Minivans make a lot of sense. This is not news, I know, but it is worth a reminder as cultural trends have removed the “man” from minivan, along with the “cool,” a long time ago.

In spite of their lack of curb appeal, these boxy vehicles offer lots of room for kids, dogs, and all that other stuff families tend to accumulate over time and often need to transport from one place to another. And they get decent fuel mileage, especially for the amount of real estate you’re hauling around, which is especially important these days.

I’ve had a lot of time to ponder all of this over the past few days, while my wife and I took the CR Chrysler Town & Country for an extended weekend road-trip vacation. We packed it up with the usual stuff, suitcases, bikes, backbacks, coolers and whatnot. And the Chrysler swallowed all of it up with room to spare.

On the highway, the T&C returned an impressive 30 mpg on the trip out as reported by the van’s on board trip computer. That number dropped to a not-so-bad 25 by the time we got home, after opting for some back roads for the return trip. Modest speeds and a skilled right foot helped better our official test results, and clearly, results may vary.

Full disclosure time: We owned a Town & Country, vintage ’92, for 13 years and gave it up only when it basically expired after 165,000 miles. It was a pretty crappy minivan, chewing up transmissions, air conditioning components, and various other essential and expensive bits the whole time. But like the new T&C, it had plenty of room for flotsam and jetsam.

The new one is just better. It takes the basic concept Chrysler introduced to the world and advances it for the 21st century. While it isn’t our top Rated minivan, the Chrysler offers tons of space, versatility, and can be optioned with more video screens than some houses. And, it has satellite radio, sunroof, and abundant safety features: things our ’92 lacked. Officially, it trails some import-branded competitors, but if you favor American brands, I’d have to say it’s worth a look.