Editing Minivan (section)

==== 1970s and 1980s ====
[[File:Dodge Caravan 1985 (35460915174).jpg|thumb|1985 [[Dodge Caravan]]]]

In the late 1970s, Chrysler began a development program to design "a small affordable van that looked and handled more like a car."<ref name="Smithsonian2">{{cite web|url= http://amhistory.si.edu/onthemove/collection/object_30.html |title=America on the Move - Dodge Caravan|publisher=Smithsonian Institution - National Museum of American History |access-date=2 May 2016}}</ref> The result of this program was the first American minivans based on the [[Chrysler minivans (S)|S platform]], the 1984 [[Plymouth Voyager]] and [[Dodge Caravan]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.allpar.com/threads/creating-the-plymouth-dodge-and-chrysler-minivan-the-caravan-voyager-development-story.228813/#post-1085222911 |title=Creating the Plymouth, Dodge, and Chrysler Minivan: The Caravan/Voyager Development Story |first=David |last=Zatz |work=Allpar |date=16 November 2020 |access-date=26 July 2022}}</ref> The S minivans debuted the minivan design features of front-wheel drive, a flat floor and a sliding door for rear passengers.<ref name="Smithsonian2" /><ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.businessinsider.com/minivan-history-ford-mustang-2017-8?r=AU&IR=T#by-1983-lee-iacoccas-chrysler-minivan-was-ready-8|title=The Ford Mustang and the minivan have an amazing shared history|work=Business Insider|access-date=31 March 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Coolest Minivans of All Time |url=https://www.autoblog.com/photos/coolest-minivans-history/ |access-date=31 March 2019 |website=autoblog.com |language=en}}</ref>

The term minivan came into use largely compared to size to [[full-size van]]s; at six feet tall or lower, 1980s minivans were intended to fit inside a typical garage door opening.<ref name="stepper-85-022">{{cite magazine |last=Stepler |first=Richard |date=February 1985 |title=New generation minivans |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=jQAAAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA75 |magazine=Popular Science |volume=226 |issue=2 |pages=74–75 |access-date=2 May 2016}}</ref> In 1984, ''The New York Times'' described minivans "the hot cars coming out of Detroit,"<ref name="memory2">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/15/business/driving-down-memory-lane-in-the-original-minivan.html |title=Driving Down Memory Lane in the Original Minivan|last=Kurczewski|first=Nick|date=15 December 2016 |newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=2 May 2017}}</ref> noting that "analysts say the mini-van has created an entirely new market, one that may well overshadow the... [[station wagon]]."<ref name="memory2" />

In response to the popularity of the Voyager/Caravan, [[General Motors]] released the 1985 [[Chevrolet Astro]] and [[GMC Safari]] badge-engineered twins, and Ford released the 1986 [[Ford Aerostar]]. These vehicles used a traditional [[rear-wheel drive]] layout, unlike the Voyager/Caravan.<ref name="stepper-85-022" /><ref>{{cite magazine |last=Lamm |first=Michael |date=April 1985 |title=PM drives GM's new minivan |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=YeQDAAAAMBAJ&q=Chevrolet+Astro+rear+wheel+drive&pg=PA48 |magazine=Popular Mechanics|volume=162|issue=4|pages=48, 168 |access-date=23 October 2018}}</ref>

To match the launch of minivans by American manufacturers, Japanese manufacturers introduced the [[Toyota Van]], [[Nissan Vanette]], and [[Mitsubishi Delica]] to North America in 1984, 1986, and 1987, respectively. These vehicles were marketed with the generic "Van" and "Wagon" names (for cargo and passenger vans, respectively).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Autotrader - page unavailable |url=https://www.autotrader.com/car-news/remember-the-japanese-vans-of-the-1980s |access-date=2022-03-02 |website=autotrader.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=2019-11-23 |title=A Van By Any Other Name: Mitsubishi "Wagon" |url=https://oldmotors.net/its-hip-to-be-square-mitsubishi-wagon/ |access-date=2022-03-02 |website=oldmotors.net}}</ref>

In 1989, the [[Mazda MPV]] was released as the first Japanese-brand minivan developed from the ground up specifically for the North American market. Its larger chassis allowed an optional V6 engine and four-wheel drive to fit. In contrast to the sliding doors of American minivans, a hinged passenger-side door was used. A driver-side entry was added for 1996, as Mazda gradually remarketed the model line as an early crossover SUV.

By the end of the 1980s, demand for minivans as family vehicles had largely superseded full-size station wagons in the United States.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=July 1990 |title=Best of the Minivans |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=pgMEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA41 |magazine=Kiplinger's Personal Finance |volume=44 |issue=7 |page=41 |access-date=26 December 2015}}</ref>