Chevrolet Astro

Not to be confused with Opel Astra or GMC Astro.
Chevrolet Astro/GMC Safari
Overview
Manufacturer General Motors
Also called GMC Safari
Production 1985–2005
Assembly Baltimore Assembly in Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Body and chassis
Class Cargo Van
Body style 3-door van
Layout Front engine, Rear-wheel drive / All-wheel drive
Powertrain
Transmission 4-speed Automatic
4-speed manual
5-speed Manual
Chronology
Successor Chevrolet Traverse (Astro)
GMC Acadia (Safari)

The Chevrolet Astro was a rear-wheel drive mid-sized van manufactured by General Motors and marketed by Chevrolet from 1985–2005 and over two build generations. Along with its badge engineered variants, the GMC and Pontiac Safari, the Astro was marketed in passenger as well as cargo and livery configurations — featuring a V-6 engine; unibody construction with a separate front engine/suspension sub-frame; leaf-spring rear suspension; rear bi-parting doors and a seating capacity of up to eight passengers.

Competing against Dodge Caravan/Plymouth Voyager and the Japanese Toyota Van, the Astro was marketed as a minivan, though sized between the Chevrolet Venture/Lumina APV unibody minivan and the full-size Chevy Van/Express. Similar to the Ford Aerostar, it had powertrain components in common with GM's other light trucks and up to a 5,500 lb (2,500 kg) towing capacity.

Both Pontiac and GMC have used the Safari nameplate (GMC belonged to the Pontiac/GMC Division); Pontiac used the nameplate on several of its station wagon models from 1955- 1989. The two Safaris, both Pontiac and GMC, were marketed simultaneously, at times by the same dealership, from 1985 through 1989.

The Astro model name had been used previously for the unrelated Chevrolet Astro 1 Concept car, first shown at the New York Auto Show of 1967.[1]

First generation (1985–1995)

First generation
Overview
Production 1985–1995
Body and chassis
Related Chevrolet S-10
Powertrain
Engine 2.5L Tech IV 98 hp (73 kW)I4
4.3L 4300 165 hp (123 kW) V6
4.3L 4300 200 hp (150 kW) V6
Dimensions
Wheelbase 111.0 in (2,819 mm)
Length STD: 176.8 in (4,491 mm)
EXT: 186.8 in (4,745 mm)
1992–94 Astro Cargo Van STD: 177.9 in (4,519 mm)
1992–95 Astro Cargo Van EXT: 187.9 in (4,773 mm)
Width 77.0 in (1,956 mm)
1992–95 Safari & Astro Cargo Van: 77.5 in (1,968 mm)
Height 1985–89: 73.7 in (1,872 mm)
1985–89 Cargo Van STD: 74.5 in (1,892 mm)
1990–91 STD: 74.9 in (1,902 mm)
1990–91 STD: 74.1 in (1,882 mm)
1992–95 Astro: 76.2 in (1,935 mm)
1992–94 Safari Cargo Van: 76.1 in (1,933 mm)
1992–94 Safari SLX: 76.4 in (1,941 mm)
1992–94 Safari 2WD EXT: 76.6 in (1,946 mm)
1992–95 Safari Cargo Van AWD STD: 75.7 in (1,923 mm)
1992–94 Safari Cargo Van AWD EXT: 76.0 in (1,930 mm)
1st-gen GMC Safari

Initial advertising boasted that it was a vehicle that will "make you realize that life is too big for a minivan", referring to the Chrysler minivans. The van seated up to eight passengers.

Engines options ranged from 145 to 190 hp (108 to 142) kW 4.3L V6 engine, depending on options and/or model year. It was also fitted with the 200 hp "W" engine.

Much like the second-generation GM F-body 1970-1981 and X-body vehicles, the GM M-van (Astro/Safari) had a bolt-on subframe incorporating the front suspension from a GM B-body station wagon (Chevrolet Caprice, Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser) with a leaf-spring rear suspension. The lower ball joints were larger than their B-body counterparts (similar to 1977-96 Cadillac D platform vehicles, e.g., Fleetwood limousines). These ball joints were later used in the final Chevrolet Caprice 9C1 (police package) cars manufactured in 1995 and 1996. They also shared many mechanical similarities to the GMT 325/330 midsize S/T pickups and utility vehicles.

As mentioned above, the Astro and Safari were rear-wheel drive vehicles, but in 1990 a new all-wheel drive (AWD) system (the first U.S.-built minivan to do so),[2] designed and developed by FF Developments (FFD),[3] was made optional. The AWD models had a lower fuel economy: 17 miles per gallon highway versus 20 to 21 miles per gallon for rear-wheel drive vans.

In 1990, a new dashboard was introduced along with the availability of an extended body option, sharing its wheelbase with the shorter version. The 1990 model year also introduced the hydroboost braking system, a system using the same accessory belt driven pump to supply the power steering and brakes.

In 1992, a optional doors were introduced. Colloquially known as Dutch doors, these featured to two half bi-parting with a flip-up window above. Previously, Astro and Safari vans were equipped only with biparting doors. An optional 4.3L (RPO L35) with central port injection and a balance shaft was phased in.

In 1993, an electronically controlled 4-speed automatic transmission with overdrive became standard as the sole transmission offering. As with many other 1993 model year GM vehicles, Scotchgard fabric protection also became a standard feature on Astro vans equipped with cloth seats. 1994 also saw the addition of three new exterior paint colors. These colors were Indigo Blue Metallic (#39), Light Quasar Blue Metallic (#20), and Medium Quasar Blue Metallic (#80).

For the 1994 model year, GM started manufacturing most of their vehicles, including the Astro and Safari, with CFC-free air-conditioning systems, which used R134a refrigerant instead of R-12 Freon.


Second generation (1995-2005)

Second generation
Overview
Production 1995–2005
Body and chassis
Related GMC Yukon
Chevrolet Silverado
GMC Sierra
Chevrolet Tahoe
Powertrain
Engine 4.3 L 190 hp (140 kW) V6
Dimensions
Wheelbase 1995–96: 111.0 in (2,819 mm)
1997–2005: 111.2 in (2,824 mm)
Length 189.8 in (4,821 mm)
Width 77.5 in (1,968 mm)
Height 1995–96 Astro: 75.9 in (1,928 mm)
1997–98 Astro: 76.0 in (1,930 mm)
1995–96 Safari: 76.2 in (1,935 mm)
1997–98/2002–03 Safari Cargo Van & 1999–2001 Astro Cargo Van 2WD: 75.3 in (1,913 mm)
1997–2005 Safari & 2002–05 Astro: 75.0 in (1,905 mm)
1999–2001 Astro 2WD: 74.9 in (1,902 mm)
1999–2001 Astro Cargo Van AWD: 75.2 in (1,910 mm)
1999–2001 Astro AWD: 74.8 in (1,900 mm)


1996-2005 GMC Safari
1998 Chevrolet Astro LT (Luxury Touring)
A GMC Safari modified for off road use

In 1995, the model was face lifted with an extended nose that resembled the then-new full-size Express vans. Also for 1995, the shorter length body was dropped. In 1996, a redesigned dash received a passenger side air-bag. The vans remained mostly unchanged until canceled in 2005.

In 2003, GM upgraded the chassis of both the Astro and Safari with certain suspension components, larger brakes, and six-lug, 16 inch wheels from the full-size Chevrolet and GMC half-ton pickup trucks. The modifications improved the handling and braking of the vans.

The last Astro and Safari rolled off the assembly line on May 13, 2005.


Safety and crash testing

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), which is known for its testing of vehicles and results that are often shown on NBC's Dateline television news program, gave the Astro a "Poor" rating in 1996 because of what by all appearances was a horrifying display of structural failure in the Institute's 40 mph (64 km/h) crash test into a fixed, offset barrier. The underbody of the test van buckled, pitching both front seats forward and shoving the crash dummy into the dashboard and steering wheel, and resulting in a broken left leg, leading the Institute to comment that "[t]he collapse of the occupant compartment left little survival space for the driver."[4]

In testing performed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), however, the Astro and Safari fared better, improving from a single-star rating in 1991 to a three-star (driver) and four-star (passenger) rating by 2000. In side impacts, the Astro and Safari both received the highest, five-star rating in every year that the test was administered.

Despite these safety ratings, in 2007 the IIHS reported that in real life situations, the 2001-2004 Chevrolet Astro recorded during calendar years 2002-2005 the least number of killed drivers of all passenger vehicles in the United States, as calculated per every million units on the road. Driver's habits and vehicle usage might have influenced this result.[5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Chevrolet Astro I Concept car at www.ultimatecarpage.com Retrieved on 24/7/08
  2. ↑ Gunnell, John (1993). Standard Catalog of 4x4's 1945-1993. Krause Publications, Inc.
  3. ↑ "No giant here — FF Developments Ltd. — company profile". Ward's Auto World. December 1999.
  4. ↑ http://www.iihs.org/ratings/rating.aspx?id=66 Detailed crash test information, including photos illustrating the Astro's structural collapse.
  5. ↑ Drivers deaths by make and model: fatality risk in one vehicle versus another Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, Status Report, Vol. 42, No. 4, April 19, 2007.

External links

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