Minivans don't get enough love. They may scream, "I caved to reality," but for many families, they're the perfect choice: practical, comfortable, reasonable. Now, a year after introducing a revamped Pacifica, Chrysler is offering a plug-in hybrid version. This minivan can cruise up to 30 miles on nothing but electricity, with a gas engine ready to kick in for the longer trips. Forget the $100,000 Tesla Model X: This is the real electric for the every-family.

It's a pretty van.

As minivans go, this is a handsome one—Chrysler's designers neatly avoided the bulky, slab-sided look that comes with most vans. The dark rear window wraps around the back end making it look sculpted. For the hybrid version, they used tricks like active grille shutters, and smoother side mirrors to improve on the already impressive .30 coefficient of drag. Less energy lost to drag means more that can be recovered with the electric motor running as a generator when slowing down.

Credit: Fiat Chrysler

It's a subtle electric vehicle.

No badging or marketing refers to this Pacifica as a plug-in hybrid. Chrysler worries the public does understand hybrids, like the Prius, and full electrics like Teslas, but still doesn't get plug-ins. In practical terms it means you'll have to plug it in at home overnight to top up the battery—14 hours from empty to full with the included 120-volt charger, or you can upgrade to 240-volt and charge in a couple of hours. And those 30 miles of range should be more than enough for the average day's worth of shuttling between home, school, soccer practice, and the grocery store.