Which minivan would you recommend? (1 Viewer)

[Andrew W]

Look at a PT Cruiser. It's not a wagon or minivan, but it has the best features of each. It sits higher than a wagon (about the same as a minivan, but not as tall as an SUV) It has good daily capacity in the trunk and you can take the seats out to haul stuff. You can get a loaded Limited Edition with leather, moonroof, electric everything for under the $25K budget easily.

 

[AviTevet]

Yeah, if I were in the market for a minivan I'd consider Kia, Dodge, Honda, and Toyota, in that order. My fam's had 2 Dodge minivans and they've been great. The ride is excellent, it has decent power, it's very comfortable and has a decent interior. Ours has been very reliable. I rode in a Honda minivan once, and was unimpressed by the ride & interior quality... it didn't seem as nice as Dodge's. The Kia has been getting great reviews and as far as I can tell Hyundai/Kia (same co) has been ramping up on quality in the past few years.

 

[Wade]

Thanks again for all the replies.

Well I would have to pick the Sienna CE over the Grand Caravan SE. There were a few things I liked about each vehicle though. I liked the look of the Caravan's dash styling whereas the Sienna's looked a little dated and square. I liked the rest of the Sienna's interior better than the Caravans though. I really liked the split rear bench the Sienna offers on their lower end model. As far as I can tell the Caravan does not offer that on their lower models. The outside styling I give to the Caravan but the Sienna wasn't bad at all. The ride and handling I definitely give to the Sienna. The Caravan would be cheaper to purchase but Toyota's reliability and safety record is hard to beat

We are still going to check out the Mazda MPV and Kia Sedona. I believe the Mazda may be smaller than what we want though. We are going to pass on the Honda given it's inflated price tag and limited availability.

Andrew, my wife and I don't really care for the PT cruiser. I know a lot of people like it but I can't see us buying one of them even if they are practical.

Wade

 

[Ryan Spaight]

A friend of mine has kid #3 on the way, so he needs a van. (You can't stuff two car seats and an older kid in the back seat of anything short of a Crown Vic.) So I've been digging into this topic.

In reference to the Edmunds comparo mentioned above, they debit the 2001 MPV heavily because the 170-hp 2.5 V6 was too wimpy. As of 2002, the MPV has a 200-hp 3.0 V6, so it would likely do much better today. It is smaller than the Honda, which is either good or bad depending on your needs. Mazda has a promotion through the end of September for 0% financing for 4 years on the MPV.

The Honda's a great van but it's freaking huge. If you need a *lot* of room, go for it. The ability to fold the third row into the floor seems like a fantastic feature to me -- as far as I know only the Mazda and Honda can do it.

The Toyota seems like a good solid van but it didn't really make a big impression on me.

The Kia is a heckuva value, but it also weighs 4800 pounds! That's 500-1000 lbs more than similar models (the MPV weighs 3800), and as much as a huge 4WD SUV. Needless to say, the mileage is pretty awful.

As far as the domestics go, the Chryslers are the best of the bunch -- the Windstar is an old design (based on the previous-generation Taurus, I think) and the GM vans seem sorta slapped together. Stay far, far away from the Chevy Astro -- it's a simply awful vehicle.

Ryan

 

[Wade]

the Windstar is an old design

Yeah the Dodge salesman wouldn't shut-up regarding the Windstars old design and ride. The way he kept going on about it would make you think Ford was the only other manufacturer producing minivans.

You should be able to pick up a Dodge relatively cheap right now. The Dodge dealer we went to had 38 various Caravan models on hand. The Toyota dealer only had 5 Sienna's, 4 of which were XLE models. Dodge has the cool check inventory feature on their website whereas Toyota doesn't. Makes it nice if your looking for a particular model.

Wade

 

[Ryan Spaight]

Yeah, I love the online inventory checkers. The salesfolk get a funny look when you walk in and ask to look at a car by its VIN number.
Ryan

 

[Mike Frezon]

Dodge Caravan Drive like a dream. No major problems with mine.
Plymouth Voyager (Re-badged Caravan) Again, no problems and love the drivin'.
Chevy Mini-vans. They drive like stiff trucks and are uncomfortable to boot. My Dad has one and I'll never understand why.

 

[Kirk Gunn]

Mini-van research on the net is pretty darn challenging...

Sienna - over 3000 cases of "gelled oil" causing engine failure - Toyota originally declining warranty replacement since engine sludge is usually caused by poor maintenance. Toyota lightens up after 2+ yrs and will review cases with proper documentation. ie - Save your oil change reciepts !

Honda - quite a few tranny problems, interior components and radio/cass/CD not of good quality.

Mazda MVP - glowing recommendations from many owners, but Govt has it listed high on many "lemon" listings.

Chrysler/Dodge - Bad personal experiences with their products, I would never consider one again. (Grand Cherokee in the shop right now....again)

Ford Windstar - problems seem centered more on front suspension, which makes sense. Our '90 Sable needed constant front end work.

Tough choices... Primarily looking at Used right now, anyone ever got a good deal from Carmax ? Their website's pretty slick, and since I can fly for free (wife works for airlines), I can pick one up at a remote location.

Thanks

 

[Mike Frezon]

Chrysler/Dodge - Bad personal experiences with their products, I would never consider one again. (Grand Cherokee in the shop right now....again)

D'ya mean Grand Caravan?

Again, I LOVE mine! I've taken good care of it and its taken good care of me and my family.

 

[John Geelan]

I own a 2000 Ford Windstar LX and it been great. It's roomy and handles very well for a large vehicle.

I know the older Windstar's had engine troubles but the re-design (2000 on) seems to be holding up well.

 

[Kirk Gunn]

Thanks for the feedback. A lot of the various car forums are probably filled with negative comments because folks are p-ssed off and search for somewhere on the Net to vent.
I have heard of many happy Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep owners, I just never met any of them
Perhaps with an extended warranty ?

 

[Wade]

Mazda MVP - glowing recommendations from many owners, but Govt has it listed high on many "lemon" listings.

Don't forget about the sulphur smell that people have been experiencing with the MPV.

I'm actually looking forward to test driving the MPV this weekend though. I like the looks of the few I've seen on the road. It may be smaller than the other minivans but it might just be big enough for us. And from what I can tell most of the dealers around here are well stocked with '02 models. Plus there is a $2,000 consumer rebate going on until 9/30.

The Sienna issue sort of bothers me but I wonder if you would have that problem if you use a synthetic oil (Mobil 1). I usually switch to Mobil 1 after the first 10,000 miles.

Has anybody ever purchased an extended warranty from one of the on-line providers? From what I gather if you live in California then you can't purchase from an on-line provider. Is that true? I'm undecided if it's worth purchasing the extended warranty from the dealer.

Wade

 

[Kirk Gunn]

Thanks for the feedback -

I did mean a Grand Cherokee, but it seems most people I know with Chrysler products (Bro - Town&Cntry, friend - Durango, Me - Cherokee), need $1k+ A/C repairs. I can understand my Jeep needing it with 120k on it, but the other vehicles are fairly low mileage.

It was surprising to see so many glowing reviews on the Caravans, since Edmunds, etc claim "unimpressive reliability history".

I am going to check out a neighbor's Windstar, they do seem large and comfy.

 

[James Q Jenkins]

I am going to check out a neighbor's Windstar, they do seem large and comfy.

From what I've read (Consumer Reports?) the Windstars have extremely poor reliability. Not sure if it's true.

 

[Wes]

We own a Plymouth Voyager and have had some problems such as a bad transmission. I took the Kia mini van test drive and out of all the DVD test drives(Buick, Olds, Saturn etc.) I have only been impressed with the KIA SEDONA!

Wes

 

[Scott Merryfield]

most people I know with Chrysler products (Bro - Town&Cntry, friend - Durango, Me - Cherokee), need $1k+ A/C repairs.

A/C problems have plagued Chrysler vehicles for at least 30 years. I have a friend who's from a Chrysler family, and almost every one of their cars for the past 30 years has suffered from A/C problems. The only two Chryslers that we owned (back in the mid-'80's) had failed A/C units, and I have known a few co-workers with Chryslers -- all suffered A/C problems. You would think they could figure out how to build a reliable A/C system in 30 years.

 

[Kirk Gunn]

I'm leaning towards the Sienna. Honda's are still pretty pricey, and I may be able to get a decent deal on a 2002 Toyota model. Otherwise I may investigate the local Carmax shops.

Thanks for the feedback !

 

[James Q Jenkins]

Otherwise I may investigate the local Carmax shops.

CARMAX is the absolute worst place to buy a used car!! Their prices are an incredible rip-off!!! I have no idea why people buy there. Get an off lease used van from a dealer, you'll pay a lot less for a better maintained car.

 

[Wade]

I think I've just bumped the Mazda MPV to the top of our list. The vehicle is definitely smaller than the other two we looked at but I believe it would still accommodate us rather well. I liked the MPV's exterior and interior styling better than both the Dodge and Toyota. I really like the side by slide second row seats as well as the tumble under rear seat. The power windows on the sliding doors is a plus as well, the wife really liked that one. It drove well and had plenty of power for us. The ride was not as soft as the other vans we drove though.

If you're also in the market for a minivan then I would highly recommend checking out the MPV.

Wade

 

[Ryan Spaight]

My friend (who I mentioned earlier in the thread) just bought an MPV. I rode in it and it seemed nice enough and not ungodly huge.

With the 0% offer Mazda is running, it's a heckuva deal.

Ryan