Anyone Want to Discuss Minivans (& SUVs) with me?

[HillPete]

My Odyssey is celebrating her 15th birthday this month. With 179,000 miles on it, we are beginning the search for a replacement. I am not a 'car person' and I don't care what the darn thing looks like, so the minivan thing has never bothered me. I want safety and reliability. We are only looking at used Odysseys and Siennas (my DH would love a van with AWD). I would not let that cruddy salesman and bad dealership turn you off of Hondas. Find a different dealership and see what they have to say.

 

[star72232]

We just bought a new (to us) Odyssey last year (bought a 2014 with 42000km on it).

Never got the test drive the Sienna - there was a shortage where I live and the hassle to get to one was too much for me to deal with (I was going to have to drive over an hour just to test drive one!). I did get a chance to see the interior of one, and I really disliked the 8th passenger seat. I was replacing a 2007 Sienna, so I was partial to them. However, they redesigned and the new models had the 8th passenger seat being tiny. As in, my 5'1", 95lb DD couldn't get comfortable in it.

I sat in the 3rd row of the Highlander. My head hit the top and I'm not even 5'4". No trunk space if you are using the 3rd row. I don't think this is a good option for you.

I test drove a Sedona. It felt like I had to get out and push the van to make it go. It felt very underpowered to me. YMMV.

I love the Odyssey. I mostly use a car/van for getting from point A to point B, and it does that with some nice features.

My favourite test drive was a Honda Pilot. I loved it, but couldn't justify the price (I preferred the 2016 redesign, so was going to need to buy new) and there just isn't enough trunk space for a family of 6. I loved driving it though!

 

[Klayfish]

I haven't had a chance to read the entire thread, but hope I can help. Cars are what I do for a living, literally. Plus I'm a car fanatic, race them, etc... Also have 3 kids, so we have TONS of experience with minivans. Want to clear a few things up.

First, at 85k miles (I think that's what you said you had), your Caravan should be far from having to be babied. You should get 150k miles out of it easily. However, if you want a new van because you want a new one, no arguing with that.

I'd have to double check the sales numbers, but I don't think the Honda is the best selling van, it's been the Dodge for many, many years. Nor has Honda ignored the van and relied on their reputation. In fact, the Honda is probably the best van on the market, bar none.

The Chrysler has stow and go, and the new Pacifica is a big improvement over the old Caravan, but it's still not cream of the crop. Stow and go is a neat parlor trick and if you find it useful to you, then that's your only option.

The Kia Sedona is far and away, in my opinion, the best value on the market. It's not quite up to the refinement of the Honda or Toyota, but the quality is just as good and the price is thousands less. We've had Sedona vans since 2007 and have beaten the daylights out of them. Never left us stranded, not once. Nor needed major repairs. Put 115k on the first one and 40k on the current one.

Personally, I'd go with the Kia first, then Honda or Toyota (they are both very, very well engineered and fabulous vans), then the Chrysler. Ford has the Transit Connect, which is pretty cool, but a bit smaller.

If you want an SUV because you want one, great. But they are far, far less practical than a minivan in pretty much every metric that's important to minivan owners. Unless you need to tow something heavy or need the cargo room a Suburban offers, your so much better off with a van than the Pilot, 4Runner, etc...

Hope this helps

 

[firecracker725]

I have a Chrysler Town and Country, and though I generally prefer the longevity of Honda or Toyota, there was no doubt in my mind which van I was going to choose. The stow and go seats are a frickin miracle. I don't know how anyone could go back after having it.

 

[Pintail]

You might consider getting it detailed, new tires, and a tune-up. In my experience if you keep your fluids up, and maintain it, you will be good for another 50,000 miles. When you are ready for something new, consider buying something reliable with 20k or 30k miles on it- for great value.

 

[bethy]

Not sure if AWD is a factor for you. I live in the mountains and have driven several AWD cars including Audi, GM, Volvos and Subarus. I now have an AWD Sienna. I will say that while I'm glad to have the AWD the only thing it really helps with is getting up steep hills in the snow. It is not a true AWD system IMO - in terms of the four wheels individually 'communicating' with each other. I do not feel that the AWD on the Sienna makes me feel any safer when manuevering in slippery conditions. The Sienna has the same AWD system as the Highlander I think. If I could do it all over again I might have at least test driven the Honda and then gotten studded snow tires for it.

For the record the BEST AWD I have ever driven was a Subaru HANDS DOWN. But alas they don't make a big enough car for me. Nor does Volvo

As to the 8th seat in the Toyota it is indeed a joke like a PP said. We got the captains chairs. For me personally there wasn't even any point of getting a minivan if it didn't have that wonderful isle down that center anyway! I did NOT like the second row of the Honda - it doesn't have true captains chairs. There are no armrests in the middle when the 8th seat is removed. fyi

 

[cmarsh31]

My T&C has 80k miles on it, so I totally get the ticking time-bomb mentality. I'm just waiting for another major repair (front wheel bearings, front axle, so other weird issues... we had the extended warranty so I never paid more than the $50 deductible but now that it's expired...). DH has said that he would really like to consider an SUV (Honda Pilot would be my choice) along with another minivan, but he LOVES the stow-n-go. We've hauled stuff around more times than I can count.

Right now, I'm just holding out - we prefer to buy a 2-year-old, <20k miles car with an extended warranty, so I'm at least a year or two out from a Pacifica or the new-style Pilot.

 

[jrmasm]

I have a 2004 Odyssey with 186,000 miles. The only reason I'm not replacing it with another Odyssey is because the Sienna is the only minivan that comes with AWD.

I would not be happy with an SUV. I just don't find them as practical and versatile for my needs. Or as easy to see out of.

 

[bethbuchall]

I have a 2007 Odyssey with about 160,000 on it. It has needed only minor repairs and regular maintenance. I agree with your husband that the newer ones are hearse-like in appearance, and like you, I don't like the exposed track. I also think that the door handles look cheap. I've said that I won't buy another one until there is a redesign, but if for some reason we needed to replace mine tomorrow, I'm pretty sure that it would be with another Odyssey.

Stow and Go seating is important to me, especially when we've moved the kids to college (one more of those to go). Reliability and safety are important to me.

We've gone from three kids at home to one and don't necessarily need a minivan anymore, but there are so many times that it is convenient to have the extra seating and the extra cargo space.

 

[bcla]

I thought that a few years of the Odyssey had reliability problems related to the variable cylinder management system. I seem to recall that something about several years that stressed out the motor oil and caused stuff like oil burning, fouled plugs, and premature wear. Maybe they did modify it, but I think the newer versions spec 0W-20 motor oil, which pretty much means a high performance synthetic oil,

 

[dotfurio]

I have an 06 Sienna. It's still going strong. I love how easy it is to get into the backseat in a parking lot, and also all the space we have when we travel. DH got a Dodge Journey, which is a smaller crossover. We thought initially we'd be fine travelling in it, but we sometimes struggle to fit everything in back that we easily fit in the van. I'm pretty sure I'll probably end up with another minivan when it's time to replace it. Probably another Toyota or a Honda.

 

[Southernmiss]

Absolutely love our 2008 Sienna. 166,000 miles and never skipped a beat. I expect to have it to move dd15 off to college in 3 years. Lots of hauling capacity. Moved 2 kids off to college already.

4 kids all 15 to 22. Now that they're big it is still comfortable traveling. We've never needed the middle stow and go seats. Can seat 8 people- allows us to bring grandparents, too! Solid well built van.

Bought it used (had been a rental) in 2008 to replace a 1998 Dodge Grand Caravan with 147,000 miles and transmission issues after a series of other issues. Always nervous it would break down again.

Will only own Toyota or Hondas in future because of reliability. We had a Camry reach 290,000 miles.

 

[xlxo]

Thoughts....

• visit your local transmission shop.... ask them what is the #1 minivan that needs transmission fixing? Then ask who is #2? Then ask who is #3? Once the warranty ends on those high mileage minivan's... be prepared for expensive repairs.
• Love the Chrysler minivan for rentals... however once they exceed 10,000 miles, I can hear lots of body noise that drives me nuts.
• I decided to splurge on a Prius V instead for a personal purchase. While I can't haul a sheet of plywood, it's amazing how much I can put in the Prius V even with 5 people aboard(although 4 people is the most comfortable). Fold down the rear seats and I double the storage capacity. I can drive 3 to 5 times further with the same amount of gas on the Prius compared to the Chrysler... especially in heavy congested stop 'n go traffic.

 

[VandVsmama]

We own a 2004 Honda Odyssey minivan and it has 200,000 miles on it. We've had to replace the starter and fix the front passenger window once, but other than that, it's just been normal maintenance. It's been VERY reliable.

 

[Klayfish]

My T&C has 80k miles on it, so I totally get the ticking time-bomb mentality. I'm just waiting for another major repair (front wheel bearings, front axle, so other weird issues... we had the extended warranty so I never paid more than the $50 deductible but now that it's expired...). DH has said that he would really like to consider an SUV (Honda Pilot would be my choice) along with another minivan, but he LOVES the stow-n-go. We've hauled stuff around more times than I can count.

Right now, I'm just holding out - we prefer to buy a 2-year-old, <20k miles car with an extended warranty, so I'm at least a year or two out from a Pacifica or the new-style Pilot.

Yeah, if you really find Stow-N-Go useful, then Chrysler is your only option. For us, I can count on one hand the number of times I've wished I had it in the past 10 years. We haul a lot of stuff too, but with the third row folded, it's sufficient 98% of the time, and the other 2% of the time I just pull the middle seats out of our Sedona. Takes 3 minutes.

If you like low mileage used (which I wholeheartedly agree with), look for a Certified Pre-Owned vehicle. It will have a long warranty to begin with, usually up to 100k miles. Frankly, the extended warranty is nothing but a cash cow for the dealer, they're a waste of money. But if you get a CPO car, you'll get that long warranty anyway and it'll be a heck of a lot cheaper than buying it on top of the price of the car. Modern vehicles are built much, much more reliable than they were not all that long ago. 100k miles is nothing for most vehicles, especially the Asian brands. I'd be cautious about Chrysler products (which includes their owner, Fiat) and the other European cars, but the Europeans don't really make minivans anyway.

 

[DisneyHardin]

The Stow and Go is nice. We had a 2008 Town and Country that was a lemon, so we traded it after just a year, but I did love those seats.

We now have a 2008 Odyssey and I truly love it. Of all the cars I've owned over the years, this is the first one I will truly mourn when it is gone. It has just under 150,000 miles on, so I figure I've got several more good years with it. We really have had to do nothing to it other than basics like tires and brakes. When it dies, I will definitely get another Odyssey.

 

[jakenjess]

We have 2004 Odyssey with 165,000 miles and it's been fantastic. We're hoping to keep it at least a couple more years, to get the kids through college, but I can definitely see us buying another minivan. They're just so convenient and comfortable. We'll either buy another Honda or maybe a Sienna, but only for the AWD, since that's the kind of climate we live in We do put studded snow tires on the Honda and it's been pretty good in the snow.

 

[lovin'fl]

Our 2012 Subaru Outback is having problems. I loved the car... loved the trunk space and whatnot. But we drove it a lot in 4 years and it has 90K miles on it. On black Friday I took it in for service. We had no issues prior to service but now are having issues. I took it back and they said it was fine. Still had issues so we took it to another place and they also said it was fine. Since my two teen girls and I share the car we need a reliable car. We are now thinking of getting a new car. We like Toyota, Honda and Nissan. We don't want a giant vehicle, we like decent gas mileage. But we also really need good trunk space and then would like a roomy backseat. DH is interested in a pickup truck and then DDs and I would drive his Civic. I considered a minivan but DDs will be off to college in the fall so we don't really need a seven seat car. I was thinking a Rav4 or CRV but looked at MIL's Rav4 trunk and it looks tight. So maybe a mid size or large sedan?? We had a Camry that was a good car. Any suggestions?

 

[xlxo]

I was thinking a Rav4 or CRV but looked at MIL's Rav4 trunk and it looks tight. So maybe a mid size or large sedan??

I'm a huge hybrid fan when you mentioned fuel economy, especially in congested traffic. Look for the RAV4 hybrid if you need 4 wheel drive, or Prius V if you want extra cargo space.

 

[Klayfish]

Our 2012 Subaru Outback is having problems. I loved the car... loved the trunk space and whatnot. But we drove it a lot in 4 years and it has 90K miles on it. On black Friday I took it in for service. We had no issues prior to service but now are having issues. I took it back and they said it was fine. Still had issues so we took it to another place and they also said it was fine. Since my two teen girls and I share the car we need a reliable car. We are now thinking of getting a new car. We like Toyota, Honda and Nissan. We don't want a giant vehicle, we like decent gas mileage. But we also really need good trunk space and then would like a roomy backseat. DH is interested in a pickup truck and then DDs and I would drive his Civic. I considered a minivan but DDs will be off to college in the fall so we don't really need a seven seat car. I was thinking a Rav4 or CRV but looked at MIL's Rav4 trunk and it looks tight. So maybe a mid size or large sedan?? We had a Camry that was a good car. Any suggestions?

What problems are you having with the Subaru? You said two places looked at it and said it was fine, so not sure what issues you're having with it. The Subarus are usually pretty bulletproof, 90k miles should be no problem. You mention you wanted decent mpg, the one thing Subie isn't good at is mpg. If you want roomy back seat and trunk space in a vehicle that's not too large look at something like the Kia Soul. Small SUVs really aren't good at anything "practical", they're more fashion statement. They're not great at carrying people, cargo, etc...nor do they drive as well as their vehicle counterparts that they're based on. I'm not a fan of the Prius, because they're boring, but the Prius V would fit your needs quite well, and it's a fantastic car. If you don't mind a trunk instead of a hatchback/wagon, then the Accord is as big/roomy/reliable/efficient as you'll ever need. They're incredibly huge inside, the 4cyl is very fuel efficient (forget the hybrid, waste of money), reliable as the sunrise, big trunk.