I recently had to rent a 2000 GMC Safari mini-van
out on the road after my primary mode of transport
failed me.

All the rental place had left to rent out to me was
a choice between one green Safari, a red one or a
silver one. Some choice huhh?

I had never driven a mini-van before and thought of
this as a good opportunity to expanded my knowledge
of other vehicles. The way they handle, accelerate
etc. Since I had driven full sized vans before I felt
confident about trying the "mini".

I climbed into the drivers seat and first noticed how firm
and comfortable the seat was. The gages and controls
were well placed and well lit when I turned the head
lights on. After driving for a few miles I noticed how
uncomfortable the lack of foot room was in the drivers
seat. Because of the wheel well protruding into the floor
board. My left foot didn't have enough room to be comfortable.

My front seat passenger experienced the same problem except
with her right foot. The riders in the back seats were fine.
They said they had plenty of room. At a gas stop I got into
the back seat and let someone else drive for a while.
The back seats were comfortable and there was lots of head and
leg room. The seats reclined to allow me to sleep for a few
miles.
This Safari had front and rear air-conditioning units.
The weather was hot outside. In the high 90's. But we were cool
inside with the air on the whole trip. Great AC system.

Another feature I liked was the "Dutch doors" and lift-gate in
the back. The lift-gate was great. It allowed a clear view out
the back of the mini-van without that annoying split door frame
getting into the way. Loading and unloading luggage was a breeze
with the lift-gate and two half doors in back.

The V-6 engine had plenty of power to tackle the hills and
highway traffic we had to negotiate on our drive.
I figured out that we averaged 26 miles per gallon on the
highway and about 17 miles per gallon in the city.

The over-all handling was very poor. I didn't like it at all.
The suspension system takes a lot of getting used to.
We grew to hate railroad crossings.

I personally drove about 300 miles total and it was not easy.
If I had to do it all over again I'd rent something else.
A full sized van perhaps or a Chevy Tahoe would have been better.