NEWS: No Foolin': Chrysler Group Surpasses 11,000,000 Minivan Mark

Courtesy DaimlerChrysler Canada
WINDSOR, ON – Twenty-one years ago at Windsor Assembly Plant, Chrysler Group invented the modern minivan, which was then called "the Magic Wagon." Eleven million sales later, the minivan has forever changed family transportation and the automotive landscape of our highways and driveways. The minivan replaced the old-fashioned station wagon, revolutionized the cup holder industry and put North America's family rooms on wheels.

In March 2005, Chrysler Group surpassed the 11 million minivans sold mark. Dodge and Chrysler minivans are the best-selling in the world. Chrysler Town & Country and Dodge Caravan/Grand Caravan are sold in over 70 countries worldwide.

"Our eleven millionth Dodge Caravan customer today is just as important to us as our first customer was in 1984 and all since then. We didn’t know it 21 years ago, but Chrysler Group’s invention of the minivan proved to be a turning point in automotive history that has helped shape the vehicles and families of today,” said Mike Accavitti, Vice President- Marketing, DaimlerChrysler Canada. “In 2004, Canadians chose our Dodge Caravan over our nearest competitor by a margin of two to one. Calendar year- to-date, our minivans are the best-selling vehicles in the country."

Time and again, speculation surfaces that the minivan segment is going away. The reality is that minivan sales remain vibrant despite a competitive marketplace, averaging roughly 1.2 million annual sales for the past 10 years. Currently, industry-wide minivan sales account for about one of every eight new vehicles sold in Canada. Chrysler Group minivans accounted for 34.9 percent of the Canadian minivan market segment in 2004.

Fun Facts: Did you know?

• Eleven million minivans lined up front to back around the equator would circle the earth almost 1-1/2 times.

• It would take 18,182 football fields to hold the 11,000,000 minivans that Chrysler Group has sold.

• Eleven million minivans could transport:
6,416,667 hockey teams of 12 players per team
5,923,077 soccer teams of 13 players per team
7,700,000 basketball teams of 10 players per team
7,000,000 baseball teams of 11 players per team
3,850,000 football teams of 20 players per team

• The total towing capacity of 11 million minivans is 17.5 billion kilograms, which is enough to haul 44,000 fully loaded Boeing 747 jumbo aircraft at maximum takeoff weight or 51.3 million motorcycles.