Ask The Best And Brightest: Will Minivans Bounce Back?

Derek Kreindler
by Derek Kreindler

If there’s one thing that enthusiasts and the general public can agree on, it’s that minivans are deeply uncool. The terms “swagger wagon” or “man van” may seem like oxymorons, but the minivan marking has seen slow growth this past year.

The Chrysler 700C was an interesting indication of where the segment is heading, although it would be a shocker if the Pentastar brand actually released a vehicle looking that radical. One Automotive News pundit seems to think that there’s a future in the minivan segment. We’ll leave it up to you.

Derek Kreindler
Derek Kreindler

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  • Tessai Tessai on Jan 23, 2012

    Recently purchased a Mazda5 for my family of 5 and couldn't be happier with the car itself. I've found the best configuration for cargo and passenger loads is to keep the rearmost seats folded when not in use (most weekdays). When the whole family does go somewhere together, we fold up one of the rear seats for that child and load him in through the rear hatch. All of my children are still in car seats so leg room isn't a factor. The biggest factor for me for minivans vs an SUV/CUV? Sliding rear doors. It is so much easier to load and unload the munchkins without keeping one eye on a swinging door and trying to prevent it from bumping the car next to me in the parking lot. I've also never felt it to be slow when driving, either. It feels like any other 2.3L Mazda3. Parking it next to my sister's 2011 Mazda3 and the cars are nearly the same length, I've just got a bit more height and no slope to the roofline in my favor for space. In my test driving, if you really want speed the Kia Sedona was surprising in how quick it was. Much quicker than an Odyssey. But then again this is a minivan, not a sports car. I have no issues in the Mazda5 with passing or accelerating to highway speeds, and my local speed limit is 70mph. The saddest thing I found while researching for this purchase was just how few vehicles are available with a 3rd row that are priced for a family to afford. Also I'm averaging 24mpg in mostly suburban driving with some highway. The same routes landed me a whole 27mpg in a 2011 Kia Rio. So, yeah, I'll take the extra space and power the 5 offers for a 3mpg hit.

    • Jpcavanaugh Jpcavanaugh on Jan 23, 2012

      I recently found the perfect compromise. The price of a Mazda5 and the size/utility of an Odyssey: The Kia Sedona. We are a few years from being empty nesters, with 3 kids in high school and college. The Sedona is the oldest minivan design out there right now, and is priced fairly aggressively. Also, all of the ratings I can find (CU and TrueDelta) seem to indicate a better record than Chrysler (and even Honda) for repair frequency. Throw in a really good warranty, and we bought one. Overall, I really like it. I don't like it as well as my 99 Town & Country (which I considered the virtually perfect minivan) but it is MUCH more powerful. Considering the value it is, I am perfectly happy to make the tradeoffs. But then, I always did want to buy cars by the pount.

  • FJ60LandCruiser FJ60LandCruiser on Jan 23, 2012

    We Americans are allergic to cars that make sense. Small family car that hauls crap: wagon. Large family car that hauls crap: minivan. Instead, like the idiots we are, we try to stuff families of five into sedans with no cargo space (the sedan is the most useless car body style in existence second only to the coupe) and when that doesn't work we then create dozens of excuses about why we "need" a crossover/CUV. "The Camcord just doesn't hold the kids, their friends, and our active liefstyle mountain bikes!" Instead of getting a proper boxy roomy wagon or minivan, people flock to idiotic CUVs/crossovers which are either bad handling tall wagons with bad fuel economy or minivans with the sliding doors replaced with traditional car doors and laghable comparable interior space. BUT THEY HAVE FOUR WHEEL DRIVE! Until we get over ourselves that cars should offer practicality over all else and stop caring about being seen in an "uncool car," (you're a 40 year old overweight parent with a crap job, you haven't been cool in decades, or EVER) then we'll never see the endless sidestepping of the American car market around the issue that we all really are best served driving a wagon or minivan.

  • Ciriya.com Ciriya.com on Jan 23, 2012

    My word, how much utility do all of you minivan apologists need? Are you guys all hauling plywood, 4 kids, and doing yoga poses at the exact same time? I mean to each their own, but I see no need for minivans when less than 3 kids are in the equation. I've stuffed 3 adults, one baby in a rear-facing seat, one baby stroller, three large suitcases, two small suitcases, and more junk on top of that, all into a 2009 Honda Civic Coupe, with space to move for all involved. Now, I'm not saying that anyone who doesn't do this is wrong, nor even that I would ever do it again given the choice (this was my brother in law's car), but one, you'd be surprised how much in the way of people and stuff some small cars can swallow up, and two, it made me realize that my 2006 Ford Explorer is much more space than I really need for one kid, or even for two kids. Yes, all you vanophiles, I do get lousy gas mileage, but my commute is short, my other drives are not long enough to really dent my wallet, and I just plain don't like the style of minivans. It isn't about impressing anyone - I just like the exterior and interior design of my Explorer better, and the smaller size compared to a minivan. That said, the Explorer will still be on the trading block (due to fuel economy) by the time we get to a new base and start trying for kid #2. Big on the list to hunt for is a last-gen Taurus (AKA: Ford Five Hundred in drag) or a midsize sedan, or a hatchback (Prius, Matrix, VW Golf). Crossovers such as the Rav4, Escape and CR-V will also be on the short list (in interest of fuel economy).

  • Geekcarlover Geekcarlover on Jan 23, 2012

    Seriously? Almost 140 comments from a story about minivans. Who knew such a bland vehicle style could inspire such passion .

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