Driving Down Memory Lane in the Original Minivan

Agree. I would add that most in an SUV would be better off in a minivan. The minivan is the perfect way to quickly cover long distances in comfort for 3+ people.

Speaking of cargo space, the latest Chrysler minivan products have lie-flat rear seating that disappears into the floor and provides a huge flat area for sleeping/transport.

My family fleet consists of a Chrysler minivan, two Honda Accords, Toyota Tacoma 4x4, diesel VW beetle and diesel VW Westfalia Camper Van. The minivan is by far the most practical car and the easiest and most comfortable to travel in.

> downside is how you are sometimes perceived, and thus treated, when on the highway..

Also my experience. No one wants to be behind a mom van and no one wants to be passed by a mom van. Often get passed while going 10+ over the speed limit only to have the person pull in front and slow back down the the posted speed. Ironically, the 3.6 Pentastar engine in the Chrysler minivan is the most powerful engine by far in my fleet at almost 300HP. Fuel mileage is close to 25mpg when cruise is set at 70mph.

Minivan is rational purchase but we are not rational beings, especially when it comes to car purchases. Choice of vehicle represents our aspirations, self-image, etc.

In the Bay Area at least, I typically see more Prius drivers staying in the left lane (working that HOV lane pass?) going the speed limit or otherwise slower than drivers in lanes to the right of them. In the Midwest, it would tend to be more minivan and truck drivers doing this. Midwesterns also seem to prefer larger vehicles.

I'm personally sick of driving vans but admit that they can be practical. However, for hauling 1-2 people >99% of the time, a small sedan makes much more sense to me. I've fit a queen bed frame + a passenger, and camping + living supplies for 10 days of burning man for 2 people in an 8th gen Civic, so I don't generally buy the "I really need a large vehicle" arguments.

I also much prefer something like a BMW 5 series or a Volvo for road trips. Vans are not the worst for them, but the unsupportive seats, dead steering feel, poor performance, and otherwise joyless driving dynamics suck a lot of the life from a trip for me.

The station wagon once ruled the driveways of families but as the next generation grew up viewing wagons as "something my boring/lame/uncool parents drove" they were primed to buy whatever alternative arose. The minivan was that alternative an inherited the throne, ruling over the family market for another generation. Then the SUV, a slightly more refined take on the traditional body-on-frame 4x4 burst onto the scene in the form of the Ford Explorer and Jeep Grand Cherokee. It's plainly obvious that the SUV was handed the "family" crown somewhere around 2000-2003 by comparing the sales charts of minivans and SUVs. The dowager queen called the station wagon was effectively dead by that time.

Now we're reaching the point in time when the children of the 90's, those raised in the backseat of a Ford Explorer or Honda Pilot. SUVs have softened over time as they've gone unibody and ditched any pretense of off-roading prowess but they are still a distinct category, one that is about to be ousted by the rise of the "crossover". While it's easy to argue that crossovers are still SUVs, especially when companies like Ford have relabeled SUV stalwarts as "crossovers", there are distinct differences between the SUV and the modern crossover. The crossover takes the best qualities of the SUV, the high seating position and the 5 door hatchback bodystyle and merges it with the best traits of the compact sedan. The prototypical crossovers, the Mazda CX-5, Honda CR-V, and Ford Escape are about the same size as the Ford Explorer of the 90's and early 00's. However, they share more in common with the Mazda 3, Honda Civic, and Ford Focus than they do with any larger SUV. THey bring the wise use of interior space (a CX-5 feels roomier in the backseat than a damn Tahoe), 30mpg+ efficiency, and pure FWD layout (with hacked on AWD systems hardly do anything at all, see: CR-V) which represents a sea change from the SUV in terms of design and marketing intentions.

The minivan was the first "new" form factor to overthrow a design that traces its way back to vehicles like your 1935 Chevrolet Suburban. While the Suburban may have held the same market niche for 64 years, even it changed significantly in the face of the growing demand for "family" focused SUVs with the release of the GMT800 generation.

VW has said it cannot build a modern version with the flat front given the required safety equipment and design requirements. The new Microbus has a much different front to make its safety rating.

Convergent evolution has replaced many SUVs with 'crossovers', which are basically the same thing, without the word cursed word 'wagon', tainted in many Baby Boomers' minds as a symbol of stodgy parenthood.

It's easy to look at the form factor and say "that's been done before" but that ignores hundreds of differing design principles that make for something entirely different on the whole.