Dreams coming true over here - adding another kid and finally, adding a minivan.
My first two cars were minivans and I like cargo shorts so I am not worried about image.

Here is where I'm at.

• The ideal: Kia Carnival SX, V6 (not hybrid), 2025-2026 Certified Pre-Owned or new if deals from 27's arriving are good. Right now pricing is 43-46k likely. Looking for light exterior. I like the look, the features (especially highway driving assist 2 and additional backup/camera features w/SX), and the price compared to other minivans at this trim. I have yet to drive all makes/models so that's big caveat. Not seeing much availability or really that much depreciation on used, seems Carnival is so popular it bucks trends. Grok says waiting til October may actually hurt in availability as new 26 inventory goes away and to prioritize looking now. One oddity is that some 27's are actually cheaper than the 26's new, maybe pricing just hasn't caught up as 27's are delivered.
• The practical: I see things like used 2017-2020 Honda Odysseys for roughly half the price and think do I really need anything this fancy/new? Can go cheaper for lower trims/older of course. Mostly would miss having safety tech for wife/fam and highway driving assist.

It's just money I suppose.

Anyway any thoughts from the board on these or other options, potential dealers to go to (I know there's one I will flat out avoid).

I should also mention I do most of my own maintenance from oil changes to brakes to strut replacements - pretty much A/C and trannies are the two things I don't like to touch. So going older would be fine for me in that regard.

Open invitation for my minivan bros - here's your chance to opine.

Thanks in advance!

Using the swivel attached to your head, and mirrors, could mitigate all the driver assist features expenses.

Go <2020. Buy wife new stuff.

I do not recall all the ins and outs, but buying a used Carnival may significantly reduce the warranty.

The odyssey is still the last of the old school traditional V6 setup.

It's also the oldest design but probably more remitting term than the carnival will be.

Previous gen Sienna is probably the most durable though.

Bought a new Carnival SX Prestige last year. Upgraded from a 2019 Honda Odyssey with 220k miles on it that was starting to have issues. Wife was set on getting a new Odyssey but when we looked at them the 2026 model didn't have any significant upgrades and the one feature she really liked, the blind spot camera they had gotten rid of. So if you get a used Odyssey you aren't missing much over a new one.

Quick summary on the 2026 models in the top trims from our perspective:
Toyota Sienna: Difficult to find in top trim, hybrid only, selling well over MSRP if in stock, nicest interior, best rated reliability.
Kia Carnival: Gas/Hybrid options, almost as nice as the Sienna, most features, doesn't look as much like a minivan.
Honda Odyssey: No significant improvements from her 2019 model, missing lots of tech and features the Sienna/Carnival had
Chrysler Pacifica: Ok but nothing stood out about it. Chrysler product.

In the end we liked the Sienna and Carnival about equal. The price difference was huge, ~$15k, with the only top trim models of the Sienna in stock were $6k over MSRP and the Carnival was selling several thousand under MSRP so we went the the Carnival.

The magic slide seats in the Odyssey is what led us to buying a 2021. 84k on the clock with only routine maintenance (knock on wood). Powertrain is more than capable to move the vehicle.

Biggest complaint online seems to be centered on the ac system. Our kids haven't complained and I haven't seen them sweating on road trips. Roof mounted vents for kids in rear facing seats would be nice, but ours survived.

Good luck and you can't go wrong with either.

We have a 2021 Odyssey, and I have had zero issues with it. It just runs. We have two kiddos, and we take the Odyssey on all of our road trips (Big Bend, Yellowstone, NFL Hall of Fame, etc) from DFW. My son is a high school senior offensive lineman (6'2, 280 lbs) and my daughter is a freshman (she is short like her mom, 5'2 and petite). We have a ton of room in the car, and it rides so smoothly. It has blindspot indicators and a bunch of other safety stuff that we don't typically need. My biggest complaint is that I wish we'd bought it sooner.

It has 80K miles on it, and as I said, all we have done is put a new set of tires on it at 35K miles (Michelin LTX, which are still going strong) and changed the oil every 5K miles. I think the Blue Book value on it is around $22K. We plan to keep this car until the wheels fall off of it (or until our daughter heads off to college).

We looked at the Sienna, and it was nice, but back in 2020, there were zero Sienna's for sale in DFW (first year of the new model, and Covid), whereas the Honda dealership in McKinney had 50 Odysseys collecting dust on their lot. To say we got a good deal is an understatement. Anyway, if you can find a 2021 Odyssey for around 20K, I think it is a good bet. I know the Kia looks amazing, and I hear good things about Kias now, but I guess I'm just old school and stick with Toyotas and Hondas-just my two cents.

I should have been more clear - wife will be driving it primarily. Took a while to get her to come around minivan lack of coolness factor via Carnival styling, so she's worried I may pull the bait and switch to go used/other model. In all seriousness though we're very much on same page for these types of things so could go either way. But buying the wife new is probably good advice... Safety devices would be more for her use and my peace of mind!

Will take you up on that!

Would go CPO for used which seems to keep it mostly intact, but the inventory is slim. Great point tho

File5 said:

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I should have been more clear - wife will be driving it primarily. Took a while to get her to come around minivan lack of coolness factor via Carnival styling, so she's worried I may pull the bait and switch to go used/other model. In all seriousness though we're very much on same page for these types of things so could go either way. But buying the wife new is probably good advice... Safety devices would be more for her use and my peace of mind!

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OK, but get her the 6.

agracer said:

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File5 said:

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I should have been more clear - wife will be driving it primarily. Took a while to get her to come around minivan lack of coolness factor via Carnival styling, so she's worried I may pull the bait and switch to go used/other model. In all seriousness though we're very much on same page for these types of things so could go either way. But buying the wife new is probably good advice... Safety devices would be more for her use and my peace of mind!

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The lack of coolness will save you enough money on insurance, gas, tires, maintenance, taxes, etc every 5-years to take your wife to Hawaii. Congrats on the hotel sex.

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Be sure to get the "resort holiday inn" with the indoor pool so you can leave kids unsupervised for the 30 minutes.

Why not the hybrid Carnival? We had the original gas 22 which was very good and maybe even better looking but upgraded to the 26 SX prestige hybrid and love it. Yes it's more complex but 100k warranty helps. Average mpg improved from about 22 to 31 which is significant.

1agswitchin4lanes said:

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Previous gen Sienna is probably the most durable though.

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3rd gen (2011-2020) Siennas are bulletproof. We just sold our 2011 for $4500 and had only ever changed oil, a battery, and front brake pads. At over 150k miles it needed new plugs and probably shocks.

It was a warrior and hauled more plywood and lumber, refrigerators, washers and dryers inside, out of the rain, than any pickup could ever dream of doing.

Cargo shorts?

Scruffy said:

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agracer said:

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File5 said:

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I should have been more clear - wife will be driving it primarily. Took a while to get her to come around minivan lack of coolness factor via Carnival styling, so she's worried I may pull the bait and switch to go used/other model. In all seriousness though we're very much on same page for these types of things so could go either way. But buying the wife new is probably good advice... Safety devices would be more for her use and my peace of mind!

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The lack of coolness will save you enough money on insurance, gas, tires, maintenance, taxes, etc every 5-years to take your wife to Hawaii. Congrats on the hotel sex.

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Be sure to get the "resort holiday inn" with the indoor pool so you can leave kids unsupervised for the 30 minutes.

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uhm, you leave the kids at home.

lb3 said:

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1agswitchin4lanes said:

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Previous gen Sienna is probably the most durable though.

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3rd gen (2011-2020) Siennas are bulletproof. We just sold our 2011 for $4500 and had only ever changed oil, a battery, and front brake pads. At over 150k miles it needed new plugs and probably shocks.

It was a warrior and hauled more plywood and lumber, refrigerators, washers and dryers inside, out of the rain, than any pickup could ever dream of doing.

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My wife drives a 2011 with 180K. Control arms seem to ear out around 150k and they are expensive to replace. Other than that no issues!

My wife bought a new Sienna, base model, back in 2007 when our daughter was a year old. Wife is still driving that van with roughly 160k miles on it. Driven all over the southeast and throughout Texas. Still going strong. I'd recommend a good used Sienna over any new vehicle.

We got my wife a 2026 Carnival SX Hybrid. She is very anti-minivan, so it looking more like an SUV was the selling point.

It's honestly the most comfortable ride I've ever driven. Drove it to Florida and back and it drove like a dream. Very comfortable, great gas mileage (hit low 40's for half a tank), a lot of technology features, and just really smooth on the road.

Mike Shaw Kia in Corpus does a "Padre Island Edition" of the Telluride that's lifted with Method wheels.

https://www.facebook.com/mikeshawkiacc/videos/2027-kia-telluride-x-pro-ex-awd-padre-island-pro-edition-available-now-atmike-sh/1951411692184232/

I wonder if they could do the same with a Kia Carnival.