OT: Which minivan?

[AustrianVespaGuy]

I'm minivan shopping and I'm not ashamed of it! I'm tired of the M5 barely getting warmed up on the trip to daycare and family roadtrips in it with no spare tire.  It works yeah, but with the M5, 2002, and two little kids, the practicality of having a minivan in the driveway I think is now an unassailable choice.  But by golly there's a lot more options out there than I realized; any of my trusted fellow 02 drivers have opinions to share?  I'm sorta looking at 10-ish year old Odysseys, Town & Countries, and Mazda5s.  If it were just for me, I'd be on the all-out search for a 6MT Mazda5, but since the wife will be using it a bit too, I'm sad to say that 3-pedal flavor is probably ruled out.  So far I've found the automatic 5s to be cheap but pretty gutless, the Odysseys to be peppy but pricey, and the T&Cs kind of an average middle ground.  Thoughts and experiences, anyone?

 

[JsnPpp]

We bought our first and likely only new car in 2005 - a Honda Odyssey EX.  Still have it nearly 15 years later. Its a bit beat up now but it has never let us down.

 

When we compared what was out there at the time it was hands down the best in terms of fun to drive (yes), comfort, gas mileage, appearance, value all that.  The Odyssey was/is the right tool for our young family and it made life much much easier for us.  8 person vehicles rock!  Still does... there are always the naysayers, but tell them where to go as you tool along with all your gear, the dog and young family in quiet comfort... I've also carried a full size couch and closed the back hatch (removed the center seats), it fits 4x8 sheets of plywood flat, etc. etc. etc.

 

So, my vote is Odyssey. Its more expensive but for a reason. They made the best body style from 2005-2010...

 

~Jason

 

 

 

 

[thinksound_mike]

The answer is Volvo wagon. V70 R design if you can find a clean one.

[John_in_VA]

Here's the link for the off-topic section.  "Non '02 discussion. Try to keep it auto related!"  Happy hunting!

https://www.bmw2002faq.com/forums/forum/9-off-topic/

[Teelinger]

VW Vanagon.

 

Edited May 8, 2019 by Teelinger

[joysterm]

32 minutes ago, Teelinger said:

VW Vanagon.

 

Ocean Shores?

[uai]

Unfortunately (for you wife) it's a manual. I'd buy another one every day - it's such a great car.
But to be honest: as a daily I'd take a 540 instead of an M5.

 

Edited May 8, 2019 by uai

[EPK]

I would definitely go minivan over a wagon. We had a V70 for 12 years and it was my favorite with zero issues.  But, there's no comparison to a minivan when it comes to utility. 

 

I drive a company issued Caravan so I can't comment on it versus other brands. But, the kids love it, it swallows massive amounts of stuff and has plenty of motor.  It gets  23 - 25 miles to the gallon. 

 

Once you get past the stigma, minivans rock.    

Edited May 8, 2019 by EPK
errors

[2002Scoob]

1 hour ago, uai said:

Unfortunately (for you wife) it's a manual. I'd buy another one every day - it's such a great car.
But to be honest: as a daily I'd take a 540 instead of an M5.

 

 

I 100% support this decision... I've long contemplated a Touring of this vintage. Still might. 

[irdave]

We had a (2010?) CRV.  For as much of an appliance as it is, it did it's job well, which I suppose it is just an appliance...  Ridiculously easy driving and invisible when rolling down the interstate at more than the posted speed limit.

[saaron]

My parents have been Odyssey people since the first gen.  They are on their third one.  They are not bad to drive - I think my folks' has 270hp or something like that.  It moves if you need it to move.  You have that great driving position.  You can get used to that view - seems so much safer - you can really see down the road.  

 

And I agree with the other posters that the minivan's utility is awesome.  It is really comfortable for a bunch of people and gear.

 

Around here some people try to cheat around minivans by buying Suburbans and other 3 row SUVs.  I think these folks are missing out on the utility and comfort of a minivan - the comfort especially for little kids - minivans are easy to get in and out of, and if the doors are power operated, then they push a button and are in.  Suburbans and other SUVs don't have any of those niceities.

 

Scott

[Conserv]

10 hours ago, EPK said:

I would definitely go minivan over a wagon. We had a V70 for 12 years and it was my favorite with zero issues.  But, there's no comparison to a minivan when it comes to utility. 

 

I drive a company issued Caravan so I can't comment on it versus other brands. But, the kids love it, it swallows massive amounts of stuff and has plenty of motor.  It gets  23 - 25 miles to the gallon. 

 

Once you get past the stigma, minivans rock.    

 

I’ve always been a wagon lover, starting with a 1969 Ford Country Squire through my current 2014 E350 Mercedes. But a minivan is a whole ‘nother ball of wax: so much bigger than even my largest wagon, which was probably the 1973 Caprice Estate! With my current 2014 Toyota Sienna XLE AWD — the only minivan I would consider because I must have all-wheel drive — you can fit 12’-long boards and 4’x 8’ sheets of...whatever. Three children can be loaded into the back — two in the second row and one in the third row — such that they won’t be able to touch each other: the key to driver bliss.

 

Don’t get me wrong, there is no joy in driving a minivan. But it’s capabilities in hauling things is in a league of its own.

 

Regards,

 

Steve

 

Edited May 8, 2019 by Conserv

[g_force]

I've no input on mini vans other than to relay that I only know two Odyssey owners (both previous gen) and their reliability experiences have been vastly different. . . oh, and this: Swagger Wagon

Edited May 8, 2019 by g_force

[AustrianVespaGuy]

Thanks for the feedback guys! @John_in_VA, sorry, I had forgotten about there was an official OT section, my apologies.  Not sure I can move this thread now, but won't screw it up next time!

@Teelinger I've considered the VWs, but to go that route I would, like you, want to do it right and go with a Westie, but like 2002s they've gotten stoopid expensive, and car seats really don't fit that well in them.  Really a great vehicle, but I don't think the right fit for my needs, at least until the kids are a tad older.

The Volvo and 5er Touring too are also very solid cars, but I fear these are too close to my E39 to justify them as a separate 'utilitarian' vehicle.  If I didn't already have that, I'd probably be trying to go this route, but since I do and I certainly do not want to replace it, I think I'm still sticking with the conventional minivan route.  And for the record, I'm with you Scott, I just loathe 3-row SUVs. Just big, heavy, poor driving, difficult to get crap in/out of dinosaurs, no thanks.  Down at the bottom with pickup trucks in my book.

Sounds like the prevailing minivan favorite so far is the Odyssey; so that's where I'll keeping my main focus for the moment!

 

[Jim_75Sahara]

This will be a broken record for you RGB folks, but when we needed a larger vehicle in 2001, I found the Taurus wagon to be ideal, at least for us. We went from owning a Honda Civic hatchback and a Toyota Corolla to owning a Ford wagon and a Saturn SL1 back then. We had car pool duty: swim practice, scouts, theater practice, various school events, and we needed a larger family road trip vehicle. Like above, I said: "no way" to trucks and SUVs. I did not feel that we truly needed a minivan, so I did not shop for them. Now, there is no such thing as a new Taurus wagon, so you've got me there... In today's world, maybe I'd buy a Subaru Outback or, dare I say it, a minivan??