Which new minivan?

[Chokky]

Consumer Reports rates mini vans with the following scores out of 100:

Toyota Sienna 94

Honda Odyssey 91

Kia Sedona 79

Nissan Quest 78

Chrysler T&C 64

Dodge Caravan 60

 

[GoofyG]

The Toyota Sienna is built in Indiana.

My 2006 Toyota Sienna came off the assembly line in Texas. I love my van. I had narrowed it down between the Honda and the Toyota. I was able to get more features for the money on the Toyota. They were more willing to negotiate the price than Honda. ( I owned a Honda Accord and loved it)

 

[RN01]

I have to put my vote in for the Toyota Sienna. I have a 2004 and I love it. I had a 1998 Ford Windstar and the Sienna is luxury compaired to it. Also my husband makes the Sienna for Toyota and they are VERY picky on quality. If you get a Toyota you won't have to worry about repairs for a long time.

 

[princessesx2]

We bought the 2004 last year. LOVE IT!!! Size is great, space is great, ride is great. It has been great to us. Gas mileage is about 24mpg and the only repair Ihave had to have done was a recall for a passange side door mount. Done in 1 hr @ dealership and free!!!

 

[GoHerd1028]

we purchased a Honda mini van in '07. We love it!! We were trying to decide between it and the Toyota and as far as resale value at that time Consumer Reports rated Honda higher and we felt like Honda gave us more options for the money spent. I don't think you would go wrong with either of those vans though.

 

[bigbabyblues]

I drive a Sienna, and I love it! Our back row of seats folds down into the floor, I guess that's like the stow-and-go?

ETA, mine is a 2004 and was built in Indiana according to the sticker. We bought it used about 7 months ago and have had no problems.

If I were you, I'd go drive every van I was interested in to see what you think of them. DH grandma has a new Caravan, and I don't like it at all. The seats aren't comfortable to me (she's fine with it, and that's what matters, they just don't fit me right for some reason), and I just don't like driving it.

 

[kimgof]

We have a Honda Odyssey. Just got it this year. Love it! We did have a Nissan Quest and couldn't wait to get rid of it. It had one problem after another. We love Hondas, getting the Nissan was something we just figured we would try. We are back to Honda now. We have had a Honda car, a Honda truck and now a van. You can never go wrong with a Honda.

 

[StephMK]

We traded a 2000 Ford Windstar in 12/06 because the transmission was going at 90,000. We had planned to get used but ended up w/a new 2006 Sienna that I love! I also looked at Hondas and liked the ride better on the Sienna. The Honda guy couldn't touch the deal the Toyota guy gave us, I definitely recommend shopping last year's model at the end of Dec!

I think there is an inch or two more space in certain areas & we're a tall family so every inch counts. I love the stow away rear seats & only wish the middle row stowed too. That's only come up 2x so not a big issue. We've fit so much stuff in the van, it's great for hauling.

We went w/the 8 passenger seats & I love being able to have the 3 kids in the middle together when needed. It's roomy enough that 3 adults have sat together & we don't feel squished either. Plus if each kid takes a friend on an outing, we can still fit everyone.

We plan to keep this well towards 200k miles, *knock on wood* Good luck w/your choice!

 

[Ashlander]

We just bought an 08 Toyota Sienna XLE in March. We were torn between and Sienna and the Odyssey. It came down to price. We paid about $29,500 for ours before taxes, etc. We have leather seats, sun roof, rear sensors when backing up, auto opening and closing trunk and the DVD system. I couldn't believe we got all of that for the price. Toyota was offering incentives then and I believe they have gone up even more since we purchased. I couldn't be happier! We wanted the factory installed DVD system because it has the video hookups and my kids could also play games in the car if they wanted to.

 

[Iri920]

I have a 2007 Quest which I love. The first redesigned year had some problems, but all the bugs are fixed now. So if you're buying used I wouldn't buy an '04. They made some design changes in '07 which definately improved the van.

It's got a lot of room inside and in the trunk. I have a double jogging stroller and a single maclaren back there and still have some room left. I love the skyview windows, automatic doors, and fold almost flat seats. My kids also love the double DVD players. It's also got cool little things like the seat moving back when you open the door so you have more room to get in. And the mirror moving down when you put it in reverse so now I'm no longer jumping curbs or scratching my rims. It's a nice ride and has good pick up.

A couple of things that might bother some people that don't bother me is that the second row windows don't open. I already learned that if I put the windows down my kids will proceed to throw things out the window, including their toys so I don't roll down their windows anyways. Also the back seat is not 60/40 split fold, it all folds down in once piece.

We also looked at the new Town and Country, but we got a better deal on the Quest and my husband was afraid of the resale value. I would definately take a look at the Quest. You should also check out the edmunds forums so you can see what type of problems people are having with their vans and you can also see the average going price for them. Good luck!

 

[MissyDVC]

Love our 2008 Chrysler T&C Couldn't wait to get rid of our 2001 Ford Windstar

 

[mrstomrice]

I have not read any other posts, but I say buy American!

 

[fightinfire21]

The Toyota Sienna is built in Indiana.

The Honda Odyssey is built in Alabama.

The Nissan Quest is built in Mississippi.

The Chrysler Town and Country is built in Ontario, Canada and also in Missouri. Some previous years (including 2007) were also manufactured in Japan.

I'm sure all of these American and Canadian workers took pride in their products. Doesn't narrow things down much, does it?

One other thought - Chrysler redesigned the T & C for 2008. Typically cars (not just Chryslers) show a higher number of defects the first year of a redesign. If you decide a T & C is right for you, you might look for one manufactured later in the model year to minimize problems, if there are any.

Consumer Reports rates mini vans with the following scores out of 100:

Toyota Sienna 94

Honda Odyssey 91

Kia Sedona 79

Nissan Quest 78

Chrysler T&C 64

Dodge Caravan 60

I have not read any other posts, but I say buy American!

American does not necessaraly mean where the vehicle is built. Sure that is part of it BUT where does the money go once you purchase the car? The reason the "other" guys build their vehicles in the USA is because there workers are non-union and they can build them cheaper.

As far as all the consumer reports BS that is all just a bunch of paid media crap! If Toyota & Honda are so great why don't they offer a LIFETIME powertrain warranty like Chrysler Corp. does?

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

If Toyota & Honda are so great why don't they offer a LIFETIME powertrain warranty like Chrysler Corp. does?

That's usually the last thing to die. It also doesn't mean it's built better. Just means they'll fix it for free. Hyundai offer 5 yr. bumper to bumper but it doesn't make me want to own one.
Everyone we know who's owned a Dodge/Chrysler has had many problems in the first few years: power window motor broke, interior trim falling off, transmission problems, dvd player died w/in 6 mos. My dh loves their designs but won't own one after having 2 with one issue after another and seeing what our friends/siblings/neighbors have gone thru.
He even says if he won one in a contest, he'd sell it.
JHO.

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

American does not necessaraly mean where the vehicle is built. Sure that is part of it BUT where does the money go once you purchase the car? The reason the "other" guys build their vehicles in the USA is because there workers are non-union and they can build them cheaper.

As far as all the consumer reports BS that is all just a bunch of paid media crap! If Toyota & Honda are so great why don't they offer a LIFETIME powertrain warranty like Chrysler Corp. does?

This is the same reason some American car companies outsource to Mexico, is it not? A good deal on a bad car still leaves you driving a bad car. Some of the money goes to pay the workers who build it. Some goes to company headquarters, wherever that may be.

The OP asked for opinions, even yours. Those of us who love our Toyotas and Hondas are not being paid to say so. If you love you whatever you drive, throw your opinion in. The OP may not trust Consumer Reports any more than you do, or maybe she does. The fact remains that customer satisfaction is very high for Honda and Toyota owners - must be a reason for that.

I don't think any of the vans the OP is considering are known for powertrain problems.

 

[cmbonneville]

WOW - what variations in opinions

I currently own a 1997 Chrysler T&C - almost 170,000 miles on it and it is going strong - yes there have been some problems in the past, but nothing more than you might expect for 170K

We are renting a '08 Chrysler T&C while the '05 Dodge Durango is at the dealer for a stupid airbag sensor problem ($30.00 part - $200 to install) that prevented it from getting inspected!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the '08 Chrysler T&C - we drove it to NYC from VA and have put almost 1000 miles on it - the redesign is great - DVD/Radio system is great

Biggest difficulty I had in the last week is with the silly redesigned key - the thing would not work at all one day and then started working again the next day - strange!

gas mileage is great - quiet - comfortable - lots of space and storage

But given that it's a first year redesign as a previous poster said - I would wait on the T&C for another year until the kinks are worked out

 

[jensen]

Hey everyone! I really appreciate all of the feedback.

I REALLY love my current T&C (2005 model year) and have never had any problems... and I loved my previous T&C (2002 model year) - but I put VERY few miles (less than 10,000/year) on them and don't keep them very long, so longevity isn't the biggest deal for me. I'm more interested in the driving experience (handling, road noise, seating, etc.) and onboard amenities.

Today I went to the Chrysler dealership and picked out a van - it's basically the exact same thing I have (Signature Series with DVD system, leather seats, fold 'n go, etc.) for $390/month lease (36 month) That's $42/month less than what I'm paying right now. Can anyone say if that sounds like a good deal?

But, since there seem to be so many Honda and Toyota lovers here, you've convinced me to, at least, check them out. Tomorrow I'll go to our Toyota/Honda/Nissan (all one dealership in this little town) dealership and see if they can even come close to that.

 

[Deb & Bill]

We have a 2000 Sienna and a 2006 Sienna. We have over 100K miles on the older one and our buddy at Toyota told us we should be able to get another 100K out of it. Never had any repairs to either other than normal maintenance like oil, filters, tires, brakes, etc. Toyota doesn't offer a these longer warranties because they don't need to. Toyotas don't wear out at 60K like Chryslers, Fords and Chevys.