The Minivan Revival No One Saw Coming

Issue #113

Happy Saturday!

Today, we discuss an unlikely comeback, how tariffs are impacting unexpected areas, and what Toyota did in Japan. Plus, we have much more news!

Market News

• Toyota has killed off the gas-only version of this legendary car in Japan. 

• Mazda chose to deliver its new CX-50 SUVs to American customers instead of this country. 

• Tesla’s taxi projects hit a snag, and it’s all because of the name. 

• Volvo has worked relentlessly to create a US-focused SUV. This could be it. 

• Ford has increased the price of these two models, citing tariffs as the reason. 

• The new Chevy Work Truck EV brings you both massive range and abysmal efficiency. 

• This deal may lower tariffs on cars from the UK, but there’s a catch. 

• This Ford employee had a massive theft ring worthy of a movie. 

• Audi aims to open these many factories in the US. 

• This Japanese brand continues to sell, despite being the smallest. 

Safety and Recalls

• Volvo has had a massive recall due to this issue. 

• What are the luxury cars with the least number of recalls? Here are six you can consider. 

• After a robotaxi crash, Amazon recalls its services. 

Car Culture

• This ultra-rare American sports car is up for sale. Would you buy it

• Some custom cars are best left as ideas on paper, and not in real life. Here’s what we mean. 

• Will Hot Wheels also face tariffs? Here’s what we mean. 

• The first Ford Ranger wasn’t a pickup. Instead, it was this.

• A boring Toyota hatchback has just become really cool. 

• This was the slowest Ford Mustang ever. 

• Here are all the 3-row SUVs you can buy. 

• How have tariffs on films affected this F1 movie? 

• Is Rain-X good or bad? Here’s some valuable info. 

• These are the best car jacks for the home mechanic.

Video Of The Week

Power On The Go

The 2nd Best Gift I’ve Ever Given My Dad (Hands Down)

This past Christmas, my dad lit up more than the tree when I gave him a solar generator. He uses a CPAP machine at night and constantly worries about losing power—especially with hurricanes and winter storms here in North Carolina.

Knowing he finally had a reliable backup gave both of us peace of mind.

That’s why I joined Bluetti’s affiliate program. Their lineup of solar generators is incredibly solid—and they’ve got models for everything from emergency home backup to road trip charging stations.

Personally, I have the EB3A. It’s compact, perfect for camping or tossing in the car to charge phones and laptops. But if you want to power bigger stuff—like a fridge during an outage—you’ll want one of their larger units.

👉 Check out the current Bluetti deals here.

Yes, that’s an affiliate link. No, it doesn’t cost you anything extra. But every click helps support this newsletter and keeps the content coming. Win-win.

In The Know

The unlikely rise of the minivan

In 2024, the automotive industry was experiencing many changes.

Electric vehicles were about to become the norm, but then they weren’t, and V8s made a comeback.

Sedans were on their way to the cemetery, and Tesla and Ford were mainstays as the most recalled brands in the country.

Even with all this chaos and uncertainty, many automotive fans were certain of one thing: the minivan was as good as dead, as this article explains. 

It made perfect sense to rule out the minivan’s future, because what made it great was no longer exclusive to that vehicle type.

Passenger room, cargo volume, and comfortable seats are now common in SUVs and even some sedans. So, the minivan’s advantage had disappeared.

Apparently, they’re still helpful for carrying live ammunition, although we’re not endorsing such use.

That’s not to say that people were no longer buying it in 2024. The Chrysler Pacifica (the company’s only model) sold an impressive amount, and the media had to give credit where credit was due.

While Chrysler is a minivan company now, it’s not the only automaker producing these.

Volkswagen came up with the ID Buzz, and as this article correctly highlights, it has everything you need and everything you don’t. 

But nowadays, that is what happens with minivans. In a world of competition, they need to stand out; to do so, they might take it to the extreme. 

I’ll be the first to say that I never really liked them.

Still, my only experience with them was my dad’s old Plymouth Voyager, which handled like a drunken moose and had less power than a D-type battery. However, this is no longer the case. 

You can buy minivans with AWD, and that’s only the tip of the iceberg. 

The Toyota Sienna has a fridge, a specialized vacuum, and more safety tech than most cars. Sure, other vehicles might also have this, but it makes even more sense when it’s a minivan.

Everybody knows the chaos that follows a basketball practice pickup. 

There’s no denying the practicality of a minivan, but was it enough to mount a comeback? Well, it turns out that it was!

Automotive sales are teetering in uncertainty, yet the minivan has risen above the rest. One such example is the Kia Carnival, which has seen sales increase 60% year-to-year, and the Kia Carnival isn’t the most popular minivan out there.

Famous models such as the Sienna, which we mentioned before, and the Odyssey are also available. This article explains that all these models have shown an increase in sales. 

Granted, the minivan might not replace the SUV, but I’d be surprised if it disappears before the sedan.

Who knows?

Maybe, we’ll be in line for a minivan soon. In the meantime, here’s our review of one of the most popular minivans ever to hit American roads, the Honda Odyssey.