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I'm not saying that's not true but in my case, it was the need for an 8 passenger vehicle that was not a minivan. It was either a SUV or a commercial commuter van.

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I'm curious why not a minivan? What does the commercial commuter van offer in terms of functionality that the minivan doesn't?

Show me a minivan with two rows of benches. AFAIK they all have captains chairs in the first two rows now.

If you want two bench seats in the 21st century your options are basically all SUVs

Both Toyota and Honda minivans are still available with 8 passenger seating.

All the minivans I looked at had the auto slide doors. I have 4 friends and myself who have experienced catastrophic failures of the auto sliding door mechanism on their minivans. I've always bought used cars and have experienced my share of problems and quirks. Not being able to get in or out (well, my kids not being able to get in or out) without a series of arcane jiggles has been one of the most frustrating.

After that it was only vehicles with hinged doors and 8 passengers so...SUV or commuter van.

edit: also I live in a northern state in the middle of nowhere. 4 wheel drive and high clearance were not insignificant factors for us.

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