In 1971, ChevyVan received a major redesign, moving the engine forward of the driver with a short nose and hood. The van was constructed of a unibody style frame and employed stronger truck style hubs and brakes with dual A-Arm independent front suspension. The major restyle followed the engine-forward design of the competing 1968 Ford Econoline. Suspension and steering parts came from the Chevrolet/GMC C-series pickup trucks. GMC now marketed their vans under the VanDura name. These models between 78 and 96 were popular with Van conversions such as Curtis and Starcraft. In addition to the cab-chassis models, there were also factory cube vans from Chevy and GMC, called the Chevy High-Cube or Hi-Cube, and GMC MagnaVan.
For 1997, the Chevrolet and GMC vans were replaced with the next-generation Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana with more aerodynamic styling. These vans were built on a stronger truck frame versus the previous generation's unibody construction. A left-side door was made available for the declining passenger van market.

The G20 passenger van came standard with a 4.1-liter L6 (135 hp (101 kW) and 235 lb•ft (319 N•m) @2400 rpm). The G20 could also have an L05 engine, which was a 5.7-liter V8 (190 hp (142 kW) @ 3600 rpm, 300 lb•ft (407 N•m) @ 2400 rpm). A 7.4-liter V8 (230 hp (172 kW), 385 lb•ft (522 N•m) @2400 rpm) was exclusive to the G30. The transmission choices were a four-speed automatic or a four-speed manual. Chevrolet also offered, in 1982–1995, the Detroit Diesel V8 engine and 5.0-liter V8 (150 hp (110 kW), 247 lb•ft (326 N•m) @2400 rpm).