Car shopping...pulling out my hair

Ok i have no clue what i need!!! we are looking to get a bigger car. i am now in a explorer with 3rd row seating which is fine BUT i will not have room from storage, stroller, food, ect... in the back with the 3 rd row up. i have a 2 year old and twins on way. so i am looking to become a mivivan mommy!! any one have a honda odyssey and what you think? or what do you drive and like? help!!!! ps i wana buy a car NOW!!! ( we have the cash and its buring a hole in muy pocket ) (oh yeah we are looking into used) thanks ladies!!

 

my sister has one and it's fantastic!

 

I have a Toyota Sienna and LOVE it. The Odyssey and Sienna are very similar. I LOVE the remote power sling door, a must for twins. And the second row captain's chairs are nice, we moved them so our aisle is on the right so it's easier for my oldest DD to get in/out with the twins in. The back has a deep well. We fit everything we needed for everyone including 2 pack-n-plays a double SBS umbrella stroller for a weeks beach vacation this year, it all fit!!! It is such a smooth drive. I had an SUV before it, but love the mini van, it's very practical and fits my family now. A DVD player is a must.


ETA-my sister has the Odyssey and loves it.

 

We LOVE our Honda Odyssey!! We especially like the automatic doors, that is a must have, since most of the time your arms are going to be full. I also like that it is closer to the ground than some of the big SUV's, so that you don't have to climb in it all of the time to load the kids in and out. We bought ours last year before the twins were born, it's great, my DH really enjoys driving it too, which was a surprise!

 

We have a Sienna also and love it!

 

I am hoping to get a Sienna in the fall, can't wait!

 

My bf has the Odyssey and loves it and I have a Dodge Caravan and I like that it has a little more room than the Hondas. Good luck!

 

My hubby works at a honda dealer ship in Canada, in the service area, so i asked him of his opinion and he says that they are really good, it would be a good investment.

 

we looked at the odessy and opted for the toyota sienna... we got the seven passenger version of the sienna. We got a better price on it...and I didn't like the "jump" seat in the middle of the odessy...felt like it was really uncomfortable for an adult and child alike. And with the toyota if I don't want the extra seat we can just take it out and throw it in the back...huge storage area, still fits both my double stroller in addition to the seat..plus I could fit more if I wanted to. We love our sienna... odessy would've been our second choice though...both are rated very highly for safety...the honda beat out the toyota for a long time...but the year we bought our toyota it actually beat out the honda for safety ratings... not sure what this year's model is like though. Regardless, both vans are very comfortable, very reliable...have a much better longevity than the american vans (my parents owned more than a few vans over my lifetime- all american versions...and all of them had transmission issues by 5 years...they have now vowed that the next van they buy will be toyota or honda....better quality for your money.) And the price difference isn't that excessive...20k or so for american vans...and maybe 25 or 27K for the toyota or honda...more if you get a very nicely souped up version. (Honda had some nice features on their luxury edition..seat warmers, 4 wheel drive...both sliding doors were power.... ) Never saw the really fancy toyota version, since we weren't really looking for that anyway..and I could be wrong but I think the more pricey version of the toyota did not have the option of the extra middle seat, which was important to us.

 

We have an Odyssey (can I spell that right?) and love it. We were down to the Sienna and Honda, and like the Honda a little better, although our other vehicle is a Camry. I used to drive a Blazer, and the van drievs much better. We went Honda on the van because of features, price, and the dealership, but I think either would have been a good choice for us. We took out the jump seat and have a kid in each second row seat, and one in the back middle. Tons of room - and I love it!

If you go Honda - they are starting to have internet pricing available at some dealers available through the Honda website. no haggling - this is the price, take it or leave it, but it saved us about $3000, so it was a good deal for us.

Have fun shopping!

 

We have a 2000 odyssey and love it! We haven't had to do anything to it repair wise since we bought it brand new(almost 8 yrs ago). It's nice to have a dependable vehicle that's been paid for ! My sil has the sienna and it seems like a great vehicle too. Happy car shopping!

 

we just bought a nissan quest and i love it. it's longer than our jeep, so it took about a week to get used to parking it. i still haven't figured out how to parallel park.

my advice is to spend the extra $$ to get the dvd package. our 4 yo dd loves it. we don't put it on all the time for her (only for trips over 20 mins), but when we do, DH and i get to talk! without interruption!

 

We have a crysler pacifica and love it. The third row you can fold it down the whole way or just half way. Plenty of room and very comfortable ride.

 

I have a dodge caravan and not real happy with it, but it works. Not alot of storage room in the back and with the rear facing baby seats anybody that sits in the back seat they have to get in first or when they get out we have to take the babies out first. I guess I can't have it all just perfect though.

 

We bought the Odyssey after the girls were born. It was between it and the Sienna. We were able to get the top of the line Odyssey touring edition for less than the top Sienna model. Not all Odyssey's had an automatic rear lift gate and that was a must. We got the DVD package, navigation system, and leather seats and just love it! There is a neat lazy susan under the driver/passenger and 2nd row that you can lock. We removed the lazy susan and just use it as secured storage space. We have a storage unit to go between the 2nd row captain's seats but don't use it. We've pushed one seat to the right to make getting in and out of the 3rd row easier and so the girls are closer to each other and can play. Having ridden in a friend's new Sienna, I find the Odyssey to be a little more luxurious.

 

It was between an odyssey (which my friend has and loves) and the sienna (mom has and loves) we went with the sienna because we got a great deal and so far I love it. I think both are great though. My old suv barely had room in the second seat for one car seat and two small adults so we needed 3 rows. Mine has captain seats and I think I prefer that to a full middle row so my 10 yr old can get in and out better.

 

Looks like I am outnumbered on loving the minivan...hate it! We had a Tahoe (older model but still plenty big). I find that we really have no more room in van than we did in Tahoe. We keep the 3rd row seat down most of the time but when it is up there is not a whole lot of room!!! I had a good friend do something I thought was smart...they were thinking of getting a different vehicle so they sucked it up and rented it for one week to see what they thought. Just an idea!

 

Thanks ALOT!!!!!! we go tomorrow and i hope to drive my new car home!!!! funny how is seems everyone compared the odyssey and sienna. that helps cuz i was look at them too so we will see what i can get a better deal on cuz that is what it will boil down to MONEY!!!!

 

LOVE our honda odyssey. It drives smoothly. The automatic doors are the best feature for me.

 

QUOTE(gregje @ Aug 10 2007, 10:24 PM) [snapback]364585[/snapback]
Thanks ALOT!!!!!! we go tomorrow and i hope to drive my new car home!!!! funny how is seems everyone compared the odyssey and sienna. that helps cuz i was look at them too so we will see what i can get a better deal on cuz that is what it will boil down to MONEY!!!!

oooh, I'm sooo jealous!!! Have fun!

 

OK, you guys are scaring me! We have a PT Cruiser and a Jeep Liberty and were hoping to make it for another year or two before buying a new car. Am I delusional?

 

Just bought a Honda Odyssey 3 weeks ago, and we love it! Lots of room, storage, and automatic everything! We went with the leather seats (easier to clean), but skipped the DVD/navigation system, which adds a LOT to the price. We plan on getting our own DVD and GPS system and putting it in ourselves. We are pretty loyal to Honda and got a great deal on a 2007 before the 2008's came out a few weeks later....

 

Jen, did you get a new van?? My DH surprised me on the weekend and we got a Sienna!! He had kept telling me no that I would have to stick with the vehicle I had. A 5 seater Trailblazer. What a surprise!!

 

QUOTE
OK, you guys are scaring me! We have a PT Cruiser and a Jeep Liberty and were hoping to make it for another year or two before buying a new car. Am I delusional?


if its the only 2 kids you have, no you're not...we just traded up from a Ford Focus (that we carried the twins around in for 15 months) to a 2008 Ford Escape - when the lease goes back on it I'm sure we'll look into a mini van but you can get by with a small sedan or SUV if you've only got the 2 kids and don't have to worry about carting around anyone else!

 

WELL, WHAT'S THE VERDICT?!?!?!?!? LOL!!!