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Toyota Sienna or Honda Odyssey ?

We have a 2004 Sienna that we bought with around 50K on it. We like it a lot. Ours is the Limited edition, so lots and lots of electronics in it. Therefore, lots and lots of things to fail. I'm not generally an "extended warranty" person, but I went ahead and got it in this case.

We've put another 12K on it with no problems [touch wood]. I think the drivetrain will be pretty reliable, as are most Toyotas, but I'd get a base model if you're concerned about repairing power assisted optional equipment.
 
Sue,

SWMBO and I bought an Odyssey with 20K on it 8 years ago and have proceeded to put 120K more trouble free miles on it. She'd love to replace it but doesn't want to spend the money when that damn thing is being liking the energizer bunny. So I like our Honda, but, the Toyota drive trains are every bit as good. So to me, it would come down to searching for both and then deciding based upon the condition, options and price of the vehicles we found.
 
I'll probably up the mileage on a used. When I've had either in past years both Honda and Toyota had close to 250,000 miles when we got rid of them-still running. That was in the 80's so wondered if their reputation has changed much.

The problem I'm facing is the equipment I am going to add is about $20,000. If I buy the van already equipped I can't finance anything but the vehicle. I can't take out a loan on the conversion already in the vehicle. A new no frills Toyota or Honda already converted is $55,000 and up. The ones on Ebay are almost all Chrysler or they are salvage titles. My credit union won't look at a salvage. No luck on Craigs list so far.

So my choice is only one. Buy a good used Sienna or Odyssey and finance it through my credit union at 5.75%; then add the conversion myself with a bank loan on my house. :frown:
Sue
 
In the early 2000's through about 2007, the Odyssey suffered from a series of problems.

First, they had transmission problems. Serious failures every 50,000 miles or so requiring a replacement in the neighborhood of $3500. This problem has since been sorted.

Also, the 3.5L V6 they used suffered from significant overheating problems. It's basically a bored-out 3.2L that Honda had used for years, but they never upated the cooling systems when they upped the displacement by 10%, so they were blowing head gaskets left and right, which warps the block. Major repair, not cheap.

I believe both of these issues have been sorted since 2007.

I would buy either of these vans from 2007 or 2008. The Odyssey, in my opinion, is a better driving vehicle. The Sienna is no slouch, either, though.
 
Both vans are top of the heap. Both have little quips, but they're the best minivans on the market in terms of quality, IMO. I think it boils down to preference. UNLESS- you want all wheel drive. If you want/need AWD, the Sienna's the only choice. I have an '05 Sienna AWD. It's incredible in the snow. I put Nokian WR-G2 tires on it and I literally cannot make it break-loose in snow. Believe me, I've tried. We have 3 kids in carseats and live in a fairly snowy, very rural area. Sure-footed AWD is a must and a minivan is a must. So it had to be the Sienna for us. Overall, we're very pleased with it.

Two things I can tell you about 04 and up Siennas. The AWD's came with Run Flat Tires (not sure if '07 and up AWD have RFT, I presume they do). The RFT tires are garbage and very expensive. Many of us who own the RFT vans have removed the tires and replaced them with conventional tires. I insist that my wife, much to her dismay, carry a spare tire mounted to a safari basket on the roof. It's not the prettiest thing, but she'd be in a pickle if she got a flat and had no spare with the children/carseats in the car. If you don't have kids in carseats, I don't think I'd worry about a spare, I'd just make sure you have AAA.

The other thing is. In 04 and 05 they have a lot of leaking radiators. It's covered by warranty, but it's something to look for if you're buying used. If the van's out of warranty the rad. replacement can be costly (labor time is major and the rads are all aluminum, costing hundreds). The bad radiators typically show some seepage at the upper corners on the motor-side, so it's easy to take a quick peek with the hood open. You'd see small pink/magenta spots. If you see the spots, insist upon the dealer replacing the rad before you buy. The newer production radiators seem to be fine.

Good luck with your search!
 
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