Time For a New Minivan

[Jun aka Pekto]

We're going to test drive some minivans after were done with summer vacation and close outs of 2008 models start to make room for the 2009 models. There's bound to be good deals too what with this fuel crunch. Wife's been wanting one because no sedan is spacious enough to handle a baby seat with ease, not even the Sonata. Same goes for most SUV's. Besides, the older kid's been screaming at me to get a new van ever since we got rid of the old one back in 2005. For me, I sorely missed the captain's chair during long interstate road trips.

Nothing flashy (except for overhead DVD players). These will be people haulers. With kids around our house all the time, a new van will get dented and scratched within weeks of buying.....

Our final choices. No Hyundai Entourage because it's just a more expensive Kia. No Honda Odyssey because the last one we looked at seemed pretty small. Definitely no Mazda 5 either because it's downright tiny. So, it's a pretty small selection:

2008 Kia Sedona


2008 Grand Caravan


2008 Nissan Quest


2008 Toyota Sienna


Sources: autoreview.com, usnews.com, flicker.com

[empy]

budget? and are you willing to go used?

of your choices the Quest has led its class for more than a decade, in my opinion, despite what the superior sales figures of the Chryslers might say. i'd put that at the top of my list before the test drives.

are crossovers out of the question? from a utility, flexibility and people-moving standpoint, the Honda Pilot and Mazda CX9 could be some pretty sweet alternatives

[niky]

Damnit... can't relate. I've driven the Philippine Sedona, so I don't know if the suspension tuning is the same... but if it is, it's a bit truckish, though it handles decently. Too bad you don't get the CRDi version there, yet... it's a good engine with decent economy.

If the Sienna is still close to the Previa in terms of performance, that's a pretty smooth performer, good suspension (not perfect yet... Toyota still needs beefier shocks), great comfort and a nice interior.

The Quest would be my pick here...

But if you decide to go for a CX-9... hehehe... do it, do it, do it! Drives nicely and the V6 has a lot of character. Very comfy, too, though the center console makes it more of a six seater than a seven seater.

[MXFX]

my wife and i have looked into a van before we got our sentra and we considered the sedona and the quest.

right now the quest is our first choice since we like something different and we didnt mind the "oddball" styling at all. i have driven a few 04's only for test drives. the advice i got from a nissan tech is to simply avoid the 04 and go with 05's and later, esp the current one. i sat in on a few 07's as a shuttle service and i can tell that the fit and finish inside is much more improved. oh yeah, we like VQ and nissan too .

we only looked into a sedona but was not able to drive one since my wife decided to get a small car instead. the positive reviews and crash test ratings got our attention on this one. the low price (esp the used ones) is also a big plus.

there are some deals for used ones around that are so tempting and the timing is actually getting better with people switching to smaller cars.

p.s. i also drive my sister's pilot and i can consider this as an alternate to a minivan. not as roomy but enough for a family. also a long shot, i keep reminding my wife how the armada/qx56 are getting cheaper. not working, she finds them too big .

[MXFX]

my wife and i have looked into a van before we got our sentra and we considered the sedona and the quest.

right now the quest is our first choice since we like something different and we didnt mind the "oddball" styling at all. i have driven a few 04's only for test drives. the advice i got from a nissan tech is to simply avoid the 04 and go with 05's and later, esp the current one. i sat in on a few 07's as a shuttle service and i can tell that the fit and finish inside is much more improved. oh yeah, we like VQ and nissan too .

we only looked into a sedona but was not able to drive one since my wife decided to get a small car instead. the positive reviews and crash test ratings got our attention on this one. the low price (esp the used ones) is also a big plus.

there are some deals for used ones around that are so tempting and the timing is actually getting better with people switching to smaller cars.

p.s. i also drive my sister's pilot and i can consider this as an alternate to a minivan. not as roomy but enough for a family. also a long shot, i keep reminding my wife how the armada/qx56 are getting cheaper. not working, she finds them too big .

[slamtaz]

we were also looking for a van, months back, at sedona/entourage, odysssey and sienna lang ang natest drive namin. we almost got the sienna, which my wife also prefers having the best balance for our needs in terms of comfort/space/power/mpg/price, pero during that time i heard about the great deals for the pilot (08 being an outgoing model) which i researched and test drove din.

true enough, we got the price lower than the 3.5 sienna and even a 3.3 hyundai santa fe. it sits 8, very smooth ride and spacious for my family of six (children aged 9 - 16) even when my mom & sister visits us or my in-laws ay kasya kami. and the 19-20 city/23-25 hiway mileage is even better than our old toyota previa (16 city/20 hiway) or the pathfinder (14 city/17 hiway) which the pilot replaced (hope i recall the mpgs accurately )

i even got a surprise when i found out that the insurance premium of the pilot is cheaper than my wife's car

edit: pero kung budget is not tight, i'd go for the cx-9... deym, i test drove it and it drives & handles like a sports sedan cum suv. it also has wide rear doors which makes ingress & egress easier (me thinks its gud for having car seat mobility)

[HyBrideVo]

Here are some of my choices.

Minivans
1. Honda Odyssey
2. Toyota Sienna
3. Nissan Quest
4. Chrysler Town & Country
5. Hyundai Entourage

CUVs
1. Mazda CX9
2. Subaru Tribeca
3. Acura MDX
4. Honda Pilot
5. Buick Enclave

[drey]

I think I'll vote for the Grand Caravan for now. I haven't made some research yet but will try to help you out some time.

BFN.

[drey]

I think I'll vote for the Grand Caravan for now. I haven't made some research yet but will try to help you out some time.

BFN.

[Jun aka Pekto]

Well..... First thing's first. Crossovers aren't an option. Both the wife and kid had ridden in friends' crossovers before (Murano, Santa Fe, and a Lexus) and both agreed they preferred a minivan over any of those. They both also preferred sliding doors, esp in tight parking.

So, it has to be a minivan. If there was a 4-cylinder option, it'd be a plus. But, all of them have V6s which I'm fine with.

Although the Odyssey wasn't included earlier, we did notice Honda seems to have all sorts of deals right now. So, the Odyssey is back on the list.

I personally like the Nissan Quest. It's also the vote of every kin up north in Nevada. They've been Nissan fans ever since it was still Datsun.

So right now, it's the Quest unless Honda can give us a good deal on an Odyssey. The Previa dropped a bit behind those 2 in our list after reading some reliability issues with the V6. The Kia Sedona is 4th just in case the budget becomes tight.The Dodge is last.

Our last minivan was a 1997 Dodge Grand Caravan SE which we traded in for the 2006 Sonata. We would've kept it longer. But, it suddenly developed transmission issues in 2005. We were saved from a $3.5k repair bill by the extended warranty. I'm sure Dodge transmissions have improved. But lemon-fresh is still on my mind.

[niky]

Forester XT... mhmmmm... turbocharged... upgrade it to an STi turbo... get some good brakes... that'll do... even better... with the new Forester out... you can either get a good deal on the old one or get the new one... which is a pretty sporty alternative to getting a CR-V.

[Jun aka Pekto]

Forester XT... mhmmmm... turbocharged... upgrade it to an STi turbo... get some good brakes... that'll do... even better... with the new Forester out... you can either get a good deal on the old one or get the new one... which is a pretty sporty alternative to getting a CR-V.

Well, I talked her out of any non-minivan vehicles...... Anything less is simply too small, especially with the amount of luggage she, her mom, and our two daughters bring along (all women).

We're now back on track for a minivan. But now, it's either a Honda Odyssey or an AWD Toyota Sienna.

[5Speed]

Well, I talked her out of any non-minivan vehicles...... Anything less is simply too small, especially with the amount of luggage she, her mom, and our two daughters bring along (all women).

We're now back on track for a minivan. But now, it's either a Honda Odyssey or an AWD Toyota Sienna.

herherhehrer what happens with the Nissan Quest??

[MXFX]

hehehe was about to say the same thing about forgetting the quest. remember, nissan is still having these 40% deals around. some guys got quest se's in the low $20's.