Recommendations for Minivan - Pros & Cons

Get the Toyota! My parents drove the Dodge Caravan (totally upgraded version). When they finally decided to replace it they were going to buy another one. I MADE them test drive the Toyota--they bought it on the spot. It is a fabulous ride, very safe, and never breaks down. I love Toyota and wouldn't ever buy anything else. My Toyota Sequoia has almost 100,000 miles on it and still runs great!

the honda odyessey is awesome. If i ever go back to a van - although i'm partial to our SUV - i would definetly do the odyessey. It has so many perks - rear roll down windows - double side doors - automatic open doors and if my memory serves me right they have quite a bit of trunk room (behind the back seat) important if you're taking a bike somewhere or need grocery space.

also the odyessey has a great resale value.

Here is my experience. I own a Chrystler Town and Country. We did a ton of research before buying it. My husband is a large man (6'5 and over 300 lbs) and he could not fit comfortably into the driver seat of either the Sienna or the Odyssey. Therefore we started looking at the Town and Country.

Must haves: Fold down seats!!!! This is a huge plus for me. Automatic doors on side and back (good and bad, my son plays with my keys and has been known to open my doors while we are in the store). However, the ability to open my doors with the remote is wonderful! Bought ours from Car Max and saved a ton!

Wish I had: Power windows on the side like in the Sienna, but really not that big of a deal.

Overall I love my T&C.

I've owned both Toyota and Honda. I loved them both, but Toyota was always so expensive to fix. I have an Odyssey now and I love it!! It's been great and the newer models are even better. I personally don't care for the look of the Toyota at this time, but of course they're always changing. I can tell you to shop around because the Frisco dealership is higher on just about everything!

We just got rid of a 12 yr old Chrysler Town and Country on Monday. Of course at 12, the only value was the weekly Home Depot runs!! It was the best van and had NO issues whatsoever. I loved it for the time that we used it. It was the 3rd Chrysler minivan we had owned.

We are no longer minivan owners. Our van was only used for Home Depot runs and such for the last 3 yrs.

I have several friends who swear by the Honda minivan. One friend has one that is SO loaded with perks and it is great. She loves it.

As for Honda, my first car was a Honda and it wouldn't die.. ..it was like the energizer bunny, kept going and going. Honda has good products.

Good luck!

We bought a 2008 Toyota Sienna in April after driving a 1998 Honda Odyssey for a few years. I love the Sienna! We test-drove a 2007 Odyssey and it didn't feel like much of an upgrade from our '98, but I'm sure that's mostly personal preference. Hondas may get better gas mileage, but Toyotas are somewhat cheaper (at least in my research they were) and the differences in their ratings are mostly cosmetic. Also, we only ever had negative experiences with the Honda dealership near us--it was a real deal breaker. If you'd like more info about dealers the my friend or I have liked, just let me know.

Hello T.,

Congrats on the soon addition to your family. We have an Honda Oddessy and love it! this is our second one. absolutely love it! ~C.~

I will swear by my Honda Odyssey. I looked at all of them - had a spreadsheet... The Ody is wonderful! I was showing houses to a couple one day and ended up selling them on my van before they bought a house from us. =)

It's wonderful. It rides smoothly, has great, sturdy features, love the foldable back seats, no maintenance issues. I am totally happy with it and would definitely get another Ody again over any other brand.

Pretty much all my friends have one or the other - I will tell you those with the Siennas are happier about their vehicles overall than those have Odysseys - The Sienna is somewhat less expensive (don't know if you are looking brand new or used - but new - they are comparable)

We just got rid of our 10 year old minivan - and got a Crossover/SUV - seats 7 but super cute and sporty! Not a huge gas-guzzling SUV.

With 3 small kids I would get the minivan - I love that the Sienna has 3 independently adjustable seats in the middle row - perfect for all 3 of your carseats - with none of your babies having to sit in the 3rd row!

We've only had Honda Odysseys. Our first one was a 1995 or 1996 one with regular doors that you open. Only minor problem was the windshield fluid in the back of the van. It was awesome, I had a wreck in it and totaled it.

We got another used 2001 and it has been a nightmare with it. At 105,000 miles we had to replace the transmission in it. We had to pay $500 and the dealer paid the rest of it.
The warranty had expired at 100,000. Ever since, we had numerous problems with the catalytic convertor/02 sensors. The check engine light is on all the time. We've put 2 catalytic convertors and 2 02 sensors on it. Now the catalytic convertors gone out again and the light is on again. Seems like ever since the Government required emissions to be upgraded, Honda never got it right with the 2001 Odyssey for emissions. I would check Consumer Reports book/magazines, I wish we had done this before we bought the 2001 vehicle. It shows that it has problems with transmission and emissions.

We won't buy another Honda again. We've talked to several Toyota Sienna owners and they are very happy and don't have any problems. Our mechanic/shop sees lots of Honda Odyssey's in to be repaired. However, he said Toyota Siennas he very rarely works on them. I'd recommend the Toyota Sienna.

I got a Honda Odyssey when I had our third child (3 under 4 yrs.). I didn't think I was a minivan kind of mommy, but I will admit that I love the Odyssey. We got it used from my in-laws, and it hasn't needed any major repairs, gets great mileage and is very easy to drive. Good luck on your search.

I have a Chrysler Town and Country, and we love it. The value on them drops like a rock, though. I keep my cars for a long time, so the depreciation was not an issue for me. Honda's are great. I had a Honda Accord before the minivan, and it was a great car; we just outgrew it. We bought our Town and Country used, and I specifically shopped for a T&C or a Caravan because of the reduced value. Because the Hondas and Toyotas retain their value, they are much more expensive used. If you plan to keep it less than five years or so, I would go for the Honda or Toyota.

skip the minivan and look at the mazda5. all the features of a minivan...just a bit smaller and easier to park! i fit 7 people easily in it!

We bought our Odyssey new a couple years ago and have never had a problem with it. It has tons of room, more than we actually need with only one child. The powered doors on both sides (rear) have been very convenient with a child. We get about 28 mpg on the highway. We paid extra for the option that makes the engine use only 3 cylinders when you're not accelerating, and that has helped with using less gas. My mother-in-law has the Toyota minivan and she loves it, also. She doesn't get as good of gas mileage, though.

We owned a Chrysler Town & Country a few years back. We loved the van, but it does not retain it's value. We tried to trade it in about 2 years after we bought it when I got laid off, but we were upside down on the value so we had to keep it. Then, a couple years after that, I was t-boned and the van was totaled. The insurance company didn't even pay us enough to buy another comparable USED van to replace it and believe me, I fought them h*** o* it. What was worse for us was we were 2 payments from having it paid off. Ugh!

Now when I buy a car, unless I could get an exceptional deal on another brand, I always try to buy whatever vehicle is highest rated in resale value in whatever "class" or "type" I'm looking to buy.

If I were to buy another minivan, it would definitely be a Honda. Much better resale value, and the people I've known with Honda vehicles have been very happy with their products.

Good luck!

Blessings,
N.