The Chrysler minivan may be in its mid-twenties, but it will always be known as a home-grown baby - one that’s been widely adopted by more than 80 nations. So satisfy those markets, Chrysler Group LLC’s Windsor (Ontario) Assembly Plant has started making minivans for overseas buyers.
The plant is a Flexible Manufacturing System facility, meaning it can produce both diesel engine and right-hand drive versions of the minivans on the same line as gasoline powered and left-hand drive minivans.
Outside of North America, the minivan is known as the Chrysler Grand Voyager, and last year, the company sold 21,513 minivans outside of the continent in more than 80 countries. Since Chrysler Group invented the segment more than 25 years ago, the company sold more than 12 million minivans worldwide. That figure includes more than 1.6 million in Canada.
Chrysler first began offering right-hand drive versions of the minivan in 1997 in locations such as the United Kingdom, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Singapore, and the Philippines. For international markets, the Grand Voyager is equipped with an optional 2.8-liter common-rail diesel (CRD) engine, which makes up 90 percent of sales in some European countries.
Having made minivans since 1983, Windsor Assembly
Plant workers know how to build them efficently, both inside and
out. The 4.01 million square foot facility occupies 176.92 acres
and employs approximately 4,627 workers, many of whom are
represented by the Canadian Auto Workers. It remains Chrysler's
only auto assembly plant operating on three shifts.
