Chevrolet Van

This page talks about the 1964-1996 Chevrolet Van and GMC Vandura. For the long-wheelbase versions (Beauville/Rally), see Chevrolet Beauville. For the post-1996 successor, see Chevrolet Express.

The Chevrolet Van was one of several vans made by General Motors for North America. Its strongest competition was the Ford Econoline van and the Dodge Ram Van.

The term "Chevrolet van" also refers to the entire series of vans sold by Chevrolet. The first Chevrolet van was released in 1961 on the Corvair platform, and the latest Chevrolet van in production is the Chevrolet Express.

History

The first General Motors van was the Chevrolet Corvair-based Greenbrier van, introduced for 1961, which used a flat-6 opposed rear engine with air cooling, inspired by the Volkswagen bus.

The ChevyVan (1964-1970) was, like the competing Ford Econoline and Dodge A100, a compact van based on a modified passenger car platform. The engine was placed between and behind the front seats with a flat nose. Both engines and brakes were sourced from the Chevy II, a more conventional compact car than Corvair. This model was also sold as the GMC Handi-Van.