Minivan

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jbbrown

Member
Sep 22, 2006
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My wife and I are starting to look at buying a minivan in the near future, yes I know, not very exciting, but it's what our family will be needing. :) The number one thing we are looking for is something that is reliable. Just from reading around, Toyota Sienna and Honda Odyssey seem to be recommended the most. But, unless we get one with a bunch of miles, they will both probably be out of our price range. We are looking at minivans around the years 2007-2009 with 45k or less miles on it. Are there any other 7 passenger minivans you would recommend that are just as reliable as a Toyota and Honda? Or on the flip side, do you know of any that we should stay away from? Thanks for you help!
 
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jbbrown

Member
Sep 22, 2006
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I have considered the Hyundai Entourage, do you know the reasoning behind them discontinuing it? I think 2009 was it's last year. I have heard good things about it though.
 
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Vette73

Lifer
Jul 5, 2000
21,503
9
0
^

Low sales. Many buy SUVs/Crossovers now. Even GM and Ford got out of the Minivan game when the market went toward SUVs/Crossovers. VW just slaps a badge on a Dodge van. Just not a big market like there use to be.

That is why I updated my first replay to add the KIA as they are pretty much the same.
 
J

jbbrown

Member
Sep 22, 2006
111
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Marlin1975 said:
^

Low sales. Many buy SUVs/Crossovers now. Even GM and Ford got out of the Minivan game when the market went toward SUVs/Crossovers. VW just slaps a badge on a Dodge van. Just not a big market like there use to be.

That is why I updated my first replay to add the KIA as they are pretty much the same.
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I have always thought of KIA as being cheaper quality and less reliable, but maybe that has changed over the last few years.
 
V

Vette73

Lifer
Jul 5, 2000
21,503
9
0
jbbrown said:
I have always thought of KIA as being cheaper quality and less reliable, but maybe that has changed over the last few years.
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Kia has come up a lot as well.
But the minivan was the same just mostly differant name on the front. 2007 and up all had the new 3.8L motor and 5 speed auto trans. I think the newwest Kia has a 6speed.

So treat them as the same when looking IMO.


The Entourage is a rebadged variant[1] of the second-generation Kia Sedona, manufactured at Kia's Sohari Plant.
 
K

kornphlake

Golden Member
Dec 30, 2003
1,567
9
81
I'm convinced there's not a "good" minivan on the market, they all have problems, rather it's transmission problems, poor MPG, uncomfortable seats, or squeaks and rattles. Every van out there is a compromise in some way, Honda and Toyota have fewer problems, but they're still not as reliable as any compact sedan on the market. Roll the dice and hope you're one of those guys who never changes the oil and never has a problem, I know I'm not that guy. When I bought a '01 Sienna with just shy of 100k miles, I expected it to be as reliable as a Camry or Corolla, I had it in the shop within a week of buying it and it continued to have problems as long as I owned it, in hindsight I should have taken it back to the dealer when the first problem came up and bought something else.

We ended up selling our Sienna and bought a Chevy Astro that is a couple years older but has lower miles. It's a compromise as well, it's got MPG to rival the Hyundai, it handles like a truck, and it looks like a brick, but we like the extra space, my wife likes sitting up higher because she can see the road better and I like that I can tow a utility trailer and not look like a complete tool. I do expect it to need ball joints, tie rods and an idler arm in the next year or two, but every astro van needs these items replaced so parts are pretty cheap and it's something most shops will know how to do, or should I choose to do the repairs myself there are good instructions on line.
 
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Elfear

Elfear

Diamond Member
May 30, 2004
7,165
824
126
Our family has really enjoyed our '08 Grand Caravan. Very roomy especially with the Stow 'n Go feature for both the second and third row seats. Makes hauling home improvement supplies or big appliances really easy. Kids love the two-screen DVD player and the ability of the sliding-door windows to roll down. Decent power for what it is and gets 18mpg doing about 70-80% city driving. Peaked at 26mpg on a road trip a year ago.

When we were researching minivans we found a lot of recommendations for the Odyssey and Sienna but they are priced about $3-6k over a comparable van from another manufacturer. We ended up paying just under $16k for a fully loaded SXT with everything but leather seats and seat warmers. Odyssey's with the same feature set were $20-21k. The Dodge vans have had good ratings from J.D. Power so we decided to go for it and haven't regretted it one bit (well I did a little because of the inherent emasculation that goes with a minivan).
 
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alkalinetaupehat

alkalinetaupehat

Senior member
Mar 3, 2008
839
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jbbrown said:
Are there any minivans that I should definitely stay away from?
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Ryland said:
My wife loves her Mazda MPV.
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*Waits for Skoorb to pop in here ranting*

We bought a new '99 Chrysler T&C way back, and it's been through everything. Dodge pioneered the minivan market segment and totally has it down, even now. I've been in the new ones and their owners are all quite satisfied with them.
 
DesiPower

DesiPower

Lifer
Nov 22, 2008
15,299
740
126
I myself might be buying one in another year or so... If you want a real 3rd row seat, and descent mileage and insurance, whats you option? I don't think there is one besides minivan.

Once you zero in on this category of vehicle, you have 5 manufactures. Kia/Hyundai, Dodge/Chrysler/VW, Honda, Toyota and Nissan. According to consumer report and other sources, Dodge and Kia have poor reliability record. Nissan is not that different in price from Honda and Toyota, so I guess, for me, Honda and Toyota are really the only 2 option. I plan to shop around and see who can give me more feature for the same price...

OH btw, for those how suggested Hyundai, Entourage is not available anymore...
 
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kornphlake

Golden Member
Dec 30, 2003
1,567
9
81
jbbrown said:
Are there any minivans that I should definitely stay away from?
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Ford mini vans after the Aerostar should be avoided, Nissan Quest after the redesign in the mid 2000s should probably be avoided. I wouldn't personally own a Chevy Lumina or it's Olds and Pontiac siblings, but I don't think they are inherently more prone to problems than any other van, the 3800 engine did have a known defect in the intake manifold gasket that gave these vans a sour history.

Ford has discontinued all mini-van models, Nissan has discontinued all mini-van models, GM discontinued all mini-van models. Current production choices are few, Chrysler, Honda and Toyota are the only real options, the VW is a rebadged Chrysler, the Mazda5 is really too small to compete in the mini-van category. I don't think one is better than the other, they're all about the same, I'd say the Toyota has a little more luxury if your willing to pay for it, although the others are very close in terms of options and quality, however I don't mean that as a compliment.
 
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JS80

Lifer
Oct 24, 2005
26,271
7
81
I have a 2005 Toyota Sienna XLE Limited. Got it for $15,000 in March. It's ok. Wife wishes we spent a few grand more for a 2007 Odyssey.
 
Bignate603

Bignate603

Lifer
Sep 5, 2000
13,897
1
0
kornphlake said:
Ford mini vans after the Aerostar should be avoided, Nissan Quest after the redesign in the mid 2000s should probably be avoided. I wouldn't personally own a Chevy Lumina or it's Olds and Pontiac siblings, but I don't think they are inherently more prone to problems than any other van, the 3800 engine did have a known defect in the intake manifold gasket that gave these vans a sour history.
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I've got a Chevy Venture. The drivetrain has been bullet proof but the interior trim is falling apart. For what I want that's fine but if I cared about how the inside looked it would be annoying.
 
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KIAman

Diamond Member
Mar 7, 2001
3,342
23
81
If I were shopping between an Odyssey or Sienna, I would get the Odyssey.

If I were money conscious, I would get a 2nd generation (2006+) Sedona.

If I didn't need the cavernous interior space, I would get a Mazda5.
 
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