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Minivan (1 Viewer)

Righetti

Footballguy
With a third on the way, I'm starting to get to grips that it might be time to get a minivan. Checked out the odyssey today and Mrs R really like it. They are quoting the EXL at $34k to buy plus all the taxes ext getting you to $38k. On a lease they have it at $489/month including the taxes etc.

I also looked at the Buick Snclave which looked awesome and had the same minivan setup inside but looks like an SUV and gets you AWD.

The minivan is going to be cheaper and probably offers better convieniences for a growing family but it is a minivan.

Anybody want to talk me off the ledge.

 
Traded in a 2011 Honda Odyssey EX-L with RES for a 2014 Honda Odyssey EX-L with RES.

Best Minivan out there, but I only drive it when I have to. RES is great because you throw in a movie, have the kids put on the headphones and you don't hear a peep out of them. If you have any questions let me know, I'll answer they best I can.

 
We have the Chrysler Town and Country and will be leading another minivan when that ones up in January

They're practical (3 kids)...going to look at the other OEMS this time around though...the Chrysler is kind if a POS but fits out budget better

 
Big old Ford Country Squire. If you're going to go people mover, at least be retro-cool.

 
Don't sweat it man. If you're going to be making long journeys with 3 kids, minivan is way better than an suv. Fits stuff like a pick up and hauls kids with ease. Its a no brainer.

 
Don't sweat it man. If you're going to be making long journeys with 3 kids, minivan is way better than an suv. Fits stuff like a pick up and hauls kids with ease. Its a no brainer.
This. I know it's a tough pill to swallow, but they're great for a family.
 
I have three buds with Odysseys and the all rave about them. I'd get the one with the built-in vacuum because all of their cars collect crap like nobody's business. Three kids can filth up a car something fierce.

 
We have the Chrysler Town and Country and will be leading another minivan when that ones up in January

They're practical (3 kids)...going to look at the other OEMS this time around though...the Chrysler is kind if a POS but fits out budget better
I've got the Chrysler T&C with all the bells and whistles (except rear TV - don't need them) and it's great. Practical, massive capacity, decent ride, adequate towing capability, a minivan is definitely the choice for a family IMO.

 
We have 4 and a Enclave and it has worked out great. Our oldest is 10 and youngest is 3. It is large enough that we can travel to the beach as long as we put a hard top on the roof. We have the 7 person version, which has 2 captain chairs and a walk though which is a necessity if you have car seats.

The back is big enough to fit 2 large suit cases and any regular trips to Costco.

 
Have had a minivan since my now 12 year old was born (on our second van). I hate to drive it but love its functionality. It's not needed quite as much anymore since the kids are 16, 12, and 10, but in the days of bringing a travel crib, diapers, diaper bag, multiple car seats, etc, it was a god send.

I hope after our current one is run into the ground we can downgrade to a full size sedan that is fun to drive.

 
We have 4 and a Enclave and it has worked out great. Our oldest is 10 and youngest is 3. It is large enough that we can travel to the beach as long as we put a hard top on the roof. We have the 7 person version, which has 2 captain chairs and a walk though which is a necessity if you have car seats.

The back is big enough to fit 2 large suit cases and any regular trips to Costco.
I liked the Enclave a lot but it is $10k more for the same basic version as the EX-L Odyssey ($34k vs $44k), so I'm having a hard time swallowing the difference only because if looks cooler. I do like that it would have AWD which the Odyssey doesn't

 
$44k for a car that you won't love, but you're buying because it's functional? I hope this years model includes a prostrate massager

 
Love our Odyssey.

If you're cool, you're cool in a minivan. If you're not cool, you're not cool in an SUV.

 
Wife has 100k miles on a Sienna and loves it. I used to be that jerk that would be on my Harley laughing at those poor schmucks driving minivans...till the first road trip we took with the space, good ride, and quiet of the RES. Like Tick said, a car aint gonna make you cool or uncool. Embrace it :lol:

 
Minivans are more functional than SUVs, which is what you need if you started this thread. My wife has come around on her Flex, which has more space than most mid-sized utes, but we would like sliding doors. Best of luck.

 
Minivans are more functional than SUVs, which is what you need if you started this thread. My wife has come around on her Flex, which has more space than most mid-sized utes, but we would like sliding doors. Best of luck.
These right here are worth their weight in gold. Anyone with 2 or more young kids must have the dual sliding doors. Absolute necessity.

 
Wife always said she would never drive a mini-van.........she now loves her T&C. The stow and go is the ####.

 
We have the Chrysler Town and Country and will be leading another minivan when that ones up in January

They're practical (3 kids)...going to look at the other OEMS this time around though...the Chrysler is kind if a POS but fits out budget better
I've got the Chrysler T&C with all the bells and whistles (except rear TV - don't need them) and it's great. Practical, massive capacity, decent ride, adequate towing capability, a minivan is definitely the choice for a family IMO.
:goodposting:

 
RESIST THE MINIVAN !!!

Althought the new Odyssey has that pretty cool vacuum cleaner built into it.

So there's that.

 
We've got an Odyssey and love it. You need to stay ahead of Otis so I say go for it.
Bought a used 2005 Odyssey Touring in 2007. Have over 100K on it. Love it. Only minor issue that we have with it is the fact that it has "drive-while-flat" tires which on the one hand are cool, whereas they do what they say, and drive while flat; and the vehicle does not come with a spare. The problem is that you have to buy the replacement tires from a Honda dealer and they ain't cheap. You also have to replace all at once. (this may be a dumba## being talked over by a dealer, but who knows) The Touring is much bigger than the other models, which is nice.

It gets a lot of hard driving, hour long commutes 3+ days a week, and we do a couple 2000+ mi trips each year and it holds up well.

As I said, other than the tires, we really love it.

 
We've got an Odyssey and love it. You need to stay ahead of Otis so I say go for it.
Bought a used 2005 Odyssey Touring in 2007. Have over 100K on it. Love it. Only minor issue that we have with it is the fact that it has "drive-while-flat" tires which on the one hand are cool, whereas they do what they say, and drive while flat; and the vehicle does not come with a spare. The problem is that you have to buy the replacement tires from a Honda dealer and they ain't cheap. You also have to replace all at once. (this may be a dumba## being talked over by a dealer, but who knows) The Touring is much bigger than the other models, which is nice.

It gets a lot of hard driving, hour long commutes 3+ days a week, and we do a couple 2000+ mi trips each year and it holds up well.

As I said, other than the tires, we really love it.
The older models may have been worse. There was a donut that was in the middle of the floor - you needed to unload all of your stuff to get to it. Then the wheel you replaced would not fit in the hole that the donut was in, so you had a giant wheel hanging out for the rest of the road trip. It was a selling point for the Chrysler products, as they had a full sized spare.

 
Bought a used 2011 Sienna absolutely loaded earlier this year and it's worked out well. Getting the kids in and out is a breeze, you can fit an army inside, it has a V6 so it's got decent power and of course, all the options (leather, power everything, DVD player, blue tooth, etc) make it a cushy ride.

Not going to impress your buddies or chicks, but all in all it's a good ride for the wife.

 
Bought a used 2011 Sienna absolutely loaded earlier this year and it's worked out well. Getting the kids in and out is a breeze, you can fit an army inside, it has a V6 so it's got decent power and of course, all the options (leather, power everything, DVD player, blue tooth, etc) make it a cushy ride.

Not going to impress your buddies or chicks, but all in all it's a good ride for the wife.
And honestly at this point in our lives, there's only one person to keep happy in order to make your own life happy.

Also phrasing.

 
We've got an Odyssey and love it. You need to stay ahead of Otis so I say go for it.
Bought a used 2005 Odyssey Touring in 2007. Have over 100K on it. Love it. Only minor issue that we have with it is the fact that it has "drive-while-flat" tires which on the one hand are cool, whereas they do what they say, and drive while flat; and the vehicle does not come with a spare. The problem is that you have to buy the replacement tires from a Honda dealer and they ain't cheap. You also have to replace all at once. (this may be a dumba## being talked over by a dealer, but who knows) The Touring is much bigger than the other models, which is nice.

It gets a lot of hard driving, hour long commutes 3+ days a week, and we do a couple 2000+ mi trips each year and it holds up well.

As I said, other than the tires, we really love it.
The older models may have been worse. There was a donut that was in the middle of the floor - you needed to unload all of your stuff to get to it. Then the wheel you replaced would not fit in the hole that the donut was in, so you had a giant wheel hanging out for the rest of the road trip. It was a selling point for the Chrysler products, as they had a full sized spare.
The spare storage is vertical on the drivers side in the trunk (empty in mine - I should use it). There is a hole in between the front row and the middle row, and that is set up for storage, locks, two entrances, rotator inside to get at stuff. Don't use it often, but when we do it's nice.

 
For 40k you can get into an extremely nice used Yukon XL Denali. Room for a couple more kids, and the added advantage that you win ev2ry accident sans semi truck.

Will never be caught dead in a mini van. SUV all day.

 
For 40k you can get into an extremely nice used Yukon XL Denali. Room for a couple more kids, and the added advantage that you win ev2ry accident sans semi truck.

Will never be caught dead in a mini van. SUV all day.
Minor issues with big SUV are bad gas mileage and the sliding door. Nothing better than having little kids and being able to remotely open doors (rainy drop off/pick up lines, kids in parking lots, etc)

 
Im secure in my masulinity and don't have to make up for a small johnson...so the wife has a minivan. I drive it on all the long trips with the family.

She loves it and its just too damn convenient for hauling around family crap.

 
Had to buy a minivan 12 years ago when my family was growing. Was painful to cross that bridge.

BUT>>>>>>>>

Over time, I came to love the damn things. More comfortable than many sedans, sitting up high like in a big SUV, but with a better ride/MPG than any SUV. Tons of room- I took the seats out of my old minivan, but in most of them now the seats fold in the floor, making them super conveniant for picking up stuff (like a truck).

My kids are bigger now, and I no longer NEED a minivan, but I still have one, and love the thing so much I might just buy another even if I no longer need it.The conveniance and functionality more than make up for the lack of "cool". Once you have a few kids, cool isn't exactly a priority anyway.

 
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If you can't get over the minivan thing and the Enclave is too much scratch, have you looked at the Traverse? Same platform as the Enclave, but probably $5-7k cheaper. We've had one for 4 years and it's been great.

 
For 40k you can get into an extremely nice used Yukon XL Denali. Room for a couple more kids, and the added advantage that you win ev2ry accident sans semi truck.

Will never be caught dead in a mini van. SUV all day.
A lot of compensating for inadequacies in this post.

 
Had to buy a minivan 12 years ago when my family was growing. Was painful to cross that bridge.

BUT>>>>>>>>

Over time, I came to love the damn things. More comfortable than many sedans, sitting up high like in a big SUV, but with a better ride/MPG than any SUV. Tons of room- I took the seats out of my old minivan, but in most of them now the seats fold in the floor, making them super conveniant for picking up stuff (like a truck).

My kids are bigger now, and I no longer NEED a minivan, but I still have one, and love the thing so much I might just buy another even if I no longer need it.The conveniance and functionality more than make up for the lack of "cool". Once you have a few kids, cool isn't exactly a priority anyway.
I never understood the value of minivans till I had to move and borrowed my sister in laws T&C. We packed up pretty much our whole apartment in two trips with that thing. Then we were able to get a used washer in dryer in there and then a used fridge on another trip. The amount it holds is ridiculous and it takes literally 3 mins to put all the seats down. I was sold right there.

 
Had to buy a minivan 12 years ago when my family was growing. Was painful to cross that bridge.

BUT>>>>>>>>

Over time, I came to love the damn things. More comfortable than many sedans, sitting up high like in a big SUV, but with a better ride/MPG than any SUV. Tons of room- I took the seats out of my old minivan, but in most of them now the seats fold in the floor, making them super conveniant for picking up stuff (like a truck).

My kids are bigger now, and I no longer NEED a minivan, but I still have one, and love the thing so much I might just buy another even if I no longer need it.The conveniance and functionality more than make up for the lack of "cool". Once you have a few kids, cool isn't exactly a priority anyway.
I never understood the value of minivans till I had to move and borrowed my sister in laws T&C. We packed up pretty much our whole apartment in two trips with that thing. Then we were able to get a used washer in dryer in there and then a used fridge on another trip. The amount it holds is ridiculous and it takes literally 3 mins to put all the seats down. I was sold right there.
Our old Caravan fit a sheet of plywood perfectly - it touched the wheel wells on both sides and sat right on the door-closing line while touching the back of the front seats, perfectly flat. I don't know how many sheets the suspension can handle, but we had a couple in there for a project, with other crap loaded on top.

 
For 40k you can get into an extremely nice used Yukon XL Denali. Room for a couple more kids, and the added advantage that you win ev2ry accident sans semi truck.Will never be caught dead in a mini van. SUV all day.
A lot of compensating for inadequacies in this post.
Nice cliche. I suppose you drive a Smart Fortwo, because you are so damn comfortable with yourself, you want the world to know. Probobly have a little ankle biter along for every ride as well.

I enjoy the room of the yukon, the xl gives me more cargo room, and the denali packages ive always liked. I also enjoy the peace of mind that my loved ones are extremely safe.

 
For 40k you can get into an extremely nice used Yukon XL Denali. Room for a couple more kids, and the added advantage that you win ev2ry accident sans semi truck.Will never be caught dead in a mini van. SUV all day.
A lot of compensating for inadequacies in this post.
Nice cliche. I suppose you drive a Smart Fortwo, because you are so damn comfortable with yourself, you want the world to know. Probobly have a little ankle biter along for every ride as well.

I enjoy the room of the yukon, the xl gives me more cargo room, and the denali packages ive always liked. I also enjoy the peace of mind that my loved ones are extremely safe.
:goodposting:

 
Had to buy a minivan 12 years ago when my family was growing. Was painful to cross that bridge.

BUT>>>>>>>>

Over time, I came to love the damn things. More comfortable than many sedans, sitting up high like in a big SUV, but with a better ride/MPG than any SUV. Tons of room- I took the seats out of my old minivan, but in most of them now the seats fold in the floor, making them super conveniant for picking up stuff (like a truck).

My kids are bigger now, and I no longer NEED a minivan, but I still have one, and love the thing so much I might just buy another even if I no longer need it.The conveniance and functionality more than make up for the lack of "cool". Once you have a few kids, cool isn't exactly a priority anyway.
If you can't get over the minivan thing and the Enclave is too much scratch, have you looked at the Traverse? Same platform as the Enclave, but probably $5-7k cheaper. We've had one for 4 years and it's been great.
We are approaching the time where we may need to buy a new one. (Although we are truly enjoying the time without a car payment!) and can't make the decision between a minivan and a large crossover like a Traverse (need the 3 rows of seats). My in-laws have the smaller version below the Traverse and it is a nice vehicle. We need a larger one since we have 3 kids. I like having a minivan, since we do a lot of distance driving and like having the big space in the 'trunk.'

I have been thinking of getting a hitch in the back of my van to hold one of these cargo carriers which i guess would work with a crossover. (Better than a top mount - don't have to lower speed)

 
I drove a minivan for years when running my business and commuting across the State. Plenty of room for crew and tools, comfort and good mileage too. Having it for family trips was a real bonus--as others have suggested here. It's not in my current collection but still could be again if the opportunity/deal presented itself. Whatever the image it's a common sense choice--all depends on your needs.

 
PitbullTD said:
For 40k you can get into an extremely nice used Yukon XL Denali. Room for a couple more kids, and the added advantage that you win ev2ry accident sans semi truck.Will never be caught dead in a mini van. SUV all day.
A lot of compensating for inadequacies in this post.
Nice cliche. I suppose you drive a Smart Fortwo, because you are so damn comfortable with yourself, you want the world to know. Probobly have a little ankle biter along for every ride as well.

I enjoy the room of the yukon, the xl gives me more cargo room, and the denali packages ive always liked. I also enjoy the peace of mind that my loved ones are extremely safe.
Except all of these can be obtained with a minivan including the safety rating for about $10k to $15k less.

The part about being caught dead in a minivan just sounds like you're too cool for school here.

 
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This thread has me convinced. Minivan all the way. Do I have to wait utill I have kids to get one?
Minivans have saved many a marriage. If I drove a Mustang, I'd always have hot women hitting on me. Minivan drivers don't have these types of problems.

 
picked up my Odyssey EX-L last night and the buddy who dropped me off to get it said "it looks kind of cool"

nice ride home, this car really has thought about every little thing, the second mirror, the fridge in the console, the individual reading lights, the backup camera and the camera on the right mirror, the beep when you come too close to the divider

the only thing I haven't figured out, yet are those automatic seatbelts in the back rows

 

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