2021 Toyota Sienna | SUV vs Minivan 

Just talked my wife into one, nothing beats a minivan, especially with AWD, I got the previous Gen though, no thanks on the hybrid and the big fat butt

I hate that this is true. Everytime I get a rental I love how convenient it is. They think of everything. The Odyssey is amazing too. But getting a minivan is admitting defeat. edit: for those bizarrely triggered by this and feel they have to assert their big pps and confidence in their minivan--that's great for you, I'm glad. To clarify though I would never buy a crossover as they make no sense on any level. I'd say get a real SUV instead or a wagon/hatchback. And please guys work on your sense of humor.

I fitted 26 sheets of drywall into my Pacifica for my basement remodel, with the door closed. Now, I was way too close to the steering wheel to be safe, but it did it (and I checked all the weight capacities for the vehicle and yes, 26 sheets was within the weight limit for the van).

@@cwx8 and getting a Crossover isn't?

@@jaysefmacmanus8858 i’m personally fine with crossovers especially smaller ones like a mazda cx-30 or the ford escape. i drive a wrx now but in the future maybe i’ll get a crossover. that or a wagon.

We're in your boat too! Gonna replace our Full size pickup to something more nimble but want plenty of cargo when needed. How big does it feel? Is it easy to use and park in the city? Thanks

Not to mention space for walkers. Us boomers.

Agreed! 😆

I hear ya. My main hobby is an odd one - archaeo-astronomy. I head out to ancestral ruins in the desert southwest, reconnoiter the area around the ruin, use software to replicate the night sky as it was in peak occupation periods for the site, and look for correlations (called alignments) between architectural and artistic points of interest and celestial (usually solar system) events such as "Where doe the sun rise relative to a feature on the summer solstice?" I've been using a 4WD full sized pickup with a shell for getting to trailheads (up to a 1200 mile drive from home) to these sites for the last 9 years. Figure my normal trip involves 1000 miles on pavement each way, and maybe 50-100 miles on unpaved roads and fairly easy trails. The poor on-road experience, extreme fuel consumption of the V8, massive turning radius and huge footprint (crew cab model) make suburban use painful and urban use perilous. It has finally irritated me to the point where I'm considering alternatives. This Sienna might be a viable alternative. With the shell and the rear seats folded flat in the cab, I have about 90 cubic feet of cargo space. The Sienna even with the unremovable rears seats is better on space, better on the highway, much better in the range per tank and mpg department, and has AWD available. If it can handle moderate dirt roads, it's would make the long parts of such trips much better. My concerns are less ground clearance, lousy approach angle, no undercarriage protection, no available durable multi-ply (LT) tires for the stock wheels, and getting beat up by ranchers while being laughed at for driving a minivan in cowboy country. Bruises heal.

Glad that works out. I had a 4 door sedan in college, then a compact suv. I think I'll prob have more than 3 kids in my life so I'm deciding between a larger suv or minivan. If it were up to me I'd stop at 3 kids, cuz most vehicles can keep 5 occupants but life has me with 3 god kids and more than likely my own kids too. So im buying a larger suv to transport them around. The toyo highlander and the sienna seem like good vehicles but still conparing right now.

You've inspired me sir. I've been so embarrassed to drive one of these things but I think I may just bite the bullet.

@@feces305 just gotta see the minivan culture in Japan and see how cool vans really are. They are especially cool on the inside and for road tripping. I love trucks and sportscars but also actually have an unapoligetic soft spot for van's and minivans.

Same here! You’d have to step up to a Suburban to compete with the interior space of a minivan.

@@smrtguy77777 I know, right? Between my wife's CR-V and my Civic hatchback, the interior space only meaningfully differs in height. But the "floor plan" - the width and front-to-back - is close enough that it's pretty much a wash. She wants me to get an SUV as my next car and I keep pushing back, saying that they handle like crap (true) and get worse gas mileage (true) for no real benefit. And if we have just one SUV in the household, we really don't need another one.

It’s “Ton”, not TONE. And, “Advice”, not ADVISE, but otherwise your point is very well taken. Meaning, you’re pretty much SPOT ON in terms of usability and convenience when using a minivan vs. an SUV. There’s simply no comparison. I’m getting ready to buy my very first minivan this coming year (when prices come down to full retail MSRP, not the highway robbery prices where they currently stand. Great input on your part. Thanks!

Thanks. Will re-consider the 4-cylinder.

The fuel savings are only growing as gas prices continue to go up. It’s up to around $3.65/gal in my area now.

It's December 2021 and this comment has aged really well, re gas prices.

@@bonohyogurt agreed. Here in my neck of the woods, gas prices are around $4.70 for regular. Also read an article saying that gas buddy predicts prices to inflate further by the summer of 2022 as OPEC producers are most likely not going to materially increase supply.

@@paullee9982 it's insane. 1.45 dollars per litre in Ontario at the moment. If you're lucky.

A long wheelbase large SUV (Suburban) is hard to beat if you are on some bad terrain. But highway? Hard to beat a minivan or fullsize van.

@@daniels2761 I sat in the back of a 2018 Yukon (not xl) and was so beyond disappointed. My knees were in my mouth. I couldn't believe that a car holding that price tag and size had a third row as useless as that. Minivan beat it in that game. Might need the XL if your kids hit their growth spurts. That might be what I needed.

@@daniels2761 Long wheelbase SUVs like the Suburban and Yukon XL are actually really good alternatives, but they have a few significant drawbacks: 1) they're quite a bit worse on gas 2) they're OBSCENELY expensive compared to your average minivan. A top of the line minivan model will run you several thousand dollars less than a base Suburban. 3) If minivans are huge, long wheelbase SUVs are gargantuan in comparison, which is really going to matter If you live in the city like I do.

@@mustang2O2O I definitely think the long wheelbase is the only way to go. More cargo room, and they ride better. I realize they aren't a great city vehicle, but the short wheelbase Tahoe/XL really aren't great for that either haha. They are really great for hauling 5 grown adults and all their gear 1000 miles on snowy roads, and pulling a trailer at the same time if needed. But no way would I cough up the 80 grand for a new one. 2006 would be the sweet spot for me.

@@daniels2761 Haha yeah I'd get the larger wheelbase for sure. But that's a ton to cough up especially when a mid range suburban runs those prices. Really, I think it's a perfect vehicle besides the price. But with size comes price. Crazy how well they hold their value, which I think makes it a little easier to swallow

If that's the case I've been middle-aged since I was 15

I have a Lexus and and. BMW M2 and I drive my new Sienna which is basically the my wife car more and love driving it so damn comfortable and practical and it doesn't feel like it's huge.

Sounds like a good preparer who have all three at all times

If only you'd have used that condom then you might not have needed this minivan.

@@kickyadick A good prepper only needs condoms for water and he's washed the shite out of it beforehand

LOL

He mentioned adult toys too.

Best minivan I ever had was a 90s Ford Aerostar, it was rear wheel drive and some models came with a manual. It was basically a truck with a large cap.

@@NeoHCgbz Practical + fun = Truck. Hatchback cant fit a full size fridge in it.

I used to work for a cabling company that exclusively used minivans because of van was too big and a truck all the sensitive equipment would get wet

@@NeoHCgbz hatchbacks also miss out on towing capacity that minivans have. The only practicality that hatchbacks carry is the ability to carry old boxy tv's.

@@SuperReviews4you I agree with practical, but not seeing how a truck is fun unless you're the off-road type and don't care about on road dynamics.

Say it louder!

Years ago I bought a 3-row CUV and regretted it. Minivan is so much better in every way. CUV’s should just be called tall station wagons.

There's a reason why Minivans or MPVs are the most common type of vehicle here in my country, followed by hatchbacks. Yes, there are also SUVs/CUVs, but they're generally have worse practicality and comfort.

@@BillLaBrie Tell my about it. My parents have a 3 row Traverse, and it actually has decent trunk space bc of it's length, but there are way too many short mid-sized SUVs that have 3 toes and like next to no trunk space.

Wish I could buy a minivan without the seats. Don’t need em don’t want to pay for them.

And to think, SUVs (especially the feminized car-based "crossovers") have been mommy-mobiles for decades now.

@@confidentlocal8600 - no arguments from me on that one! They just haven't figured it out yet. ;-)

Lol

LMAO!

I was seeing if people caught this 😂

69 thumbs up, let’s not spoil this. 😅

How many boxes of condoms can you fit into the Sienna?

They are amazing . We love our ‘14 and don’t even have kids . Big dogs, lumber , plywood, mountain bikes , kayaks whatever , will all fit in this thing . You don’t even need a roof rack .. They last forever and are great in the snow and bad weather . Put some nice dark tint on the windows and people can’t see the toys you have inside . Ultimate stealth mobile .

odyssey tho

I hear you - I was cool until one day I woke up and wasn't... and love my minivan now 🤷‍♂️

Z Zz 1 second ago Thanks to these reviews and the tech segment, we are moving to Dell for our high-end office computers. I've already sent my SG contribution.

Personally as the non typical minivan buyer, drives me nuts to hear “kid mobile”

Yeah, he always looks like he's at a funeral when they're not reviewing a high-performance car. He says some reasonably appropriate things, but he can't get enthusiastic about practicality. Mark does better.

Toyota hybrids are the perfect stop-and-go cars

That is what I have heard. "Battery lasts the length of the warranty". Not from my experience. I think the dude that fixes them feels like all of the battery packs are crap when all he works on are crap battery packs. But when he works on 4% of all hybrid cars in his area and the other 96% are still running fine at 300k. He just isnt looing beyong his immediate experience. My coworkers prius has 280k and it still runs so well. Not brand new well, but it can still cruise around town on battery.

Besides, it definitely does not cost you 30k to replace the battery even if it dies lol. The "expert" in the video exaggerated everything.

@@MrAnthonyjim I would be cautious. My wife’s 2007 Prius needed a battery replacement in 2017 at $150K miles and it was $10K. It died 2 weeks before the warranty expired so we dodged a bullet (Toyota replaced it at their expense). Still, I was a bit disappointed it died so early. The ABS systems on Priuses are also extremely expensive to replace. I know this is anecdotal, but I have first-hand experience on the matter, so I thought I’d chime in.

Exactly this thing is cool as hell, especially the Kia Carnival, modern Minivans are really getting very cool, I don’t have kids, never will, but I’ll prolly own a minivan as my primary car my whole life

This should be a standard, damn kids are in space pods capable of re-entering earths atmosphere.

wish more would do this. reverse facing seats take up crazy amounts of room

People don’t realize how big car seats are until they deal with them. I have a Ford Flex for just one kiddo but the stroller takes up most of the trunk with 3rd row down and being 6’4 and my wife 5’10 we don’t have to move a seat that far forward to fit the car seats

But how else would I look cool at the Starbucks drive thru? I need my FWD based jacked up car with 21 inch alloys and run flats, as well as a large fake grill to look cool

This

@@ryadhasanahmed5443 This is the deal. Sedans drive better, are more efficient, and generally cheaper. But, most people are too mainstream and dump they copy each other.

legendray2008 I'll do one better. Wagons are just as efficient and drive just as well as sedans, and can match or beat most crossovers in terms of cargo. And yet you hardly ever see them. The least automakers could do is phase out 3 box sedans and move to liftbacks like the Stinger and the Model S.

@@404nobrakes Why Is that though? Why do Americans hate wagons? Never understood that.

It's better not to mess with the formula that works. Government regulations are so intrusive.

Is that really the case though? The new power plant offers better fuel economy and only being 1 second slower from 0-60 than the outgoing V6. I can't see why anyone looking into minivans are looking at the number of cylinders it has. I think minivans and crossover SUVs are at a stage where they either need to go hybrid or go electric. Looks like Toyota is trying to make that transition sooner rather than later.

@@ChuiStrong Someone that wanted a reliable sleeper would have bought the V6.

@@ChuiStrong The V6 is more refined and likely going to be more reliable for those that want to keep the car a long time.

@@baddriversofcolga yeah esp at the 10 year mark, unfortunate

Look up the Renault Scenic or Espace, those two were one of the first to have this crossover MPV design

@@seljd kind of

@@shvkpr1 nope it’s been happening even before 2020

1998 Mazda MPV, that thing was basically a van, crossover SUV type thing, had 7 or 8 seat configurations. Though it started in 1988.

This one legit looks like the Highlander now

Rental yes

Vids?

I am Justin and I can confirm

This comment should be higher - this fact is bananas.

And has more HP and AWD

As a previous owner of an FRS I can attest to the fact this minivan is faster from stoplight to stoplight.

Hybrid, dude.

Indeed, very impressive. Toyota does hybridization very, very well. These things may not last 400,000 miles, but the fuel cost savings make that largely irrelevant.

Wondering if you test drove the SE and can comment on the ride quality difference

@@benderaviation We did not. We really just test drove the LE we planned on buying, said yep this is good and bought it.

In price also?

that’s what i’m thinking. prices on new vehicles keep going up, as they keep adding more and more features.. many of them standard..

Lexus have problems and this is so obvious. They extend the life of every Lexus car without producing new ones. So Toyota takes a bit there.

They should have propped up Scion longer. With the Yaris leaving the US they could really use an entry brand as Toyota continues to move upstream.

Competition among each other.

The best hope is a Pacifica SRT at this point.

People who buy SUVs care about ride height and the imaginary safety of having a "capable" vehicle. Minivans don't provide any of these things. But as a car guy, I obviously prefer minivans too.

Good thing he has two of them

Howdy partner, seems this comment section ain’t big enough for the both of us

Correction....”wife’s boyfriends’s child”

@@austinfrazier7325 correction, "child's boyfriend's wife"

As a car designer- Van's are it, everything else is a gimmick.

Took me three SUVs (MB, BMW, Honda) to learn, but I finally did. Wish I had learned much earlier.

Don't let a car define who you are. You should be an alfa kick-ass male regardless of whether you are on a bicycle, an SUV, a minivan or a jet fighter 😀

Those are roads, if they're maintained.

@@markmiller3279 oh true true

When it's a big object being powered by a small engine there is no such thing as fuel economy

That engine pulls so hard. The old sienna was more fun to drive than it had any right to. Just needed better throttle response, transmission tuning and a heavier steering feel. But it's also a minivan so I get why they did it that way.

Totally agree. I wonder what the acceleration will be like with a van full of passengers and their cargo.

wasabi9111 Oh yeah I just realized that it was mainly "fun to drive" when I was the only person in the car. The sienna seats 7-8 people plus 50-100 lbs of cargo. About 1400 extra lbs on top of the curb weight to get to the 6000lb GWVR. Plus a 3500lb towing capacity. Plus the engine is NA so it'll lose power at altitude. We'll see what happens.

@@Wasabi9111 Somewhere around the 9 second mark, if not slower. They claim about 8 seconds, but that's with a single passenger under optimal conditions, at sea level.

For utility the Pacifica is better, for long term reliability the Sienna is better, I just wish the Sienna had stow-and-go seats

@@ryadhasanahmed5443 I do not like Pacifica seat comfort, too thin. Most of the time, it is for family, not a cargo or truck anyway. Fortunately, Pacifica hybrid also used Toyota HSD. But the rest of the car is still Crysler, Junker after warranty is over.

With the electric motors all wheel drive you really don't miss it other than when you first get on the highway once it gets going you forget about it.

I will be keeping my '09 Sienna as well! The V6 and simple transmission work great.

Yea we hurried up and bought a 2020 for the V6. Hybrids just won't last as long amd I don't trust CVTs. Plus in the new one you can't remove middle seats.

@@williammarshall356 CVT shouldn’t be a concern because it’s not really a CVT. Toyota hybrids have Ecvt, who share nothing but a name with the traditional cvts. It has no belt and pulley. Bulletproof transmission.

exactly what I thought, the car looks hot

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Amen to that