I did drive them both. In my test drives, I took both the Ody and Sienna up very briefly to 100mph in the outer loop here to see how they feel. This was with 6 people on board, including the saleman and my adult family.
The road feel/handling, in my opinion, was better in the Ody. The Sienna was quieter, but did not have the engaging, sporty flair of the Ody.
Hence the choice for the Ody for me. That is because of my driving style/preference.
Sorry Macakava, I have to disagree. I had a 2002 GC. The tranny died at 34,000 miles. When I brought it to the dealer and told about the tranny I got no arguments. In fact, the service manager did not even look up from the forms he was writing, responding with a tired "gee what else is new". The factory-new tranny replacement was also defective. This really bothered me as I have owned an Aspen and two Dodge Dusters all with the old indestructible slant six and formerly awesome Chrysler transmission. Honestly, I have yet to hear any reliable source (not Hans' opinion) that substantiates an improvement in the depressing Chrysler minivan transmission record. After this miserable experience with Chrysler, I got into the 04' Sienna and have not looked back. This was an easy decision in 04' . I admit had the new 05' Ody been around then the choice would have been hard. However, I've had the Sienna now going on two years now and still love this car.
user777 writes: "remember 4 wheel disc brakes, ABS, traction control, vehicle stability control, side airbags, and 2nd/3rd row side curtain airbags come standard on the even the low-end trim odyssey.
the only big safety features i'm aware in the toyota that aren't offered on the odyssey is AWD (and maybe the Daytime Running Lights (DRLs)).
configure the toyota with the comparable features available in the lowest-end trim of the odyssey and compare price. "
I have read similar things around this arguement and it doesn't hold water for me. There is a very small market for the "lowest-end trim model" of either the Ody or the Sienna. Most buyers of these vans are getting them rather well equipped. There are very few Sienna's on dealer lots with just basic trim, most have rather nice option packages on them. You almost have to order a stripped down version if that's what you want. Also , why would I compare a Sienna with comparable features of a Ody LX when that isn't what I want in my vehicle? I bought an LE with every option available and it also has running boards, the 8 way power seat is more comfortable and more adjustable than the Ody, the JBL sound system is second to none, my wife hates leather , so the only model I would compare it to is an Ody EX and that model doesn't come with RES, which we have. We also have 4 wheel disc brakes, ABS, traction control, vehicle stability control, side airbags, and 2nd/3rd row side curtain airbags and daytime running lights, auto dimming mirror, compass, mpg calculator, outside temp, 2 -115v outlets to plug in playstation or X-box games. To put it all in perspective, we paid $600 more for this van than we did for our 2000 Ody EX back in October of 1999 . We loved that Ody, it was the best car we ever owned, until now. The only things that the new Ody has that our Sienna doesn't is the lazy suzan and the driver side power door. Obviously not deal breakers for us. I was paying very close attention to how it was handling and also how the drivers seat felt as I read some of the critics on this board before we drove it. My observations were , it handled better than the Ody, and the drivers seat was also better, ( the power lumbar is nice), which made me wonder if they changed the seat from earlier models. For the record, I go 6' 205. It was easily a quieter ride than the Ody. The deal was sealed when I got what I wanted for my 2000 Ody and also got 3.9% for 60, done deal.
They were both acquaintances of mine and love spirited driving. Remember these were just brief periods of a few seconds like when overtaking a vehicle very briskly doing 70 - 75 on the highway. Once you get there at 100mph, you let go of the gas to coast back down.
One of the most annoying drivers on the highway is when he/she is taking ages to overtake another vehicle and blocking those behind. By over taking briskly, the activiity is completed in a few seconds instead of minutes by a slower "frightened" driver.
Between 75 to 100mph, the Ody felt stronger. I guess that's where the extra ponies come into play.
Did it have an inaccurate speedometer and odometer? Or was it the higher "whistling noise" of the Ody that made you think you were going 100 MPH? In a test drive on the exact same course, my son's 01 Ody EX odometer indicated a distance of 38.8 miles while the 02 GC Sport odometer indicated 37.6 miles. Does Honda deliberately have the speedometer and odometer read high so people will think they are going faster or getting better gas mileage than they are really getting?
Maybe I need to bring the C & D or CR guys with measuring instruments to satisfy your requests. All comparisons I have seen/read between actual and ODO readings have been within 5%.
I DO know that from 70 mph upwards to 100mph for swift overtaking, the Ody does it very well. From the 70 minivan rentals I had with mostly DGC and some T &C, their engines kick up a racket saying "Don't push me. I just want to loaf along. I am retired"
The 01 Ody EX odometer reads 3.3 % more miles travelled than the 02 GC Sport. Whether the GC Sport is completely accurate or reads less miles than actually travelled I do not know nor do I know if the Ody EX reads exact mileage or 3.3 % high. I just know that the 01 Ody EX read 3.3 % more miles on the exact same course than the 02 GC Sport. In either situation, the error would fall within the C&D 5 % margin of error. I have not driven a Sienna on the same course so I do not know how the Sienna odometer accuracy is compared to the Ody. :confuse:
two things to be sure of: both vehicles have stock or identical to stock rims/wheels and have proper size tires, then also both vehicles have proper tire inflation pressure...then i'd perform another side-by-side comparison.
Yeah it has come along way i own a Sienna XLE AWD and leather feels about the same as my Mercedes. Just the Benz is more generous (has a lot more leather).
But i don't know if Toyota uses real leather does anyone know?
In a test drive on the exact same course, my son's 01 Ody EX odometer indicated a distance of 38.8 miles while the 02 GC Sport odometer indicated 37.6 miles
Dude where do you drum this stuff up from?? 2 days ago I went past one of those radar signs I was going 55 and it read 55 on my Honda Odyssey. BTW I am getting 22.5MPG(60% highway) for the first 3000 miles. I know the EPA ratings are high, they are on ALL cars!! So, go buy a Dodge GC and then make some more wild statements!!!
Wife and I tested Ody EX-L w/DVD and comparably equipped Yota (XLE with package 5). We liked the Ody interior more, but the exterior of the Yota. The Ody had a sunroof and a better DVD (loaded up front); the Yota had a power liftgate (Ody did not).
In other words, everything pretty much balanced out, so it came down to the test drive.
My wife and I both felt that the Yota seemed to have more oomph in bringing it up to highway speed, and less straining on the gears, at least to our ears. Does this make any sense? (Note that we also tested a well-equipped GC due to the incentives, and we really wanted to like it; it was very nice inside, and very cheap. Once we drove it, however, we figured out why it was cheap. Good lord, a five-speed makes all the difference!)
Could the difference be due to the fact that when we drove the Yota, there were just two people in the car total, whereas with the Ody there were five (me, wife, salesman, our 3 year old, and our baby)? Or maybe the fact that I regularly drive a Camry made a difference, since the Sienna drives very much like a camry and has the same layout? Or is there really a difference? (I don't think we will be able to test drive again. We just don't have time.)
I'd like to like the Ody more because it is a little nicer inside (to our taste), doesn't have the hellish Yota option structure, and will be slightly cheaper. But the whole point of upgrading to one of these babies is to have a nice highway ride on our car trips.
Bottom line: Both are great, and both will make us very happy. But if the Yota actually accelerates at highway speeds more quickly, that's what we want.
test drive both again with the same number of passengers in each van.
some have said the odyssey has more road / wind noise than the sienna, while others prefer the sportier handling of the odyssey over the toyota. still others prefer the softer ride of the toyota. i suppose the fact that you are a camry driver influences your opinion towards the sienna, just as another person (like myself) experience of an accord influences my opinion towards the odyssey. yes there's a difference, and your previous experience may dictate what you find confortable and natural (specially when control layout is the same).
you probably can't go wrong with either vehicle.
personally, i too like you have always thought the options of the sienna much too confusing - specially when a number of combinations can't even be acquired in certain parts of the country. this is a case where less IS best.
Thoughts? Excellent comparison of Sienna and Odyssey. 5 speed AT? Gives the impression of more response than actually exists. Prefer Sienna exterior styling? Amazing. :confuse:
Bottom Line: BUY the Sienna since you like the Camry.
We are still on the fence between the Sienna and the Odyssey. The Siennas have good pricing (below invoice) because the 06s are about to come in, and they are clearing out stock.
We can get an Ody for $1500-$2000 under MSRP (still above invoice); but we can't tell whether this is because they are clearing out Odys, or whether this is just the price at which they sell. Does anyone know when the 06s are coming in, what the differences and prices will be, and whether we could get an '06 in the next couple of months at $1500 below MSRP? If so, we'd just as well wait. If not, we'll go forward now.
I don't know about the '06s, but you'll generally (a) not get a big discount right when the new MV comes out, especially since the 2 MVs you are considering are high demand vehicles, and (b) get a larger discount on '05s after the '06s come out.
If you can wait, I would. It'll be worth it b/c either (a) you'll find out th '06s have a feature you can't live without, or (b) you can save more money on an '05.
PS - don't know what changes Sienna made since the redesign in '04, but if they're not significant, you might be able to get one coming off a 2-year lease. I'd expect interior wear and tear on a MV would be of greater concern than engine-wear. Can't see the ave driver of a MV driving it hard.
I did a quick search, but didn't find anything either. Are you under time constraints? I think Oct/Nov are considered "late" for getting new models out to dealerships, so they should be out by then at the latest.
There is a "Honda Oddessey Future Models " board. I'd check it out to read if there are any rumors out there.
Sienna is the no brainer. "do the test drive one more time without the extra people"...come on...the extra people were two kids....probably not even 50 pounds total. Of course it was a Honda owner who told you to do that.
Bottom line - if you're a car guy who wants your MV to be as close to a race car as an MV can be, pick the Ody. If you want a very nice ride, pick the Sienna.
All else is personal preference. I agree that the Sienna exterior is better. I actually like the Sienna interior much better too after doing the comparison(EX-Cloth vs LE option 5). If you read this board, there are really 2 primary reasons people pick the Ody.
College Hills Honda's website lists in-coming vehicles and shows an '06 Odyssey with an expected build date in the first ten days in August. If true, and given transit time, it appears then that the '06s will start showing up before the end of August.
Help! I need input straight from Odyssey and Sienna owner experience.
I live at the top of a hill with a winding gravel drive. We get snow, and I estimate the incline to be about 30 - 35 degrees. My mother's Subaru Outback makes it fine, but I will need a vehicle that can seat two carseats, plus 3 adults.
I like the Odyssey but it does not come in AWD. There have been no Sienna's with AWD at any of our local Toyota dealers, but the drive has been described as 'firmer' or 'tighter' than the FWD Sienna.
My question, do you think an Odyssey would make it up my drive? How do Odysseys handle in the snow? Anyone with an AWD Sienna or FWD with input on handling in snow conditions?
Thanks SO much. My head is about to explode from trying to find a new car.
I can't say what the climate is like where you live, but here in Buffalo, I can give you firsthand experience with both models. I will preference though, that good tires can make a much more significant difference than FWD/RWD/4WD/AWD. AWD/4WD with bald tires won't do you any good compared to 2WD with good tires. For example, last winter, early in the season, we had about 48" of snow over a weekend. We had about 300 cars to move so that we could plow out the lot. These were all new cars/trucks with all-season tires for the most part. The FWD Sienna's, RAV4's, and Matrix's all had to be hand-shoveled out. The AWD versions of the same vehicles blew right through the snow mounded up over their hoods.
So, does it make a difference, sure. But it depends on the circumstances for if it is necessary or preferable.
"The AWD versions of the same vehicles blew right through the snow mounded up over their hoods."
If I had an AWD vehicle, I would not go through the trouble and expense of installing snow tires because I believe that it would be adequate as you mentioned.
It's a proven fact that a vehicle equipped with AWD and all season tires has better traction than a vehicle with winter tires without AWD. This is from personal experience. Also, CR concluded the same in test results last year. Ideally, AWD and winter tires would be superior.
Cant say anything about the AWD Sienna, havnt drove one yet. But with my Odyssey the traction help ALOT. I do not have snow tires on it, but my friend has a VERY steep long gravel drive way that gets very slippary in the winter and can be a b**ch to get up. I never once got stuck with my Odyssey and everytime I go up it the traction control does kick in. Very helpful.
"Ideally, AWD and winter tires would be superior. "
Agreed. But probably not necessary as all seasons tires, without having the trouble/expense to swap tires between seasons, would be adequate for most folks.
As they say, "needs" and "wants" are two different entities.
" There have been no Sienna's with AWD at any of our local Toyota dealers, but the drive has been described as 'firmer' or 'tighter' than the FWD Sienna. "
I'm not sure if you're concerned about the ride quality on an AWD Sienna, but the ride is still very good. It's a little "jigglier" over multiple bumps than FWDs, but I can't imagine anybody would find it objectionable. It's still a very smooth ride.
My wife and I also test drove both the Honda and Toyota MVs. We have never owned either a Honda nor Toyota, so we had no bias going into the test. Both were far superior to the Chrysler and Ford vans we test drove. I had the opposite impression of the power however as it seemed the Honda had more "oomph" to me. When it comes down to it, we liked all the Honda features better; power, styling (interior and exterior), and the handling. We never really compared the pricing between the two as we first decided which vehicle we wanted and then searched for the best price we could find on that vehicle, the Honda (EX-L). It's all a matter of personal preference, of course, as you'll never convince either side that the other side is better. Just buy what you like, regardless of what logo is on it.
Honda. We decided to go with the Odyssey for a few reasons. Better price. Better interior. We didn't like the Sienna power rear door in the end. PlusOne console allows us to switch from seating for 7 to seating for 8. No confusing options.
Wife drove them both again and realized that the Honda didn't have less oomph, it just sounded a little louder (which made it seem that it was straining more). We can deal with that.
So we ordered a slate EX-L RES. Got the best price we could find. Now we are just waiting for them to find the darn thing and rope it in. I won't be happy if this falls through!
There wasn't anything *wrong* with it per se. It just took *forever* to open and close using the auto feature, not to mention the incessant beeping. (We're talking about the tail door, not the side doors.) I understand that this slow speed is a safety feature, but it took so long that we would have had to turn it off and use the door manually. I don't see any purpose to paying for an automatic feature (and trust me, you pay for this feature in the Sienna XLE) if we aren't going to use it.
Let me be clear here: The Sienna is a great car. We were leaning towards it, and we could have just as easily gone the other way. My wife liked the control panel on the Sienna better, and it certainly was quieter and maybe a little smoother. So I'm not bad-mouthing it. The tradeoffs in either vehicle are minor. So we went with the Honda by a smidge.
(One other thing: If you are considering a DVD, the Honda's features a bigger screen and, more importantly, allows you to load the DVD in the front, rather than right next to the DVD screen. If you want a DVD in the Sienna, consider saving your money and buying one aftermarket. But if you want one in the Ody, there are advantages to going with Honda's.)
If the sienna drives anything like my old 2004 T&C. I would say the ride is firmer, but the odyssey is definately a whole lot tighter( In handling of coarse).
No one said anything about it being a "necessary feature." Our thought was that it could be nice--bags of groceries in one hand, baby in the other, just touch the fob and watch the hatch rise.
Our problem with the hatch, of course, is that by the time the door opens, the milk in your bag has gone sour, the baby in your arm has turned sour, and the hair on your head has turned gray.
I agree. I never needed them (winter tires) with our AWD vehicle(s). However, people forget that stopping distances are not shorter in ice and snow conditions (particularly when equipped with ABS). Traction is the only benefit. Safe driving practice is the key.
"Wife drove them both again and realized that the Honda didn't have less oomph, it just sounded a little louder "
It is funny how everyone is different. I paid close attention to the noise in both vehicles, and I agree that the Honda was much louder. In the Honda, I could barely hear the sales guy talking in the 2nd row. In the toyo, I didn't even know I was driving a car. That was a big deal to my wife in thinkng about trying to hear the kids talk or talk back to them in the 2nd and 3rd row. The Ody is loud.
I must say though, that if i didn't have 3 kids, I did like the plus 1 seat of the Ody because it did seam to give you a little more options. However, with 3 kids, we aren't comfortable putting a kid in that seat, so for us it actually ended up being an eliminating factor.
Either way, you can't go wrong. As long as you did the research and comparison and made up your own mind then you'll be happy and definately made the right decison for you. What is bothersome to me is folks who blindly buy the Ody because of the press. Good Luck with your Ody.
Comments
Maybe Hans can confirm since he follows Chrysler closely.
The road feel/handling, in my opinion, was better in the Ody. The Sienna was quieter, but did not have the engaging, sporty flair of the Ody.
Hence the choice for the Ody for me. That is because of my driving style/preference.
I had a 2002 GC. The tranny died at 34,000 miles. When I brought it to the dealer and told about the tranny I got no arguments. In fact, the service manager did not even look up from the forms he was writing, responding with a tired "gee what else is new".
The factory-new tranny replacement was also defective. This really bothered me as I have owned an Aspen and two Dodge Dusters all with the old indestructible slant six and formerly awesome Chrysler transmission. Honestly, I have yet to hear any reliable source (not Hans' opinion) that substantiates an improvement in the depressing Chrysler minivan transmission record. After this miserable experience with Chrysler, I got into the 04' Sienna and have not looked back. This was an easy decision in 04' . I admit had the new 05' Ody been around then the choice would have been hard. However, I've had the Sienna now going on two years now and still love this car.
I wouldn't have and I wouldn't have cared if I lost the sale because of that.
100 MPH??
the only big safety features i'm aware in the toyota that aren't offered on the odyssey is AWD (and maybe the Daytime Running Lights (DRLs)).
configure the toyota with the comparable features available in the lowest-end trim of the odyssey and compare price. "
I have read similar things around this arguement and it doesn't hold water for me. There is a very small market for the "lowest-end trim model" of either the Ody or the Sienna. Most buyers of these vans are getting them rather well equipped. There are very few Sienna's on dealer lots with just basic trim, most have rather nice option packages on them. You almost have to order a stripped down version if that's what you want. Also , why would I compare a Sienna with comparable features of a Ody LX when that isn't what I want in my vehicle? I bought an LE with every option available and it also has running boards, the 8 way power seat is more comfortable and more adjustable than the Ody, the JBL sound system is second to none, my wife hates leather , so the only model I would compare it to is an Ody EX and that model doesn't come with RES, which we have. We also have 4 wheel disc brakes, ABS, traction control, vehicle stability control, side airbags, and 2nd/3rd row side curtain airbags and daytime running lights, auto dimming mirror, compass, mpg calculator, outside temp, 2 -115v outlets to plug in playstation or X-box games. To put it all in perspective, we paid $600 more for this van than we did for our 2000 Ody EX back in October of 1999 . We loved that Ody, it was the best car we ever owned, until now. The only things that the new Ody has that our Sienna doesn't is the lazy suzan and the driver side power door. Obviously not deal breakers for us. I was paying very close attention to how it was handling and also how the drivers seat felt as I read some of the critics on this board before we drove it. My observations were , it handled better than the Ody, and the drivers seat was also better, ( the power lumbar is nice), which made me wonder if they changed the seat from earlier models. For the record, I go 6' 205.
It was easily a quieter ride than the Ody. The deal was sealed when I got what I wanted for my 2000 Ody and also got 3.9% for 60, done deal.
They were both acquaintances of mine and love spirited driving. Remember these were just brief periods of a few seconds like when overtaking a vehicle very briskly doing 70 - 75 on the highway. Once you get there at 100mph, you let go of the gas to coast back down.
One of the most annoying drivers on the highway is when he/she is taking ages to overtake another vehicle and blocking those behind. By over taking briskly, the activiity is completed in a few seconds instead of minutes by a slower "frightened" driver.
Between 75 to 100mph, the Ody felt stronger. I guess that's where the extra ponies come into play.
In a test drive on the exact same course, my son's 01 Ody EX odometer indicated a distance of 38.8 miles while the 02 GC Sport odometer indicated 37.6 miles.
Does Honda deliberately have the speedometer and odometer read high so people will think they are going faster or getting better gas mileage than they are really getting?
I DO know that from 70 mph upwards to 100mph for swift overtaking, the Ody does it very well. From the 70 minivan rentals I had with mostly DGC and some T &C, their engines kick up a racket saying "Don't push me. I just want to loaf along. I am retired"
In either situation, the error would fall within the C&D 5 % margin of error.
I have not driven a Sienna on the same course so I do not know how the Sienna odometer accuracy is compared to the Ody. :confuse:
But i don't know if Toyota uses real leather does anyone know?
Ken
Dude where do you drum this stuff up from?? 2 days ago I went past one of those radar signs I was going 55 and it read 55 on my Honda Odyssey. BTW I am getting 22.5MPG(60% highway) for the first 3000 miles. I know the EPA ratings are high, they are on ALL cars!! So, go buy a Dodge GC and then make some more wild statements!!!
In other words, everything pretty much balanced out, so it came down to the test drive.
My wife and I both felt that the Yota seemed to have more oomph in bringing it up to highway speed, and less straining on the gears, at least to our ears. Does this make any sense? (Note that we also tested a well-equipped GC due to the incentives, and we really wanted to like it; it was very nice inside, and very cheap. Once we drove it, however, we figured out why it was cheap. Good lord, a five-speed makes all the difference!)
Could the difference be due to the fact that when we drove the Yota, there were just two people in the car total, whereas with the Ody there were five (me, wife, salesman, our 3 year old, and our baby)? Or maybe the fact that I regularly drive a Camry made a difference, since the Sienna drives very much like a camry and has the same layout? Or is there really a difference? (I don't think we will be able to test drive again. We just don't have time.)
I'd like to like the Ody more because it is a little nicer inside (to our taste), doesn't have the hellish Yota option structure, and will be slightly cheaper. But the whole point of upgrading to one of these babies is to have a nice highway ride on our car trips.
Bottom line: Both are great, and both will make us very happy. But if the Yota actually accelerates at highway speeds more quickly, that's what we want.
Thoughts?
some have said the odyssey has more road / wind noise than the sienna, while others prefer the sportier handling of the odyssey over the toyota. still others prefer the softer ride of the toyota. i suppose the fact that you are a camry driver influences your opinion towards the sienna, just as another person (like myself) experience of an accord influences my opinion towards the odyssey. yes there's a difference, and your previous experience may dictate what you find confortable and natural (specially when control layout is the same).
you probably can't go wrong with either vehicle.
personally, i too like you have always thought the options of the sienna much too confusing - specially when a number of combinations can't even be acquired in certain parts of the country. this is a case where less IS best.
5 speed AT? Gives the impression of more response than actually exists.
Prefer Sienna exterior styling? Amazing. :confuse:
Bottom Line: BUY the Sienna since you like the Camry.
that's a silly response - you know it's all opinion. :mad: My opinion is that the Sienna is clearly one of the better-looking MVs available.
We can get an Ody for $1500-$2000 under MSRP (still above invoice); but we can't tell whether this is because they are clearing out Odys, or whether this is just the price at which they sell. Does anyone know when the 06s are coming in, what the differences and prices will be, and whether we could get an '06 in the next couple of months at $1500 below MSRP? If so, we'd just as well wait. If not, we'll go forward now.
Thanks.
If you can wait, I would. It'll be worth it b/c either (a) you'll find out th '06s have a feature you can't live without, or (b) you can save more money on an '05.
PS - don't know what changes Sienna made since the redesign in '04, but if they're not significant, you might be able to get one coming off a 2-year lease. I'd expect interior wear and tear on a MV would be of greater concern than engine-wear. Can't see the ave driver of a MV driving it hard.
There is a "Honda Oddessey Future Models " board. I'd check it out to read if there are any rumors out there.
Bottom line - if you're a car guy who wants your MV to be as close to a race car as an MV can be, pick the Ody. If you want a very nice ride, pick the Sienna.
All else is personal preference. I agree that the Sienna exterior is better. I actually like the Sienna interior much better too after doing the comparison(EX-Cloth vs LE option 5). If you read this board, there are really 2 primary reasons people pick the Ody.
1. Sporty ride
2. It was cheaper then Sienna
I live at the top of a hill with a winding gravel drive. We get snow, and I estimate the incline to be about 30 - 35 degrees. My mother's Subaru Outback makes it fine, but I will need a vehicle that can seat two carseats, plus 3 adults.
I like the Odyssey but it does not come in AWD. There have been no Sienna's with AWD at any of our local Toyota dealers, but the drive has been described as 'firmer' or 'tighter' than the FWD Sienna.
My question, do you think an Odyssey would make it up my drive? How do Odysseys handle in the snow? Anyone with an AWD Sienna or FWD with input on handling in snow conditions?
Thanks SO much. My head is about to explode from trying to find a new car.
Any and all advice muchly appreciated.
Carseats Audrey
For your situation, AWD Sienna would be preferable like the Outback.
I believe that AWD with a good set of all seasons tires would be adequate, unless you habitually drive in deep snow areas.
So, does it make a difference, sure. But it depends on the circumstances for if it is necessary or preferable.
Ken
If I had an AWD vehicle, I would not go through the trouble and expense of installing snow tires because I believe that it would be adequate as you mentioned.
Agreed. But probably not necessary as all seasons tires, without having the trouble/expense to swap tires between seasons, would be adequate for most folks.
As they say, "needs" and "wants" are two different entities.
I'm not sure if you're concerned about the ride quality on an AWD Sienna, but the ride is still very good. It's a little "jigglier" over multiple bumps than FWDs, but I can't imagine anybody would find it objectionable. It's still a very smooth ride.
Wife drove them both again and realized that the Honda didn't have less oomph, it just sounded a little louder (which made it seem that it was straining more). We can deal with that.
So we ordered a slate EX-L RES. Got the best price we could find. Now we are just waiting for them to find the darn thing and rope it in. I won't be happy if this falls through!
Let me be clear here: The Sienna is a great car. We were leaning towards it, and we could have just as easily gone the other way. My wife liked the control panel on the Sienna better, and it certainly was quieter and maybe a little smoother. So I'm not bad-mouthing it. The tradeoffs in either vehicle are minor. So we went with the Honda by a smidge.
(One other thing: If you are considering a DVD, the Honda's features a bigger screen and, more importantly, allows you to load the DVD in the front, rather than right next to the DVD screen. If you want a DVD in the Sienna, consider saving your money and buying one aftermarket. But if you want one in the Ody, there are advantages to going with Honda's.)
but seriously - how is that a necessary feature rather than a reliability liability? i don't get it.
Our problem with the hatch, of course, is that by the time the door opens, the milk in your bag has gone sour, the baby in your arm has turned sour, and the hair on your head has turned gray.
It is funny how everyone is different. I paid close attention to the noise in both vehicles, and I agree that the Honda was much louder. In the Honda, I could barely hear the sales guy talking in the 2nd row. In the toyo, I didn't even know I was driving a car. That was a big deal to my wife in thinkng about trying to hear the kids talk or talk back to them in the 2nd and 3rd row. The Ody is loud.
I must say though, that if i didn't have 3 kids, I did like the plus 1 seat of the Ody because it did seam to give you a little more options. However, with 3 kids, we aren't comfortable putting a kid in that seat, so for us it actually ended up being an eliminating factor.
Either way, you can't go wrong. As long as you did the research and comparison and made up your own mind then you'll be happy and definately made the right decison for you. What is bothersome to me is folks who blindly buy the Ody because of the press. Good Luck with your Ody.