Automakers have taken on a daunting task — trying to convince buyers that the minivan, that "much-ridiculed mom-mobile," is actually "cool," according to The New York Times. Toyota has a viral ad, complete with fervently rapping suburban parents, to market its Sienna as a "swagger wagon;" Honda commercials say the 2011 Odyssey "beckons like no van before;" and Chrysler is trying to woo skeptical fathers by nicknaming its the new Dodge Grand Caravan the "dad van." Will the image rethink launch a comeback for the minivan? (Watch a report about TVs built into some minivans)
Minivans are utilitarian, not cool: Calling the Sienna a "swagger wagon" changes nothing, says Roman Mica in TFLCar. "It's still a front drive minivan with seating for an entire Cub Scout troop" that will soon be littered with "exploding tube yogurts." Marketing execs can try to make these utilitarian family buses more man-friendly, but "no matter how you sex [them] up in ads," they will always radiate dullness.
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