Auto NSider | 2022 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid Limited
Why do we do things the Hard Way?
Awww…you know I’m talking about you…or at least most of us…me included.
Whether it’s squeezing into clothes two sizes too small…hoping for an extra couple of days out of that yogurt in the fridge…or choosing the wrong vehicle for a road trip…we too often go with nothing more than hope…and wind up making choices that just don’t turn out too well.
And watching parents trying to fold middle schoolers and above into the third rows of some of today’s SUV’s makes me wonder if there just might be an easier way.
Chrysler pondered the same question and came up with a pretty good answer…the Pacifica.
Easy in-and-out sliding doors, garageable length, room for 7 or 8, folding third row and removeable second row seating, bladder-busting 520 mile range, an 82 “equivalent” Hwy MPG’s…and wait till you hear about Chrysler’s Uconnect Family Theatre Group.
Yes…the Pacifica is a mini-van. Chrysler invented them 38 years ago…improved them just about every year…and darned if they might not make more sense today than ever before.
Heck…you might even find yourself questioning if you really need that truck. Take out the second row…fold the third row into the floor…and you’ve got 8 feet of covered storage that’s just an inch or two short of 48 inches wide. Load those 4X8 sheets of plywood at a slight angle and you’re good to go…weather-tight and rain-proof.
But if you don’t want to get your interior dirty, I can’t blame you. Even the high-$30’s Pacifica comes well-equipped. In fact, Chrysler claims that it comes with more standard safety equipment than any other vehicle.
We had the upscale Pacifica Hybrid Limited, tho’, and it proved to be an easy to enjoy ride for our week’s test…with one unexpected surprise that I’ll mention in a moment.
Going hybrid will run right at 10K more than the non-hybrid, but depending upon your usual routine, it could save you well over a thousand a year in gas money.
I’m lucky. I have a 24-mile commute with free charging stations at work. With the Pacifica’s 32-mile all-electric range, the gas gage barely budged in our week-long test.
And as for luxury and tech, a Pacifica in limited trim won’t leave you wanting. For less than 60K, we enjoyed heated and ventilated Nappa leather, heated steering, a big dual-panel sunroof, a 4-G Wi-Fi hot spot, 20-speaker Harman Kardon speakers, 18” black alloys, and those passenger-friendly power sliding doors.
Then that Uconnect Theater Family Group brought our passengers seatback video screens, built-in Amazon Fire TV, Chrysler’s “FamCam” that allows you to keep track of backseat antics, a 115V outlet, and passenger sunshades.
Cavernous room and kids / cargo capability + luxury and tech all in an easy to park package make Chrysler’s Pacifica an interesting option for your garage…even if it’s not an SUV.
Oh…that surprise that I mentioned? I didn’t mean to, but I popped a few wheelies accelerating into traffic.
Unusual behavior for a vehicle like this, but hey…it’s always nice to know that you can…right?
