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Vans & Minivans Honda Odyssey Honda Odyssey vs. Toyota Sienna
5230 messages, Last post on Dec 06, 2009 at 7:16 AM
You are in the Honda Odyssey Forum. Your Host is Karens
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Replying to: doggrandma (Oct 27, 2009 6:24 pm) If you want soft and floaty (as some people do) you may perfer a toyota product to a Honda. If you want a car that handles like a dream you would definatly perfer a Honda! And a Subaru Outback is in a totally diffferent class of cars.
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Replying to: isellhondas (Nov 05, 2009 7:29 pm) when i was shopping and reading the honda ody sites i found people ranking the sienna saying the brakes were horrible and too soft, the ride was too boaty and other things but when i drove the sienna i totally disagreed with these opinions. but this is just me. i have a smaller sporty car that i drive when i really, really want to "feel the road" but in my day to day driving and moving of my family i love the way the sienna drives and feels while driving along many different roads. and let's be honest....we are not buying a sports car - we are buying a family mover. there has to be a little expectation that a van will not corner like a porsche on rails. that is not to say we cannot have a little sporting fun while driving and being realistic about the vans abilities. in the sienna i find the acceleration is fantastic, the road / wind noise is just not there, it snakes through traffic in quite a nimble fashion and when i throw out the anchors to bring it down from 65 to 20 the brakes feel very solid and competent. again, these are my feelings...make sure you test drive many times in different conditions and if money is at all a factor, i think you will find toyota has the edge on comparably equipped vans.... i did to the tune of over $2,000.00 in my favor w/ much better financing. last week i shared some time with a recently ex-car sales manager and asked why honda would not come down more to get my business. he told me that part of their model is "to just wait...sooner or later someone will come along and pay the price the DEALER wants rather that make a less margin deal." |
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Replying to: ateixeira (Nov 05, 2009 10:18 am) So it seems like most people agree that if the Sienna is $5K less (including interest savings on financing), that is the way I should go, even if we end up liking the Odyssey a bit better. I think it's practical. From everything I read, it just seems like they are very comparable, and when we test drove the Sienna, it did seem nice. We'll see when we test drive the Odyssey tomorrow. 8 seats vs 7 seats - I'll definitely look into the 8th seat option and look at the configurations. I really don't see us putting all 3 in the 2nd row though. Then again, I never really thought of it until someone mentioned it. I just figured my oldest (almost 4) would go in the back once our 3rd baby comes along, and then my soon to be 2 year old would go in the middle with the baby. Until then, I'll put both in the 2nd row. I don't think our oldest would mind being in the 3rd row though. Just have to look into AWD now (live just outside of Buffalo), but I might pass on that since it seems some people weren't crazy about it. We drive an Impala now and it drives fine in the snow - figure the FWD Sienna would be better. One other question - what are the odds Toyota extends the 1.9% financing or has another deal in December? Part of me wants to wait until end of year to see if there are any deals from Honda, but we are going on a 12 hour trip around Thanksgiving, so I might just pull the trigger within the next week. I think the financing deal is a good one and not sure how much better it will get. Thanks again...
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Replying to: jsseinfeld (Nov 06, 2009 6:21 am) Try the Sienna out for a longer time - rent one for a weekend. It's in the day-to-day that you find out whether you like it, not a quick test drive. Once your kid hits 5 or so, they can generally buckle themselves. They will enjoy the back row. I'm with thegraduate & bobber on this one - peace is easier kept with separation. Juice's kids are just much better behaved than mine  Course then again, I think he has his nanny in the middle (or is it the side?), most of the time, right? [i.e. when using 3 across in the middle row] On the 7 vs 8, one other consideration is: if you go out with another family / group, can you take them all in one vehicle? Sometimes, that 8th seat comes in real handy. On AWD, it depends. It is real helpful for me (I have a Pilot) in urban Minnesota - I'm always having to cross streets from a stop where extra traction is important. Many people though get along fine with a set of winter tires & rims. Most of the complaints on the AWD Sienna relate to the run-flats (with the exception of wwest's omnipresent complaints about the Sienna awd system). I had a Subaru before this, and really appreciate the AWD, but for others, FWD works fine. On incentives, the redesigned Sienna is coming very soon - it will be on display at the LA Auto Show around December 4. I would expect significant incentives on this generation as the release gets closer (some have said available in January, others say production starts January). However, Sienna's numbers for October were good - kept about the same as last year. Current wisdom on the availability of the redesign of the Odyssey is fall 2010. Ody has $1250 on 09s, but it did poorly this last month. |
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Replying to: jsseinfeld (Nov 06, 2009 6:21 am)
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Replying to: doggrandma (Nov 06, 2009 6:48 am) |
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Replying to: jsseinfeld (Nov 06, 2009 6:21 am) They say timing is everything, and right now the incentives make the Sienna the better value. At other times the Ody has been discounted more heavily. You asked about financing - it probably will be extended because we're going to see the new Sienna debut at the LA Auto Show and it should come out in January or February. That's why dealers are starting to clear out the outgoing model. OTOH, if you're one of those folks that has to have the latest, newest model, in mere months you'll see the new Sienna on the road and may feel some remorse. Why don't you wait to see the 2011 concept before you decide? If you hate it, easy choice. If you love it, maybe wait and sample one. Sounds like you're not in a hurry. dbt: when my 2nd kid was a baby, he went in the middle, with the front-and-center seat all the way forward. Now both kids are in boosters in the outer seats, and the nanny rides between them when she's with us. 8 seats are great. We've taken road trips with 2 entire families, several times actually. Saves tons of gasoline! 
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Replying to: ateixeira (Nov 06, 2009 7:52 am) I'm not that guy. I would actually consider an 09 model if it was the right price and had what I needed. I know no one knows whether there will be more/different incentives in December(can't wait too long either - my little car is about to die), but I'm just trying to get a feel if you think Toyota would extend their financing or offer something better, and if Honda may do so in December. I mean, is that common to do at end of year or is each year different and it's just too unpredictable? If I knew that Toyota would extend their financing to end of year and Honda would still offer nothing through end of year, I'd just get a Toyota now. But if there is a good chance Honda all of a sudden offers a nice rebate or low financing in December, maybe I then look at the Odyssey more. Sales tax deduction is set to end Dec 31st too, and living in NY that will save me on my taxes...so it really comes down to buying one in November or waiting it out til December. I'm leaning to just getting it now...
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Replying to: jsseinfeld (Nov 06, 2009 8:55 am) In March I bought a 2008 Miata (no typo, 2008 purchased in 3/2009) for a fantastic price. If I'd waited another month the price dropped even more. Indeed it is very unpredictable. I made the wrong call - 18 days later the rebate went from $2500 to $5000. But that is very rare. The economy had tanked, and Mazda had 2009s to sell and even 2010s on their way to dealers. So this was 2 model years back. Plus, what if I had waited, but there were none left of the model I wanted? That did happen. I would have had to buy a more expensive GT model, though it would have ended up around the same price, with more content. I suggest this - keep a close eye on local inventory. If there is only a couple left, buy now before they sell out and you miss the opportunity. If dealers have plenty of them, wait. It's doubtful rebates will decrease when the 2011 redesign arrives, think about it. They'll only drop in price, or stay flat. So it's a risk of not getting the color/model you want, but prices are not likely to increase. Good luck. Take my advice at your own risk, remember I did not get it perfect, though I am still happy that I got the model/color I liked. |
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Replying to: jsseinfeld (Nov 06, 2009 8:55 am) So, you take your risks. I think Juice has it right though - check to see how many of your particular option / color combination are around, and if a lot, wait a little. If not (and you've decided you are ok with taking Sienna and not Ody), go ahead. Enjoy it - you don't have to get the best possible deal to enjoy it. Just make sure you are happy with what you do.
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