Even though Chrysler just launched the 2017 Pacifica in Detroit, the idea of a surprisingly fast minivan is something straight out of the mid to late 2000s.
At least in Europe, those were the “good old times” for MPV owners who didn’t want to settle for the status quo and drive the kids to school in naturally aspirated petrol-powered slugs or low power turbo-diesel haulers. If you recall, back then there were quite a few alternatives, of pretty much all sizes.
Just to recap, you had the compact Mercedes-Benz B200, which was turbocharged and packed a healthy 193 HP, and then you had the larger Opel Zafira OPC, which was good for a whooping 240 HP. Those who needed even more room, or proper minivan room, could always go for the Ford S-MAX 2.5 Turbo with its 220 HP, which was also arguably the best looking car in its class. Not surprisingly, none of them came to the States.
Nowadays, there’s no way any automaker is justifying a fast and thirsty petrol-powered minivan. This is the year 2016 and it’s all about fuel economy and autonomous driving, which means this hypothetical SRT version of the Pacifica, as pretty as it may be, won’t seeing the light of day outside of shows like SEMA.
To be fair, it’s a little difficult to imagine who would actually walk into a dealership and think to themselves that this is clearly the car for them and their family. So unless Jessica Jones goes from hero to soccer mom, we don’t see a lot of customers who’d be interested in buying the Pacifica SRT – intrigued, but not interested.
Scratch that, there are a couple of female and even male celebrities who would probably consider getting this thing, if only to make a strong statement when carpooling.
Rendering courtesy of X-Tomi
PHOTO GALLERY
