My Family LOVES This Minivan

Author's Rating:

Pros: Tons of room, great engine, comfortable

Cons: Factory radio not great, hatchback hard to close

Ease of Conversion:

Author's Review
My wife and I purchased our 2000 Honda Odyssey EX a few weeks after our first child was born. The 1996 Toyota Corolla that we'd been enjoying for 4 years just wasn't big enough for me, my wife, our daughter, her stroller, and my golf clubs! We knew that a minivan was the answer, and after a lot of research and test drives, we decided on the Honda. Here's why.

I love to drink soda while I'm driving...I guess it just helps me deal with the insane traffic in Seattle, or maybe I just like soda. I don't go for the little 12oz cans of Pepsi - I've gotta have the huge 44oz cups that never seem to fit into any cup holder in any car I've been in. That all changed with the Odyssey. Now I've got a total of nine (9) cupholders, 6 of which hold my soda just fine. No fear of tipping when I turn a corner or have to stop suddenly to avoid a jerk who just ran a red light. There are two small cup holders just under the radio, four in the console between the front seats, and three in the back seat area. I'm in cup holder heaven!! This feature alone makes the Odyssey worth it for me!

Just how much I love this minivan was brought into focus on a recent 4500 mile road trip I took. Prior to this trip I had only driven the car about 500 miles from the time we bought it, and most of that had been city driving. It performed great, but the question remained as to how it would do on the open road during an extended trip. Well, I'm done with the trip, and I can think of only one word to describe my experience : AWESOME!

We take a lot of road trips, and have used lots of different cars on those trips. But the Odyssey proved to be the fastest, most comfortable, roomiest car I have ever taken a trip with.

The Honda Odyssey is fast...so fast that most of the time I didn't realize just how fast I was going until I looked at the speedometer and noticed I was doing 90. I would have sworn that I was only doing 70. The suspension in this car is great, the road noise has been greatly minimized, and the turn radius is very tight. For pure mechanical reasons, this car is hard to beat. I never felt the need for more power - in fact, I spent most of my time laughing at other cars that looked more poweful but who I was flying past on the interstate!

If you have kids you already know just how much stuff you need to bring for a two week trip. In our case, the major items were a stroller, bassinet, two huge suitcases, a cooler, and my golf clubs. After folding down the back seat (which is very simple to do), we had more than enough room to fit all the necessary, and even the nonessential gear, that we had brought with us. You cannnot imagine the amount of room in this minivan until you actually get into it.

Not only is there enough room for all your stuff, but at 6' 2" I don't feel like I'm being crammed into the car. The bucket seats are very comfortable on longs trips, and making adjustments to the seats is a snap. At no time during my trip was I ever uncomfortable.

Eating on the road was a snap as well. Between the two front seats is a tray that folds down or up as needed. It has four cup holders (perfect for my soda), and actually extends back to accomodate the people in the back seat. It's perfect for putting out french fries so everyone can have some.

The last feature that I REALLY like on this minivan is the remote, keyless entry. With the touch of a button I can unlock all the doors, and open or close each of the side sliding doors. That makes getting my daughter in and out of the car extremely easy. By the time I leave my apartment all the doors are unlocked and open, ready for me to do what I need. An absolutely amazing feature.

Lest you think that there isn't anything wrong with this car (which there really isn't...these are kinda nit picky items), there are a couple of items I'm not happy with. First is the radio. We have the CD option, and for some reason the radio has problems hanging onto the signals from local stations. And, as a whole, the sound from the speakers isn't the greatest in the world. But crank up the volume and it sounds pretty decent. Second, the hatch back is actually hard to close, and sometimes has to be done several times. We also dented the hatchback just by closing it...something that angered me since it was a new car! But we'll get that fixed.

Bottom line, the Honda Odyssey is an amazing minivan. If you are looking to buy a minivan, you owe it to yourself to check this one out. With all it's great features, the renowned Honda reliability, and the government crash test ratings, you really can't go wrong. But be forewarned - these minivans are hard to come by. In Tucson, AZ, there is a four month wait. And in Seattle, WA, where we got ours, we had to make calls up and down the I-5 corridor to find one. Guess that says something about them!