Roomy

POOR TRANSMISSION

Most of my friend drives hondas because of Honda was known of making "NO_PROBLEM"vehicles. So when they first come out with the mini van. I got excited and bought one. And I take good care of the van. Follow all the Honda recommended service. And now the van has about 65,000 miles. The transmission started to acting funny. Funny thing is that we did the 60,000 miles major service Jan. this year. (Honda dealer) I felt the transmission "Kicked" when it shift at first or second gear. And it "kicked" when I try to gas up. So, I took it to the Honda dealer, I am just very surprised by the service dealer claim that they can''t find any problem with it. So I have my cousin take it to another Honda Dealer that they found the problem with the transmission, And they will only replace the transmission not rebuild it. It cost me about$7000.00 because my warranty expired long time ago. I always thought that Honda build "problem-free" cars. Very disappointed with this Honda odyssey. Last week I met a guy in a kid''s birthday party. He told me that his 1999 Odyssey transmission broke at 30000 miles. So I think I may not be the only one..... P.S I have not take the offer from the Honda service for a $1700.00 discounted price. I will sell this van soon.

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NONE

Very well made, very powerful, ergonomics well thought out, good tires, super dealer support, they will be my first choice when I look for another car.

Not all Honda dealers are so good.

Greetings, Just a note: I noticed that you said that you would have bought an Expedition instead of an Odyssey. Well, funny thing, I did just that. I paid $27,000 for a $34,000 Expedition and drove it 4700 miles before I realized that I didn''t want to pay $50.00 to fill up my "car" every week. I have been driving a ''92 Honda Civic for several years and have been absolutely spoiled. I would drive six miles to work and shut it off and then 8-9 hours later drive it six miles back home and shut it off. I consistently got 37-38 miles per gallon and 40 mpg on the highway! I bought the car with 62,000 miles on it and had a four-wheel drive Chevy Pick Up pull in front of me when it had 130,000 miles on it. By the grace of the Lord, the truck flipped on it''s side as we slid under it. If it hadn''t, my passenger and I would have been decapitated. The truck driver''s insurance company totaled my little car and gave me within $500 of what I paid for it originally. I bought the little Civic back from them for $425.00 and am presently getting it ready to hopefully start back up pretty soon. Well, to get back to the subject at hand, after 4700 miles of 12-16 mpg with the Expedition, I decided that I couldn''t live with this kind of mileage. I went back to the Ford dealer that bought it from (Capital Ford in Raleigh, NC) and asked them what they would give me for this Expedition that still looked like new. After less than 5,000 miles, they said that they would give me $23,000 for my "$34,000" truck, needless to say, I said; "no, thanks". I went right down the road and bought a new Odyssey EX for $2,500 and the Expedition from a Honda dealer. They gave me $25,000 for the Expedition in trade, strange that a Honda dealer would give me more for an Expedition than the folks that sold it. No wonder they don’t hold their value. While the Expedition was a handful on curvy roads, the Odyssey drives wonderfully. The dealer, Vester Honda, in Wilson NC has been incredible and I would certainly buy from them again. The only point that I don''t understand about Honda is that they give you no folder for the Owner''s manual and the various business cards that you pick up at the dealer. The Expedition had a great folder, almost like a small valise. Overall, we are very happy with the Odyssey and would probably bought it the first time if we would have known that we could have gotten

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Dodge Grand Caravan

Power. Smooth ride. Quiet. Power doors work nice (although sometimes I get impatient at their speed), Dual sound system is glorious. I can listen to a CD while my kids watch a movie with the wireless headphones. I am not an electronics nut, so the speaker system is fine for me. Traction Control System. Back seat. Numerous cup holders. Adjustable second row seats. Climate control thermostat.

When filling with gas, the throat must be too narrow so if you do not have the nozzle positioned perfectly the gas backs up. Waiting list (Make more vans!!!!)

I hesitate to right such a glowing review so early in the vehicle''s life. But, compared to my last vehicle experience, I see no other choice. (The other vehicle if you could not guess was....the Ford Windstar...surprise) Obviously, the vehicle is not without slight imperfections, but my wife and I desire moderate comfort, safety, and mechanical reliability at a reseasonable price and this is the van for us. We looked for 8 months before deciding on the Odyssey. We looked real hard at domestic vans and could find the combination of features, reliability, safety and price. (We did not look at any Fords, however) Other companies seemed to offer too much stuff that was not really needed and just inflated the price. I have a slight fear that the interior may not hold up as well, though. I really hope I do not need to write another review later apologizing for my comments now.

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1995 Ford Windstar

Styling, interior space - especially behind the 3rd row. Good head and leg room - even in the 3rd row. Magic seat folding into floor gets used a lot. Power, visibilty from driver''s seat.

Unlit switches for cruise, windows, locks (even my ''96 Ranger had these). No cassette player standard in EX. Roof rack can''t hold any luggage without $150 add-on from dealer. Stereo is not good - my daughter is constantly telling me she can''t hear it in the 2nd row. Arm rests are too low, too short. No $$ discount. Can hear gas sloshing in tank when backing up. >> all things I knew about from this site.

I checked this site frequently for new owner comments while shopping for our first minivan. We knew about all the plusses and minuses before we bought. We test drove the Ford Windstar first, then the Toyota Sienna. The Windstar was all over the road and was tight on headroom for me (I''m 6''7"). The Sienna was a good bet, but leg room was a little tight and the dealer was awful - tacking on $1,500 for checking the oil, fluids etc. We were not intending to try the Odyssey because of the cost. But, once I sat in it I loved it. The dealer is excellent, but the price was fixed at MSRP. We had to wait 2 months for delivery and they don''t include ANY freebies - even had to pay $68 extra for locking lugs. We are 3 months and 3,000 miles into our ownership and are so happy we bought this van. There is a lot of space in this van, it rides great, has good power and great visibility. Coming from a Camry, I thought backing & parking would be issues, but they aren''t. There are a few negative features that Honda should have caught onto by now, but they don''t affect performance.

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93 Toyota Camry

A. Transmission. B. Engine noise. C. Air bag light. D. Check engine light. E. Power windows. F. Automatic sliding door. G. Warped plastic on door panel. H. Premature tire wear. I. Battery failure. J. Passenger side door panel loose at top. Door trim clips came apart. K. Steering pump noise. L. Fog lights and rear tail lights burnt out within one year.

I am on my third tranny. You must wonder about so called "Honda Quality". Also this van has very weak rear suspension. And BTW DO NOT try to pull anything behind this van. I did try, and got about 10 MPG. My van has been in the shop for now 63 days in 1 and 1/2 years of ownership.

Strengths: Increased horsepower, overall interior space, visibility, tight fit and extraordinary finish, side air bags, magic seat, adjustable center seats, 4-wheel disk brakes, tight turning radius, sports car performance, high safety ratings, high resale value, Honda quality. 1000 Mile Update: My wife loves her Odyssey (I barely get to drive it). All aftermarket upgrades were an excellent investment and relatively easy to install except a keyless entry system also ordered from www.handaparts.com. They sent the wrong wiring harness which meant about two hours worth of work was for naught. I doubt I’ll reorder. (Plus, they need to get a better system for answering their phones so I can return the incorrect harness for a credit. The phone rings on and on and on. I did get a recording and left a message but nobody has bothered to return my call.)

The seats are a bit uncomfortable. I''ve owned a number of Honda Accords and the seats have always seemed pretty flat. (I think the Japanese have smaller ). I’m curious to see how I feel after a long road trip of several hours. The tires are noisy. The LX comes with Bridgestone Potenzas, and the EX comes with Michelins. The Michelins seemed quieter. Armrests are poorly padded. I Can''t believe somebody hasn''t developed an aftermarket cushion that slips over the original. Or have they? It''d be nice if there were more color combinations. Gear shift action takes some getting used to. Extra gear not indicated on shift indicator. Wiper controls easily mistaken for shift lever. Now that we own one, there seems to be a lot of Odysseys on the road, but there are also a lot of Accords. I really don’t care because Hondas hold their value.

I''d like to say this site proved extremely helpful in the overall decision-making process. My wife and I shopped for over a year before making our final decision, and we made it based on reviews found in this site. Motivated by the fact our 1995 Windstar had 107,000 miles on it, we initiated a search for a used Odyssey. I couldn’t believe the prices they were bringing! The difference between new and a one or two-year-old used was almost non-existent. I had a chance to buy a 2001 at a very good price but didn''t. A few months later, we drove a 2002 Odyssey LX. What a difference between the two! The extra horsepower, the side air bags, four-wheel disk brakes, five-speed transmission, regular gasoline, all made the choice of the ’''02 a no-brainer. We would have purchased this Odyssey on the spot…if only they had discounted more than $500. They wouldn’t, so we kept shopping. We drove the Toyota Sienna. We both liked it but decided to drop it from consideration after reading numerous negative reports on this website (and others) about the sludge problems and the shoddy treatment from the dealers. We drove the Chrysler vans. Aside from having to choose from a dizzying array of s, my wife and I felt cramped...kept hitting my head when I''d get in or out of the van. We could compensate somewhat by adding power seats, but that took the price into the $30k-range which was unacceptable. I also had doubts about the transmission problems that have plagued Chrysler products over the years, and the fact they don’t hold up well for resale.retained a greater percentage of its original value. Bought ''02 Odyssey LX with an $800 discount. Also bought aftermarket items from Handaparts.com. We decided we didn''t need slow working power doors or an incomplete luggage rack, and I can buy lots of hub caps for the price of the alloy wheels. The dealer "threw in" the wind deflector at the last minute.

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1995 Ford Windstar has been a money pit (head gasket, power steering pump, transmission modules, electrical glitches no one can fix, water pump, brakes, squeaks, noises, sloppy transmission, etc.), we

A real nice van if not for early onset of transmission problems.

tran probs and manufacturer attitude (but this may be case w/other manufactureres as well). Also no lights in lower dash area - it''s dark.

Loved this car until the transmission went at 30,000. No problems w/dealer as to no cost replacement under existing warranty, but I''m asking HONDA to provide me w/the 3/36 warranty for the remanuufactured one they put in and that they mention in their brochure for remanufactured transmissions. They were arrogant on first call saying that''s nly for those who "pay" for a replacement and since mine is being replaced under warranty I haven''t paid for it. Excuse me! I certainly did pay for it. I''m planning to continue the battle and bring attention to this w/our state''s atty general office. Consumer reports survey arrived today and I''m letting them know about the problem. Noted last months consumer reports mag. has reliability rating of Odyssey in decline from past reviews. Transmission problems no doubt one cause. If all these minivans have tran problems it makes no sense to pay market or above market prices for an Odyssey when you can get a (ie: Windstar) easily for invoice. I note Sienna''s are still highly rated in CR. If you an deal w/slightly less space, try that.

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Used to own Voyager for 14 yrs. (145,000 miles) w/ one tran replacement at 80K.

Roomy, versatile. Plenty of power.

Brake wear out too soon. Transmission jerky and will not shift manually into 3rd at 61000. Cheap plastic on the climate control knob that crack with normal use.

I bought my first Honda Odyssey 1999 based on it "reliability" reputation. I was one of ther early model buyer. I have a manual sliding door, that refuse to close. Then come the ratling noises of the rear hatch. The interior is noisier than I expected. I had to bring the vehicle in a few times to clear the engine light, which comes on when the gas tank is low. The front brakes sqeak and have to be replaced 3 times. Apparently, according to other Honda shop, the pad and/or the rotor was to small for a vehicle this size/weight. At 30000 mile I brought into the dealer for service, which includes a transmission. Then I found out that the transmission filter is NOT replaceable! Now at 61000 miles, the transmission jerk violently when shifting from 2nd to 3rd after a slow down from 3rd to 2nd. The shift lever is stuck and cannot be moved into D3. I was told that some fluid passages in the transmision was so narrow that they clog up easily. A search on the web, reveals that transmission is a major weakness for the Odyssey. That''s may be why the new 2002 Odyssey have a new transmission! Over the years, I owned many vehicles without transmission problem way past the 100K miles!

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Madza MPV

engine response, small turning radius, cd player, fit and finish, handling, tons of cargo space, magic 3rd seat

short unpadded arm rests, not so comfortable front seats, sliding doors squeaky

It''s "pretty good" It''s a Canadian model sold here in Va. Unfortunately when you buy a Canadian model there is not 3yr Honda Warranty. The industry considers it "used" since a dealer bought it and hauled it to the US. After I returned it a month later to fix some squeaky sliding doors, the service writer said that my extended warranty didn''t cover this. I said what about my 3yr Honda warranty. that''s when I found out that it didn''t come with one since it was "used" After freaking out with the dealer owner, he wrote me a letter saying their dealership would cover anything and everything for the next 3 years. Lesson learned, when buying a supposedly "new" car from a dealer who bought it in a different country, know that it voids the manufacturers warranty. However, if I''d known I could''ve gotten an 02'' Ford Expedition for the same price (only because Ford is coming out with their 03'' Expedition in May) I would have bought that instead.

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98'' toyota sienna

5 Star Safety Ratings by National Testing Organizations. Smooth, quiet ride, tight steering. HONDA quality throughout. Any Honda owner knows what I''m talking about!!

Price is steep, but you get what you pay for! I''m hoping that the power door motors don''t go on me.

Definitely the "cream of the crop" when it comes to minivans! I purchased a used 99 Pontiac Montana in Jan ''02, and just returned it for the Odyssey! The Montana was noisy, had trans problems, and very "loose" while driving. The Odyssey is smooth riding, quiet, very tight steering and feels like you''re driving an Accord! The details are well thought out, the rear bench easily compacts, and the overall style makes it a "cool" minivan. I bought the EX package, with the climate control system, cd w/six speakers, alloy rims, and traction control system. Knowing that my wife and two little girls are the "cargo" in this van, my mind can rest easier during their long commutes! A must if you''re minivan shopping...

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99 Pontiac Montana- (stay away from)