Quote Originally Posted by hoover View Post
Niky, that's the thing. The price difference is quite substantial. Between the Alphard and the Starex, Id go for the latter because of seating capacity without giving up too much in terms of overall size. Plus it's diesel. And that's a huge plus.

But if you prefer gas, and considering how cheap gas is currently, then the E150 would be a good choice as well given its price. Powerful engine too.

Hard to decide.
I have the older E150 (2005) and it really is spacious and has a very powerful engine. It drinks petrol but when your around 10 people full you hardly feel the vehicle struggle. If you are not a hauler and don't travel much with a lot of passengers then the Alphard is for you. I had the chance to use an Alphard for about 4 months last 2013 and it had all the whistles and bells, plus the comfort and ride is what they say it is. However, when I tested the Grand Starex CVX of a friend I found a wonderful marriage of the traits of the Alphard and the E150 in this van and so it was what i bought. Am glad I did and the Starex has been our daily drive and travel pal since then. The Alphard, well, my friend who loaned me the van is still complaining of the limited passenger volume and the fact that it also drinks juice as bad as 4-5km/L and much worst in traffic being a 3.5L model. My E150, I now only use it to haul heavy loads and stuff 'coz the Starex can carry plenty passengers more comfortably especially on long drives.