'Me And My Toyota Sienna Against The World:' Mom Of Three Is Tired Of Minivan Hate. Are Minivans Better For Families Than Suvs?

"I always said I would NEVER drive a minivan."

Photo by: minivanmammarelli & Rinat Aidarkhan

By: Madeleine Wagner

Sep 20, 2025 at 3:00am ET

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A young mom is defending, nay championing, her choice to drive an “unfashionable” minivan instead of something sleeker. She says she’s happier with her Toyota Sienna than a comparable SUV.

In her TikTok video, Caitlin (@minivanmamarelli) highlights three big reasons parents might want to permanently park the family SUV.

Kids. She’s got a set of twins and an older child. All of them under the age of two-and-a-half. So she’s deep in the toddler trenches.

“She’s an icon, she’s a legend, and she is the moment,” exclaims the famous Wendy Williams over a clip of Brittany Spears’ “Toxic” in Caitlin’s post.

As the base drops, Caitlin loads her twins in the open rear hatch. The seats look like they drop away so effortlessly, it kind of makes you want to see what else this thing does.

And though she doesn’t narrate the video, she doesn’t really need to. But in case the viewer doesn’t get the message, she captions it, “I will stand for no minivan hate. It’s just me and my Toyota Sienna against the world. Leave my 18 cupholders alone.”

No Hate, Just…Options: Lots of ’Em

So, she’s not exactly hating on SUVs (or the folks who love them). But she is, shall we say, advocating for space and ease (of use) in a minivan. Plus, she got the sport option.

And from the number of views her video has gotten—3.4 million at the time of writing—people are interested in what she has to say.

The comments section is full of converts and the curious. At least two commenters say they’re trading in their Toyota Highlanders for the Sienna. And more are looking into it.

“I’m sold as soon as the car seat magically disappeared,” says @elliereignnn.

“I always said I would NEVER drive a minivan…until I had my twins [triple cry-laughing emoji]” admits @all.time.logann.

Others commented on the aesthetics. “My hate for it is I just hate the way they look,” says @Lina.

But as @97JeepTJ says, “Sure the shape of the roofline is a bit goofy, but you look at the inside a lot more than the outside as a driver anyway.”

And then there’s a whole thread-within-a-thread of people praising the minivan road trip experience. “Yup,” says @All_the_Things42 “Dodge Grand Caravan from Colorado to Florida and back with 5 kids. It was awesome lol.”

Putting Millennial Moms Into Minivans

In her subsequent pinned video, Caitlin takes the viewer on a tour.

“This is literally the best car I’ve ever owned,” she says. It’s even got a name: “Shaggy.”

“Because we went shaggin’ and had to get a wagon,” she quips.

That wagon is loaded with more than a wealth of cup holders.

The van’s got a larger, sportier grille, leather interior with cooling seats, easy access space in the front for “motherly things,” and a foot activated door. And if you’ve got a particularly messy crew, there’s an in-cabin vacuum option (bye bye crunchy crumbs).

But for Caitlin, one of the biggest perks is the huge cargo space.

“I’m obsessed with the trunk,” she says. She says she looked at a Highlander, Expedition, Suburban and Yukon and none of them had enough cargo space.

To illustrate, she jumps in the trunk and pops out a quick yoga pose.

Why Resist the Minivan?

Why does such a relentlessly useful vehicle end up on the “uncool" list? Perhaps it's a memory association.

What do you think?

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As The Autopian speculates, “[I]f your dad — the most uncool person in most children's minds — used a vehicle to drop you off at soccer practice, then [that specific] vehicle cannot possibly be cool.”

Motor1 reached out to Caitlin via TikTok direct message and to Toyota via their media contact form. We’ll update this if either responds.