![]() The Odyssey has grown softer with each redesign, and now stakes out the middle ground not far from the Sienna. The Touring’s six-speed adds one MPG to each, but even the EX-L’s highway figure is a significant two to three MPG higher than competitors’. In return for some occasional barely perceptible thrumming, it yields EPA ratings of 18 city and 27 highway. Then again, how quick does a minivan have to be? The V6 deactivates cylinders while cruising to save fuel. So the Odyssey doesn’t feel as energetic as a Sienna or one of the reinvigorated Chryslers. At 247, the 3.5-liter V6’s peak horsepower also significantly lags key competitors. The midgrade EX-L soldiers on with the old five-speed. They’ve fixed it, why risk breaking it again? The 2011 Odyssey gets the company’s new six-speed, but only in the top trim levels. Perhaps still shellshocked by the disastrous four-speed automatic in the second-generation Odyssey, Honda lags the rest of the industry in automatic transmission development. Have people in both rows? The 38 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third row is about twice as much as in the average large crossover and nearly matches the best-in-class Sienna. But for especially large cargo the second-row seats must be removed. Ninety-three cubic feet-nearly as much as the total in the Nissan Quest-will fit behind them. The downside of the large second row seats: unlike the less comfortable captains in the Chryslers, they cannot be stowed beneath the floor. On top of this, the rear seats are about as high off the floor as you’ll find in a minivan, and so are better suited for adults than most. Honda’s minivan is the roomiest subjectively as well as objectively. The tape measure, while it might exaggerate the size of the difference, doesn’t entirely lie. The Odyssey has the distinction of being the only vehicle available with over 40 inches of legroom in every row. Whatever the position of the Odyssey’s second row seats, there’s plenty of room. The legrests on the captain’s chairs in the Toyota Sienna are another intriguing innovation that falls a bit short in practice, but between the two Toyota’s has the edge in terms of “will it ever be used?” The view forward is less obstructed by the front seats in the outward position. Which would also make the center seat more comfortable. The outward position does make the center armrest (created by folding the center seat) a bit of a stretch, but this could have been fixed by making the center seat three inches wider. But I positioned one seat outward and the other inward, and even moving immediately from one to the other could detect no evident benefit. But then why offer the more inward option? Theoretically this provides more room for two occupants, especially if the small (but not as small as before) center seat is removed. The outward position makes it easier to fit three child seats or three adults. Honda’s big functional innovation with the new van appears in the second row, where the outer seats can be shifted outward about an inch-and-half. There’s even a grocery bag holder that folds out from the back of the center console, but it seems unlikely to survive much use. The center stack and removable center console include a large number of intelligently designed compartments, one of which is chilled by the air conditioning. Not quite luxurious or especially comfortable, but supportive. The sporty theme is only skin deep? The seats are fairly firm and will be familiar to anyone who has driven a leather-upholstered Honda before. This isn’t as handy a location for manual shifting, but then (unlike Chrysler and Toyota) Honda hasn’t seen fit to offer manual shifting in the Odyssey. The shifter is located on the instrument panel, but lower down than on the Chryslers. The driving position is lower and less upright than in the Chrysler minivans, and so more car-like, while still providing much better visibility than in the new Nissan Quest. They also appear less cheap than the oddly textured plastics in the Toyota Sienna. Interior materials are on par with Hondas past, and so better than those in the related Pilot SUV. The buttons that remain are designed so they can be identified at a glance, with different shapes and only a few in each group. There aren’t as many buttons because it’s now necessary to navigate through menus, iDrive style, to perform many secondary functions. Aside from this slip, the center stack controls are better designed than the average Honda’s these days, with large knobs for major functions. But this rake also has a downside: it places the HVAC controls-unusually located above the audio system controls-too far away. The new Odyssey’s interior is similarly the sportiest in the segment (such things being relative) courtesy of a stylishly raked center stack. ![]()
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