Question Minivan safety ratings?

allmyboyz

New member
Am I correct in my understanding that the odessey and sienna don't get top safety picks from iihs? Do people go by these ratings or are their other tests out there that are relied on more?
 
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kookaburra

New member
What model year are you looking at? For 2017, the Kia Sedona got a Top Safety pick rating, while the Chrysler Pacifica got a Top Safety Pick+ rating. But between 2011 and 2016, the Odyssey got a TSP or TSP+ rating.

For the Sienna, it got a TSP+ rating in 2015 but not other years, even though it performed essentially the same in the crash tests for 2016 and 2017.

NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) also has crash ratings, though they test a little differently than IIHS.

I took the ratings from both places into account when buying our minivan, but it wasn't the only factor we considered.
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
The Honda Odyssey has always excelled in the actual crash tests, from both IIHS and NHTSA. It has always been a Top Safety Pick at the IIHS as far as I can recall, up until the 2016 model year. For 2017, it didn't qualify because the IIHS changed its system and required an acceptable headlight rating as well. The Odyssey was not retested for headlights so it lost the Top Safety Pick designation only because its headlights were not rated, not because of any crash test result. It did not previously qualify for the "Top Safety Pick+" award, either.

The "Plus" award requires some additional non-crash-test-related features, such as an active front crash prevention system with automatic braking. Honda has been delinquent in adding this feature to Odyssey for unknown reasons. I assume it will be present in the next Odyssey, due this fall or next year. Granted, the other models require higher trim levels and/or options packages to equip the frontal crash prevention system and earn the Top Safety Pick+ award, an important factor the IIHS doesn't consider. It can be tough to find those on dealer's lots so many people think they are getting the top award on their vehicle when it doesn't have the necessary feature:-(

Sienna was actually a Top Safety Pick+ award winner in 2015. The Sienna hasn't changed, but the IIHS requirements affected it as well. The IIHS now requires a "Good" result in their small offset crash test to qualify. Sienna has an "Acceptable" result in this test. Sienna does have a frontal crash prevention system, though it's not rated quite as effective as some others.

Honestly, both are very safe vehicles, but they are just shy of the non-crash related results to match the Kia Sedona and Chrysler Pacifica in the IIHS ratings. Odyssey still remains the best choice for seating flexibility for families, with Sienna and Sedona close behind. Pacifica is improved a bit over the Town & Country. The Stow and Go feature is great, but the third row still isn't quite up to par for carseats.

All four minivans get 5-star overall ratings from the NHTSA at www.safercar.gov . Odyssey, Sedona and Pacifica aced every government crash test. Sienna's only minor blemish was a 4-star rating in the frontal crash test for the front passenger.
 

kookaburra

New member
The Honda Odyssey has always excelled in the actual crash tests, from both IIHS and NHTSA. It has always been a Top Safety Pick at the IIHS as far as I can recall, up until the 2016 model year. For 2017, it didn't qualify because the IIHS changed its system and required an acceptable headlight rating as well. The Odyssey was not retested for headlights so it lost the Top Safety Pick designation only because its headlights were not rated, not because of any crash test result. It did not previously qualify for the "Top Safety Pick+" award, either.

The Odyssey actually was TSP+ in 2014, but that was the only year.
http://www.iihs.org/iihs/ratings/vehicle/v/honda/odyssey-minivan/2014
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
The IIHS has really done a disservice with these frequent ratings requirements, especially ones not related to crash testing. It makes it seem like some vehicles may be less safe than they were previously, when the reality is just that the bar was set higher.
 

equilibrium

New member
The 2018 Honda Odyssey is out now. In the upper models, they have LED lights now and I believe all models except the LX have additional crash protection (automatic braking, etc). This will essentially get the Odyssey back into the safety ratings, I believe.

They have nothing out for 2018 however and I have no idea when they do the testing.
 

allmyboyz

New member
The 2018 Honda Odyssey is out now. In the upper models, they have LED lights now and I believe all models except the LX have additional crash protection (automatic braking, etc). This will essentially get the Odyssey back into the safety ratings, I believe.

They have nothing out for 2018 however and I have no idea when they do the testing.

Hello all. Any opinions on the new odyssey? In terms of car seats etc. I have a 6 yo in an rxt but probably will put him in a hbb soon, 4 yo in ff fllo, 2 yo rf in nextfit and am expecting in April. Will definitely be using an infant carrier and will be looking for narrow options as I want to be able to install the seats I have in my husband's accord if ever needed.
I am bummed the odyssey doesn't come in awd. I love the rock stability of my awd highlander in the Chicago snows. Would that be a reason to go with the sienna? I just don't find the sienna to be as car seat friendly as I would like.
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
We never had an issue with our Odyssey in the Chicago area, though our suburb does a pretty good job with plowing. I never found AWD to be necessary in any of my driving or commuting in the area. We have had a Prius and AWD Highlander for years now and had no issues. Well, I did one time try to take the Prius over a snow mound to get down an unplowed section of nearby street and got stuck, but that was more on my stupidity than the lack of AWD. To be fair, Highlanders have the least effective AWD system on the market (traction control), so mine might not have made it either;-)

Here's my take on the new Odyssey: https://carseatblog.com/43268/

I think it loses a little in terms of 3-across carseat potential in the second row, but otherwise is a nice improvement over the 2017 model in almost every way. Since you have an older one in a booster soon, any limitations on 3-across in the 2nd row may not be an issue for you like it might be for some others. The wide-mode in the 2011-2017 models is still king for carseat friendliness, but the 2018 model has the magic slide feature that might make it more flexible in other ways. In the Sienna, the stowable 2nd row center seat also has its advantages, especially as kids get older. Our Odyssey (2004-2010 models) had a similar setup to the current Sienna and it can in very handy now and then. We didn't need to do 3-across carseats, so we usually used the center aisle.
 

allmyboyz

New member
We never had an issue with our Odyssey in the Chicago area, though our suburb does a pretty good job with plowing. I never found AWD to be necessary in any of my driving or commuting in the area. We have had a Prius and AWD Highlander for years now and had no issues. Well, I did one time try to take the Prius over a snow mound to get down an unplowed section of nearby street and got stuck, but that was more on my stupidity than the lack of AWD. To be fair, Highlanders have the least effective AWD system on the market (traction control), so mine might not have made it either;-)

Here's my take on the new Odyssey: https://carseatblog.com/43268/

I think it loses a little in terms of 3-across carseat potential in the second row, but otherwise is a nice improvement over the 2017 model in almost every way. Since you have an older one in a booster soon, any limitations on 3-across in the 2nd row may not be an issue for you like it might be for some others. The wide-mode in the 2011-2017 models is still king for carseat friendliness, but the 2018 model has the magic slide feature that might make it more flexible in other ways. In the Sienna, the stowable 2nd row center seat also has its advantages, especially as kids get older. Our Odyssey (2004-2010 models) had a similar setup to the current Sienna and it can in very handy now and then. We didn't need to do 3-across carseats, so we usually used the center aisle.

Anyone see the 2018 sienna or know of any changes that might be coming?
 

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