Silhouette, Town & Country, ETA: or Grand Caravan or other? On a budget :)

[Kellydelly]

Thanks again for the input!

Does anyone have any knowledge or experience with the Ford Freestyle??

Thank you!

Don't have one but I know what they look like and I am going to guess the third row isn't going to comfortably accomodate a teen. I would get a minivan. I just traded my 2001 Dodge Grand Caravan in after driving it for 11.5 yrs. It is the way to go if you are toting a bunch of kids around (minivan, that is). I just bought a Honda Pilot and I am a little remorseful that I didn't get another van. We haven't had to get to my 3rd row yet . I haven't had to go anywhere with all four kids in the last 3 wks . Actually I guess I don't need the 3rd row unless the whole family goes anywhere .

 

[Cobrastrike]

As an owner of a 2009 Grand Caravan SXT, which has the same 4L engine and six speed gearbox as the Town & Country of the same model year, here are a few things to watch out for:
1. The original brakes (pads and rotors) are fairly small. I had my first brake job at around 16,000km. Chrysler Canada offered me a free brake job on on half the brakes (I want to say rear, but I can't recall).

2. I had the brakes randomly pulse whilst driving on one side of the van. Very disconcerting on the highway doing 120 kph. The dealer kept saying they could not replicate so I took videos of all my trips until it happened again, then brought it to the dealer. Turned out to be a broken clock spring (google it and you'll see this is not an isolated incident). Replaced under warranty, but it was bad enough that i had to immediately pull off the road and turn the van off for several minutes before I could continue.

3. I had to have the computer flashed a few times because of hard shifting from first to second gear.

Aside from these probs, it is an alright vehicle. We love the space, and I have no idea how we ever got along without an onboard dvd player for the little one. The stow and go seats are fabulous.

 

[cndij]

I had a 1993 Nissan Quest that my sister and BIL bought new, when I totaled my Volvo 6 years ago, she passed it on to me, I drove it for 5 years and passed it on to an uncle of mine last year. This vehicle has over 250,000 miles on it and still going strong. I never see them for sale (I have searched, wishing I hadn't given mine away) but I see this model and the matching Mercury Villager on the road all the time. One of the few things we had to have done in the 5 years I had it, was replace the water pump. The mechanic suggested we replace the timing belt while he was in there as it looked worn. When we went to pick it up, he told us, that it was the original factory timing belt (at 230,000 miles) which was the longest he had ever heard of one lasting. I would strongly recommend this vehicle.

 

[kellyjeanie]

Thanks again for the input!

Does anyone have any knowledge or experience with the Ford Freestyle??

Thank you!

We just traded in our Freestyle for a Sienna. We drove it for about 4 years. We have 3 kids now and the back row was great for our oldest (age 7) but not very comfortable for a full-sized human. With the back seat folded down it had plenty of room but when the 3rd row was in use the cargo space was minimal. We found the car reliable but ultimately too small for us. I had the impression the Pacifica was similar in size to the Freestyle.

 

[daly7o9]

We have a 2005 Pacifica that we bought new. Its approaching 100K miles now and we have never had any problem with it. I have ridden in the 3rd row before and had no problem with leg room (I'm 5'4") but it was a little tricky getting back there.

All in all I'd say its the best vehicle I've ever owned. I LOVE my Pacifica.

 

[tink_n_pooh]

I have a new T&C and I love it! I never thought the words love and mini van would come out of my mouth in the same sentence but it is true.

FIL had a Teaverse, got rid of it after two years because he (and everyone else in the family) hated driving it. He ended up buying a used Ford Expedition.

For as much as Consumer Reports hates on Chrysler products I know very few people that have had any issues with them in the last 15 years. Before my van I had two Jeeps, only traded them in for larger vehicles (more jeeps and now the T&C). SIL has two Jerps and a T&C with no problems. Her Jeeps are 15-20 years old and the van is between 5-10 years old. On the other hand I know quite a few people that have been repairing and re-repairing their Toyotas and Hondas. YMMV

 

[natenapril]

I recently bought a van. Never ever thought I would. But we like to travel an this was a great option for us. We bought a Honda. We are a tall family so this was one of the few vans we liked. It came down to the odyssey or sienna. Even my husband likes it

 

[sksjasams]

We went to a small dealership not too far away Saturday, with the intention of trying out a Freestyle, but the owner's wife had taken it for the weekend! But, when I was getting gas yesterday morning, a Freestyle pulled up when I was leaving. I rolled down my window to ask her about it. She said the backseat is ok for special occasions, but too inconvenient for everyday use, so they will be getting a minivan for their next car. I think I am crossing that off my list.

When we were at the dealership we did test drive a 2006 Sienna. It was great, but $6k over our budget. I did a search and I can't find any Sienna for less than $4k over our budget, unless we go older than 2004 with over 150k miles, and even that is still over the $8k range we have in mind. Very discouraging.

DH does not want to go older than 2004, since our current cars are 2002 & 2003. So I think we are going to eliminate the Silhouette too.

Any other suggestions?

I am starting to lean back towards the Town and Country due to lack of other options.

Thanks again for all your input!

 

[Dictator]

I am starting to lean back towards the Town and Country due to lack of other options.

Thanks again for all your input!

If you're looking at the Town and country, you might as well look at the Grand Caravan. They are essentially the same mini-van. Made by the same company under different brands. the GC usually comes in significantly cheaper.

 

[LONES]

We're having this same debate in our house right now. I currently drive a 2005 Grand Caravan with almost 130,000 miles on it, and it needs to go soon! I'm not a fan of Chrysler products in general, but when we bought it we knew we wanted a minivan, but couldn't afford anything better. Unfortunately... we seem to be in the same position again. The least expensive Honda Odyssey is about $8000 more than the Grand Caravan. We've also looked into some of the crossovers... but the 3rd row seats seem to be fairly useless. It's hard to find anything with the 3rd row access of a minivan. Even my parents Suburban is a complete PITA in comparison.

 

[sksjasams]

If you're looking at the Town and country, you might as well look at the Grand Caravan. They are essentially the same mini-van. Made by the same company under different brands. the GC usually comes in significantly cheaper.

Thank you...I will keep them in mind, too.

We're having this same debate in our house right now. I currently drive a 2005 Grand Caravan with almost 130,000 miles on it, and it needs to go soon! I'm not a fan of Chrysler products in general, but when we bought it we knew we wanted a minivan, but couldn't afford anything better. Unfortunately... we seem to be in the same position again. The least expensive Honda Odyssey is about $8000 more than the Grand Caravan. We've also looked into some of the crossovers... but the 3rd row seats seem to be fairly useless. It's hard to find anything with the 3rd row access of a minivan. Even my parents Suburban is a complete PITA in comparison.

Wow! That is the exact same situation we are in! We ended up narrowing our search to only minivans for the same reason. And like you, our budget is so limiting - the Siennas and Odysseys are in a completely different price range. So discouraging, isn't it?

 

[Deb & Bill]

Thank you...I will keep them in mind, too.

Wow! That is the exact same situation we are in! We ended up narrowing our search to only minivans for the same reason. And like you, our budget is so limiting - the Siennas and Odysseys are in a completely different price range. So discouraging, isn't it?

The thing about Siennas and Odysseys is that you won't spend very much money on maintenance. We have 80K miles on our 2006 Sienna. All we have paid for on maintenance is gasoline, oil, tires. Our other Sienna had 105K miles on it when it was in an accident and totaled. It was 10 years old and insurance gave us $7500 for it. All we did on that one for maintenance was the same.

Check with your insurance agent on the cost of insurance for the various vehicles you are looking at as well. That might help you make a decision.

Also, check on recalls for the same vehicles.

 

[katie111]

We've actually had the opposite experience. We have a 2007 Toyota Sienna & I've spent a ton on maintenance. It has about 120,000 miles on it. So far we've replaced the front brakes, the water pump (today, $600), the airbag sensors (also today, $400), the transmission (over $2,000), and both of our sliding doors have stopped working. Also, it goes through tires like crazy because we have all wheel drive & run flat tires. They also told me today I need to replace my back brake rotors & pads (another $500) as well as some sort of locking mechanism on the front door. Not sure if I got a lemon or what, but I think my next car will be an Odyssey or a T&C. I can't wait to get rid of this one but my kids have trashed the interior so I think I'm going to be driving it until it doesn't move anymore.

Just wanted to point out that Sienna's definitely have their flaws too!

 

[3boymthr]

Thanks again for the input!

Does anyone have any knowledge or experience with the Ford Freestyle??

Thank you!

I have a 2007 Freestyle and I love it. They call it a cross-over I call it a station wagon. It is much bigger that most other cross-overs and is even bigger than the pacifica, not by much but still it's bigger.

I've had only one problem with mine and that was a malfunction with the computer that was covered by my warranty -they replaced the computer board and it was fixed - no problems since. All other repairs have been strictly maintenance (brakes, oil changes, tires, etc.). I have 83,000 miles on it.

The only drawback I've found is as PP mentioned the foot space in the third row. It definitely is tight but the seats themselves are comfortable. My 10 yo and his friends fit back there quite comfortably. The 13 yo and his friends also fit back there pretty well. The 17 yo OTH hates being in the third row (he's not super tall but has size 10 feet). He will sit back there if he has to but stretches his feet into the space in between the seats of the second row. He has no complaints about the second row. The thing is if you're like me you spend most your driving time going to school and sports and...so one other thing to consider in the debate of what car to buy vs the needs of your growing children is by the time my oldest became big enough to complain about the seating in the third row he was rarely if ever sitting back there because he was big enough and old enough to sit in the front seat. He only sits back there now if the whole family is traveling in my car and even then only if one of his brothers has friend along for the ride. Same goes for the 13 yo.

There is not a ton of space in way back for storage, but it has as much as my Grand Caravan had (if not more) - I can get a whole weeks worth of luggage back there and because the second and third row seats fold flat I can put a ton of stuff in it if I need to (but sacrifice that second and third row seating). If you can find it I'd definitely get the split fold down rear seat. I get between 24 and 26 MPG depending upon how much time I spend sitting in traffic.

 

[TnTWalter]

bought it in 2009. Has 92k miles on it. We love it. 2nd van with the auto doors which are so convenient. Now I can't imagine life without the automatic trunk. :O)

The van before was a Ford SEL [they don't make it anymore]. It made it to 150k but it had many issues towards the end and I started hating it.

Trish

 

[kris4360]

Not sure where you live, but around here mini vans get rusty fast. I own a auto body shop so I've seen alot.

 

[sksjasams]

If you're looking at the Town and country, you might as well look at the Grand Caravan. They are essentially the same mini-van. Made by the same company under different brands. the GC usually comes in significantly cheaper.

I started adding Grand Caravan to my searches, and you're right they seem to be less expensive. I am sticking with the 3.8 liters engines in both cases.

I have seen several people weigh in on how much they love their Town and Country, but not many comments on the Caravan, so I edited the post title.

Are they truly EXACTLY the same? Why would one be cheaper?

Thanks again for all the replies!

 

[JeRmS]

Just traded in our T&C ... Thank god!!! That thing was on it's last leg at just over 100K, minor little issues but enough to warrant me to buy a new(er) car rather than spend money to fix it!

Anyway - I do have some input on the topic here.

Honda Odyssee - These hold value very well because they are not mass (over) produced. Honda has always been very good in the sense that when they produce a good car, they keep production levels down so not to flood the market with them and ruin value. The same also holds true for other cars/trucks such as the Toyota Tacoma.

The other thing to keep in mind is relying on reviews is a a shot in the dark - what one person has to say about a car does not reflect how reliable that car might have been for the next person.

I had a friend who had a Mitsubishi Eclipse, he swore up and down the car was terrible, constantly in the shop for something, always breaking down, nothing but issues! I knew him, and I knew how he took care of his things and I knew that he thought the car was a race car, he constantly drove that car like he stole it!

So I LOVED the Eclipse enough to go out and buy one. I treated it like my baby though and took great care of it. That car lasted 10 years and nearly 250,000 miles before I had to put it in the ground.

and sometimes some unlucky people just get Lemons, it is possible that a car sneaks out of quality control with issues from the start!

If you love a car for whatever reason, don't let anyones review scare you from buying one!

 

[lgjjp]

I have had 3 dodge caravans and 1 Chevy venture. The venture was my absolute favorite and if they still made them that's what I would have. Right now we have a 2008 grand caravan and I haven't put a penny into it except brakes and tires. I bought it because of the color - orange!! my husband wanted a kia sedona but i didnt like the color lol. My daughter has a 2008 t&c that she hates and has had a few problems with. It squeaks constantly and no one can find the problem.

 

[Neesy228]

We've actually had the opposite experience. We have a 2007 Toyota Sienna & I've spent a ton on maintenance. It has about 120,000 miles on it. So far we've replaced the front brakes, the water pump (today, $600), the airbag sensors (also today, $400), the transmission (over $2,000), and both of our sliding doors have stopped working. Also, it goes through tires like crazy because we have all wheel drive & run flat tires. They also told me today I need to replace my back brake rotors & pads (another $500) as well as some sort of locking mechanism on the front door. Not sure if I got a lemon or what, but I think my next car will be an Odyssey or a T&C. I can't wait to get rid of this one but my kids have trashed the interior so I think I'm going to be driving it until it doesn't move anymore.

Just wanted to point out that Sienna's definitely have their flaws too!

OMG! This is totally us too. We've had many of the same problems as you and I do believe that Toyota is aware of the issues, but they just don't care. I HATE my 2006 Sienna. Hate it. Not only do I hate the van, but the customer service with Toyota corporate has been horrible too. My next car (hoping for the next year or two) will be an Odyssey or T&C. I will never own another Toyota.

OP, I think that the Town & Country will serve you well. We have rented one several times when we travel and our kids love it and there is plenty of room for kids of all ages to spread out -- plus room for your stuff! I have not researched reliability or safety though. Good luck with your choice!