Learn Me - Honda Odyssey

In reply to spitfirebill :

Interested to hear your thoughts on the current Quest. I know by many measures it is not as nice as some other minivans. But it doesn't carry the Honda/Toyota surcharge either. 

wae said:

You might spend a little time checking out the Kia Sedona.  I've been in the Chrysler, Toyota, Honda, and Kia minivans and the Sedona is my hands-down favorite.

Ditto.  We've had two Sedonas now, an '04 and a '12.  We had the two of them together last week (sold it to my brother-in-law in 2012), moving a house full of stuff from old house to new house, and the '04 is still running strong at 150K miles.  We've had pretty much zero issues with the '12, now at 60K.  The '12 has the fold-into-floor third row seats, which is very convenient.

We've had our '05 Odyssey EX (no cylinder de-activation) since July of '09 (about 8.5 years).  We bought it with around 36k as a CPO, and went with the Honda Care Warranty (which I would highly recommend).  It's great to drive, with the exception that the brake pedal travel is long and they feel soft in general.  I think they have the most room of all minivans (this may no longer be true in the current generation), I've had a drum to drum Ford 8.8" rear axle plus 5 passengers at one time.  

The transmissions supposedly got better with the redesign in '05, but I'd wait for an '07 or up, when they went to the better Ridgeline transmission.  Our '05 transmission has held up well (we're currently at 142k), but I perform a 3x drain/fill every 30k or so.  If towing near the 3500lb limit, I'd run a big cooler and keep an eye on the transmission temps, but would more likely look to something like a Sienna, which has a better reputation for transmission durability.  I've added AirLift bags in the rear, and that's reduced the rear sag with a full third row of passengers and stuff packed behind them.

Issues we've had:

- airbag light (wiring under driver's seat)

- halfshaft popped out of the transmission

- power sliding door issues (ours get a ton of use with 4 kids and frequent school drop-off/pick-ups)

- front & rear motor mounts (front was completely shot, rear was actually fine but I replaced it anyways)

- cat convertor shield comes loose (fixed with a large hose clamp)

There may be some more I'm forgetting, but that's about it.  The first two were covered under the HondaCare warranty, and I've fixed all of the sliding door issues (one actuator, rollers for both sides) myself.  The motor mounts weren't that bad.

One thing to watch is they do have a timing belt, with a service interval of 7 years or 90k, whichever comes first.  Water pump should be done at the same time. I'd want to see regular transmission fluid changes if picking one up used, and would avoid one that's been used to tow.  Odyclub.com is a great resource for these cars.

We rented a Grand Caravan a few years ago, I liked the brakes much more than the Odysseys, but it had less room and the seats were less comfortable.  

When we're looking to replace ours, I'd probably look at a few year old Odyssey/Sienna/Grand Caravan to see what fit our needs best.  When we bought ours, a comparable Sienna was about $4k (20%) more, so that was a deal-breaker for us.

Hmm, I thought that the 2010 Ody was a timing chain but I guess its a belt.

My parents have had a 2001 since it was new, 180k miles, and on its second transmission which was replaced under extended warranty. Overall it's been solid for us.

I bought an '02 Chrysler in spring so I just went through this whole thing. The Toyotas and Hondas definitely come with a price premium, but they generally feel better put together despite their flaws and get the best gas mileage. The Chryslers are a great value and generally reliable, though lacking in "perceived quality". They sometimes get a bad rap for transmissions, but they made so many of them it's probably just bad ownership. Count how many "jelly bean" Chrysler vans you see on the road next time. They're everywhere, racking up crazy miles. Skip the GM minivans (Uplander, Montana etc), except for Astro/Safari which are basically an S10 or Blazer, for better or worse. We liked the Ford Freestar, but the ones we saw had odd electrical or a trans issue. They seem like a good value though.

For example, we looked at an '04 Sienna with 110k miles in beater shape, plain cloth interior, missing spare and hubcap, etc. Got him down to $4,500 but passed on it. We bought our '02 Chrysler with 123k miles, fully loaded with AWD, leather, tow package, in cream-puff condition from original owner, for $2,300. 

2005 Ody, owned since new. Just turned over 226k after 1300 mile trip to visit the grandparents over Thanksgiving. 

With 4 kids and a dog, it has been used hard ; )

Replaced motor mounts, cylinder deactivation causes quicker wear.

Replaced rear struts.

Replaced brake master cylinder

Nav screen out. Tried to replace it with one from a junkyard. It didn't work either, but found some great 80's CD's in the changer...win : )

The climate system has had some issues, mostly AC related and still not functioning perfectly.

Sliding doors have required periodic maintenance, but nothing that required a trip to the dealer.

No issues with the transmission, though I change the fluid with every other oil change.

Timing belt done twice, each 100k, along with water pump.

Though no longer in primary use, it has been a good vehicle.

Will keep it until it stops.

I bought this '03 for $1,700 with 200k miles. Lord knows how many transmissions it has been through before I got it. We put in a trans cooler and replaced everything that could possibly break. Then we drove from Baltimore to Montana and back. It was awesome. 

Oh, and I painted it to look like a Porsche 917 Longtail. So there's that too.