Originally Posted by
flensr
Chrysler pacifica plug-in hybrid seems to be the bleeding edge for minivans. I rented one while my honda odyssey was in the shop, and we put it into limp mode by driving it 1-2 blocks at a time going house to house during open-house weekend. Apparently if you don't let it go through it's full 5 minute charge calibration routine for more than 3 drives, it goes into limp mode (oops). I fixed it with a long drive and a full charge at a free city plug-in, but still... If I was going for a more efficient minivan I'd totally be looking at the pacifica. Honda has a long way to go to catch up. Toyota Sienna has a hybrid offering with either FWD or AWD, probably worth considering. I like the way the Honda drives much more than either the toyota or chrysler, but the hybrid and AWD options are compelling alternatives.
She’s got a Pacifica now. Not a hybrid though. She’s killed the car batteries 3x in 5 years for not driving enough. Literally only goes to the grocery store or the kids’ schools 3 mi away. We’re planning a move to the mtns (hopefully next year if rates come down some more) so a FWD van won’t cut it on snow covered curvy mtn roads. So she’ll need something with AWD or 4wd and if we’re changing anyway…might as well go EV if all she’s doing is driving to the school/store.