Soccer mom minivans make major comeback as SUV…
Much maligned as an embarrassing mom-mobile, the minivan is making a comeback.
The surge in minivan purchases comes as Americans enter a new period of increased car prices, with the average price of a new car hovering around $50,000.
Crucially, minivans fall properly below that median, while SUVs are hovering far above it.
Minivans are roaring back into fashion, ditching their “mom-mobile” stigma for sensible perks like decrease prices and better fuel economic system. Kyryl Gorlov – stock.adobe.com
Large SUVs now average $67,000+, and minivans start around $40,000, a appreciable differential that’s more and more onerous for customers to ignore.
According to Yahoo News, minivan gross sales jumped 21% in the U.S. last 12 months, while the general auto market grew just 2%.
Meanwhile, gasoline costs continue to soar, and people are looking out for automobiles that are either electric or fuel environment friendly, serving to minivans edge out their SUV competitors.
To that end, minivan loyalists and converts cite space, fuel economic system, and value as causes to choose out of an SUV and into a van.
The Odyssey’s epic title and versatile inside appeal to dad and mom and vacationers. jetcityimage – stock.adobe.com
On Reddit boards devoted to SUV vs. minivan comparisons, feedback usually skew in favor of the common-or-garden, sensible van.
“Everyone is going to be more comfortable in the van. Everything is going to fit better in the van,” said one Redditor.
“I secretly take the minivan instead of my pickup truck a lot of times,” confessed one dad. “That thing is BITCHIN!” he added, noting that the sliding doorways make faculty drop-off seamless and loading canine and children a lot simpler.
“It kills me to say, but the minivan is just insanely practical. Not to mention, the number of features you get in a minivan for the price rivals luxury vehicles priced significantly higher,” theorized another.
For those nervous about the aesthetics, another commenter got here right with these onerous truths.
“Since when were SUVs aesthetic? SUVs are popular like Olive Garden is popular. May as well paint every room in your house gray and put a live laugh love sign over your sink,”
So Reddit speaks, and the world listens.
According to Chris Heck, head coach at Jeff Wyler Superior Honda in Cincinnati, gross sales of the Honda Odyssey are on the rise.
“They’re up 30% over the last two years. We find that’s primarily due to the price segment of this vehicle and gas. The fuel economy on the vehicle is actually very, very good,” Heck told Scripps News, counting storage space as another draw.
“The cargo volume, I think, is its biggest seller, honestly,” he said.
Heck believes minivans are shedding both their social stigma and their popularity for lethargic handling. Romvy – stock.adobe.com
He shared that the Odyssey’s epic title and versatile inside appeal to dad and mom and vacationers, with a third row that folds flat into the ground and a center row that will be reconfigured between a bench and captain’s chairs.
“There’s a lot of configurations you can do with the vehicle,” Heck maintains.
Further, Heck believes minivans are shedding both their social stigma and their popularity for lethargic handling.
“They have a lower center of gravity. They drive like a car,” he said.
Perhaps the best commercial for the magic of the minivan comes from this commenter: “You can pry my Pacifica keys out of my cold, dead fingers.”
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