What does one drive when one needs to move people on occasion, but doesn’t want to wheel in the dreaded minivan? It used to be that one drove a big honkin’ SUV, but then the industry discovered a new niche: the CUV. Dodge’s entry into this class of smaller people mover is the Journey.

For the space conscious family, the Journey may have possibilities to offer than just about any other vehicle on the road. Available with 4 or 6 cylinders, front or all wheel drive and 5 or 7 seats, consumers can configure their Journey just the way they need it. With pricing that begins below 20 grand, the Journey also offers considerable value.

Our tester is a 2009 Journey R/T with 3.5l V6, all wheel drive and leather clad 7 passenger seating. With all the toys packaged into this one, it tips the wallet at $34,470 CDN which is still quite affordable considering the level of content on offer.

Yesterday we had to move a bunch of mechanics around, so we decided it would be a great time to put the Journey’s back seats to the test. The contortions it took to load a couple of 200 pounders into the 3rd row were worthy of a Cirque De Soleil show, definitely good for a few laughs. The way back seats are obviously intended for the kid’s friends and wouldn’t be the spot of choice for an adult for more than a few minutes.

Over the next week, we’ll keep our readers up to date on how the Journey lives up to life in The Garage. It’s that time of year again, so you can be sure the 3 hockey bag test will be making a reappearance in The Garage.