The Pacifica is lower than three-row SUVs, making it much easier to load heavy items, like hockey bags.Kunal D'souza/The Globe and Mail
Of all the technological breakthroughs of the 1980s and 1990s, the one most memorable to millennials might just be the sliding door. While utility vehicles had used them for years, the automotive landscape completely changed with the introduction of the minivan.
I remember getting into a friend’s new forest green Plymouth Voyager after school, slipping into the back row and marvelling at an interior that felt like a spaceship. It was a far cry from the wood-panelled station wagon, which was the default school-run vehicle.
In 1983 Chrysler introduced the minivan and sold 209,895 Dodge Caravans and Plymouth Voyagers in the first year.The New York Times
The new design of the Chrysler minivan in 1994 replaced one of the most successful automotive products ever and was made in Windsor, Ont.The Canadian Press
As SUVs surged in popularity through the 2000s and 2010s, the humble people carrier was branded as a “soccer mom” vehicle, a stigma that hurt sales. Even though SUVs consumed more fuel, offered less interior space and were less engaging to drive, they were marketed as rugged, four-wheel-drive adventure vehicles – and that image won over customers. Hauling kids in a stylish, bulky, high-riding SUV suddenly became fashionable. Who needs practicality?
As a result, many automakers abandoned the minivan, leaving only four major players: the Chrysler Pacifica, Toyota Sienna, Honda Odyssey and Kia Carnival.
But even with SUVs dominating today’s market – accounting for 60 per cent of all Canadian sales – the modest minivan is mounting a comeback.
2026 Toyota SiennaCourtesy of manufacturer
2025 Honda OdysseyCourtesy of manufacturer
In 2025, minivan sales in Canada rose 34 per cent while light truck sales fell. It was a similar story in the United States, where sales climbed 21 per cent, securing the highest market share for vans across the U.S. since 2019.
And now a newcomer, the luxury-focused Mercedes VLE, is scheduled to arrive next year, signalling a shift in the tides. There is also the Lucid Gravity, which looks like a minivan and features minivan-like interior volume and seating, but is officially classified as an SUV. Automakers are coming back around to the practicality and selling features of the design, but maybe not the name ... yet.
The sportiest mode offer 828 horsepower and 909 lb-ft of torque.Mark Richardson/The Globe and Mail
Although it’s difficult to directly attribute this uptick to a specific demographic, millennials coincidentally make up the largest cohort of car buyers in Canada and the U.S. This is the same group that grew up in the 1990s riding in the back of minivans – and one that I happen to belong to.
We are now seeing what makes minivans special through a new lens. I have the good fortune to bring home many fancy, head-turning cars to test. My nine-year-old has sat in the back of Porsches, BMWs and Range Rovers, but the ones he likes the most are minivans.
When my editor books a rental car for a family vacation, his kids request a minivan. We recognized the advantages as children in the 1990s, and now our own kids are seeing them, too – prompting more parents to change their tune.
The vacuum in the second row of the Toyota Sienna.Courtesy of manufacturer
Access to the third row of the Pacifica is easy by moving forward the second row.Kunal D'souza/The Globe and Mail
With two young children – including a nine-month-old – I know firsthand how convenient power sliding doors and folding seats are. Most three-row SUVs compromise cargo space when the third row is in use, often forcing you to fold the seats down just to load a stroller. And the third row is usually only suitable for kids, making entry and exit difficult without a wide sliding door to climb through.
Power doors are a luxury you will wonder how you lived without. They are easy for kids to operate and you’ll never have to worry about them swinging a door into a car parked beside you. The large openings also make it easy to install up to five child seats and strap your kids in – all without dealing with the stepover height of a large SUV just to load cargo.
The Chrysler Pacifica features middle-row seats that fold completely into the floor, a system introduced in 2005. This design makes it incredibly easy to transform your kinder-schlepper into a cargo van capable of hauling a four-by-eight-foot sheet of drywall or plywood.
The Pacifica has middle and third-row seats that fold completely into the floor, a system introduced in 2005.Kunal D'souza/The Globe and Mail
The Honda Odyssey has a trick middle seat in the second row that can fold to create an armrest with cupholders, or it can be removed completely. That leaves the outboard captain’s chairs free to slide forward, backward or side-to-side, providing a wide range of seating options. While these seats don’t collapse into the floor, they are easily removed and stored.
New vans are also peppered with USB ports and cupholders. The Toyota Sienna has 18 cupholders while the Honda Odyssey is equipped with 15. You are probably thinking: Who has that many cups? The answer is no one, but the utility and convenience of always having a slot available is unmatched.
The front seats and dash of the Pacifica, like all minivans, has a lot of useable space and cupholders.Kunal D'souza/The Globe and Mail
Kunal D'souza/The Globe and Mail
They can even be equipped with drop-down TV screens and your favourite streaming services to keep back-seat passengers entertained.
The few three-row SUVs that offer comparable interior space and seating capacity, such as the Ford Expedition or Chevrolet Suburban, are basically personal big rigs. With six-figure price tags and big, thirsty engines, they don’t make much sense for most families.
These SUVs are built on truck platforms with high floors and extra ground clearance – which is great for a rocky trail but not ideal for daily driving or lifting hockey bags into the trunk. Minivans are based on cars, making them quieter inside and much more comfortable. You also get better visibility with the larger windows, as well as lower fuel consumption thanks to better aerodynamics.
The Toyota Sienna is exclusively a hybrid, rated at just 6.8 litres per 100 kilometres on the highway, an amazing figure for an all-wheel-drive vehicle capable of carrying up to eight passengers.
Nostalgia seems to follow a 30-year cycle. Look no further than the revival of baggy jeans, cargo pants and TV shows such as X-Men ’97 or new movies like Masters of the Universe. And, of course, minivans. But unlike some fashion trends, minivans offer tangible benefits for buyers who regularly transport people and cargo – which is almost all of us.
They were the best choice for families when Chrysler rolled out the first one in 1983, and they still are today.
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