NEW RIDE Dad Van Acquired

Intel

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Oct 28, 2009
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If you wanted a new performance car thread from me, probably have to wait 5 years :)

With the combination of a 2nd kid on the way in November, Wifes family living in New Jersey, and my wife and I both being over 6 feet tall we had to make a move for something a little bigger than our CX-5 (Should have gotten the CX-9).

My wifes family just matter of factly stated we should get a Yukon/Suburban/Escalade like they are somehow cheap and or reasonably priced when less than 5-10 years old. And I don't think my wife liked the idea of me just finding an older GM SUV due to age/mileage. I looked a lot at the ecoboost Expeditions but it just never felt super reliable and our Ford Fiesta kind of left a terrible taste in our mouth for the Ford Dealership "Experience".

My only reason for wanting a full size SUV is to have the ability to tow an open trailer with a car to the race track which I couldn't do with this vehicle anyways as then my wife is stranded. So towing really didn't matter.

Here enters the much hated Minivan into the picture which has a lot of nice features, nicer interiors, decent handling and gets decent gas mileage (24mpg with the wife's lead foot cruising 85 the whole way to ohio and back)

Was between the Sienna SE and the Odysseys until I drove them, Sienna just drives like an appliance. Budget started at like 15k until the wife balked at the idea of driving a car with over 100k miles on road trips. (She is new to high mileage cars wheras I think all of my cars growing up were in the 150-300k mile range). So we ended up with a 2018 Honda Odyssey Elite Touring with about 50,000 miles and a nice new set of Blizzaks on the oem 19 inch wheels. I find this new style of wheel just hideous.

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So since I didn't want to drive on Blizzaks all summer I convinced the wife we needed some new wheels and tires for the car.
Got a set of 18X8 ENKEI SS05 in hyper gray, really wish I had gone for the 20's but the extra sidewall is nice for a ride I guess. Got some clearance 235/60ZR-18 CONTINENTAL EXTREMECONTACT DWS 06 XL from tire rack which ride super nice and have some decent grip for an all season.

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Got the car over to Umbra to get the front windows tinted and the windshield. Made a huge difference in heat and comfort on long trips.

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Long Road trip to new jersey so put together a Ram mount for a tablet for the kiddo

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Fully packed up to go home with a bassinet, kids mattress, 3 boxes of kids cloths, tons of other free baby/kid shit from relatives that weren't going to use them.

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Honda's "Magic seat" system where you can slide the middle seats around has been really useful for long trips. There is a removable "booster" middle seat although you can put 3 car seats across in the middle row or back row.
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Rented a Cabin on the way home near Shenadoah Natl park for a vacation.
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Just got done installing the OEM roof rails, and Yakima Cross bars and a tow hitch (Can tow 3500lbs so technically I could tow the Datsun 510 on a light weight aluminum trailer ;) ) and lights as the wife is planning on having 3 moms, 3 kids in car seats and Grandma in the car for a trip in the coming month. I already have a hitch mounted cargo rack we used with our CX-5 and we will probably throw a box up on top as otherwise I have no clue how we are leaving my wifes families Christmas in New Jersey and getting it all home. I also installed this guy https://www.etrailer.com/Vehicle-Suspension/Honda/Odyssey/2018/T26FR.html?VehicleID=20185003640 to reduce some of the sag when fully loaded down.

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Now with 7000 miles on it, it is honestly a nice car to drive, 9 speed auto is really quick to shift, 280hp V6 just scoots for a minivan and its super big and comfy and just makes road trips a ton easier than what we were doing before. Drove my family and the grandparents into the city and there is plenty of room even in the third row and parallel parking it in the city really wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. Also used it on our trip to Ohio where we were able to easily pack in 6 adults and 2 kids in car seats for trips to restaurants. My wife is finally coming around to it even though she still "hates" minivans. I think the only other contender in a few years is the new Kia Carnivale which has the minivan features but looks a bit more like an SUV so moms can't complain it is a "soccer mom minivan"
 

Intel

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Sometimes practical makes more sense.
I dig the aftermarket wheels ?
It is the dumbest thing I feel like I spent money on. And yet I still smile when I see a minivan on aftermarket wheels as I walk up to it.

If they weren't a dumb 5x120 pattern I would have put something even more "JDM" on it for the kicks. All I could find were wheels meant for the Civic Type R in the right size for this thing. As most BMW wheels are the wrong offset or people wanted crazy money for them.
 
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frank

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Mini vans with kids is such a win win, the new Kia carnival looks amazing, and the same for the chrysler can with the blacked out trim. But can’t go wrong with a Toyota or Honda and the reliability and features they offer.

when our first kid was born my wife was so against a mini van so we settled on a highlander, as the kids got older she changed her mind and wished we went with a mini van, due to the road trips we took, travel sports, kid pick ups, and just the over all room.
 

Shawn1112

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Yep, my wife used to say she'd never drive a minivan. Now, with two kids, she thinks it's the best thing in the world. I actually love it too, especially with all the gizmos they come with these days.
One of my best friends and his Wife were the same. We would never own a minivan, they are Wrangler Jeep Wave people lol. Now they just had their 3rd kid a few months ago. They have been shopping for brand new minivans for the last month lol. I've never asked him why as I get it. But he feels the need to explain to me why they need a minivan lol.
 

Yaj Yak

Gladys
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:rofl:

If you’re considering buying a minivan, first we have to commend you, because clearly you’re not an image weenie who fears how you might look in one of these maligned vehicles — or at least not so much of one that you’ll let it keep you from all they have to offer. What they offer, among other things, is extraordinary space efficiency, with cavernous confines for the amount of space they take up on the outside — superior to SUVs, be they hulking truck-based or more modest crossover styles. Minivans aren’t just for families, but they’re better than ever at catering to them, and we find the models that try too hard to be something else typically lose the advantages of the species.



i love it
 

Yaj Yak

Gladys
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It’s a Honda nuff said. My mom had a 2000 odyssey for 10+ years. Never needed a thing, not even brakes. Survived my teenage years of neutral drop burnouts. Literally still was kicking fine when we traded it.

Good purchase


it's funny cuz those years actually aren't too reliable :rofl:

they eat transmissions :rofl:
 
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