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The Chrysler Pacifica is still the best plug-in hybrid minivan on the market

It's also the only one. But it's still very good.

Eric Bangeman – Feb 9, 2023 4:02 PM | 131

The Pinnacle of minivans. Credit: Eric Bangeman

If you're in the market for a battery-electric vehicle or plug-in hybrid, you're increasingly spoiled for choice. Want a two-row BEV SUV? There are plenty of options. Luxury fastbacks? Check. Pickup truck? Ford cannot make the F-150 Lightning fast enough. There's even a fully electric Hummer!

But what of the lowly minivan? One of the most reviled but practical of all form factors, there are no BEV minivans on the market. Even though they're better than SUVs for so many things, we have to wait for the arrival of the Volkswagen ID.Buzz for the first electric minivan to go on sale in the US in 2024. That's a shame because the typical use case for minivans—short trips to school, the store, practices, and rehearsals—is a perfect fit for electrification.

In 2018, the only PHEV minivan option was the Chrysler Pacifica. Five years later, the only PHEV minivan option is the Chrysler Pacifica. We drove it again and came away impressed with the improvements Chrysler has made and saddened that there aren't more models like it on the market.

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Introduced in 2017, the Pacifica was refreshed in 2022 with some minor cosmetic changes and a new top-of-the-line trim: the Pinnacle. The mechanical bits haven't changed much, however. The Pacifica is still powered by a 3.6 L Pentastar engine paired with two electric motors and a 16 kWh battery. Combined, the powertrain puts out 260 hp (194 kW), which will get you from 0 to 60 mph in 7.8 seconds—a half-second slower than the internal combustion engine (ICE) model. The hybrid does not come in an all-wheel drive version; it's FWD only.

The hybrid model remains significantly more expensive than the base ICE Touring model, which is priced at $37,095. A no-frills hybrid (Touring L) starts at $48,478, and the Pinnacle model we tested sports a sticker price of $60,067. As of press time, it's eligible for the full federal clean vehicle tax credit, which can knock $7,500 off the price, depending on your tax liability.

As the name suggests, the Pinnacle has what Chrysler bills as "the most luxurious interior" of any minivan. Said interior features caramel Nappa leather seats and other luxury interior touches. What it's missing is the built-in vacuum cleaner, so you're on your own when it comes to getting Cheerio dust off the Nappa leather seats. The hybrid Pacifica also lacks Stow n' Go seating due to the existence of the 16 kWh battery, so the second-row seats need to be manually removed if more storage is required; the back row folds down into the floor.

The interior feels spacious and well-appointed. It's a very reasonable highway cruiser—this year's model seemed quieter than the previous version, likely thanks to improved door and glass seals. There are also plenty of connectivity options, mostly aimed at keeping the kids in the back seat happy. Of particular note is the tight integration of Amazon Fire TV into Chrysler's Uconnect 5 infotainment system. Second-row seats each have their own HD display and remote, and front-row occupants can get in on the cinematic action when the minivan is in park. The Fire TV remote not only includes full Alexa integration but also ties into Uconnect 5 for access to climate control, maps, and more.

We covered the Android-based Uconnect 5 in depth when it was released, and the large 10.1-inch touchscreen is easy to use. There is a full complement of analog climate controls under the screen, but seat heat and ventilation settings are only accessible via the touchscreen, which is mildly annoying. If you're wondering what your offspring are up to in the back seat, you can use FamCAM to see which kid started the ruckus. FamCAM even offers a split-view display and the ability to zoom in on a particular seat.

As a PHEV, the Pacifica hits all the right notes, with one exception—there's no selectable "electric-only" mode. The minivan makes the calls for the driver instead, and to be fair, it does a good job. Unless the accelerator is mashed, the Pacifica will get underway using the electric motor. Even on the expressway, the engine doesn't fire up unless you're either running out of electrons or accelerating rapidly. But just about every other PHEV I have driven offers an electric-only mode, and it's a shame that's missing here. As long as you don't drive with a lead foot, you'll see the full benefit of the hybrid powertrain.

The 16 kWh battery will fully charge in two hours over a level 2 (240 V) connection, taking 14 hours over a standard 120 V wall outlet. The Pacifica hybrid has an electric-only range of 32 miles, and that matched our experience driving the car. Overall, Chrysler's hybrid is rated at 82 mpge with a combined gas and electric range of 520 miles. In a week of driving that included suburban streets, expressways, and some city driving, we managed 52.8 mpg. With the car being charged every night, the gas gauge needle barely moved over a week. Nearly 80 percent of the miles we drove were powered by the battery.

It's a shame the minivan segment has dwindled so far, and it's even more of a bummer that this is the only PHEV variant on the market. But even though there's only one option, the Pacifica hybrid still has a lot to recommend it.

Listing image: Eric Bangeman

Eric Bangeman Managing Editor

Eric Bangeman is the Managing Editor of Ars Technica. In addition to overseeing the daily operations at Ars, Eric also manages story development for the Policy and Automotive sections. He lives in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, where he enjoys cycling and playing the bass.

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