I consider it a Millennium Falcon class vehicle (WHITE Sienna hybrid in particular):

Able to travel great distances, while flying under the radar, at speed, without drama, reliably, and ability to carry multiple passengers/loads (versatility) with dignity and poise. My favorite motorcycles have most of the same qualities.

 

"flying under the radar at speed". State trooper proof vehicle 😁

 

I choose a minivan because you can’t beat the space it provides, versatility, ride quality, and mpg. I will be using mine for road trips and can fit a lot in the back. Will be removing the second row seats and stowing the third row seats.

 

Comfort and space driving cross country.

 

It was early 2021 and my family was growing. The S2000 did not fit the bill and I already had a “racecar” (1986 toyota corolla ‘AE86’). Can’t be having two racecars when I got a kid on the way…

So my requirements were: sit 4 comfortably (5seater ideally), be able to tow my 2500ish lbs racecar, haul things like engines/transmissions/rear ends comfortably, not terrible gas mileage. Tacomas were the first thing that came to mind. But this was deep covid times, and overlanding was still the hot thing to do which meant tacomas were selling well above price points I had in mind, and selections were pretty sparse... I was also considering a ford ranger, but ford was known as the money maker at the old auto shop I worked at (for always coming in to get work done)…

Next thing that came to mind was gen3 sienna; I had seen some other corolla buddies tow just fine with their gen3 so I felt fine with the towing side of things. And the idea of doing 7 seater with family/friends was even more appealing.

But then… my wife was really feeling the gen4 and it being a hybrid. I was super hesitant since no one had really proved their towing capabilities yet. Toyota advertised it as 3500lbs towing capacity, my drift car is 2500lbs. If it sucks, I’ll resign myself to being that dude in the struggle lane on hill climbs. If it did really struggle that badbad, we’ll flip it back - bank on that imminent chip shortage that was looming and hope we won’t lose toooo much money selling it slightly used.

But it worked out prettyy great! I’ve already towed my corolla to an event 400miles out in barstow area (AVS raceway), hit grapevine in hail and dry; did both climbs great. (Great as in I was not in the slow lane. I passed 18wheelers with ease). Then some other more local stuff too. Flat towing it gets about 20mpg.

Needless to say Im happy with it. It’s hit 50k recently and I’m now looking into those journey lift kits. Maybe we’ll do some light trail stuff with friends in the future with it 🤷🏽🤷🏽🤷🏽.

 

The Ruby looks better than I thought. My wife and I just bought a moonlight and it is kind of dark.

 

Kids.

 

Because it's a 7-in-1:

 

I have always had a fascination with minivans, my first car was almost a Ford Winstar. After owning several vehicles (2 cars, 2 Pickups, 1 CUV) I realized the minivan offers the combination of qualities I loved about all of them, but usually better. The only box it didn't check for me was ground clearance, and I don't need 10"+, just a modest 8".

The fuel economy of the hybrid is great, the driving experience is one of the best I've had in the vehicles I've owned, the space is outrageous. I just love it so much. Oh, and now that we have a child with the van, the sliding doors make my wife hate her CRV.

 

I've owned pick ups for most of my life. I just got tired of the horrible fuel economy. I knew I wanted to have something that still had boat loads of room but could get me way better mileage. Van was a no brainer.
I ended up buying one of those 4x7 utility trailers that I can toss the occasional load of mulch or dirt in that used to go in the bed of my trucks, so there's really nothing about the van that makes me miss having a truck. Even this year with the ton of snow we've received I've still never come close to getting stuck, even with my FWD van and much lower ground clearance.

 

I've owned pick ups for most of my life. I just got tired of the horrible fuel economy. I knew I wanted to have something that still had boat loads of room but could get me way better mileage. Van was a no brainer.
I ended up buying one of those 4x7 utility trailers that I can toss the occasional load of mulch or dirt in that used to go in the bed of my trucks, so there's really nothing about the van that makes me miss having a truck. Even this year with the ton of snow we've received I've still never come close to getting stuck, even with my FWD van and much lower ground clearance.

For how often I need to do “truck stuff” (outside of what I can already do with sienna), I’m needing a trailer averaging about two-three times a year now. And with rentals at uhaul being $35 after taxes… I can stomach that with sacrificing having an actual truck.

 

Kids, kids, kids.... space, light towing ability and can still fit 4'x8' and 10' sticks inside.
I'm a big fan ever since I got my sienna.

 

Dropped this kid from school and her dad has a third gen Sienna. He asked about my gas mileage, I said 37, I think he's going to trade that in 😁

 

I honestly don’t understand all the hate out there for minivans (not on this site of course). They are just so practical and efficient.

I already had a mini minivan with my Mazda5, and even in its small size it was the most practical vehicle I had ever owned. Having a full size minivan now, I am super excited to have even more room to work with.

To go even deeper on this topic - why did I choose a Sienna? Reliability…. Hands down. So many car manufacturers have killed the minivan so there aren’t many choices on the market nowadays. However when I look at what older minivans are still on the road, the older 2nd gen Siennas and even 1st gen Siennas are all over the place around here.

I could have gotten a Grand Caravan that was 10 years newer with less miles than my Sienna. However I couldn’t bring myself to buy a Chrysler and they just have (in my opinion) a cheap throwaway feel to them. Not to mention a questionable transmission and the rocker issues that they apparently never fixed.

Sienna was a no brainer and I couldn’t be more excited to have one finally.

 

I honestly don’t understand all the hate out there for minivans (not on this site of course). They are just so practical and efficient.

I already had a mini minivan with my Mazda5, and even in its small size it was the most practical vehicle I had ever owned. Having a full size minivan now, I am super excited to have even more room to work with.

To go even deeper on this topic - why did I choose a Sienna? Reliability…. Hands down. So many car manufacturers have killed the minivan so there aren’t many choices on the market nowadays. However when I look at what older minivans are still on the road, the older 2nd gen Siennas and even 1st gen Siennas are all over the place around here.

I could have gotten a Grand Caravan that was 10 years newer with less miles than my Sienna. However I couldn’t bring myself to buy a Chrysler and they just have (in my opinion) a cheap throwaway feel to them. Not to mention a questionable transmission and the rocker issues that they apparently never fixed.

Sienna was a no brainer and I couldn’t be more excited to have one finally.

It's not a reliable van, the rear glass spontaneously explodes.

 

@Rideshare Sienna Better than needing a new transmission or engine! Lol

 

This Sienna replaced a '97 Caravan which was arguably no less reliable. 260k miles on the engine and transmission that had never been apart but the 3.3 was tired and struggled with a load. Front pads and rotors every 20k miles, 4 alternators, an AC compressor, a half dozen passenger side window regulators, a starter, a fuel pump, a radiator, 100k miles plugs that didn't require removing the intake plenum, a transmission solenoid pack which while you couldn't replace individual solenoids, was outside the transmission. Why can't all manufacturers do that?

Before the Caravan was a Previa which is still my favorite minivan to drive. Climbing the grapevine or going to Reno/Tahoe wasn't an issue. No left side slider and no rear evaporator got old.

To the point, why a minivan? Because we don't always need the bigger vehicle which over time included - 97 Suburban turbodiesel sat 9, 93 E-150 sat 10, 00 B3500 sat 14, 07 E-350 extended seats 13.

Sixto
04 LE FWD 235k miles

 

@sixto Those earlier Caravans were a lot better than the later Chrysler minivans. My parents had a late 90s Plymouth Voyager with the 4 cylinder and 3 speed automatic. That was a great van.

 

Mopar 2.2/2.5 or Mitsu 2.6?

Ours was a 3.3 V6 and much maligned 41TE 4-speed. Still my benchmark for smooth shifting. I miss that ratchet sound as it slows to a stop. My sister retired a 96 and my in-laws retired a 98 early with dead transmissions. Go figure.

Wifey prefers the front seats of the Caravan. I prefer the front seats of the Sienna. Caravan had colder AC than the Sienna.

Sixto
04 LE FWD 235k miles

 

@sixto It was the 2.6. Yeah the 3 speed automatic from that era was better if I remember correctly. I have no experience with the 4 speed in those but I remember my dad liked the 3 speed better for some reason. Lol

 

The 3-speed was a masterpiece compared to the 4-speed which had an awful reputation. We lucked out wringing 260k miles with nothing more than 30k mile fluid and filter changes, one solenoid pack and one end plate reseal. I have a soft spot for vehicles for which printed factory service manuals are available.

Sixto
04 LE FWD 235k miles

 

When our Previa was getting long in the tooth, I would always rent a van (I hate the "mini" moniker) to drive my daughter 500 miles back and forth to school (Denver to Seward NE). One time Enterprise failed and had to give me an Expedition. They gave me a big discount due to the rotten gas mileage I would get. I decided to bring the softside cartop carrier just in case, although I never needed it with the van. Sure enough, there wasn't enough room and the carrier saved me. It proved the point that SUVs are useless haulers. mainly just being lifted station wagons. I have never understood why the obsession with SUVs anyway. Soon after all of that we bought our '14 Sienna. I have never looked back (except when driving).

 

Actually, it was a lesson I learned with SUV's. A while ago, I had a Chevy Trailblazer... specifically so I could use it to take the family off road and go on the outer beach where only 4WD's were allowed. I had my mechanic add diamond plate under the transmission and engine to protect it from off-road debris. I used it a few times, once I got stuck in the sand because I didnt air down enough. Right after I got off the beach, I stopped at the car wash to get the undercarrige clean. I asked myself one day.. is this worth it? I could've (and it was reccomended to me) to get a jeep just for going off-roading and it would've been less time and hassle. Who buys an expensive truck/SUV and then takes it off-road? I learned my lesson then.. no more off-road. The thing died at 100K miles anyway...

 

Hmm...why did I buy my Sienna? Well, first off I never buy a big ticket item unless there's something wrong with it I can easily fix. So cheap it can sit unused without regret. Just dumb luck it's been so useful and sound the last six years. Looks like the next six years will be the same. Sure it's old, newer would be better, but don't underestimate the value of owner repairable. Besides, newer Sienna's aren't as pretty..

 

Honestly, my f-i-l... an old school engineer who liked to do things like calculate the optimum oven time and temperature for baking pies in a 9" pan vs. an 8" pan, paised minivans over SUV's and trucks. Lower cost, better milage and use of space. He loved station wagons for the same reason. We just bought a new Sienna and rather than sell our 2012 Sienna; I kept it and got rid of my 2011 Nissan Cube despite it having 60,000 less miles. That Sienna, if maintained.. should last quite a while. I work from home and drive it maybe 20 miles a week. The clincher was when I saw one being sold at auction with 600K miles on it.

 

Bought it with 5k on the dial in December of 2005. Traded in a 1998 Blazer that was beginning to require continual care. I always loved the practicality of a van but was outvoted the first time around. 162k on it now and plan to keep it until I am forced to make a decision otherwise. We enjoy the road trip comfort, spaciousness, and decent mpg for this size vehicle even with bikes racked. I am willing to stay at 65mph to keep the mpg at its best. Surprisingly very little rust for a 19 year old car, but I really should do something about the rims and they are flaking pretty bad. Probably time for some suspension love as well. Unfortunately I also missed the recall of the dashboard splitting, but I can live with it as long as the frame and engine remain healthy and strong.

 

Great job! Just think of the mountains of car payments you're missing. I just got a 25, but miss the ability to carry lumber due to the gussied up console.

 

I have a 2004 and plan to keep it as long as possible. I like it because of the sliding power doors that prevent dinging your other cars parked in the garage. It is also much easier to get in and out of the rear seats. When the 3rd row is folded down, I can carry multiple bikes without having to use a bike rack. Friends who don’t own a van often had to borrow it to carry bulky stuff. Definitely more versatile than an SUV.

 

I recently sold my 2004 just because a 2010 fell in my lap. After 10 years, and moderate expenses, (timing belt , brakes, exhaust) sold it for $1400 less than I paid for it. It was still doing fine too.

 

A lot of reasons like interior/cargo space, convenient, comfortable ride especially for long trip, great for kids(1 ~ 6), loadable big items, towing capable, quieter than sedans, good mpg relatively, easy to drive, relatively easy to maintain, style in my opinion, etc.

 

I don't think anybody has mentioned so far the bang-for-the-buck factor...on an MSRP basis in any case.

In 2004 and again in 2014 I needed a vehicle to tow a boat and haul stuff. In comparing Sienna LE both times to comparably equipped Highlanders the Sienna won out on MSRP price by a couple $1,000, yet the Sienna was of course larger and posted equal or better performance stats, 0-60 and skid pad. It was a head scratcher. I don't recall the 2004 Sienna purchase details, but the 2014 was about 10% off MSRP, 0% for 60 months financing, no junk add-ons, no trade. Those were the days.

That remains the case today--sort of. While the 2025 Sienna LE AWD and 2025 Highlander LE AWD are comparably equipped at a nearly identical MSRP, the Sienna hybrid drivetrain is a more costly feature than the Highlander 4 cyl. turbo. It's not possible to compare hybrid-to-hybrid at the LE trim level since the Highlander hybrid base starts at the XLE trim. However, if there was a Highlander hybrid LE trim it would be a couple $1000 more than Sienna LE considering the Highlander XLE hybrid is about $3500 more than the turbo XLE.

That's MSRP. We're getting closer to that bang-for-the-buck factor as Sienna selling prices have come back to join Highlander at MSRP or below at some dealers depending on trim.

 

Totally agree with you, my Sienna is a lot of vehicle for $34,000 that I bought it.

 

08 & 17 owner. I am 6’4”, Minivans are more spacious, better fuel economy. Luggage / cargo behind 3rd seat is laughable in all SUV’s, sans Suburbans.