2005 Honda Odyssey: First year of the redesign model

We bought the Honda Odyssey in 2005 after much research on minivans. I have to admit, that I am a research freak and always want to get the best product out there for the best price, no matter what I am buying. When we had our second child, we decided to go to a mini-van from a sedan. We needed more cargo space and more seats for friends and family when we went on vacations.
I read reviews on mini-vans, both new and used. It seemed the vans with the best track records were made by Honda and Toyota. Once we determined that, we started to look for used vans on-line and in the local newspaper. It seemed that the Honda and Toyota resale values were very high compared other brands.
At that point, we decided that we might as well go and buy something new, since used would only save us a couple of thousand dollars. After test driving the Odyssey and the Sienna, I liked them both. What made me go with the Odyssey was that it was the redesign model and it was a couple of thousand dollars cheaper.
It would make sense to buy new for resale. Besides, the new model was wider, with an eighth seat, which could be removed and stored. When this seat is not present, there is a lot of room in the isle between seats.
This model is also a lot wider than the 2004 models and other mini-vans as well. I have noticed that my van has a lot more space in the interior than other vans. This is very important to me because I do not leave winter coats on my children when they are in their car seats. I have to put them on my children inside the van before they go outside of the vehicle. I could not imagine trying to do this with less space. We also have the model with the
leather seats, which is a lifesaver. It is easy to wipe up and has continued to stay supple.
I like the Odyssey's ability to handle six fast food drinks at a time in the console area of the van. It makes it a lot easier to handle drive-thru stops. But, I have to warn you that the cup-holders on the side of the second row seats break off easily when they are not put away properly. We had to have one replaced recently.
This van has been very reliable. Although, there was a recall regarding the power steering a couple of years ago. My vehicle has 80,000 miles on it and has no trouble so far.
One thing that you might want to consider on this vehicle is replacing the tires with some good all-weather or snow tires if you live in a snowy climate. I had some trouble with it sliding around last winter here in Nebraska. Honestly, I was ready to trade the Odyssey in for a four-wheel drive. But I read about success with Nokian all-weather tires on the newer Odysseys. So I bought the Nokians and they work unbelievably well on the ice. Also, the vehicle grabs the road and accelerates so much better now on dry pavement. Last winter, many SUVs were sliding around and my Odyssey was passing them by with no problem. So please consider buying Nokian tires for your van. You will not be sorry!