The styling of our Sportvan Beauville was not a radical departure from years past. This was a basic utility vehicle and looked like it. It was big, brawny and boxy, but not completely without ornamentation. The finish on our Beauville was a fabulous Emerald Green Metallic, confirming our belief that Chevrolet knows how to build and paint a truck.Attractive chrome-trim strips framed the wheel openings, and a ribbed plastic-and-chrome protective strip encircled the lower part of the body. Our model was missing a strip of molding on one of its rear doors, the only real glitch in the Beauville's exterior fit-and-finish. The large side-view mirrors stuck out rather obtrusively, but this was a cosmetic complaint against mirrors that delivered excellent rear vision. The mirrors were vital, too, because the double back doors and windows met to form a post that obscured vision through the interior rearview mirror.
Inside, our Beauville was equipped with the basic seating arrangement of two buckets and two benches. Wit this configuration we could carry as many as eight people and still have plenty of room for cargo. When we removed both benches, we were looking at 260 cubic feet of cargo space. The seats were comfortable, if not exactly easy chairs. Our added reclining feature was nice, but there was little lumbar support. The seats were Scotchgard-protected, a great defense against spilled coffee and squashed jelly doghnuts. The passenger-side armrest was fine to lean on but the driver-side armrest was angled up and seemed almost useless. Likewise, the position of the driver's seat was fine for comfort, but the steering wheel was disappointing. Horn buttons were hard to find, and the wheel was not set for a good grip. The instrument configuration looked 10 to 15 years old and was arranged in three round gauges: one for the speedometer, one for the fuel and another combining oil, battery and water readings. These days, that kind of design not only lacks innovation, it's just too sparse. There were some pleasantries inside our Beauville. We did enjoy our up-to-date AM/FM stereo and cassette player. Combined with the tinted windows and power assists, it added a sense of luxury to the vehicle. |
