Excitement over Honda's hot new Odyssey has not dwindled during the van's second month as a long-term test vehicle at Edmund's. During May, we were able to get some parents behind the wheel and some kids into the back to garner real-life family impressions of the minivan. Our senior programmer, a self-described "long-time Honda fan," piled her brood of teenagers into the Odyssey for a long-distance trip that carried the group from the shores of California to the casinos of Las Vegas. Two of the three drivers in the family pilot Hondas on a regular basis--the CR-V and the Accord, to be exact. The father drives a Nissan Quest-at least he does until he can trade it in for an Odyssey.
The Odyssey's 3.5-liter, 24-valve V6 VTEC, which achieves the environmentally friendly status of a low-emission vehicle, propelled the cargo-laden minivan easily on both city streets and highways. Drivers commented on excellent acceleration, even when climbing the hills of Mulholland Drive or traversing the higher elevations of Cajon Pass. Wind noise was noticeable at higher speeds, however. The drivers were also impressed with the intuitive steering, car-like ride, comfortable seats and excellent turning radius, which made parking in tight spots look like child's play.
All occupants found the van versatile, roomy and easy to load. The two back doors and the wide center aisle made climbing into the back seat simple for three growing teenagers. Folding the rear seat down for a flat storage area proved useful and the group appreciated the large well in the cargo area that holds grocery bags quite nicely. In typical Honda fashion, the interior controls are in all the right places and are made to be functional rather than flashy. The power sliding door, radio controls on the steering wheel and power seats delighted them, but the teens complained that the sound system wasn't up to par.
Another Odyssey driver used the van for transporting large boxes containing three computers, three monitors, three office chairs and a bunch of other office paraphernalia across town. Though the two middle seats had to be removed to accommodate this load, there was still cargo room to spare.
The main complaint so far revolves around the Odyssey's automatic sliding door. The idea is that the door keeps closing automatically unless there is an obstruction within 12 inches of the doorframe. Our staffer's brother, being the let's-see-how-safe-this-thing-really-is kind of person, set out to test the door's stopping ability. What he found was that it was very difficult for an adult to stop the door before it reaches the "almost closed" point, pretty much impossible for a small child to stop the door before it reaches the "almost closed" point, and if you are wider than 12 inches...ouch! You get squished. For those who don't want to mess around with this gadget, there is a button that disables the power sliding door, but doing so makes it difficult to open and close the heavy door manually.
Total Odometer Reading: 2,771
Best Fuel Economy: 25.2 mpg
Worst Fuel Economy: 15.8 mpg
Body Repair Costs: $0
Maintenance Costs: $0
Problems: None
