Minivan market continues to erode
Sales of Chrysler’s Dodge Caravan fell by 45 percent in the past year and 32 percent in February alone, and Canada’s Financial Post is speculating that job cuts may follow.
Chrysler introduced an all-new Caravan, along with the Chrysler Town & Country, last year, and the newspaper says the company
may have bet wrong in believing there’s still a stable market for sliding-door family haulers at a time when so-called crossover vehicles are gaining popularity and gasoline is sticking above US$3-a-gallon.
The minivans are made in Windsor, Ontario, and in Fenton, near St. Louis. This week, a strike in Canada may be sending more work to Fenton. But over the longer term, workers at both places have plenty to worry about. Tony Faria, a business professor at the University of Windsor, told the Financial Post:
I don’t think the new minivans are doing nearly as well as Chrysler hoped they would. The segment has not stabilized. It’s still declining. And there’s a point at which if it declines too much further… even Chrysler’s share of it might only justify one assembly plant.
(3 votes, average: 4.33 out of 5)
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David Nicklaus has covered St. Louis business for more than 25 years. His column appears three days a week on the Post-Dispatch business page. 
The current incarnation of the Chrysler minivan is just plain ugly! Instead of maintaining their innovative leadership in minivan styling, they gave in the generic styling of the Honda and Toyota. Their stow-n-go seating is a disaster. The floors look like a folded accordion when the seats are stowed. When the seats are upright, they’re about as comfortable as a fold out lawn chair. Daimler gave up on Chrysler long before they officially cut them loose. With private equity firm Cerberus taking them over with Nardelli at the helm, they’re doomed. These lifetime power train warranties are only as valuable as Chrysler remains viable. I don’t see the government bailing them out this time.