Paddle shifters, refrigerators, captain's chairs: Automakers are desperate to make minivans cool again

Automakers make minivans 'cool' again.

Amit Shah's three children were cheering him on from the second row as their 2018 Honda Odyssey minivan quickly gathered speed on the Palisades Interstate Parkway. They were running late so Shah did what was necessary: Pedal to the metal.

"We overtook a McLaren," Shah, a longtime fan of minivans, said with a laugh. "My kids were excited."

Shah could not convince his wife to buy a minivan even as their family grew in size. That all changed when they rented one on a trip to California a few years ago.

"We thought it was so much easier to load and unload than my Durango [SUV]," he told ABC News. "The Durango is not as versatile as the minivan, which drives better. The Odyssey is also more comfortable."