Get a minivan.

We just went from a Pilot to an Odyssey (2 kids in car seats with one on the way). The power sliding doors, 2nd row captain chairs were our main reasons. My wife and I used to have the same views that minivans = not cool. We got over it and now love it.

GMC Acadia with second row Captain's chairs has worked well.

But everyone here is correct, a minivan is the way to go. StowAway seats instead of removing them, coolers in floors for the kids (or dad's road trips to Aggies games), key fob with remote start (which engages the AC/heat) and opens the doors.

Plus, how much strange do you think you're going to get anyway? Aren't you busy enough with three kids?

Actually, here's the dirty little secret. Your male buddies may give you a little grief for driving a minivan, but privately they'll wish they had your self-confidence. And females like minivans and love self-confidence. Especially soccer moms. So beware. The question is whether you can really handle a minivan. It could change your life.

take out all the seats, lay a mattress down, and work on the next kid.

Minivan with sliding doors when the kids are in car seats. Suburban when they are old enough to get in and out of the car and connect their own seatbelt.

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+1

We had two kids, went to the Oddy when there just really wasn't room for them anymore in the back seat of the extended cab pickup. We had a Caprice, which worked well enough, but we wanted more room and more comfort.

When we bought our Oddy in 2001, it spec'ed out with more head, shoulder and leg room than a Suburban. It had more total cargo area. It got twice the gas mileage and cost $10,000 less.

Did I mention we still have it, it still gets 20-25mpg, and we're approaching 300,000 miles with no major repairs? It may explode on us one day, but it has been 100% dependable for 11+ years.

The latest Oddys are much more luxurious, lots more bells and whistles, much more powerful engine, and get between 25 and 30mpg.


Regarding getting into the back seat, our Oddy had two individual seats in the second row. You could rearrange them so that they sat side-by-side with the gap to the back seat on the right side of the van.

Frankly, I don't see how anyone with > 1 kids in a car seat can tolerate anything other than a minivan with sliding doors.

so is it common to have mini-vans last so long? i'm not expecting 300k miles, but is it ok to buy a used version of an odyssey or sienna if it has less than 30k miles?

(can't believe i'm researching this)

If you take care of your mini, you could probably buy a used one with 100,000 miles and be okay.

Here's a thread that started in 2003 with Oddy owners talking about their miles. I've seen one guy there with 465,000 miles. Probably need to go toward the later posts to see the highest mileage.

http://www.odyclub.com/forums/8-general-discussion/12783-whos-got-most-miles-2nd-gen.html



[This message has been edited by CanyonAg77 (edited 5/7/2012 11:54a).]

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(Also, I cant stomach buying a minivan right now.)

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My wife got so tired of putting the kids in and out of her Grand Cherokee, she DEMANDED a minivan. I fought her through the entire process... then after owning it for about three weeks I came around BIG TIME.

Better mileage than her last two (Suburban and Jeep GC)
Self opening doors (it's awesome to have the kids load themselves and no more dinging other cars in parking lots)
Odyssey is wicked fast VEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETEC!
Not as high theft target as Large SUV
In floor storage
TONS of storage in the back!


Rides smooth

Get past the stigma and embrace them, minivans are the most practical and all round useful vehicle there is.

Minivan is definitely more practical and cheaper to operate. But life is WAY to short to drive cars that suck. Driving a 4wd suburban costs approximately an extra $800 a year for 15k miles at $4 gas. Resale will definitely be better with and SUV, probably evens out in the end.

My pickup (Silverado) drives fine, but the last Suburban/Tahoe a family member had drove like a hog on ice.

Minivan is cheaper, holds more, handles better, is more comfortable, has better safety ratings, is cheaper to operate....

Unless you tow a boat, I don't really see how it sucks, as long as your ego is not tied to what you drive.

Sure, part of it is a man card thing. But you cant tell me that a minivan is more fun to drive than a V-8 powered SUV. Not sure any minivan holds more people and cargo than a suburban or the bigger expedition. I am just saying that the enjoyment of driving a large SUV far outweighs the benefits of a sliding door and $800 a year in gas.

Not trying to bash other people on decisions they make, it is all about what you place your value on. Lifting a car seat an extra 6" is just not that big of a deal to me. If a car is simply a tool to get from place to place, roll with the minivan. If not, buy what you would enjoy driving more.

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But you cant tell me that a minivan is more fun to drive than a V-8 powered SUV.

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A minivan is more fun to drive than a V-8 powered SUV.

As I said before, I drive an extended cab PU with a V-8 all the time. I enjoy it, I like the mini, too. On a smooth road it handles better and is more comfortable. And it drives 4x better than the Tahoe my folks used to have. I never did figure out what was wrong with that thing.

As far as the cargo, from their factory web sites:

Honda 148.5 cu. ft.
Suburban 137.4 cu. ft.

And as far as fun, from a HP standpoint:

Honda: 4483 pounds, 248 HP for 18.07 pounds per HP

Suburban: 5824 pounds, 320 HP for 18.20 pounds per HP

Vote on the minivan for that drag race.

^^^

Not to mention the minivan handles like a car and not like a truck.

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Resale will definitely be better with and SUV, probably evens out in the end.

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A comparable Suburban lists for $11K more to buy and loses $10K more off original MSRP over 60mo.

Residual values...

2012 Honda EX-L MSRP- $35K 60mo residual $14.5K for 41%

2012 Suburban 1500 2wd LT MSRP- $46K 60mo residual $14.8K
for 29%

2012 Suburban 1500 4wd LT MSRP- $52K 60mo Residual $16.7 for 31%

So $11K(purchase)+ $10K(devaluation)+ $4K in extra gas is $25K over 5 years. Making owning the Suburban cost ~$5K more per year than the comparable Odyssey. That doesn't even get to maintenance cost differences between the two

A Sienna has a 38% residual for 5 years.



[This message has been edited by yakman (edited 5/8/2012 9:00p).]

What's so fun about driving a heavy ass gas guzzling SUV with 3 baby seats??

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So $11K(purchase)+ $10K(devaluation)+ $4K in extra gas is $25K over 5 years. Making owning the Suburban cost ~400 more per month than the an Odyssey.

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So wait, I pay 11k more for it and then sell it for roughly the same price 5 years later. I am pretty sure that makes 11k difference (not 21K). Not sure I believe your numbers, go find me a decent average mileage 2007 suburban for 14k.

Guys the whole point is that suburban does not handle like a car. Its big, its rugged, you are driving a truck that can haul all of your kids around. You want to know why people describe minivans as practical and tout the gas mileage? Because they have nothing else going for them. We have established that minivans are more practical, we wouldn't even have SUV's if the majority actually like minivans.

Hand out keys to guys and give them a choice between a minivan and and SUV to drive around for a day. I bet you don't get many hits on the town and country. Do you know why minivans look so terrible - because nobody cares. They are taller station wagons with captains chairs.

All I am saying is that tomorrow could be my last lap, and sure as hell wouldn't want to take it in a minivan. Some of may you sit in your minivan everyday and think how cool it is, how much it handles like a civic, and how foolish that guy in his big SUV is. Then that is awesome, you are living your life just like the point I was trying to make in my original post. You are doing what you want to do and get enjoyment out of it. If the OP really thought the minivan was cool, would he even be debating getting and SUV?

Sidenote: Had a cousin get a ticket for doing almost 90 in a 55mph zone rocking his mom's Oddessy. I am pretty sure the trooper had to turn off his camera until he quite laughing long enough to write the ticket.

I actually would choose a minivan over SUV and have many times at a rental car line.

So pancho...do you have kids?

2 under 3 years old

You need a minivan then. You don't know what you're missing.

3 kids is way different than 2 imo

Looked up the 0-60 on a minivan, those things run! Still a second slower than big ole burb, but that is impressive.

Right...because fast 0-60 is important with 2 babies in the car.

I'm not the one who brought it up, you can take up that issue with Canyon Ag. I just mentioned that I liked a manly SUV with a V8, enjoy the rumble and when I need to pass I like to be able to pass.

So.... you need an SUV with a V8 to feel manly??

Oddy 0-60 time: 8.3 seconds

Suburban 0-60 time 8.6 seconds

Who's passing who?

No Eco-Boost...that's why.

ABSOLUTELY! That is why deep down I wish my SUV handled like a car. The truth is, I am really not manly enough to handle that big suburban but hope that I can convince people that I am if I just show up in it.

Why does your house look the way it does? Why do you dress the way you do? Everybody has likes and dislikes, I happen to like something that feels like a truck and looks like a truck. Obviously the OP doesn't like a minivan, yet some of you look down your nose because he is not being practical. I would just like to say that life is too short to drive something that you dislike. And I do agree, it takes a big swinging pair to drive around in a minivan!

I'd say the "looking down the nose" is being done by those who wouldn't drive a minivan, even if it were the logical choice.

as someone deciding on this, i have really appreciated both perspectives. I've always been much more practical in my car buying decisions.

Pancho Villa (trust me, no offense taken) has done a good job pointing out why I would go for an SUV. I just don't think that's enough for me to justify it to myself.

I think I'll go with the mini ... Keeping my expectations low so hopefully I'm surprised like the guys on this thread

[This message has been edited by dreyOO (edited 5/9/2012 3:37a).]

Here's my take, I have no kids but am very entertained lurking around these threads:

1) Get snipped and stop having babies
2) Stop buying your kids so much stuff that you need 145 cubic feet of storage space
3) Get a storage unit to throw on the roof


[This message has been edited by Theo is a Touchdown (edited 5/9/2012 6:32a).]

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I'd say the "looking down the nose" is being done by those who wouldn't drive a minivan, even if it were the logical choice.

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Look, I was telling to the guy that life is short and to drive what he wants to drive. He stated that he couldn't stomach a minivan and I happen to agree. Maybe our priorities are misplaced, but the enjoyment of driving an SUV outweighs practical benefits of a minivan, and I pointed out that it is not as cost prohibitive as people make it out to be. You ladies are the ones throwing a hissy fit because he does not want to consider a minivan.

I could care less what other people drive, and I do appreciate people that can look at it practically. Don't come at me with this ego business unless you live in a shotgun house and wear a fannie pack (no offense). Especially don't try to convince me that you actually that you think your minivan is better looking and more desirable than your average SUV. Look at Drey above, he doesn't like a minivan but he thinks the practical benefits outweigh the box of ugly. I admire that, everyone is different.

As far as the cargo, I have 20" of length on your minivan. If you have the legroom you say you have, I should have 20" more space behind my 3rd row than you do. I don't care about your hidden juice box containers in the floor, an extra 20" of length gives you a lot more usable space for bags, playpens, golf clubs, or rifles.

I am almost convinced that none of you own minivans, you are just trolling the OP so you can laugh at him if you can talk him into buying one.

2 kids + vasectomy = Honda Pilot FTW!!