Agree 100%. We have a 2018 Honda Odyssey Elite. Drives great, even in the weather as a FWD. Side slide is amazing. Great car!
Minivan Recommendations
- Thread starter Daserop
- Start date
Agree 100%. We have a 2018 Honda Odyssey Elite. Drives great, even in the weather as a FWD. Side slide is amazing. Great car!
I'd say once you hit kid #2. We've been been using my Mazda CX-5 without issue. However, once the second kid came around (and didn't have any place to put the dog) then it became an issue.
Even with 1 child, the sliding doors are superior when getting them in and out, especially in parking lots.
Last year we bought a new (2021) Sienna due to two factors:
1.) AWD (was not available on any other minivans at the time)
2.) hybrid engine
We’ve been happy with it overall.
Our observed mileage of 31.7 doesn’t match the stated 35mpg, but my wife drives it with an absolute lead foot which is part of the problem.
Middle seats don’t fold down into floor but they slide easily back and forth which makes loading passengers in the back a breeze.
1.) AWD (was not available on any other minivans at the time)
2.) hybrid engine
We’ve been happy with it overall.
Our observed mileage of 31.7 doesn’t match the stated 35mpg, but my wife drives it with an absolute lead foot which is part of the problem.
Middle seats don’t fold down into floor but they slide easily back and forth which makes loading passengers in the back a breeze.
I'll echo what a lot of people have said here. I would really encourage you to stick with Honda or Toyota. We've had a 2011 Odyssey for the last 8 years. My wife totaled it this summer and we actually purchased the same thing (one higher trim level). I do think the Odyssey's are a little nicer than the Sienna's, but know people who have loved them.
I'm not a "car guy" by any means but would be nervous to own a Chrysler based on what I have heard from others and read from Consumer Reports.
I'm not a "car guy" by any means but would be nervous to own a Chrysler based on what I have heard from others and read from Consumer Reports.
You can do day trips with 1 or 2 kids in a CRV type vehicle. But once you do overnight trips, the amount of stuff you have to bring grows exponentially and that's when the minivan is helpful. Stroller. Play-pen/Pack-N-Play. 3x the normal amount of clothes to account for getting peed/pooped/puked on. Bottles and formula or jars of baby food plus utensils. Do you need to bring a separate highchair/booster seat? Training potty?
In Dec 2020 we got a 2017 Toyota Sienna Limited. Just before the car market got really crazy. Couldn't be happier how that turned out for us. All signs point to another Sienna for us when that time comes in 3-5 years.
We traded in my wife’s 15 Traverse for a 19 Pacifica a couple months ago and it’s awesome. Incredible amount of room on the inside for the three kids. It’s comfortable and drives really well.
I know nothing about longevity though. Hopefully it holds together.
The trim packages are kinda goofy with what comes with them. We have a Touring L Plus and it seems to have more/different/better features than my SILs Limited. She did find out the hard way that if it has the vacuum, it doesn’t have a spare tire.
I know nothing about longevity though. Hopefully it holds together.
The trim packages are kinda goofy with what comes with them. We have a Touring L Plus and it seems to have more/different/better features than my SILs Limited. She did find out the hard way that if it has the vacuum, it doesn’t have a spare tire.
I've owned a Chrysler product in some way shape or form since 2002, I've never had bad experiences with Chrysler products outside of rust, and both of those cars were never garaged a day in their life and exceeded 200k.
Having said that, I've only ever owned DaimlerChrysler era Chrysler cars. I haven't heard good things about the era between that and before Stallantis owned them.
I can also do 95% of my own vehicle maintenance. A broken sway bar link to me is a 40 dollar part from Rock Auto. Whereas I'm sure to someone else, a broken sway bar link is a 400 bill from an auto shop.
If you do overnight or long trips with 1 kid. I think a minivan is easily justified. If you plan to have more, I would start shopping after the first trimester.
It's silly how much we pack for our 2 kids driving to grandparents and such. We could not fit everything in my Accord or a small SUV. The van on the other hand can haul everything plus several more passengers and there stuff.
We haul 6 adults to a Chiefs game this past Novemeber. Cold weather gear, food, beverages, chairs, the whole set-up for Cyclone games. PLENTY of room to haul more if we needed.
We owned a Plymouth Voyager back in the day that was all wheel drive....nice vehicle until the 100,000 mile transmission got us on a family trip.
Our friends had four kids ( two were twins ) that were a handful. One day we were at their place as they were removing the seats from their minivan. Their kids had spilled so many french fries over time in the van, that the floor was a solid mat of french fries...it was truly an amazing sight.
Our friends had four kids ( two were twins ) that were a handful. One day we were at their place as they were removing the seats from their minivan. Their kids had spilled so many french fries over time in the van, that the floor was a solid mat of french fries...it was truly an amazing sight.
We paid Schuling Hitch Co to put a 2" hitch on our Odyssey for even more cargo capacity.
We then bought a cargo carries/bike hauler (below) that can carry 4 bikes, or tailgate supplies, and plastic totes when we need to REALLY pack up the van. A much better set-up than strapping something to the roof and getting awful gas mileage and having to deal with clear heights and drive-thru lanes.
We then bought a cargo carries/bike hauler (below) that can carry 4 bikes, or tailgate supplies, and plastic totes when we need to REALLY pack up the van. A much better set-up than strapping something to the roof and getting awful gas mileage and having to deal with clear heights and drive-thru lanes.
Last edited:
A trip to the market looks like an assault mission. Diapers, strollers, extra clothes, food, just in case gear, toys.....
Kids take up a crazy amount of room.
~43k. A lot of folks online chalk it up to the ESS system. I bought a little module that plugs in and defaults the ESS to off unless you physically turn it back on. By default ESS is enabled every time you start the vehicle.
