow cabin due to being designed for European roads. The vans came in both short and long wheelbases, and all-wheel-drive versions like the Chrysler minivans. The 3rd row was designed to fold flat, but forming a higher floor unlike the Honda and Mazda minivans that folded into a well behind the 3rd row.
The Venture was replaced after 2005 by the Chevrolet Uplander, which was essentially a facelift with one long wheelbase configuration, and a longer nose which served chiefly to improve crush distance and styling more like an SUV. Only the long-wheelbase Venture was sold for 2005.