One of the biggest car launches at Auto Shanghai 2025 in China from a European brand was the Mercedes-Benz Vision V. Surprisingly, this isn’t an SUV nor a luxury super-sedan. It’s a minivan (aka MPV). This wasn’t the only MPV displayed at the show either. Just when everyone thought SUVs had a permanent stranglehold on the market are minivans making an unexpected comeback?
Fall and rise of the MPV
MPVs used to be familiar sights on European roads. Never considered aesthetically desirable, the practicality of having up to seven seats and plenty of cargo space nevertheless made them popular family choices compared to estate cars (aka station wagons). At their height, MPVs had as much as 10% of the European market. But sales began to fall significantly by the end of the Noughties, with SUVs, some offering a more stylish seven-seat option, taking over. By 2023, MPVs had fallen to just 2% of the European market.
The new generation of minivans is different from these family transporters, however, and that’s exemplified by the Vision V from Mercedes-Benz. This is no utilitarian people carrier. It’s a luxury limousine intended to be chauffeur-driven, aimed at a similar market to the seminal S-Class, and even the Maybach variant of that model. The design of the Vision V is futuristic, and the interior is intended to make Rolls-Royce owners jealous. Rear seat passengers can enjoy a 65-in screen, which dwarfs even the one in BMW’s ultrahigh luxury i7 sedan limousine, plus 42-speaker Dolby Atmos sound. The experience is more about lounging than lugging many passengers around. Mercedes-Benz is aiming to bring the first models based on the Vision V concept to market in 2026.
Luxury vans have become a bit of a thing in China. The poster child of this trend is the Zeekr 009. Although there are conventional versions of this van with the usual six or seven seats, the headline act is an interior option for just two occupants in the back, like the Vision V, called the Grand. These two seats are combined with a giant 43in screen. The seats in the 009 Grand are veritably palatial, with every comfort imaginable on tap, including a refrigerator. The effect is to take a conventional luxury transport experience to a new level, and it’s going down well with consumers. The 009 sold 19,210 units in 2023 and 22,631 units in 2024 in China, although there was no information available about what proportion of this was the two-rear-seater Grand version.
Zeekr also launched an innovative take on the MPV at the Chinese car show in 2024 (which took place in Beijing – the show alternates between this city and Shanghai biannually). The Mix is a more mainstream minivan than the 009, aimed at families wanting an MPV that enhances their lifestyle. This vehicle’s main party trick is its lack of a B-pillar (facilitating passenger ingress) and novel seat permutations. The two front seats can rotate to face rearwards and then a table can be installed in the middle, turning the Mix into a mobile dining room – great for family picnics in the country. The Mix hasn’t been selling as well as the 009, but it’s indicative of the new creative direction MPVs are taking in China. It also happens to be built on a platform Zeekr has been developing in partnership with Waymo, the autonomous taxi company. So you can see where the Mix might be headed.
Signaling the importance of the minivan market in China, Volvo had its EM90 minivan on show at Auto Shanghai 2025 as well. This car has also become one of the lead vehicles displayed in Volvo’s Chinese shopping mall showrooms. The EM90 is, unsurprisingly, built on the same platform as the Zeekr 009 (both automakers are part of Chinese giant Geely). So far, however, it hasn’t met with the same success as the Zeekr alternative.
Toyota clearly sees potential in the MPV resurgence in Asia and launched the Veloz in 2021, aimed at Southeast Asian markets including Thailand and Malaysia, as well as Arabian Gulf states. In these regions, the minivan never really went away, however. The Veloz is an upmarket take on the MPV that its subsidiary Daihatsu has been selling as the Xenia and Toyota as the Avanza since 2003. The difference with the Veloz is its greater focus on luxury, although this is not anywhere near the same level as the Zeekr 009. Toyota also offers the Alphard MPV in similar regions to the Veloz, as well as Japan, alongside its more premium Lexus LM variant.
Minivans are back, but this time, they’re palaces
So, the MPV is enjoying a luxury renaissance in Asia. The question is whether this trend will translate into Europe and the U.S. as well. Volkswagen has long been a minivan favorite in both regions, going all the way back to the “Splitscreen” in 1950. Most recently, the ID. Buzz has taken the company into an electrified MPV future, although a U.S. recall has dampened the launch and the high price has kept sales numbers low in Europe despite generally positive reviews. The ID. Buzz sold less than 30,000 units globally in 2024. However, while the third row of seats in most SUVs are only viable for children if you travel any further than a quick urban journey, the third row in a Long Wheelbase ID. Buzz is completely adult-friendly, a feature that is unique in EVs available in Europe so far. It’s a vehicle lots of people want, even if not so many are actually buying it yet.
Some brands are betting on the MPV picking up again outside Asia, though. Chinese challenger brand XPENG is hoping that a rebirth of the minivan will give it an edge in the European market. Although the company’s first cars in the EU were a sedan and a large SUV, and a smaller SUV called the G6 for its debut in the U.K., the next vehicle on the roadmap for release is the X9. This is another luxury MPV in the mold of the Zeekr 009, although not pitched quite so high. It was unveiled at the U.K. launch of the G6, and is due to go on sale in the second half of 2025. Mercedes-Benz is also planning to launch the Vision V in the U.S. and Europe as the VLS, alongside a premium family minivan called the VLE based on the same VAN.E electric platform.
The jury is still out on whether the luxury turn of minivans that has proven popular in China will be replicated in other markets. SUVs still had a 54% market share in Europe in 2024, 3% more than the previous year. It’s also unlikely that MPVs will regain the mainstream popularity they once had in the mainstream European market. But this new luxury trend is something different and not aimed at the same volume of sales as before. You may be seeing more of these palaces on wheels even in Europe soon. You certainly will see plenty of them if you visit China.
