Top Minivan (1 Viewer)

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I can vouch for the remote controlled sliding doors....great to have with kids! With Drew away so much, stow-n-go was what we needed -- I just can't physically handle getting seats in and out of the car if anything large needed to be hauled. Stow-n-go is EASY.

We're on our 4th Dodge/Plymouth van. My parents have one of them which is still going strong at 150K+; one was donated at 199K+ (still going), and the last one died a premature death at 147K+ due to our own negligence. The latest one is used; we got it with only 13K miles and full factory warranty, and saved a ton vs. buying new. As I said, the stow-n-go and the remote doors are the best. I didn't know the Sienna had that too. I probably would have looked at the Honda since I heard so many great things about them, but I wanted the stowable seats.

And yes, once you have multiple kids, a minivan makes life easier. Yet, we had our van long before kids....when your hobby is showing dogs, a minivan is a status symbol, LOLOL. Of course, now the RV's are the "way to go" in the dog show world....I'm not ready to go there yet!
 
just visited the dealer.

Odyssey looks good, just a matter of price and options.

I did not get to test drive it, I hope it has a good turning radius. I know that it is front wheel drive and I will be very sad if it can't turn very sharp.
 
We bought a 2006 Honda Odyssey in June. My wife always said she didn't want a van but she absolutely loves it. It drives great and is comfortable. The third seat does stow into the floor. We looked at a lot of other vans (we didn't look at the Sienna) and the Odyssey was head and shoulders above the other ones in our opinion.
 
Back in 2004, we narrowed it down to the Odyssey or Sienna. The tie breaker was the Odyssey has an 8 seater in leather while the Sienna did not. We have the 2005 Odyssey EX-L with NAV/RES and my wife and family love it.

We make at least 2 trips a year from NJ to LA. So my wife wanted the drop down tray in the front that allows here to easily walk from the front to the back to tend to the kids. This was not an option on the Sienna except their lower line models.

Gotta tell you on these long trips having a DVD Rear Entertainment System (RES) and a Navigation System Rock! The RES allows passengers in the rear seats to watch the DVD (controlled by the Driver in the front) while the front two passengers can listen to the radio, CD or XM. The Odyssey's navigation system is voice-activated and controls the AC, the fan, the Radio, the RES, and can be an input into the keyboard. Again, if you have kids, having the DVD nav system rocks because you can find locations along the route in advance for bathroom breaks or specific lunch stops...so you can target a Hardees or a Chinese restaurant 45 miles down the road. A Nav system in the Odyssey is really a lifestyle change. You'll never print out another Mapblast or Google map again and you can get anywhere without advance planning or having to ask for directions.

The advantage a minivan has over a similarly equipped Cross-Over or SUV is the sliding doors. This allows you to park close to other vehicles and get your kids and stuff in and out with out having to worry about having to keep the rear doors wide open. Of course with the extra room you can get the kids into the back seats while standing and easily walk to the front (in my family, my wife does all this stuff, so I think she should have the most input into the vehicle decison).

One final thought...we went with leather since it's much easier to keep clean than fabric. Plus it hasn't inherited the odors common in fabric seats. Make sure you get the fog lamps.

The Odyssey and Sienna were the only models with VSC (Vehicle Stability Control) and I don't remember that even as an option on the American models (Ford and Chrysler). Try to get this safety option along with side curtain airbags. p.s. Traction control is NOT VSC.

Hope this helps....if you have any question don't hesitate to post them.
 
iron error said:
just visited the dealer.

Odyssey looks good, just a matter of price and options.

I did not get to test drive it, I hope it has a good turning radius. I know that it is front wheel drive and I will be very sad if it can't turn very sharp.
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Why is turning radius so important to you? Remember you'll have your children in the car. Making sharp turns is something you'll probably rarely do if ever.
 
not high speed turns, but...

parking and getting around parking lots.

nothing is worse than a large turning radius in those situations. just something I notice.
 
iron error said:
not high speed turns, but...

parking and getting around parking lots.

nothing is worse than a large turning radius in those situations. just something I notice.
Click to expand...

Go to any Wal-Mart or Foodstore parking lot. Check out all the minivans there....figure more than 80% of those vehicles are driven by Moms with 2+ kids in the vehicle. If your driving skills are equal to or greater than the average driver, turning radius won't be an issue.
 
We have a 2002 Odyssey. My wife loves it. We have 2 kids, but occasionally haul the niece and nephews, so the flexibility of the folding third seat is great. However, I think most of them have that now.

The year we bought ours, it had more horsepower than a V8 Expedition. Parking is no problem at all - much easier than my Chevy truck.

We have leather seats. They much easier to keep clean, but I don't find them to be very comfortable on long trips.

If you have kids that are too young to entertain themselves by reading, playing Gameboy, etc., you will definitely want to get the DVD player. It is expensive, but it will be worth it.

It has been pretty reliable, but we've actually had more glitches with it than my Chevy. It was the same when we had a Camry and a GMC.:confused: Honda really sticks it to you with the maintenance costs. You must use their trans fluid, brake fluid, power steering fluid, etc.

I would definitely consider the Sienna also, but I've heard they ride rougher. I'm surprised at this since Hondas usually have a sportier ride than comparable vehicles. Dodge/Chrysler are also supposed to be very good, but I would consider getting an extended warranty with them.
 
>>I would definitely consider the Sienna also, but I've heard they ride rougher.

I'm not sure what "ride rougher" means, but our Sienna rides very smooth, takes corners smooth and is nothing like riding in a truck. But we don't take it off-road to really test it though. ;)
 
This is just my personal preference, but with kids I actually prefer the cloth seats over leather. My mother in law has a Town & Country with leather seats, and here in Texas the leather seats get HOT in the summer, which in South Texas lasts just about all year....:sweat:

I also noticed that the kids' booster seats would slide around more on leather seats vs. cloth seats. Not an issue with belted in 5-pt. harness seats, but when kids move up to the boosters, I don't want the seat sliding around a lot....that's just my experience in driving around with the kids in her van with leather seats vs. my van with cloth seats.

I just invested in a couple cans of Scotch Guard....:ezbill:
 
Primadox...and others....

there is a video on youtube regarding boosters that you need to watch...

I'll try to link it.
 
gboudx said:
>>I would definitely consider the Sienna also, but I've heard they ride rougher.

I'm not sure what "ride rougher" means, but our Sienna rides very smooth, takes corners smooth and is nothing like riding in a truck. But we don't take it off-road to really test it though. ;)
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Well how else are you supposed to get your 4 wheeler to the deer camp?
 

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