Anyone have a 2018 Chrysler Pacifica (weighing it against the Honda Odyssey)

[neatokimmo]

I have 212k miles on my odyssey and my mechanic says it will go until 350 no problem. It’s pretty old though, a 2003. If you have the opportunity to purchase leather, I would. My seats still look great.

 

[QueenIsabella]

I second the leather seats. When we were looking, I said I didn't want them--I was thinking of my family of motion sickies. But both the salesman and DH said that leather was much easier to keep clean than fabric. Now, these days, lots of the fabrics are specially treated, but leather also wears like iron--important if you hope to drive the vehicle for many years.

 

[Klayfish]

Both my Odysseys have been terrible in snow. It may be the tires but I don't really know. I just know my dd's Civic does better than the Odyssey. My dh's truck is awesome.

It is the tires. The Odyssey, and pretty much every nose heavy front wheel drive vehicle, will do just fine in snow with proper tires on it. Subaru has done a brilliant marketing strategy in making people think they need the AWD, plus all the plastic cladding they glue onto their cars. Reality is they don't. It's been tested over and over by numerous car magazines, tire companies, etc... Even a RWD car with good snow tires will do quite well on your normal snow covered road. Yes, if you literally live on the side of a mountain and have to climb a steep grade covered in thick snow and ice, you'll want a full time 4WD and probably still want snow tires. But if you're driving on normal suburban roads and highways, you don't.

 

[WVMomof3]

It is the tires. The Odyssey, and pretty much every nose heavy front wheel drive vehicle, will do just fine in snow with proper tires on it. Subaru has done a brilliant marketing strategy in making people think they need the AWD, plus all the plastic cladding they glue onto their cars. Reality is they don't. It's been tested over and over by numerous car magazines, tire companies, etc... Even a RWD car with good snow tires will do quite well on your normal snow covered road. Yes, if you literally live on the side of a mountain and have to climb a steep grade covered in thick snow and ice, you'll want a full time 4WD and probably still want snow tires. But if you're driving on normal suburban roads and highways, you don't.

You just had 3 people tell you that Odysseys are terrible in the snow. I can assure you, it is the van and not the tires. I do not live on the side of a mountain and it only takes a little snow to make it not great. Truthfully, it isn't even great on rainy days with the hills. These are steep hills, but they are little hills not mountains. Everyone I know that has Odysseys says the same thing. I have had snow tires on my van every year. It helps, but I have gotten stuck on more than one occasion.

 

[havaneselover]

You just had 3 people tell you that Odysseys are terrible in the snow. I can assure you, it is the van and not the tires. I do not live on the side of a mountain and it only takes a little snow to make it not great. Truthfully, it isn't even great on rainy days with the hills. These are steep hills, but they are little hills not mountains. Everyone I know that has Odysseys says the same thing. I have had snow tires on my van every year. It helps, but I have gotten stuck on more than one occasion.

I don't do a ton of snow in my Odyssey, but I definitely wouldn't say it's terrible. But it seems like at least some of the new models have Snow mode.

 

[Klayfish]

You just had 3 people tell you that Odysseys are terrible in the snow. I can assure you, it is the van and not the tires. I do not live on the side of a mountain and it only takes a little snow to make it not great. Truthfully, it isn't even great on rainy days with the hills. These are steep hills, but they are little hills not mountains. Everyone I know that has Odysseys says the same thing. I have had snow tires on my van every year. It helps, but I have gotten stuck on more than one occasion.

No point in arguing back and forth, we'll just agree to disagree.

 

[WVMomof3]

No point in arguing back and forth, we'll just agree to disagree.

Honestly not trying to start a fight. I argue with my DH about it too. lol He forgets because he does not drive it as often. He will say the same thing, we just need new tires. Until he is the one driving it and getting caught in the snow and has new tires and still has issues. It just happens to me more often because I drive it all the time. I have just gotten to the point where I do not go out if there is snow. Has worked for me OK because I am not working. If I was working, I would have gotten rid of it long ago like all my working friends did with their Odysseys. I have only heard the complaint about Odysseys, not sure if it really is just this make or just everyone I know has had an Odyssey and not another type of van. Every winter I say we need a new car or we need to move. Because if we lived just 1 mile closer to town I wouldn't have the problem. Odysseys and snow is fine. Odysseys and hills and snow not fine. Have had too many people tell me the same thing to know it is not just the tires or the driver.

Still waiting for the mechanic to call about my Odyssey, but I am thinking now it will be an easyish fix and it will live to see another year and I will be able to put off the what do I get next for a little while. But I do appreciate your input on the Kias. I would probably had not considered them, but I have seen you post several times about them.

 

[Brett Wyman]

I don’t have a Pacifica, but I love,love,love the look of them. My problem is I’ve owned three Chrysler’s and had nothing but trouble. Big trouble, with them. I would never buy another Chrylser

This exactly. We have A 2016 Odyssey Touring model. Absolutely love it. The feature on the new Pacifica do look amazing, but as a vehicle we plan on owning for 6-8 years we just don't trust the Chrysler family of vehicles for that type of longevity.

 

[Klayfish]

Honestly not trying to start a fight. I argue with my DH about it too. lol He forgets because he does not drive it as often. He will say the same thing, we just need new tires. Until he is the one driving it and getting caught in the snow and has new tires and still has issues. It just happens to me more often because I drive it all the time. I have just gotten to the point where I do not go out if there is snow. Has worked for me OK because I am not working. If I was working, I would have gotten rid of it long ago like all my working friends did with their Odysseys. I have only heard the complaint about Odysseys, not sure if it really is just this make or just everyone I know has had an Odyssey and not another type of van. Every winter I say we need a new car or we need to move. Because if we lived just 1 mile closer to town I wouldn't have the problem. Odysseys and snow is fine. Odysseys and hills and snow not fine. Have had too many people tell me the same thing to know it is not just the tires or the driver.

Still waiting for the mechanic to call about my Odyssey, but I am thinking now it will be an easyish fix and it will live to see another year and I will be able to put off the what do I get next for a little while. But I do appreciate your input on the Kias. I would probably had not considered them, but I have seen you post several times about them.

Totally understand. I also don't want to come across as a "know it all", which is how I know it sounds. Cars are just happen to be a huge part of how I make my living, and my personal passion, so I'm pretty deep in the auto industry. Hence my strong feelings that it's the tires/driving habit, etc...than the design of the van. The Odyssey is a conventional FWD van, like most other FWD vehicles.

Fixing your car is almost always cheaper than buying new, so if you can fix the Honda do it. It's a great van. But if you do decide to replace, don't overlook Hyundai/Kia. The "sweet spot" for these things is buying a 1-2 year old w/low miles. Hyundai/Kia still depreciate at a rate faster than most cars. You can pick up a lightly used Hyundai/Kia with a great warranty for a steal.

 

[DVC-Don]

I once oversaw a fleet of company pool cars. I absolutely hated the Chrysler products.

 

[MillauFr]

It is the tires. The Odyssey, and pretty much every nose heavy front wheel drive vehicle, will do just fine in snow with proper tires on it. Subaru has done a brilliant marketing strategy in making people think they need the AWD, plus all the plastic cladding they glue onto their cars. Reality is they don't. It's been tested over and over by numerous car magazines, tire companies, etc... Even a RWD car with good snow tires will do quite well on your normal snow covered road. Yes, if you literally live on the side of a mountain and have to climb a steep grade covered in thick snow and ice, you'll want a full time 4WD and probably still want snow tires. But if you're driving on normal suburban roads and highways, you don't.

Are videos like this not accurate? I like having the AWD because our public works department doesn't plow, sand, or salt any of the streets in our neighborhood. They may do a little on the major streets but even then it is hit or miss. Of course the problem is the AWD does nothing to improve traction when you are sliding down the hills. I hate putting on tire chains because once you get to the freeway you can't drive very fast with them.

 

[wendow]

We have three vehicles and all have snow tires in the winter...I live in CO so that is a no-brainer...Yet, the Odyssey is the worst for the handling of the snow. It just is, doesn't seem like that should be the case to my very uneducated about this kind of thing self, yet, it is. We also have a 2005 Civic and 2004 Silverado and both handle snow way, way better than our 2016 Odyssey. My old 2003 Odyssey was terrible too. Our neighborhood is not plowed so, for me, the challenge is simply getting through the neighborhood. For your average snow storm here in Denver, once I'm out of my neighborhood, it's easy driving as the highways are well-plowed. Once I exit the highway, it's slip-slidey all over the place again.

 

[WVMomof3]

Are videos like this not accurate? I like having the AWD because our public works department doesn't plow, sand, or salt any of the streets in our neighborhood. They may do a little on the major streets but even then it is hit or miss. Of course the problem is the AWD does nothing to improve traction when you are sliding down the hills. I hate putting on tire chains because once you get to the freeway you can't drive very fast with them.

Subaru's are definitely the car of choice around here. I need to show this to DH. He does not want one. I finally have him this year saying we need to dump the van before winter and I am stalling. Not ready for another car payment at the moment. Two in college will do that to you.

 

[Klayfish]

Are videos like this not accurate? I like having the AWD because our public works department doesn't plow, sand, or salt any of the streets in our neighborhood. They may do a little on the major streets but even then it is hit or miss. Of course the problem is the AWD does nothing to improve traction when you are sliding down the hills. I hate putting on tire chains because once you get to the freeway you can't drive very fast with them.

That's a Subaru marketing video. As I mentioned earlier, Subaru has done a masterful marketing job making people think they need their AWD system. They've made untold millions on that, and good for them. Glad to see Subaru succeed. However, while AWD gives more traction than FWD alone, it's not a necessity as much as people think it is, or Subaru wants you to believe. It just isn't. Pretty much any FWD car/van will do fine in the conditions the overwhelming majority of people encounter. But as I always say, that's the absolute beauty of the auto market. There are so many varieties to choose from, and that's great.

 

[firefly_ris]

I live in Buffalo and have never driven an AWD vehicle or had snow tires put on my vehicles. One of my husband's uncle's family all drive RWD vehicles year round so they do use snow tires (old Firebirds and Mustangs). We do finally have a 4WD pickup truck but I'm not the daily driver of it. It is nice to have though. I have a 13 year old Town & Country and while he's had his problems, he can do pretty good in the snow with some plain old all season radials and understanding of how a vehicle reacts to a snowy street (I actually really hate the "Traction Control" thing and tend to turn that off). Ice is another animal though of course. So one point for Chrysler, lol. When you drive a car for a really long time you get to know its quirks and you know how the vehicle behaves and what's really a problem and what isn't -- but, when my old buddy finally is ready to be laid to rest, I won't be replacing with another Chrysler. I got generally lucky but most people I know didn't, and even I had to replace a few things that I should not have needed to (3 sets of sway bar links in 5 years for example). I've mostly been looking at the Odyssey but now have a bit of an eye on the Sedona, since I found out they also have a trim package with heated seats (they're my BFF in the winter, never had them before my van but now they're basically not optional for me).

 

[WVMomof3]

I live in Buffalo and have never driven an AWD vehicle or had snow tires put on my vehicles. One of my husband's uncle's family all drive RWD vehicles year round so they do use snow tires (old Firebirds and Mustangs). We do finally have a 4WD pickup truck but I'm not the daily driver of it. It is nice to have though. I have a 13 year old Town & Country and while he's had his problems, he can do pretty good in the snow with some plain old all season radials and understanding of how a vehicle reacts to a snowy street (I actually really hate the "Traction Control" thing and tend to turn that off). Ice is another animal though of course. So one point for Chrysler, lol. When you drive a car for a really long time you get to know its quirks and you know how the vehicle behaves and what's really a problem and what isn't -- but, when my old buddy finally is ready to be laid to rest, I won't be replacing with another Chrysler. I got generally lucky but most people I know didn't, and even I had to replace a few things that I should not have needed to (3 sets of sway bar links in 5 years for example). I've mostly been looking at the Odyssey but now have a bit of an eye on the Sedona, since I found out they also have a trim package with heated seats (they're my BFF in the winter, never had them before my van but now they're basically not optional for me).

My family all live east of Cleveland so get probably 3 times the snow that we get. None of them have ever used snow tires. The terrain makes a big difference. Couldn't live without my heated seats either! I have been looking at used Kia's and my main beef with the ones I have seen are they are the lower trim lines. Nope, not going to go without me heated seats.

 

[firefly_ris]

I have been looking at used Kia's and my main beef with the ones I have seen are they are the lower trim lines. Nope, not going to go without me heated seats.

I'm hoping to squeeze another year and a half out of my T&C (unless the transmission explodes then I guess the decision will be made for me), but I have been doing a lot of browsing to familiarize myself with the brands and their trim levels and what they generally include... I have been using this website cargurus.com a lot, because you can filter by trim level.

 

[WallE71]

We are finally in the process of getting a car for our family of 5 (I had posted a while back seeking opinions but my husband put it on hold for a little while). We are looking at a 2018 Pacifica (Touring L trim - lots of features) with 14K miles at a very reasonable price. Everything I read online says it ranks higher or equal to the Honda Odyssey. Everyone I know swears by Honda cars and says I should get one of them. We looked the Pilot but it was just too small. Soooo...my dilemma: there is a 2016 Odyssey with 20K miles I can look at tomorrow (price difference is negligible - 2018 models are too pricey right now) but I like the reviews I see of the Pacifica AND I like the fact that we would have more of a warranty left with it. Problem is I know no one with one. So if you have a Pacifica...do you like it? Have you had any regrets getting it? Have you had any issues with it?

We got the plug-in hybrid Pacifica and love it. We also did it when there was still a $7500 rebate on this, which is now expired. The list price on the hybrid was 46,000? So, we got almost all the extras, full entertainment package, and navigation for $38,500. We get about 34 miles per electric charge free or at 99+ mpg and usually charge it again and do again daily. If we were closer to school, work, ect we would probably be getting 50+ mph overall on the van. We love the entertainment package as kids play chess/checkers alot or just watch movies. It has heated seats, but also has cooling seats which is great in the summer. The seats get really cold on high and usually have to turn back to low even in 100 degree weather. Maintenance has been easy so far and would highly recommend the hybrid. Only drawback may be the expense to replace those batteries when it is due. We had a Honda Odyssey before this and loved it, but did not like the mpg of the Odyssey. This is a better upgrade with alot better options.

 

[OnlyDisney]

In case anyone is curious, this is the order Consumer Reports has 2018 minivans, starting with the highest marks:

Toyota Sienna
Honda Odyssey
Chrysler Pacifica

Kia Sedona
Transit Connect

Dodge Grand Caravan

The first three were very close in score to almost be negligible, and all three were recommended. The Dodge had a very low score.

 

[manning]

Wow, thank you all. I think I will steer away from the Chrysler. The long term reliability is my concern. Going to look at a Sienna and an Odyssey today.

Honda cr v/pilot, Toyota rv4/highlander

Both companies noted for dependability