Can't beat it!
Written: Aug 02 '03
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Pros: extremely smooth, quiet ride, seats 7 comfortably, power sliding door, disappearing 60/40 rear seat
Cons: Rear hatch requires some effort to close. Wife gets to drive it more than me.
The Bottom Line: This is an excellent minivan. We love it! Go online to get it with minimum hassle and delay.
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| mark_fm's Full Review: 2004 Toyota Sienna 2WD |
I had hesitations about buying the Honda minivan. My '86 Civic had non-stop problems: stripped oil pan screw, new CV joints every year, etc. Meanwhile my '80 Toyota Celica would not quit. Even my mechanic told me that Toyota is the only brand he'd buy. When looking at minivans after the birth of my first child, I thought I'd have to plug my nose, swallow hard, and buy the Honda.
Then Toyota came out with the 2004 Sienna, with major improvements over the previous model and priced right!
I'm getting 25.2 mpg on long highway trips and 22.4 mpg with mostly city driving. (Love the trip computer!) I've owned it for 6 weeks and have put 3500 miles on it so far, including a 16 hour road trip up and down I-5 in California.
The shift handle is located on left-center part of the dash. It's a smart/natural place for it and works well. Need to get used to the non-linear motion. I think I drove the first 100 miles in "4" before I realized the "D" is three clicks down and one click to the right.
CONS:
1) The parent mirror is useless. First, the mirror itself is too small and the children appear much smaller in it. If a microscopic reflection of your child is good enough, then you might get use out of the parent mirror.
2) Daytime running lights are not standard. If you like to drive with your headlights on during the day, the computer, dash readouts are automatically dimmed and hard to see.
3) Door ajar light does not indicate which door is ajar. Once I opened and closed all 4 doors before realizing that the rear hatch wasn't closed tightly.
SEVERAL SURPRISES:
1) The van is smooth! My wife calls it "The Monorail" because the ride is so quiet and solid. 230 horsepower gives plenty of acceleration--you can get it to squeal from a stop. Gotta watch your speed. It's easy to go fast and not "feel" it. I find the slight delay in accleration very tolerable.
2) The turning radius is remarkable for a vehicle this size.
3) Lots of room in the back. Seats 7 comfortably. Folding seats in the rear and middle provide acres of cargo space. 60/40 split rear seat gives extra options for people/cargo hauling.
4) My 17 month old daughter giggles when dad pulls the power sliding door closed with an invisible handle.
It's hard to find in dealerships. I bought mine through amazon/carsdirect. Their partnered dealership contacted me directly with info on when the model I wanted would be available. Gave me a discount for buying online. Took a week or so. They insisted on delivering it to my house saying that it wouldn't last 12 seconds if they left it on the lot for me to pick up. Excellent service!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 25270
Condition: New
Model and Options: LE
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Epinions.com ID:
mark_fm
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Member: Mark Carlson
Location: Temecula, CA, USA
Reviews written: 2
Trusted by: 1 member
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