Best new van out there?

[Tigger&Belle]

We have a 2000 Pontiac Montana and I hate it! The features are nice, and it is 8 passenger, which we like, but the reliability has been horrible. Little things are not designed well, like the weather stripping at the sliding doors (keeps coming off, which is a pain in the behind), the electronic sliding door has had to be fixed a couple of times, the strap that you use to close the trunk broke, etc. I really only have myself to blame since the CR rated it poorly before we bought it, but we needed 8 passenger and didn't want a Suburban, so went with it anyway. We've had it 4 1/2 years and, even though we like to keep our vehicles 8-10 years, we are thinking about replacing it with a Toyota Sienna 8 passenger. We never had so many problems with a vehicle before.

T&B

 

[darlene9947]

I am on my 5th Dodge Grand Caravan since 1988 and will not buy anything else. I just love them. The only time we had tranny problems was after a major flood in 1995. That particular van had 110,000 miles on it at the time. Picked up my latest van in July, 2003 and went to Disney 2 days later!

 

[huey duey & luey]

Another satisfied Odyssey owner here (2004) I love it. We looked at both the sienna and odyssey we got a much better price on the Honda. I did like the fact that the Sienna had an 8 passenger option. I had a checy venture before that and I much prefer the odyssey, I think it drives beautifully.
Tara

 

[Grumbo]

Have a Honda Odyssey with the built in DVD. Best vehicle we've ever owned.
We had a Pontiac Montana van. The thing fell apart before our eyes. It was the biggest piece of junk ever. Thank God we had an extended warranty. Even that didn't cover everything.
We have Montanas at work too and they don't hold up much better, but they aren't treated kindly with so many folks operating them.
I would definitely look at the new Sienna as well.
You'll find the new Sienna is much more expensive WHEN YOU GET comprable extras.
Honda are supposedly going to be revamping their van completely in 2006 though. They have had tranmission issues too that are well documented.

Cheers,
Grumbo

 

[ZachnElli]

I LOVE my 2004 Sienna! I got it in May 2003 and it is awesome! Drove it all the way to Idaho with 2 kids and 3 dogs! You can drive mine and see how you like it!

 

[Kallison]

Me, my Mom and my SIL all have Honda Odyssey. We are all happy with them.

 

[calypso*a*go-go]

I have a '98 Pontiac Transport which was the prelude to the Montana. It has been fairly reliable but not without problems. We have considered purchasing something new and I also lean towards either Toyota or Honda. My problem is that I'm just tired of driving a minivan so I think I will wait a few more years and get an upscale sedan (as much as the budget allows, anyway!).

 

[Snowysmom]

We really like our 2004 Toyota Sienna, It has a really good safety rating and lots of room. We also have the side airbags. It has good a reliability rating too. DH spends alot of time researching before we buy.

 

[janette]

I bought 2005 Toyota Sienna at the end of December, only bad part is that demand is pretty high so they don't mark as much off.

My girls have especially enjoyed it as I was driving a 1996 Saturn and this has so much more room.

I got the side airbags also, safety was one of the biggest things for me and it makes me feel better knowing they are there. I didn't get lots of extras just upgraded to the package that included the side airbags.

 

[ladydancer]

Just trading in my Ford Windstar for the new 2005 Freestar. I live in Michigan which is in the USA. I'm not going to bite the hand that feeds me so I'll stick to an american made car. If the guys who work in the car industry are out of work then they won't buy our product, then we're out of work! Then I won't be going to WDW!

 

[Grumbo]

Thing is ladydancer The Odyssey is made in Alabama and the new Sienna is made in Indiana, and was designed in Ann Arbor

That argument about buying "American" or "North American" doesn't wash anymore. Mercedes Daimler is Chrysler and Saab is G.M. and the Mazda Tribute is made beside the Ford Escape etc.

They all supply jobs to Americans and Canadians.

Cheers,
Grumbo

 

[ladydancer]

Originally posted by Grumbo
Thing is ladydancer The Odyssey is made in Alabama and the new Sienna is made in Indiana, and was designed in Ann Arbor

That argument about buying "American" or "North American" doesn't wash anymore. Mercedes Daimler is Chrysler and Saab is G.M. and the Mazda Tribute is made beside the Ford Escape etc.

They all supply jobs to Americans and Canadians.

Cheers,
Grumbo

I understand what you are saying. I just know what I know from experience. I support the things that are made by my neighbors, friends and family. Being here in Michigan most people I know work in some capacity for Ford, GM, & Chrysler. We don't however. I know from past experience when they aren't selling cars we don't have any work ourselfs. The trickle down effect.

 

[MommyBoo!]

We just bought a 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan. We tried them all and this van was the most comfortable for all of us. But especially for me, since I drive it the most. The Montana/Venture (they're basically the same thing, like the Astro/Safari) driver seat was very uncomfortable to me, probably because I am short. The seat cold not be adjusted to my comfort.

We got the side curtain airbags; this was very important to us. It has an extremely smooth ride. I also like the adjustable pedals which I believe some of the other vans had. And you gotta love those stow and go seats , especially after the heavy monsters we had in our Safari.

All of the new vans out there are really nice, it just comes down to what fits your needs and comforts the best. TRY THEM ALL before you buy. We really had no preference when we started and I was a little surprised we ended up with the Grand Caravan.

I also got 20,000 Club Mom points plus a bonus $100.00 spa card from Club Mom. Those were NOT determining factors, but they are a nice little bonus.

I think GM has a bonus ($150.00??) through Upromise. I remember seeing the upromise logo on some of the GM brochures.

 

[poohkinandpiglet]

I love my Honda Odyssey. In a few months, the 2005 Odyssey with the new body style will be introduced. Now is the time to get a great deal on a 2004! I wish I could trade mine in for a newer model with the DVD entertainment system.

 

[DenMig]

We have a Honda Odyssey (2003) with the DVD entertainment system. We are only on 20,000 miles but there hasn't been any problems at all. We love it and highly recommend it. If you have young kids I strongly recommend the dvd option, it has done wonders on our longer trips. As for the third row seat fold down, granted you have to remove the head rests, but that takes about 10 seconds and they are easy to store. The seat folds down and is pulled up very easily.

 

[Trinity721]

Heard good stuff about Toyota Sienna, and new Nissan Quest. If DH and I could have afforded it, we definitely would have bought the 2004 Nissan Quest, it's gotten great reviews, good performance and reliability, and looks awesome.

 

[HollyJoy]

If I could buy a new van today, I'd buy the Toyota Sienna. Honda is redesigning their Odyessy though! I have a 1999 Ford Windstar, and have had HORRIBLE problems with it. It's getting ready to go back to the dealer once more... this after it was in the shop for two weeks! The service manager there told us that they have had TONS of problems with this vehicle, and if one got one of these and hasn't had any problems, they are in the minority. So I can't recommend the Ford Windstar (or Freestar as it's known now).

 

[LisaSt]

The Pontiac Montanna or Chev Venture they have the best fuel mileage of all the mini vans and are very reliable.

 

[Lanshark]

We have a 98 Toyota Sienna with about 105,000 miles on it. It has been the best vehicle we've ever owned and would buy another.

 

[ahutton]

We saw an interesting article on kbb.com - scroll to the bottom of the page - click on Media Relations - then look for the list of 2005 vehicles that will hold their value best.

Yesterday we bought a 2003 Mazda MPV. We got everything we were looking for (space, fold down seats, versatility) for about $7000 less than a similar year/mileage Honda. We shopped online for local dealers, went in with our financing in place from Capital One Auto Finance, and were done (buying a van and a car too!) in less than 4 hours - door to door. We're very happy.