Town and Country Vs. Sienna

keelk

Hey Everyone,

My wife and I are in the market for a van as our family is quickly outgrowing our CRV and we need a second car anyway at this point. Went to a few dealers today to look at the Town and Country, Odyssey, and Sienna. I've narrowed it down to most likely the Town and Country or a Sienna. We are looking in the used market seeking to keep it between 15-20k and are looking to try and stay below 50k in mileage.

I really liked the Town and Country because of features such as the Stow and Go Seating plus the leather interior and all the standard features that come with the touring model, however, I am concerned about the reliability aspect. While I know any and all cars can have issues, trying to get some thoughts from others. Here's the cars we are currently looking at:

2010 Town and Country- $14,990 49,007 miles
http://www.driversvillage.com/web/used/Chrysler-Town-Country-2010-Cicero-New-York/16699587/

2013 Town and Country Touring- $19,990 33,330 miles
http://www.driversvillage.com/web/used/Chrysler-Town-Country-2013-Cicero-New-York/17836338/

2013 Town and Country $20,890 41,000 miles
http://www.usedcarking.com/used/Chrysler/2013-Chrysler-Town+&+Country-Syracuse+NY-65487b0f0a0a00de47e32ccd86b017ae.htm

2013 Town and Country Touring- $20,790 39,648 miles
http://www.usedcarking.com/used/Chrysler/2013-Chrysler-Town+&+Country-Syracuse+NY-5e43c5c30a0a00e0367cc59da3c9090f.htm

2011 Toyota Sienna LE $20,995 57,930 miles- Toyota Certified
http://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/622792475/overview/

2013 Toyota Sienna LE $20,933 44,858 miles
http://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/622441160/overview/

2013 Toyota Sienna LE $21,995 23,141 miles
http://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/609056367/overview/

Just looking for some thoughts. Overall I like the Town and Country from the standpoint of interior, features, etc… However, the Toyota's will probably hold their value better and as mentioned earlier, I’m slightly concerned about the reliability of the Town and Country. Any thoughts or input is welcome.

Thanks!

Kevin

keelk

Is there any way to delete this post as I accidentally posted it in the wrong forum?

stever

We can just change the category instead of moving your post, @keelk.

I haven't driven a Sienna since the late '90s when we wound up with a Quest. When the Quest died earlier this summer, we wanted a "placeholder" vehicle - something cheap that would haul a lot of junk. We wound up with an '09 Grand Caravan SXT. We used it to move from MI to NM.

We've been happy with the fancy extras, like the power sliding doors, power driver seat and especially the Stow n Go. We got it with 125,000 miles seven months ago and have put 14,000 miles on it. Reliability has been fine, one bad gas cap and we did a front brake job.

I eyeballed a new Sienna back in the summer when we were shopping and they still seem as "plush" as they did back in '99. Since we haul junk more than passengers, that wasn't a big plus for us. The Stow n Go seats are great, but I rarely have to sit in them for any length of time. That's the rap on them, poor seat comfort, and your kids may appreciate the seats better in the Toyota.

The Toyota is likely to be a bit more reliable than the Chrysler, but all cars are pretty reliable these days.

With any used car, it's cheap insurance to get your own mechanic to give it a pre-purchase inspection and most dealers will show you the AutoCheck or Carfax and will give you a rundown of maintenance and recall work done through the dealer network.

deanzilla

If your current post is in 2014. Please take this advise seriously.
Stay away from this money pit, 2010 chrysler town and country. it will be the worst vehicle you can buy, unless you want to throw away $600 at a time. My wife convinced me to purchase a 2010 Town & Country touring edition, certified vehicle with 21,000 miles. It was the dealership shuffle van with lots of extras and room for kids and underfloor storage.
BUT.....its been nothing but a money pit. I am now at 72,000 miles with 4 sets of tires destroyed (thats 8 tires) thru Dec 2014 and need another set soon. when it finally chews these ones up, They were all 80K goodyear) and 2 sets of full brakes and rotors destroyed. $600 x 4 events, not much covered by extended gold warranty plan. come December, i just spent $550 and still need tires again. Plus when the heater hose for front and rear, goes out, its has plastic connector to engine block and about 25 feet long for $600, its not on warrant either.
I just got my last brake job about 3 days ago and the front brakes are already squeeking.
The power locks on the slides doors not be fully covered by extended plan , so plan on $650 for $400 with extended warranty.
When the keys fobs stop working, it will be hassle to pay $125 for one and cost to get it programmed, worse if the alarm system does not respond too. when dealer test it, they will not find an issue.
I will never never never ever purchase a chrysler (now Chrysler, dodge, plymouth) for the rest of my life.
My last 3 cars were honda's and all 3 combined were less expensive to maintain.
Save yourself the agrevation and chose some other vehicle from different maker.

Or you will join the Worst decision ever Chysler Club..