For the past year, I have secretly been crushing hard on the minivan. I mentioned my minivan crush to one of my babysitters. She looked me square in the eyes with complete disgust and said, “Mrs. Bowman, you cannot drive a Loser Cruiser.” She made me question myself for a moment but my love for the minivan persevered. I remain undeterred.
Admittedly, I was “that girl” who publicly vowed never to be one of those moms. Of course, now I’m eating a big plate of humble pie. Crowe never tasted so good.
Question: Why do I need a minivan when I only have 2 kids?
Answer: Carpooling to activities and play date trade-offs! (these are a working mom’s best friend)
Today, I have 3 car seats wedged into my backseat (see photo). I could get a swanky SUV but those are much more expensive than its fuel efficient, functional and practical distant cousin – the minivan.
I am overwhelmed with how you choose a minivan. If I convince my husband to join my crusade, then I want to be prepared with some data. I’ve narrowed it down to these choices in the minivan line-up: Chrysler Town & Country, Dodge Grand Caravan, Honda Odyssey, Mazda whatever-it’s-called, Kia Sedona (husband would not allow it), Nissan Quest and Toyota Sienna.
Driving around town, I mostly see the Toyota Sienna and Honda Odyssey. It makes me wonder if there’s a secret war brewing between the Toyota Sienna and Honda Odyssey camps like the Cola Wars. At birth, you choose Pepsi or Coke for life and you check that decision off of your list. I wonder if it’s the same with Toyota Sienna and Honda Odyssey?
Here are the questions that keep me awake on Sunday nights:
1. Which one has the best “Man Features” like frame/suspension/horsepower/engine?
2. What is the #1 feature that you love the most about your minivan?
3. Will it fit in my garage at home or parking garage space Uptown?
4. Is it the kind of thing where once you go minivan, you never go back?
I need your help, Smarties! I need to enroll in Minivan University so please educate me on what I need to know when choosing a minivan. Help me say bye bye to my street cred and hello to my new 
Smarties, don’t forget to vote for your FAVES in our first-ever 
15 comments
I love my VW Routan! It has more room behind the third row and I can find it in the sea of Honda Odysseys
We got our Honda Odyssey, and I was NOT happy about it- but now I cannot imagine life without it. It gets great gas mileage, I love the automatic doors, there are cup holders and storage everywhere, the back row drops completely into the floor, leaving more cargo space than we EVER had with our Explorer, it handles really well with a lot of pick up, and I can get it ito any uptown parking garage without any problem. Kids love the space, it's easy to toss a friends' carseat in the back and they love the DVD player. You can even have them listen to movies on their headphones and listen to your own music at the same time. They come standard with XM/ Sirius radio, and now even have built in coolers. We looked at the Sienna, but at the time, Honda was just making better deals (in conjunction with options) than Toyota was. We have friends who bought the Town & Country and traded it in for a Honda in less than two years. The Kia will not hold its value nearly as well as a Honda or a Toyota, but they are less expensive. I see us in a minivan until my girls are AT LEAST into late middle school, but we drive to upstate NY twice a year, and there is nothing better for the drive!
The minivan is a must have. Period. My favorite features are power doors, DVD player, that extra mirror (in addition to the rear view mirror) that let's you keep an eye on (or yell at) the kids without turning around, the crazy amounts of storage, and the overall roominess. Having room to spread out a little makes car rides MUCH less stressful.
I will be in the market for a minivan soon. I currently drive a Highlander and love it…just wanting the extra room and power sliding doors. At first, I thought I'd go the SUV route and get a Toyota Sequoia until I found out they are much more expensive. My minivan friends swear by them! I will most likely look at the Sienna and Odyssey. Looking forward to reading the responses to help with my decision.
I love my Kia Sedona. My husband and I looked into all of the available brands and discovered that the Sedona's features rival those of the Sienna and Odyssey and has a much lower price tag.
I LOVE my Quest. I love the sunroofs all the way back the 2 dvd players and all the other little funky details that make it more fun than the typical minivan. I couldn't live without all the automatic doors and hatch! I drove a Escalade a few days while my Quest was getting repair work, and I could not WAIT to get my minivan back!
We bought a Honda Odyssey two years ago. I really do love it with having three small children. To answer your questions:1. Lots of storage for beer… only real "manly" feature I could think of.2. Hands-down ease of use (automatic doors when hands are full of groceries and kids, DVD player with headphones so we don't have to listen to the movie and can listen to our own program, oodles of storage, very spacious, etc.)3. Yes4. NO! I will be going back to a SUV once the kids get bigger. We get snow, and these things are not good in snow (that is my only complaint). However, this shouldn't be a problem for you.
I'm an Odyssey girl – I didn't even look at the others. Mine is a 2007, but I rode in a 2011 (the new model) the other day and had major envy. I truly can't imagine my life without a minivan (I'm a part-time working mom also). The sliding doors, fold-to-the-floor split third row, gazillion cup holders, DVD player, etc. I could go on and on. Whichever one you get, you will love it. I was in the eating crow club also, but you get over it really quickly. I think the Sienna is going to cost you more than the Odyssey, but I don't know much about the others. Good luck!
I love my Toyota Sequoia! Lots of room and can carpool with the best of them.
The leg room on the Toyota mini van in the driver's seat was not enough for my tall husband. I had actually won the battle based on pricetag mainly but we ended up with the Sequoia because of the leg room issue. I was really surprised since a mini van is considered a family vehicle.
I love my (2011)Toyota Sienna! I also said I would *never* drive a minivan. And guess what? It is hands down my favorite car, EVER. Tons of storage, room for a stroller and a Costco run in the back!; cup holders galore, automatic doors and hatch (great for loading kids and groceries in parking lots). My last car was a mid size SUV with an optional 3rd row…The storage room, better gas mileage and roominess of the Sienna make me wonder why I took so long to get this car!My 2 favorite features have to be the optional 6th rear seat (and its' special storage compartment in the back of the van…Honda has this pop out seat as well, but nowhere to store it in the car) and the "Smart Key System". You don't even have to get your keys out of your purse to unlock the doors! It's awesome! Very handy when carrying kids in a parking lot. Sigh* I can't believe I love it so much, but I really do.
Hi there, Charlotte! You remind me of my wife. It's her dilemma right now – what minivan to buy this 2011. My wife and I found this used cars (Huntington beach area) company and they're selling Toyota brands. I swear, she fell in love with one of the Toyota Sienna 5dr 7-Pass Van CE FWD. She said it's like her dream "mommy car". And for me, I got my eye on a Camry, one of those used cars. Santa Ana is where you can actually find the best pre-owned vehicles, I think. Well, good luck with your car hunting!
I swore I'd never be a minivan mom either, but here it is after 1 kid and 1 on the way we got an Odyssey a month ago. my husband was actually the one that really wanted a minivan and he researched the heck out of all of them. We narrowed it down to the Sienna and Odyssey and after test driving and looking at both of them we decided on the Odyssey. Loved the redesign and overall appearance and still love it. Great gas mileage too…almost 28-29 mpg on highway
I LOVE, LOVE,LOVE my Odyssey! The automatic sliding doors are my favorite feature… as I usually have one kid in my arms, diaper bags, etc. I love being able to just walk away and click…. hear the door sliding shut. Carpooling is the #1 reason for having a van. Not to mention how great it is to have all the space to pack for trips. We go to the beach and I can take jogging strollers, regular strollers, playards, exersaucers… etc. Some of my friends say that they "would never drive a minivan". But I think it is so funny… I mean, hey, I am a mom… this is my stage in life. There is NO way that I am going to let my pride get in the way of the convenience and practicality of a minivan. Someday I'll drive a much cooler car… but I think I'll miss my cheerio infested minivan and the little faces smiling back at me as I check my rearview window.
Why a minivan versus a larger SUV that holds 7 or 8? I am in the market myself but going the SUV route and was wondering besides the gas mileage what the differences are?