While the majority of Americans have long since decamped in favor of crossovers and SUVs, there remains a dedicated cadre of buyers committed to the family minivan. For 2024, Chrysler is rewarding them with a smattering of updates to its Pacifica.

It’s not a sea of change, to be sure – no, they aren’t grabbing a couple of Hellcat engines before that line goes dark in December – but they are worth mentioning. The frankly excellent plug-in Hybrid variant will be available in two models for 2024, including a Select trim in addition to the spendy Pinnacle and its second-row throw cushions. This decision deletes a few features or makes them optional (power liftgate, ambient lighting, and the like) but opens the plug-in hybrid price point to more customers.

Two new colors are on the palette: Red Hot and Baltic Gray. Heady stuff, we know. The top-rung Pinnacle gets a different hue for its quilted Nappa leather seats as well. A neatly named Road Tripper package is expanded to Touring L (a trim, not long wheelbase) and the Select PHEV, bringing a basket of exterior graphics and jazzy orange accents plus a few blacked-out inserts for those who want to try and assert their dominance in the school pick-up line. Wholly practical gear like an integrated vacuum cleaner, cameras providing a bird’s-eye view of small passengers in rear-facing seats, and vanishing Stow-n-Go seats are all on the docket depending on trim.

If you need a refresher, the standard Pacifica is powered by the ubiquitous Pentastar V6, good here for 287 horses while the plug-in hybrid adds 16-kWh worth of batteries and has a system output of 260 ponies. It can travel up to 30 miles solely on electricity when conditions are right. As with other years, all-wheel drive is available on some gas-powered models. 

Through the first half of 2023, Chrysler has recorded 73,845 sales of the Pacifica, a number which isn’t readily broken out into gasoline-powered and plug-in hybrid take rates. Amongst the sprawling Stellantis house, this is a number eclipsing vehicles like the Compass, and Durango, and only about 10k off the mighty Wrangler - proving there are still plenty of customers for a Magic Wagon.

[Images: Stellantis]

Become a TTAC insider. Get the latest news, features, TTAC takes, and everything else that gets to the truth about cars first by subscribing to our newsletter.