Everyone into the Sedona

Author's Rating:

Pros: Value, versatility and features

Cons: Mileage

The Bottom Line: 
Too much van for too little price to pass up.

Author's Review
We have had our Sedona now for about three months and I'm still waiting for the catch. Here's a seven-passenger minivan with a six-cylinder engine, power windows and locks, CD player, automatic transmission, front and rear climate controls, cruise control, removable second- and third-row seats, dual sliding doors, fog lights, power front seats ... for about $22,000 new? And it hasn't fallen apart?
Far from it.
With an 18-month old baby and another on the way, my wife and I decided to give up my 2001 Mazda 626 and make leap into minivandom. I spent several weeks researching on the web. And while the Honda Odyssey appears to be everyone's favorite, the Sedona seems to be quietly gaining ground. Coincidentally, we purchased our Sedona from a Kia dealer that also owns a Honda dealership across the street. After test driving the Sedona, I had no reason to test the Odyssey and consider spending another $10,000.
The Sedona ride is comfortable, but not cushy. Suspension is fairly stiff and there are definitely limits to which a vehicle this size can be pushed. In other words, it's a minivan. The interior is quite spacious and versatile. From the driver's seat, there is easy access to the centrally mounted shifter. Climate controls consists of dials mounted next to the shifter. The stereo is located above the climate controls and takes a little more reach to access. Controls for both it and the climate system are very straight forward and sensible.
As with any respectable minivan, the Sedona has plenty of little storage areas, some more logical than others. By far the silliest in the Sedona is located right in the middle of the dashboard. A button opens a pop-up lid that covers a shallow compartment which I suppose could hold books that you better not need to get while driving, because opening the door while driving is awkward bordering on dangerous. Toward the floor on the center console is a compartment for five CDs. This is a nice idea, except that the CDs fit in in such a way that you can't see their spines and thus can't see the CD labels. Above the CD compartment are pull-out cup holders with ratcheting grips. Between the front seats sits a fold-down table with four corner cup holders and plenty of room for a meal or travel game. When the table is folded down, there is plenty of room between the front seats for a few grocery bags.
The cloth seats themselves are firm and comfortable. I have heard a complaint about ridge in the driver's seat bottom and that is noticeable is certain positions. All in all though, it's not a big deal. The electric controls are typical and easy to use. The front seats feature a inside ratcheting arm rest that I still don't quite understand. Regardless, when fully lowered, it makes for a more comfortable driving position.
The second-row captains chairs are also comfortable and easily accessed. Unlike some other minivans, the Sedona's second-row captains chairs are positioned behind the front seats with a small passageway between them. This makes it very easy to put my infant son into his car seat as I just have to open the sliding door and lift him in without actually climbing into the van. The second-row seats also feature locking seatbelts that eliminate the need for a locking clip with the child seat. Smaller folks can get to the third-row seats by crawling between the second-row seats or by using the kick pedal behind each second-row seat. The pedal leans and moves the seat forward allowing fairly easy access to the back.
The back seats form a three-seat bench with shoulder belts on each side and a lap belt in the middle. As is the case in the second row, there are vents for the third row and, in a going-out-of-style twist, ash trays.
The rear hatch is heavy, but opens on its own with a fairly light pull. With the third-row seats unfolded, there is a fairly narrow cargo area, good enough for grocery shopping. The third-row seat backs fold with a simple tug on two straps. This greatly increases cargo space. Need more? Pull two more straps and the seats are released for removal. I would have liked a rear seat that folds into the floor, but now I know that's a feature I absolutely needed.
The Sedona's exterior styling is still Ford Winstarish, but clean and dignified nevertheless. The Sedona comes in two trim lines. The LX and EX. The EX is essentially an LX with body molding, alloy wheels, remote entry all standard and sunroof and leather options. We opted for the EX in large part to get remote entry. Loaded or not, though, the Sedona is still a tremendous value.
Oh, and don't forget the 10-year, 100,000-mile warranty which the salesman said was actually being administered by Hyundai, the folks who invented it.