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Comments
There are a lot of reasons, but here are some I can think of:
1) Bumper-to-bumper warranty. If you get extended warranty, the NAV+RES are also covered.
2) Better fit/finish/looks. When you enter any vehicle, you can easily tell if the products were aftermarket or factory installed, especially the NAV.
3) Better sound/video. Aftermarkets ALWAYS use RF-Modulation. Factory is pure-direct-line audio connection. The SOUND is clearer and louder! Also, the factory installs start up quicker than the aftermarkets.
If you spend $34K+ on a vehicle, why SETTLE for aftermarkets? It "degrades" your vehicle value, IMO.
Some people say aftermarket is less expensive, bigger screens, etc.
The new Ody has 9" screen, which is pretty big.
Most aftermarkets are 7".
I seriously doubt you can get a better aftermarket NAV than the Ody's. Voice activation with over 700 commands? Beautiful fit/finish/looks. This NAV is even better than the current Acura and Lexus NAV, if Money magazine is correct about it's description.
Bottom line: if you can afford it, ALWAYS get the factory installed products.
Aftermarkets are NEVER EVER as good. Just don't listen to aftermarket people!
Always get factory installed.
If the dealer offers to install something not already installed by factory, don't go for it!!!
Always get factory installed!!!!!!
And to reiterate what Andrew said - the sound will be far superior with the factory system.
Most aftermarkets are installed UNDER your 2nd row seats, and inserting/removing the DVD is a pain in the butt.
Yes, the sound is definitely far superior with the factory system!!!!!
With aftermarkets, which uses RF-modulation, you have to crank that volume WAY, WAY up to hear anything! And, since it uses the FM reception, you can pick up FM radio interference. Yeah, that static and buzz will sound terrible in your nice beautiful $30K Odyssey!!!!!!!
Factory sound used to be overpriced, awful sounding garbage. They offered junk AM/FM/cassette systems for top dollar and fed off people who did not want the hassle of getting an aftermarket system.
But back in the day, designing and installing your own custom sound system was more exciting than buying the car, itself.
Anyone else old enough to remember that (and willing to admit it)?
PS: In my first used car I am afraid it was not even a cassette-- it was an 8-track tape player bolted to the transmission hump.
Most aftermarkets are 7"."
Andrew, I agree to the point that factory installed NAV and RES have better integration, which worths the extra cost. But your statement is apparently wrong on "Most aftermarkets are 7"".
In my neighborhood, in Fry's Electronics, you can have 10.4" Bravo installed for $499 at one time. In most days, it is $599. You can't beat that price. The LCD is very good also. Yes, the sound goes thru the FM radio, which can't compete with direct feed.
Roadmate 700 is the best Aftermarket GPS I know. I have seen it in my friend's car. Very good. And, I do own Odyssey with NAVI. The best advantage is ... you can move it from one vehicle to another. Let's face it, you only need ONE GPS system in your house. Having one GPS system in each vehicle is a waste. Then again, integration has its great value, depending on how much you can afford. After all, "Money may not buy happiness, but it buys convenience."
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
The difference between Infiniti QX56 and Nissan Armada is 16lbs of sound insulation materials. Well, triple seal the doors, left gate, thicker glasses would help also. Is there any other trick that only Lexus know that others don't? Apparently, Lexus put more effort in tranquility than other makers do. That doesn't mean others don't know how to. It is a matter of where you put your resouces and prioritize them.
My DH & I have been considering the 05 Ody vs the Ford Expedition. One of the many things we like about mini vans vs. SUVs is eliminating the fear of our kids putting a dent in the car parked next to us when they fling their SUV door open as they exit—not a problem with a van’s sliding doors! That makes me think that I ought to be parking next to vans more often myself.
Before the 05 Ody color names were disclosed, there was a post #1020 of what the colors (w/o the specific names) would be: i.e. white, navy blue, light blue, black, dark green metallic, light green metallic, red...
I know that “Sage brush pearl” is kind of green/blue/gray in real life, but it is dark green on the hondacars.com website. And remember our first “spy” pic: the “green van” posted earlier...
****Would you guess that “Sage brush pearl” is the dark green metallic and “Slate green metallic” will be the light green (maybe/hopefully close to the Ford Expedition’s “Estate Green”)?****
It also nice to be able to talk to people in the 3rd row without having to scream.
I think better insulation, thicker glass, and more aerodynamics (less coefficient of drag) are the keys. I believe according to Car & Driver, the only car that is quieter than the $60K Lexus LS430 by just ONE dBA is the $300K+ Maybach.
I still don't believe the Odyssey can be quieter than the Sienna, but we will just have to wait and see.
A couple comments...
Got to get the quietest ride and save our hearing so that we can crank up the 360 Watt stereo! Whoo HOO!
You're correct that it's nice to talk to the people inthe 3rd row without screaming. Although, in the third row is usually two of my sons. That means I am usually screaming at them anyway.
360 Watts seems kind of high, considering a Lexus LS430 has like 300 watts.
I wonder how many speakers will it have on the Touring?
Oh, and, of course, you definitely want your two boys to hear every bit of your scream loud and clear:-)
And then you can crank up that 360 Watts system.
Is that your logic that since Lexus LS430 is the most quiet among all reasonably priced sedans so that Sienna is unbeatable also by any makers including Honda? I admit LS430 is quiet, and personally, I enjoy the scream of my BMW up to redline, but your logic failed to convince me.
The biggest problem I see for Odyssey is noise. Even if they can make it closer to Sienna's level, it would be acceptable to me already. After all, Odyssey has many virtues that Sienna lack.
IMHO, of course.
http://www.hondacars.com/info/prototypes/2005_odyssey.asp
I love how they can exaggerate the effects of a design with a sketch.
-juice
I'd call Slate Green Metallic a grayish green with a hint of blue...a bit like the current Havasu Blue but darker. Definitely much lighter than Sage Brush Pearl. It looks like it would be a winner with the olive interior but my DW does not want green.
Don't get your hopes up regarding the picture I sent to foxb11. The color is hard to see...I took the shots with a small 3MP camera when the dealer left me alone with the chart.
Andrew and others: To date, most car manufacturers stop to make cassette players, and go with CD only. While I would still like cassette player option (I have a ton of old recorded cassettes), most people don't care about it. But there is one big advantage I mentioned many times before, which most people don't know.
In Wal-Mart or Radio shack, you can buy (for about $15-20) a CD-to-Cassette adapter (I would call it “media converter”), it is a cassette which goes in to any cassette player, and have a 8' plug on the other end to connect to a headphone jack, and plays the media on the cassette player.
If I'm not clear enough, let me explain: You have your portable CD player, MP3 player, or you want to watch a movie on your portable DVD player, or use your laptop to watch a movie or GPS information, etc. in your car, with good sound. So you take that cassette, put it into your cars cassette player, and plug the other end into the headphones jack, and now you hear everything loud and clear on your cars stereo speakers!
My friend did it several times, and it's a good thing if you don't want to install an aftermarket DVD in your car. If your car is equipped with a cassette player, you can connect every media which have a headphone jack. My friend used a laptop to watch DVD's, and everything was amazing. Good view from a 15" monitor, and beautiful sound from the cars speakers. No more those static problems like you have when you go thro FM system.
That's one more reason why every vehicle should stay with a cassette player, IMO.
Now, let me repeat my question: Will the second row seats (7-passenger version) have the slide-to-side feature to create a bench seat as the '04 models?
NAV aftermarket: My company design GPS chip so we have evaluate the model sold in the market. Today's portable unit is quite capable of in both functiona nd precision. It also gives you the flexibility to move from one vehicle to another. Problem: small display and limited to none vocal instructions to give direction. Another shortage is the smaller size database. When you travel out of your metro area or state, make sure to buy extra storage and download the map before your departure. If you don't have fix plan, bring your PC and wireless device and searching for internet access point for your new map. With family, this is not very convinent. So the portable is more suitable for local or home base. Another issue is the mounting. If you install the rack or holder, you need to drill holes or use glue to fix it which is not a good idea if you like things neat. In 2-3 years, you will have OEM car NAV drop below $1000 barrier. For the Toyota Solara, the NAV option is $1,300.00 already.
RES: the RES will shaking and vibrate when on the rough surface including the OEM built-in one. It's harmful for the eyes especially to kids and will tend to cause motion sickness (at least for my wife and one friend of my younger daughter). Mountain road with many curve definitely will cause sickness for most if using the RES. I did bought a portable one and found it does the job well and can be bring into Hotel. It came with a carry bag can be transform a holder to be mounted at the back of the front seat and quite secure. Of cause won't be as good as OEM one. We use it on the long trip (6hrs and more) and limited to interstate HWY with smooth surface. Aftermarket one won't be better thant he OEM. One note, even in the 05 pictures, it seems the DVD unit is mounted near to the floor like the 04 which make it difficult for drive to load it while driving. So if passenger help or stop needed, it diesn't matter where the access slot is. The RF module doen't sound good or loud enough, so try to avoid it. My portable DVD can use the cassette adapter to utilize the sound system when playing but I prefer they watch theirs while I switch the sound all to the front and my wife and I can enjoy our music. Kids will be seated in the 3rd row, of cause, to avoid the interference.
I mean it, I want to find something wonderful I didn't know I was missing. Please explain how/if you think it's helpful for someone like me.
Thanks again!
My wife does home health care...she has gotten really good about finding people's homes when they can't tell her where they live (really!). But about once a month, I get a call at work to look on the internet to find a house. With the NAV in the car, that shouldn't happen. I can't WAIT!!
And thanks for the NAV "salespitch"--anybody else want to tell me how/why they like it when they mostly just go to work and their kids' sports stuff?
"Being a brand new model, we are expecting a price increase (Could be anywhere from $500 to $2000)." Is he lying?
Say, you want to travel out of town, or out of state (not taking your vehicle), you can bring the portable GPS with you. Never get lost again or ask for direction. GPS also helps you find restaurant, attractions, etc. Yes, you could rent a vehicle with GPS, but are you familiar with the usage, interface, etc. There are undeniable benefits of portable GPS. Again, factory GPS is better integrated in looks and controllability. Pros and cons. To each his/her own choice.
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/foxb11@sbcglobal.net/my_photos
Domain Name.......... nohagglehonda.com
Creation Date........ 2004-08-07
Registration Date.... 2004-08-07
Expiry Date.......... 2005-08-07
Organisation Name.... Robert Vaughn
Organisation Address. 204 S Hamilton St
Organisation Address.
Organisation Address. Williamston
Organisation Address. 29697
Organisation Address. SC
Organisation Address. UNITED STATES
=========
Two "red alert" items immediately stand out. The creation date is 8/7/2004, a very new site and unlikely to be an established Honda dealer. Second, it's registered to an individual, not a corporation as a legitimate dealership would be.
So caveat emptor.
Based on a message posted early on in this forum (message #7 on page 2), the 05 will include heated AND cooled (leather I assume) seats in the 1st two rows (therefore addressing my issue of not wanting “sticky” leather in the hot FL climate.)
I hope it's true! I love this feature on the Ford Expedition....
But no, my logic is NOT that the Sienna is unbeatable in terms of interior quietness.
Nothing is unbeatable.
Never say never.
Anything is possible in life.
That's my logic.
My logic is that the Sienna's interior quietness is hard to beat.
But I hope the Odyssey WILL BE quieter.
Like you mentioned, the Ody has many virtues the Sienna lack: MUCH better NAV and RES, VCM, possibly even more interior room, Lazy Susan, better looks, to name a few.
If not, the Ody is better:-)
But some of us want it all, man.
Some of us don't want portables and things to fly around.
Some of us want our Ody to look very expensive and high-tech-----no offense to anyone who just want the basic good Ody, of course.
We want the best. We want everything, up still up to a certain amount of $$, of course.
Yeah, I've used those things you mentioned. CD-tape converter and protable GPS vis laptop. It works okay.
But I don't want "OKAY".
I want the best. Again, no offense.
If he means you will be paying above MSRP, he's full of crap.