Celebs Drive Minivans and Hybeiss Right Think Again
Paddle shifters, refrigerators, captain'south chairs: Automakers are desperate to make minivans cool again
"A minivan isn't more uncool than your average crossover."
Amit Shah's three children were cheering him on from the second row as their 2018 Honda Odyssey minivan quickly gathered speed on the Palisades Interstate Parkway. They were running tardily and so Shah did what was necessary: Pedal to the metal.
"Nosotros overtook a McLaren," Shah, a longtime fan of minivans, said with a laugh. "My kids were excited."
Shah could not convince his wife to buy a minivan even as their family unit grew in size. That all changed when they rented one on a trip to California a few years ago.
"We thought it was and so much easier to load and unload than my Durango [SUV]," he told ABC News. "The Durango is non as versatile every bit the minivan, which drives better. The Odyssey is also more comfortable."
Minivans, like the once beloved station wagon, have seen their popularity plummet since sport utility vehicles were introduced in the 1990s. But four automakers -- Toyota, Honda, Kia and Chrysler -- currently produce minivans. These newfangled "multi-purpose vehicles" come up with captain's chairs, refrigerators, paddle shifters, 20-inch wheels, the latest safe tech, huge screens, muscular exterior styling and enough room to fit up to eight people.
In Shah's town of Englewood Cliffs, New Bailiwick of jersey, parents haul their kids to school in Range Rovers, Cadillac Escalades and giant SUVs. But when Shah arrives in his Odyssey, he's a local celebrity.
"Kids x and under love minivans," he said. "It's like I pulled upwardly in a Ferrari."
It was the Chrysler Pacifica that convinced Car and Driver senior editor Ezra Dyer and his married woman to ditch their Lincoln MKT crossover permanently for a minivan.
"My wife and I were like, 'Why are we too cool for this awesome level of convenience? Why are nosotros denying ourselves this?'" he told ABC News. "I had a child for x years before I had a minivan. I wish I had this moment of enlightenment sooner."
The Pacifica's sporty looks and red interior even persuaded Dyer'southward sister-in-law to buy a matching minivan one week later. The plug-in hybrid Pacifica gets 30 miles in total electric mode, Dyer said, perfect for ferrying his 2 kids and 2 dogs around town regularly.
"Even the dogs similar the Pacifica better," he said. "Until y'all experience one, it'southward hard to capeesh minivans."
And the shortage of Pacificas in showrooms may be a sign minivans are experiencing a comeback, Dyer noted.
"Minivans are undercover cool," he said. "There could be a bigger future for minivans than there is now."
Toyota relaunched the Sienna minivan, now in its quaternary generation, last year with a hybrid powertrain and all-cycle-drive selection. Sales have already reached 75,000 units so far and Michael Tripp, vice president of vehicle marketing and communications at Toyota N America, expects that number to summit 100,000 by December.
"Nosotros're very happy with the launch of this 4th generation Sienna. Toyota never thought about scrapping it," he told ABC News. "Nosotros strongly believe in this segment."
Toyota'southward designers were determined to make the Sienna sleek, sexy and provocative -- even sports car similar -- to boost sales. The Sienna too got upgrades that few ultra luxe sport utility vehicles offer: Captain'south chairs, 2d-row seats with pop-up ottomans, a refrigerator, roof rack and tow hitch.
"We actually learned with the third generation that if nosotros had the right packaging and styling, people would be excited to drive it -- not ashamed or embarrassed," he said. "We had to become the styling right."
Honda's Odyssey reigns as the acknowledged minivan in the terminal decade. The Japanese automaker has sold more than 510,000 units in the last five years and nearly iii million since its debut 26 years ago -- making the Odyssey Honda'south second best-selling low-cal truck of all-fourth dimension. Odyssey owners are also some of the youngest in the brand; only the Borough attracts a younger buyer.
The 2022 Odyssey is powered past a three.5-liter V6 engine that makes 280 horsepower and 262 lb.-ft. of torque. Other highlights include LED lights, power-sliding rear doors, wireless charging, keyless entry, heated steering bike, ventilated forepart seats and reconfigurable and removable 2nd-row seats.
Rory Carroll, editor-in-main of Jalopnik, was blown away by the Odyssey after driving information technology for a week in Michigan with his family. The minivan's suite of safety systems -- including its child surveillance cameras -- impressed him most as a dad.
"Honda has a camera back there that monitors [passengers] and so the driver doesn't have to have their optics off the road. That feature lonely would exist a big selling signal for parents," he told ABC News.
Multiple-bus sales accounted for 1.ix% of the U.S. market in 2020, co-ordinate to IHS Markit. Carroll said he does not empathise why and then few American families drive minivans. They're more than spacious and practical than an ute and a lot easier to enter and exit -- especially for adults. Plus, today'south minivans hardly resemble the boxy vans from decades ago.
"The Pacifica has an unexpectedly cute minivan shape ... information technology's shocking how good-looking information technology is and aerodynamic," he said. "Kia's Carnival very explicitly looks like an SUV to concenter people who would buy a crossover."
He added, " A minivan isn't more uncool than your average crossover."
Joseph Choi, product planner for the 2022 Kia Funfair, said millennials with families and childless couples are snapping up the new Carnival, which replaced the automaker's Sedona minivan this year. Demand is so hot that dealers have problem keeping the minivan on lots, he said.
"The top trims are selling like gangbusters," he told ABC News. "Many millennials are trying to suspension gratis from societal norms of the past. The Carnival is suitable for so many needs and you don't take to use all the utility all the time."
Kia went tech heavy with the Carnival to attract these key customers, installing a 360-degree camera, dual 12.three-inch screens, a Bose stereo organisation and 12 driver assistance system features. The three.v-liter V6 engine makes a healthy 290 hp and leather seats and a panoramic roof are too available in certain trims. The minivan's "VIP Lounge Seats," with power controls and leg extensions, are "unlike any experience," Choi said, comparing the seats to those in the glitzy $161,000 Mercedes Maybach GLS SUV.
Choi said the upscale interior and assuming, rugged look of the Carnival could aid it steal sales from the contest, which he admitted was vehement for such a niche marketplace.
"Everybody has upped their games," he said. "Information technology's all about the execution."
Car and Driver's Dyer said he'due south shocked his Pacifica gets so many shout-outs from strangers.
"I did not anticipate that anyone would notice information technology and compliment it. No one always said anything almost the Lincoln we had," he said.
At that place'south just one pocket-size complaint.
"I wish it had 100 more horsepower," he said. "Zero to 60 in 5 seconds? I'd take that."
Source: https://abcnews.go.com/Business/paddle-shifters-refrigerators-captains-chairs-automakers-desperate-make/story?id=79941283
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