what minivan is best?

[kelley]

We have 2 boys (2yrs and 9 mo) and are expecting twins in late Dec early Jan, so we have started shopping for a new car. having a hard time justifying the money for the Honda or sienna, but wondering if its best to go that way for the room that we need. Does anyone have a dodge and have an opinion. Also, the only van with 5 latch spots is the Honda, right? So, do you just seatbelt in all the carseats in the other cars? Thanks!

 

[luckyclov]

New or used?

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[luckyclov]

In general, with 4 kids in those age groups, I'd go 2005-2010 Sienna or 2011+ Odyssey.

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[canadiangie]

In general, with 4 kids in those age groups, I'd go 2005-2010 Sienna or 2011+ Odyssey.

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I agree, without question.

 

[momofzacnalex]

I think 2012 odyssey, but i just bought a 2012 sienna. You cannot go wrong with either. The sienna was a significant better deal!

 

[kelley]

We can't find any good deals on the Honda or sienna right now unless they are over 30k miles, seems like a risk to buy them. And is it okay to seatbelt in the carseats that don't have latch and tether spots? With the rf infants, how will I even climb in the back to buckle the boys in (both will still be too young for buckling and unbuckling themselves. Ah! Totally overwhelmed!

 

[T4K]

We can't find any good deals on the Honda or sienna right now unless they are over 30k miles, seems like a risk to buy them. And is it okay to seatbelt in the carseats that don't have latch and tether spots? With the rf infants, how will I even climb in the back to buckle the boys in (both will still be too young for buckling and unbuckling themselves. Ah! Totally overwhelmed!

Ok. Deep breath.

So LATCH came around to be more convenient, which it is in some cases, but the belt that's made to hold an adult man is perfectly capable to install a car seat. Top tethers can be used with lower anchors or with the seatbelt. It's important that any forward facing harnessed child, whether the seat is installed with lower anchors or seatbelt, is top tethered.

Cars and vans are only required to have 3 top tethers (with exceptions). With 4 kids, I'd look for vans with more than 3 if they exist.

 

[MommyShannon]

2006 and newer Odysseys have 5 top tethers. I'm not sure if the newest models have 5 or 6 but at least 5. We have a 2006 with over 100,000 miles and love it. The 2011+ are even more carseat friendly.

 

[BeautifulChaos]

We can't find any good deals on the Honda or sienna right now unless they are over 30k miles, seems like a risk to buy them. And is it okay to seatbelt in the carseats that don't have latch and tether spots? With the rf infants, how will I even climb in the back to buckle the boys in (both will still be too young for buckling and unbuckling themselves. Ah! Totally overwhelmed!

You can load them in from the back hatch depending on the model of the van. Getting a van with 2nd row captains chairs instead of a bench helps too. I personally might put the infant seats in the rear row if you are using a bucket, so all you have to do is reach the seat over from the rear hatch and click it into the base. Then I would have the older 2 (ideally also RF) in the captains chairs.

 

[kelley]

Thanks so much, everyone. We are still on the hunt! Just out of curiosity, why the 2011 odyssey and not 2010?

 

[MommyShannon]

I'm pretty sure 2011 models are when they redesigned the Ody to make the 8th seat larger and added a "wide" mode for the center row that spaces seats to fit carseats better. The earlier model has a very small 8th seat that doesn't fit as many carseats. The 2005 model only has 3 top tethers so it's best to avoid in favor of a year with 5 top tethers.
ETA: yes, the new model starts with 2011. We have a 2006 Touring (7 seater) and love it, but if you really want 8 seats the newer model might be better for you.

 

[Shancouchon]

Just bought the 2012 and with the seats in the wide mode I had 3 britax seats 2 roundabout 50's and a marathon. Today second row is in wide mode and I have a radian ff on the middle seat- so I can flip the out board seats and not have a problem doing so. ( though when the roundabout 50 was in the middle I could still tumble and just brushed a little against it) the driver outboard has a high back turbo booster and the passenger outboard has a no back turbo booster

Hope this helps!

 

[ZanesMom]

I don't know about the other vans, but my mom has a 2012 Dodge. I would stay away from them. She has 50,000 miles on hers and has already had to have part of her engine rebuilt, under warranty, along with some other minor issues. Then a car hit her on the front corner driver's side, should have totaled the van, and the air bag did not deploy because the sensor broke. The van did hold up well with the exception of the air bag.

The captain chairs' headrests are not removable and flip forward, so I find it difficult to install a car seat due to the gap caused by the head rest pushing it forward.

 

[Baylor]

I have a 10 year old grand caravan that I love and runs awesome!

I love them. Im sure they are cheaper than the other two options.

 

[MJrouge]

I am in a similar situation - 3-year-old, 18-month-old, baby due in October, with plans to have one more in the next two years. I looked at the 2012 Chrysler Town & Country, Sienna, and Odyssey. Was sold on the Sienna until I realized it only had the 3 LATCH connectors and 3 top tethers, with the third row LATCH located in the center of the 60 side of the rear seat. Also, I wanted the 8th seat, and was informed by the good people on this site that the Sienna's seat is basically useless. The Town and Country also has the 3 LATCH, and no 8th seat. Because of Stow'n'Go, the second row seats are thin and seemed less comfy to me. The 3rd row seat is very sloped to allow the tailgate feature. The Dodge is the same.

I guess it depends on your pricepoint and what features you want. The T&C is the swankier version of the Dodge, and you will get more features than a Sienna or Odyssey at the same price point. However, maintenance and breakdowns are more likely in the Dodge / Chrysler, and they have lower resale values. The Dodge/Chrysler Stow'n'Go seating seems to be a key selling feature, but like me, I doubt you'll get much use out of that with 4 young kids. They all drive decently, but I just felt more comfortable in the Toyota and Honda. The bigger 8th seat (and thus ability to put 3 across in the second row, or 2 and leave a captain's chair free to access the 3rd row,) 5 LATCH connectors, and 6 top tethers sold me on the Odyssey. If my kids were older and almost out of seats, I might have gone a different way. Definitely go look at them all, it's hard to get a good idea from the manufacturer's websites! Good luck in your search

 

[LifeAtHome]

I cannot for the life of me imagine how it would be risky to buy a sienna or oddy with over 30k mi. Those things will go over 200k mi and still have a resale value equal to a dodge with half the miles on it. I'd go for it hands down. :twocents:

 

[YinzerMama]

I just traded in a 2008 8 passenger Sienna with 39k on it. I am gentle on cars... and it was a great car and in great shape but it had a leak in the cargo area that no one could figure out. I HATE the current Sienna compared to the old. We got a 2012 Odyssey and there are so many things about it that are driving me bonkers compared to my Sienna. I want my old Sienna back. Seating wise though both work well for 4 kids.

I put 2 in the middle and 2 in the back - I have also done 3 across and one in the back, to get in and out the hatch.

I loved how on the Sienna you could tumble an outboard seat forward and strap it in place - you can't lock he outboard middle seats of the odyssey out of the way but ready for use. Those seats are driving me bonkers. (If the Sienna seat broke lose from its moreings so to speak it would just crash down and lock on the floor - but if the girls don't reset the captains' chair right getting in to the back seat of the Ody it just slides back and forth noisily while I drive... drives me bananas that it can't be stored somewhat out of the way but on hand like in the Sienna)

Also very irked that the back windows on the ody don't open - didn't check this when looking because never thought to! One of my girls likes to yell HI at people so she is bummed.

If you can find an older 8 passenger Sienna in good shape - get one. I know I didn't put many miles on that van but I never had one single mechanical problem. I'd trust one with decent miles.

Otherwise I would do new Odyssey.

I am hoping Sienna goes back to their older type layout in a few years and I would go back to Sienna but I just don't like the new ones. That 8th seat is a joke and they don't have top tethers in all spots... and I hate the tracks in the floors.

I am trying to learn to like my Ody but I feel like the interior of the old Sienna was just more intelligently designed. But I do love the top tethers in all 6 spots of the ody. VERY versatile, eve more so than my old Sienna which only had 5 and lacked one in a spot I wanted one. No worry about seat belt installs, I have actually come to prefer the seat belt install - but the 5 most usable spots in the ody have lower anchors, too.

 

[vtbecca]

I have a 2006 Sienna and LOVE it! We got it with 28,000 miles and are now at 84. No issues yet. It has also held it's value so much better than the Dodge caravan we had before.

Our dodge started falling apart around 70,000. We had one repair after another. A steering issue they couldn't figure out, brake issues, and then transmission leaks. We still had monthly payments AND repair costs and decided to trade it in (for a loss b/c it had depreciated so much) for the sienna. I would never even consider buying a Dodge again. You save money at the beginning, but unless you are one of the lucky ones once things start going that's it. It's almost like they are made to last to 50-70,000 and that's it.

The other problem we had with the dodge was that the back row was not wide enough for any combination of 3 car seats. And with any 2 an adult couldn't sit in the back row. In out sienna we can fit a car seat and 2 boosters, and even 2 boosters with my not so skinny hips in between.

Can you tell I love my Sienna?!

Becca

 

[Little Ps Mama]

I cannot for the life of me imagine how it would be risky to buy a sienna or oddy with over 30k mi. Those things will go over 200k mi and still have a resale value equal to a dodge with half the miles on it. I'd go for it hands down. :twocents:

Ditto all of this!

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[YinzerMama]

If anyone has a 2008 +/- 2 Sienna with 8 seats and 30k miles I will trade you a '12 Odyssey with 286 miles...