Anyone Have Experience with the Toyota Sienna?

[Marg]

I'm looking for opinions on the Toyota Sienna.

On the 22nd, I was driving southbound and a guy going northbound turned left in front of me and I ended up t-boning him. Thankfully, there was a police car at the intersection and she saw the whole thing. Fortunately, the kids were not in the car with me. unfortunately, the car is a write-off.
We have decided not to replace the car and get a newer mini-van. My current mini-van is a Montana that's on it's last legs (it's a 99 with 275,000 km on it) and we figured it makes more sense to replace that, than a car that won't seat us all. Hubby can drive the van until it dies.

We're looking at some used Siennas (04 and 05) and have been thrilled with what we've seen so far. Anyone want to share their experiences with their Sienna?

TIA!

 

[Marg]

Oops, can't edit the title to remove the OT...

Let's see, what else can OT, stand for...

 

[DanielleQ]

Oh, Marg...I drive a 2005 Sienna and I love it!!!! It is so comfy and I love that there is room to get into the 3rd row...lots of other vans didn't have that when we bought ours.

I cannot say enough good things about it. We have definitely enjoyed ours!!!!

 

[DanielleQ]

And OT might stand for "owning a Toyota!"

 

[Marg]

Thanks, Danielle! I have spoken to about 3 or 4 people who drive one and they all have loved them.

Yeah, OT can stand for owning a Toyota!

 

[spoiledchef]

I have an '04 Toyota Sienna XLE (top model), and I LOVE it. My husband sells Toyotas, so we're biased. But -- with that said, it is the BEST van out there. The power side doors and rear door make it AWESOME! Plus, there's so many little nooks/crannies to store stuff. And -- the cup holders (I believer there's at least 8 if not more) are all great. I cannot say enough about the Sienna. I only have one child, but I still love all of the space! HTH!

 

[Marg]

Thanks, Sherrie!
Too funny about the cup holders - Colin and counted them and I think we came up with 16!
We have four kids, so the space issue is a big thing for us.

 

[luvs2sellit]

Toyotas Rock!!! We are a Toyota loving family.
My sis in law has a Sienna and loves it . I have a Camry, husband has a Tundra, brother has a Prius, Niece has a Echo. Toyotas customer service is the best.

 

[DebbieJ]

have you looked at the Honda Odyssey?

 

[jenwallace]

I also have an 05 Sienna and LOVE it!!! We are tall people and this van had more leg and head room than anything else we drove. I have had 3 adults, 3 infant car seat, 3 full sized strollers and all our shopping bags in mine and we were all still very comfortable!

And yes, I have to echo the love of all the cup holders...in fact it gets me in trouble because I don't always clean out the empties because I know I've got more room somewhere!

 

[cookinmelissa]

I have a 2005 Toyota Sienna XLE too. It is the greatest van I said I would never drive.

The only thing I am not to fond of is the little mirror they put above the rear-view so you can check on the kids in the back of the van. I am too short and have to have my seat moved up so I strain my neck trying to even see what faces they are making at me when they are being bad.

 

[dianevill]

I don't have a Toyota and have no advice to offer on buying one, but I just wanted to say that I'm glad you're ok!!

 

[DanielleQ]

I have a 2005 Toyota Sienna XLE too. It is the greatest van I said I would never drive.QUOTE]


Ha!!! I said I would never drive one either!!! Now I'm on my second one! I have the XLE as well and we have just about all the bells and whistles. I totally reccommend the rear-view camera on the navigation screen--it has saved us many trips to the body shop!

We got some ridiculous deal on ours because my BIL works at the plant where they build GM/Toyota and my brother worked for as a Sales Manager at Toyota at the time. Otherwise, we could never have afforded all the extras.

 

[Gina M]

Marg,

I have a 2006 Sienna and love it as well. Back in November 2005 - I was T-boned going through an intersection (green for me - red for the guy in the pickup truck who hit me) - totaled my van and it was only 6 1/2 years old and had only 44,000 miles on it (was a Nissan Quest) - as mad as I was at the time - I'm so glad to have the Sienna now - it rocks!! It's awesome to have the controls for heat and air in the back as well (not just air like the quest did). I never had a CD player in my van so I love that feature as well. It drives great and I've never had any problems with it. Good luck with your search!

 

[Marg]

Thanks, guys! As soon as we get our $$ from our insurance we're going to get one.

Diane - thanks! I am okay - still bruised and stiff, but so much better than the alternative.

 

[Shawnna]

Toyota's are awesome. I drive a 2002 Sienna. I love it. My husband says it is actually the same motor as a Camry. He used to sell cars. He has sold Chevy's, Honda's, GMC's and Toyotas. He says the Toyota is the best on the market. He drives a Tundra. I have had my van for almost 3 years and have put over 60000 miles on it. They also have awesome resale value when you are ready to trade up. I keep telling my husband that I want a 2006 or 2007 Sienna, but then I start thinking that mine is almost paid for and still runs great. I am trying to hold out until they make one that the seats fold into the floor. That would make it perfect. I am a small woman and trying to get those back seats in and out is a real pain. They are heavy.

 

[Marg]

Starting with the 2004, the rear row has stow and go seats. That's one of the features that I love.

 

[cat]

We bought a used 2001 Sienna two years ago and I love it! So it's now 6 years old with 80,000 miles on it and we have had ZERO problems with it. Our extended warranty is up in a month, so we'll see what happens then!!

It's my first minivan and has been put to very good use. We took two road trips last year...one was a 9-10 hour drive for a wedding and the other was a 5 hour drive for a quick getaway. Both times we took our two boys (at that time 1 and 3 years old) AND all their gear and we felt like we could not have done it in a sedan!

 

[TwinGirlsMom]

I swore I would never drive a mini-van but if I ever end up eating my words the van will have to be a toyota sienna! My friend has one and it's awesome...I say go for it!

 

[Shawnna]

the room is awesome!! I really wanted one that would seat 8 but mine seats 7. But, I love the automatic door and all of the leg room. It is easy to get in and out of. I have 3 children and now the 2 older ones have their own bucket seat so they aren't touching each other...heaven forbid...and the youngest gets the full back seat to himself to stretch out and play his game boy or watch a DVD. I wouldn't trade it for the world.