Who says we can’t put the Swagger in the Wagon?
I was reading blogs and came across two women/mothers who thought that is was ridiculous that Toyota was trying to make their Toyota Sienna Minivan “cool” looking.
Quotes below:
“It's tough to put swagger in a minivan. Toyota Motor Corp. has tried to claim its all-new 2011 Toyota Sienna is cool, fun and the kind of vehicle young, hip parents want in their lives. But that's simply not true. There's nothing particularly cool about a minivan. Cool is Corvette, cool is cruising to a Tigers' game on a summer night with the top down and 89X cranking on the stereo. There are no juice boxes in cool. Coolness is instantly removed when a person becomes a parent. This is a fact of life even Edna Garrett can agree with. But don't let dumb marketing get in the way of a great minivan…..The Sienna has been redesigned for 2011, and it's precisely some of those redesigned features that don't rock my world. The Sienna's wider, shorter body sits low to the ground, and when coupled with the rear spoiler the new look made me feel like I should be cruising the strip rather than going to the grocery store. Superficial? Perhaps, but it matters.”
“Something about the 2011 Sienna's exterior makes me think it's trying too hard to be cool. It doesn't quite work for me. While this Sienna has purportedly borrowed some style tips from Toyota's Venza and Camry models, it made me think that this is what a minivan would look like if Toyota ever decided to have its Scion brand manufacture one. Let's be honest, this is a car that people buy to be pragmatic, not to flaunt their cool factor. I'm just not buying into the Swagger Wagon idea. “
Well I happen to completely disagree with these women. After these above quotes, they both go on to talk about how wonderful, safe, and functional they are. Why can’t a minivan look good? I don’t get it. I am 24 years old without any children of my own and I have seen Siennas here that I would love to drive. They do look cool. They really do not resemble minivans at all compared to all other brands.
SAFETY
The 2011 Toyota Sienna has been named an IIHS Top Safety Pick. To earn this safety award, a car must get the highest score of Good in front, side-impact, rear and rollover crash tests. It also must have standard stability control, which the Sienna does.
The Sienna also has standard four-wheel-disc antilock brakes with brake assist, traction control, active head restraints in the front row and seven airbags, including side curtains for all three rows and a driver's knee airbag. All-wheel drive is optional.
The Sienna has three sets of lower Latch anchors, with two sets in the outboard second-row seats and a third in the middle position of the third row. The Latch anchors are deeply embedded in the seats. While the seat cushions were pliable enough to get to the Latch anchors without chipping your diamond ring (as I did in another test car), I'd love to see them a little easier to access in future models. The second row slides back and forth, which is a godsend when installing child-safety seats. Because of it, there's plenty of room for a rear-facing infant-safety seat and convertible seat in the second row. While I ran into visibility issues with my son's forward-facing convertible seat installed in the third row, my son had plenty of room. A high-back booster seat fit well in both the second and third rows.