Mom Move Over, This is My Ride
It's not too often a minivan gets me excited. Not that there is something particularly wrong with the vehicle category or anything, it's just that minivans are normally associated with utilitarian concerns, pragmatic family decisions rather than plights of passion.
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| Normally minivans don't grab your attention and just serve their utilitarian role, but the 2004 Nissan Quest turns the traditional family hauler into one of the most entertaining vehicles I've driven all year. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press) |
Only Nissan could have mixed up both core values with such wild abandonment, turning a family hauler into one of the more entertaining vehicles I've driven all year. And when I'm talking entertaining I'm not referring to the dual flip-down monitors hooked up to the Quest's optional DVD entertainment system, part of an executive jet style central roof-mounted console that runs almost the entire length of the van. I'm also not making mention of the optional landscape-view DVD-based navigation system - as superb as it is. What I mean is the Quest is just plain fun to drive.
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| The Quest is fun to drive, and unlike the majority of rival vans, feels planted to the road even on twisty roads at high speed. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press) |
On the way up a particularly sinuous stretch of pavement Nissan's new minivan felt planted to the roadway, uncharacteristic of the majority of rival vans. Even Honda's class leading Odyssey and Mazda's extremely agile MPV would no doubt be left in a wake of Quest dust when the road starts to wind.
But enough about sports car antics, these are minivans we're talking about and therefore deserve more attention to practical issues. First of all, the Quest is big. With a wheelbase measuring 3,150 mm (124 in) and overall width sitting at 1,971 mm (77.6 in) there's lots of interior space for stowing people and cargo. Overall its 6,000 L (211.9 cu ft) in S and SL trim and 5,986 L (211.4 cu ft) in SE trim, mostly due to the latter model's power operated rear liftgate mechanism and that full-length roof-mounted console I just mentioned, puts the Quest among the largest of front-wheel drive minivans. By the way, straddling the roof console comes an awesome set of four glass sunroofs, two on each side. The Skyview roof adds loads of natural light to the two rear rows, and if it's too bright sliding sunshades are included.