Why Don't High End Manufacturers Make Minivans?
#16
VW offers the Routan Minivan.
Porsche is now part of the VWG.
#19
Actually, the VW Transporter is by far the most successful minivan. They are EVERYWHERE in the world. There are luxury models available and are perfect for Europe. They have a small footprint, carry a lot, can cruise at 100-125 mph and get great mileage if you have a TDI. Again, difficult to sell in the US but they do handle better than the Honda or Toyota. The Transporter would be my choice if forced to buy a minivan.
#20
I will simply start by saying I do not like minivans and would never own one.
However, after the Seinfeld post where one member wrote that Porsche enthusiast Jerry Seinfeld supposedly owned a Honda Odyssey to transport his kids, I began wondering why high end manufacturers don't build minivans.
Why doesn't Range Rover, Bentley, Mercedes, Aston Martin, or the like offer a vehicle suited to hauling around youngsters while they watch cartoons on the headrests?
However, after the Seinfeld post where one member wrote that Porsche enthusiast Jerry Seinfeld supposedly owned a Honda Odyssey to transport his kids, I began wondering why high end manufacturers don't build minivans.
Why doesn't Range Rover, Bentley, Mercedes, Aston Martin, or the like offer a vehicle suited to hauling around youngsters while they watch cartoons on the headrests?
and expensive alternatives to minivans do exist of course - lexus GX, LX and similar huge SUVs.
#21
We've owned an Odyssey for six years now, and it's the best travel vehicle IMO. It may not be all that exciting to look at or drive, but nothing beats the versatilty and practicality of a minivan for a family of five.
#23
Imagine this: take a sedan or wagon. Audi A7 for example. Stretch it a few feet. Add a rear facing row behind the front row. Permit storage in the A frame between the first and second rows. Long gull wing doors for ease of entry and fewer dings. Limo conversions aren't cheap but a factory run would be more reasonable.
As it is I've got 3 kids sitting abreast in the back of an A6 avant. Nice handling with Eibach springs. Audi and Volvo have discontinued 3rd row wagons. Next family hauler might be a Ford CMax, Mazda5, R350, or E350 wagon. With my kids I'd rather have a diamond plate interior in the back rather than wood inlays.
I'd consider
http://www.worldcarfans.com/11012082...r-the-toughest
But the height:width ratio is unfavorable and it's not available here.
As it is I've got 3 kids sitting abreast in the back of an A6 avant. Nice handling with Eibach springs. Audi and Volvo have discontinued 3rd row wagons. Next family hauler might be a Ford CMax, Mazda5, R350, or E350 wagon. With my kids I'd rather have a diamond plate interior in the back rather than wood inlays.
I'd consider
http://www.worldcarfans.com/11012082...r-the-toughest
But the height:width ratio is unfavorable and it's not available here.
#24
#27
Slap a Porsche shield on the front and name it something strange like Hippopotamus and it would be a hit. Charge 80-100K for and they will sell like hotcakes.
#28
For me, the funny thing about driving the minivan is the stereotype, incidentally also echoed by many RListers in prior threads. The concensus here seems to be that a minivan driver is one who has given up on life, hence their aggression and/or apathy behind the wheel. How does that stereotype play out for a P-car owner with a minivan? I can go from high-on-life to low-on-life and vice-versa at different times of the day?
#29
Reportedly, BMW was actually close to launching a minivan back in 2005...
Either way, the BMW minivan did actually come to fruition in a manner of speaking. My local BMW dealer here in San Jose has a Honda Odyssey as a courtesy shuttle. The van has had all Honda branding removed and it's been replaced with the Roundel and a 760Li badge
Either way, the BMW minivan did actually come to fruition in a manner of speaking. My local BMW dealer here in San Jose has a Honda Odyssey as a courtesy shuttle. The van has had all Honda branding removed and it's been replaced with the Roundel and a 760Li badge