The Death of the Minivan - A Response
Ian Bogost’s recent Atlantic article chronicles the dramatic decline of the minivan, highlighting its fall from 1.3 million sales in 2000 to numbers now 80% lower. Bogost frames minivans as vehicles purchased “under duress,” implying that families reluctantly traded their cooler cars for practicality.
I take exception to this narrative. In 2007, I bought a new Toyota Sienna not out of necessity, but because I wanted it. I loved that van for the 12 years I owned it. Not everyone sees these vehicles as a surrender to suburban life. Some of us simply appreciate them for what they are: incredibly well-designed, purpose-built vehicles. Sometimes, a practical choice can also be a joyful one.
I didn’t buy a minivan to shuttle a large family around town. At the time, we had three big dogs, and both Lisa and I were active cyclists. I did road events, and she did triathlons and mountain biking. The day I got the van, I took the back seats out and never put them back in. I even rigged up a makeshift bike mount inside the van so we could safely transport our bikes. This was a big deal, considering we often had as much as $20,000 worth of bikes with us. Instead of leaving them exposed on a bike rack, they were securely stored inside.
We drove that van with our dogs to events all over the western U.S., and we loved it right up until the day it finally died. It wasn’t just a vehicle; it was part of so many great memories.
