So right now we are a one car family (much to dh's dislike). Anyway, we are looking to get at least one new vehicle next year. Right now we have a Nissan Xterra which we both really love but I am thinking won't exactly be practical when we have baby number two in the next 2 years (hopefully--whole other arguement ). Practical in the sense with space for two LARGE carseats at some point (dd is in a blvd and we love the britax brand so any subsequent children will also get a blvd), groceries, double stroller, etc. DD's graco stroller hardly fits in the trunk area with enough space for anything else (she has one that can double as a travel system). We were thinking in addition to getting dh a new vehicle we would also want to get a minivan for me. Our Xterra gets AWESOME gas mileage, much better than the estimated MPG (estimated is like 19/21 and we get like 21/28. Consumer Report magazine highly recommended the Honda Odyssey and the Toyota Sienna. Anyone that has one of these especially let me know how you like it and the following:

What year is your minivan?
What model is your minivan?
Gas mileage, estimated and what you currently get?
Do you do mostly city or highway?
Cargo/storage space?
Number of carseats?
How does it drive?
Easy in and out?
Good amenities?
Do you get a lot of road noise?

Anything else?

We did our research on minivans. The top 2 for us, were the Sienna and Odyssey. Ultimately, the Odyssey won our vote. DH was NEVER EVER into minivans, but the Odyssey is so his "style." :giggle

But yes, either the EX-L or the Touring model w/ or w/o PAX are what we plan on getting in the next few years. :)

From my research the Odyssey gets better gas mileage than the Sienna too.

What year is your minivan? 2005
What model is your minivan? Caravan SXT
Gas mileage, estimated and what you currently get? we get closer to 25 highway, 20 city
Do you do mostly city or highway? city
Cargo/storage space?enough space for groceries, seats are removable too.
Number of carseats?, it seats 7
How does it drive? smooth
Easy in and out? yep
Good amenities? ours is basic, we love it
Do you get a lot of road noise? no

I love that van but I am planning on trading it or selling it for a smaller hybrid SUV.We don't need that much room anymore.

So right now we are a one car family (much to dh's dislike). Anyway, we are looking to get at least one new vehicle next year. Right now we have a Nissan Xterra which we both really love but I am thinking won't exactly be practical when we have baby number two in the next 2 years (hopefully--whole other arguement ). Practical in the sense with space for two LARGE carseats at some point (dd is in a blvd and we love the britax brand so any subsequent children will also get a blvd), groceries, double stroller, etc. DD's graco stroller hardly fits in the trunk area with enough space for anything else (she has one that can double as a travel system). We were thinking in addition to getting dh a new vehicle we would also want to get a minivan for me. Our Xterra gets AWESOME gas mileage, much better than the estimated MPG (estimated is like 19/21 and we get like 21/28. Consumer Report magazine highly recommended the Honda Odyssey and the Toyota Sienna. Anyone that has one of these especially let me know how you like it and the following:

What year is your minivan? 2000
What model is your minivan?dodge grand caravan
Gas mileage, estimated and what you currently get? not exactly sure but decent
Do you do mostly city or highway? A lot of both
Cargo/storage space? love all the storage in it!!!!
Number of carseats? The reason I bought it was I was doing daycare had 2 kids and had two built in fold up 5 point carseats. I have gotten 3 carseats at once and the two built in
How does it drive?Drives great has 140,000 now and still is doing well and the interior is still fairly good
Easy in and out?Yes!!! and very easy to drive too feel very safe in it
Good amenities?yes I like it...when we are done with it iwll buy the other newer ones for the added ammenities
Do you get a lot of road noise? No

Anything else?The only thing that I don't like...brakes wear easy on mine, and also wish the windows rolled down in the back.

What year is your minivan? 2006

What model is your minivan? Caravan SXT

Gas mileage, estimated and what you currently get? around 26-28 highway, around 22 or so city, it depends on speed, how much stopping, etc though.

Do you do mostly city or highway? both

Cargo/storage space? I have two Britax Marathons, A Britax Regent and will have another Britax in there soon, as well. Still have room for a double stroller, groceries, etc.

Number of carseats?, it seats 7

How does it drive? very smooth

Easy in and out? yep, automatic doors with a button inside the door, a button up front by me (and I can also lock the doors from being able to open with the autobutton feature), and a button on my keychain to open the doors. Captains chairs in the second row make it very 4easy to access third row. I couldn't live without my second row captains chairs though.

Good amenities? Stow and Go, which is awesome if Jason needs to use it to load something big, no having to pull the seats out, etc. Auto doors, leather (Couldn't live without it with the kids), everything we need.

Do you get a lot of road noise? nope, very little. very smooth and quiet ride. You should test drive one :)

nuther vote for the caravan which is the original minivan. my mom has had one for 10 years & my grandma is on her second one. honestly, she didn't need to buy a new one, she just did it because she could.

the only work that has ever been done on my mom's are regular brake jobs & replacing the water pump. it has 300k miles on it & is still on the road. my grandma's never had any mechanical problems either.

What year is your minivan? 2005
What model is your minivan? toyota sienna
Gas mileage, estimated and what you currently get? 350 miles to the tank, about 19 gallon tank
Do you do mostly city or highway? highway
Cargo/storage space?TONS
Number of carseats?wel...there are 7 passenger seats, and I currently have 2 car setas in it. I guess it depends on the size of your carseat.
How does it drive? very well, nie and smooth
Easy in and out?very, the front middle seat comes out sp the way back and back people can load and unload easily. also have an eletronic sliding side door which is great wih a baby
Good amenities? I have a basic package, but I have a couple cool features
Do you get a lot of road noise? If the radio is on you can't hear the road noise.

What year is your minivan? 05
What model is your minivan? Pontiac Montana
Gas mileage, estimated and what you currently get? not sure estimate but we get around 27-28 MPG
Do you do mostly city or highway? hwy
Cargo/storage space? lots of cubby space and over head
Number of carseats? 7
How does it drive? so smooth and quiet
Easy in and out? yup
Good amenities? all the bells and whistles
Do you get a lot of road noise? nope

Anything else? the Montana is discontinued but the Chevy Uplander and the Buick Version are the exact same van and are still made.