Mini MPV is a car classification used in some countries to describe superminis or subcompacts which have taller build and often with a flexible interior layout, fitting below the compact MPV and large MPV/Minivan classifications.[1] MPV stands for multi-purpose vehicle, although the full name is rarely used. The term Leisure Activity Vehicle (LAV) is sometimes used for van based MPVs, but this marketing term is largely ignored by the press, normally using the term MPV.
The term started to be used in the late 1990s when the market place for MPVs grew in diversity, with the Daily Telegraph referring to mini-MPV in 2000,[2] but using it to refer to models now often classified as compact MPVs.