Buy a CX-9, Pilot or keep my Sienna?

[mamaofthree]

Basically my 2004 Sienna needs about $1000 in work done on it. Maintenance type stuff (tires, brakes, rotors), just all needs to be done at once. It still runs great, I know it is a safe vehicle, and we fit good in it. I'm soooooooooooo tired of driving it though. It feels like it has no power, and dh swears we go through brakes and tires like crazy because it is too heavy for the rear drum brakes. He assumed when we bought it that it had disc brakes, the newer ones do, not sure when it changed. We also bought the van assuming that we'd get better gas mileage than an SUV. I do all in town driving and get 15 mpg. So not great. Freeway mpg is awesome, but we don't take any trips lol. We owe 5000 on it still, KBB is $9500 for good condition and our low mileage. So we are trying to decide whether we put the money into it and keep it for another few years, or get something new now. As much as I want a new vehicle, trust me I do, I'm not sure that is the smartest thing to do. I have a RF Safeseat, Monterey booster, GN, and a Marathon in the van. The infant seat is only installed for 2 days, when I watch a baby. How would all these seats fit in a CX-9 or Pilot? Can I get three across in either of these vehicles? How about gas mileage? Gas is going up again, so I don't want something that guzzles more than the van. It doesn't have to be better, I know you can only get that in a smaller vehicle, but I don't want it any worse. Or should I get a newer van- do they drive better? I'm kinda over the minivan thing and the kids are only getting older. I don't plan on doing daycare for more than 2 more years. When all my kids are in school I'll just sub at their school hopefully. Opinions anyone? Thanks!

[jewlsvern]

I had a 2008 CX-9 and was able to get 4 kids in car seats in one. Usually 2 in back and 2 in the 2nd row. I have used an EFTA in the second row in the seat that is the 40% fold and I was able to still fold down the 60% to allow the older kids into the back.

It would be great to get 2 kids on the 60% fold and then have the 40% empty to allow access to the 3rd row or to put an adult.

We did get between 19-21 MPG in ours around town.

You can always look into the Mazda 5. It comfortably will hold 6 passengers, and the gas mileage is great. The trunk area is small though

[codex57]

If I were you and looking to get a new car, I'd just get a newer Sienna. The Pilot, even the new one, has very little trunk room once the 3rd row is up. CX-9 is a monster car. Frankly, I'd try and hold out a few more years, then get whatever the best minivan is at that time.

[mamaofthree]

Lastnight I started thinking about the whole convenience of the minivan walkway. I asked dh how the heck dd1 was supposed to get into the third row seat when I have two harnessed seats on the middle row of an SUV. "Jump over, she's a kid" was his response. Not sure I'd want dirty shoes on my new car. And then there's getting out. Right now I have a power door, makes for a very easy dropoff in the dropoff lane. Grrrr, it is sounding like I have to suffer with the Sienna for a few more years. It really does fit our lifestyle right now. In a few years the kids will be at diff stages.

On a side note, we had to borrow my parents 2001 Sienna today so dh can go get tires for mine. It's smaller, and I actually like it better than mine. Doesn't seem like such a heavy beast without power. And I like the smaller cargo area in the back believe it or not. The third row seats fold up and down really easily. Mine are heavy and a pain to stow. And I don't like the big well in the back, I'd rather have a flat floor. Oh, and their "trunk" door pops all the way up, and fast! Mine seems sticky, and doesn't go up all the way. WTH!? My parents beat their van up and I like it better than mine!

[sirrahn]

What kind of tires are you putting on your Sienna? I've had issues with mine going through them quickly (barely getting 30K), but I was putting the Michelin Energy tires that it originally came with on it. I just had to get new ones again and the guy at Costco sold me some Michelin X radials. They were cheaper and have an 80K tread wear warranty so at least if it eats these too, I'll get a little back for them:p. I do think the Energies were a little better ride, but it's not enough difference for me to really care. I haven't gotten to drive them in the rain yet, so I can't make a fair handling assessment, but so far they seem good.

FWIW my '04 has rear disk brakes. It had to do with the option package I think.

Also, have you had your rear hatch lifts replaced yet? There was a recall (or service bulletin or something) on them because the ones they used weren't heavy duty enough for the weight of the door. Mine totally gave out in less than 3 yrs so it was fixed before the original warranty was up, but I think they're covering all of them now.

And lastly, how are you calculating your gas milage? If you're using the van's computer, reset it and see if it doesn't look better. I found that mine was registering really low at one point, but now I reset it periodically, and I never get less than 20 mostly around town. I've double checked it manually few times, and the computer actually still seems to read a little low (i.e. I'll get 21 or so when it says 20).

HTH a little!

[mamaofthree]

Thanks for the info sirrahn. I have no clue what tires are on it, lol. Dh does all that. He is so set on buying something new that he isn't being helpful with all my questioning. He already hates that I "nag" and don't let him be the boss, lol.

I haven't replaced the rear hatch (that's what it's called!). I will check into that for sure. I have still never taken it in for the seatbelt recall since I've only had a LATCHed carseat in that spot. I need to do that when school gets out.

As for gas mileage, we calculate it manually.

I just don't think it is financially smart to get rid of it the more I think about it. If we pay it off in one year, then keep it for another, it will still be worth something, plus we'll have saved money for a year. That would give us a big down payment on something new. Unless the price of vehicles skyrockets in the next few years. For dh, he hates this vehicle and saving money isn't worth it to him to drive this for another 2 years. Not sure why he cares so much, it is MY vehicle, he only drives it with us on the weekend. His commuter car is a 2004 Civic, nothing fancy, so it isn't like he is obsessed with cars or anything.

[sirrahn]

I just don't think it is financially smart to get rid of it the more I think about it. If we pay it off in one year, then keep it for another, it will still be worth something, plus we'll have saved money for a year. That would give us a big down payment on something new. Unless the price of vehicles skyrockets in the next few years. For dh, he hates this vehicle and saving money isn't worth it to him to drive this for another 2 years. Not sure why he cares so much, it is MY vehicle, he only drives it with us on the weekend. His commuter car is a 2004 Civic, nothing fancy, so it isn't like he is obsessed with cars or anything.

IME, you'll like it better once it's paid off. I do still think sometimes about having a newer car, but a trip to the car wash to get it all shiny and the money in the bank usually helps me get over it! DH is kind of giving me similar issues about his car (an '02 Passat wagon)...he'd like to replace it sooner rather than later, but until it gets more expensive to maintain than a car payment, I'm just not willing to go there.

[mamaofthree]

IME, you'll like it better once it's paid off.

I think so too. Our original plan when we bought it new was to drive it til it was dead. I just talked to dh. He got some new used tires put on it and he already likes it again, cause it is driving better. :rolleyes: He'll prob be best friends with it when we get the brakes/rotors done this weekend. He's lucky he has me to save us from financial ruin.

[Melanie]

Another way to think about it-the $1000 you need to spend on your van is only about 2 car payments on a new vehicle.

[allenhaus]

Just out of curiosity, have any of you '04 Sienna owners had problems with your air conditioning system? We just bought one, and I've since learned that there is some sort of engineering defect in the '04s and '05s that can cause the compressor to implode and send metal shards throughout the a/c system. There was never a recall, to my knowledge. The repair costs $3-4K. Wondering what your experience has been....

[Jeanum]

Our A/C hasn't malfunctioned and this will be our '05 Sienna's fifth summer. :twocents:

[sirrahn]

Just out of curiosity, have any of you '04 Sienna owners had problems with your air conditioning system? We just bought one, and I've since learned that there is some sort of engineering defect in the '04s and '05s that can cause the compressor to implode and send metal shards throughout the a/c system. There was never a recall, to my knowledge. The repair costs $3-4K. Wondering what your experience has been....

Yikes! Mine was mysteriously low on coolant last summer....they never found a leak, and once in a blue moon, I had to turn the a/c button off and on a couple of times to get it to kick on, but it seems to be working just fine so far this year (it's been on fairly regularly since April).

[mamaofthree]

Never had a prob with the AC on my 04. And we run it like crazy all summer in the 100+ weather around here.

[allenhaus]

Didn't mean to freak anyone out, nor hijack the thread! BUT...the feedback does help. I didn't say this before, but this a/c catastrophe already happened to our Sienna, and the owners did not disclose it though directly questioned about problems. (We test drove on a cold day and didn't get it inspected....DUH! Now we're having to resort to legal means. So awful.) Very glad to know it doesn't happen to all '04s!

In any case, if you're concerned about this a/c thing happening with your Sienna (from what I've read, usually happens around 50K miles +), there is a special filter Toyota can install that will keep the metal shards from contaminating the rest of the system if the compressor has a problem. Could save a lot of $.

And, for Mamaofthree, if the '04 Sienna just needs maintenance work, I'd keep it :). Kinda wish we'd forgone the whole "new car" thing and stuck with our oldies.

[mamaofthree]

So Toyota isn't issueing a recall, but recommends installing a special filter to keep metal shards from ruining your AC system? That's really weird. And how would mileage affect it? I'd think it would go by how much you run your AC. Our 04 doesn't even have 40K on it yet. Now I'm paranoid. Care to provide any links where you found this info allenhaus? I appreciate the heads up! :)

[allenhaus]

Hi Mamaofthree --

Oh goodness, forgive me for freaking you out.... It is kind of unnerving though, isn't it? I first learned of this on a Toyota fans message board. The link is: http://www.toyotafans.net/2004-sienna-ac-problems-t2523.htm.

There is a Toyota Service Bulletin (TSB) issued by Toyota as well, and your dealer should have it: TSB AC003-05. We actually have a copy of it, but now I can't figure out where we got it -- probably the Toyota site.

Also see: http://discussions.consumerreports.org/n/pfx/forum.aspx?tsn=1&nav=messages&webtag=cr-toyota&tid=11 This is a discussion forum on Consumer Reports' site. There are some directions there for communicating with dealerships and also some info on efforts others have taken.

Hope that helps!

[mamaofthree]

Hi Mamaofthree --

Oh goodness, forgive me for freaking you out.... It is kind of unnerving though, isn't it? I first learned of this on a Toyota fans message board. The link is: http://www.toyotafans.net/2004-sienna-ac-problems-t2523.htm.

There is a Toyota Service Bulletin (TSB) issued by Toyota as well, and your dealer should have it: TSB AC003-05. We actually have a copy of it, but now I can't figure out where we got it -- probably the Toyota site.

Also see: http://discussions.consumerreports.org/n/pfx/forum.aspx?tsn=1&nav=messages&webtag=cr-toyota&tid=11 This is a discussion forum on Consumer Reports' site. There are some directions there for communicating with dealerships and also some info on efforts others have taken.

Hope that helps!

I forgot about this thread. Thanks so much for the info and the links! :)

Got my new tires for the Sienna. FIL did the work to replace the rotors and brakes for us, which saved us a ton of money. As suspected, dh likes the van again and agrees that we need to keep driving it for at least a few more years. It will be paid off in one year, and I bet I'll want to drive that thing til its death if it means I won't have a car payment. I've never NOT had one.

[Dawn]

We had the same tire and break issues with our 04 Sienna. Thankfully dh could do the brakes. I also had 3 or 4 recall bulletins for it as well. We traded it in about 3 months ago for a saturn outlook. They gave us payoff on it.