2005 Honda Odyssey

When the hinge broke on our conversion van following a summer of repairs, the hubby and I decided it was time to substitute repair bills for monthly van payments. One look at the 2005 Honda Odyssey and we dropped all ideas about purchasing another full sized van and went for the so called "minivan" instead.

Redesigned for 2005, the Odyssey has a few new bells and whistles. We purchased the Odyssey EX with leather, DVD and Navigation system. Listed at $34,595, we wrangled a deal at $32,800 and drove away with "Desert Rock Metallic" colored van. In other words, we purchased a sparkling tan van with a tan interior.

How Does It Ride?
The 255 horsepower, V-6 engine must be good: the van moves well upon acceleration and has a nice, firm feel when driving. The van handles corners well with no leaning and has a comfortable ride in the city and on the highway. It handles potholes with just a little jarring.

The EX-L comes with Variable Cylinder Management, a feature that allows you save a bit of gas. The engine effortlessly shifts between using 4 cylinders and 6 cylinders depending on driving conditions. A nice feature to have considering that gas prices have gone sky high. This baby gets 20 city mpg and 28 mpg on the highway. Definitely a big improvement over our old full-sized conversion van.

So How Does it Look on the Outside?
The 2005 design features a sleek new look with redesigned head and rear lights. The headlights literally sparkle and demand attention; this simple design change is likely the reason that the 2005 Odyssey has won awards for the "Most Wanted Mini-Van" by Edmunds. Our van included pin stripes (a dealer incentive) to give it a polished look with a little extra styling. A moon roof is standard on this model.

And the Inside?

Ah, the interior is what sold us. Beautiful, soft leather with a grain quality comparable to a nice purse covers the seats. The driver's seat comes equipped with 8 choices for seat adjustment, including manual lumbar support. However, compared to the seats in our full sized van, the Odyssey comes up short in the comfort department. The arm rests are short and narrow and the seat is a bit firm.

I was completely surprised by the leg room between the seats. My kids were used to the full sized van, so I worried that they would be packed like sardines in a mini-van. The Odyssey provides ample leg room that allows adults to reside comfortably in the second row. The third row is a bit tighter, but still provides adequate leg room. The 2005 boasts a roomier interior than previous years.

Thanks to a second row Plus One seat, the Odyssey can hold up to 8 passengers. The second row has two captain chairs, with the Plus One seat in-between. The cushion stows in the stowing compartment between the front seats and the second row seats when not in use and the seat turns into a center console that holds drinks. The entire seat is removable and the captain seats can be kept apart or pushed together.

Speaking of the stowing compartment, it can be accessed in two ways. One, via a small door that allows you access to the lazy Susan (a round plastic turntable that allows you to store small items or CDs) inside the compartment or by opening the larger door to access the entire compartment. When the lazy Susan is removed, you can store larger items or the cushion from the middle seat inside. It is nice to have this feature, but it becomes a negative aspect when you want to store the middle seat, something has to end up in the back of the van.

Speaking of Storage
I thought I would miss the cavernous storage area in the back of my full sized van, but when the dealer pulled open the back door of the Odyssey, I found myself saying, "Oh wow!" Wow, indeed. The cargo area features a deep storage area that can easily hold $300 (or is it $500 worth considering how expensive food is getting?) worth of groceries. If you need more room, you can have the entire third row "disappear" into this space easily. The third row seats are divided into one and two seats, allowing you to fold down one third or two thirds of the seats into the cargo compartment as well. A cargo net is included to allow you to fill up the entire cargo area without spilling the contents when the door is opened.

The Odyssey comes not with one, but two glove compartments. This is a handy feature, because the smaller compartment features a flat storage area which comes in handy for papers and small items. The larger compartment is shaped similar to glove compartments found in cars.

The Stuff Up Front

The console holds so many electronic gizmos that one ends up a bit dizzy when trying to figure it all out. There are three buttons for the moon roof alone. One to open it all the way flat, the other to pop open only the rear part, and one to close the whole thing. Standard equipment includes rear window wipers, cruise control, power windows (the sliding doors include power windows as well), heated mirrors, and three power outlets. Fortunately, everything is outlined with a clear graphic and raised buttons that it is easy to navigate.

Ah yes, speaking of navigation, our model came equipped with a navigation center. My husband complained loudly that we would never use the thing and that we should really look for a model that wasn't equipped. Lo and behold, who's the guy at the wheel playing with the navigation thing as we drove up to Michigan that first weekend? As it turned out, the navigation feature has come in handy several times, especially when trying to locate a wedding that took place on a farm in the middle of no where.

We accidently discovered the 6 CD changer when we pressed a button on the Navigation screen. Suddenly, the entire screen folded down backwards and we discovered the access to the CD panel. That little gizmo has a little "Wow" factor when it comes to entertaining friends along for a ride.

There's even more "Wow" factor: put the van in reverse and a camera in the back of the van gives you a bird's eye view when you're backing up. You'll never again feel the crunch of a skateboard as you back down the driveway. This feature comes in handy when you're backing up in parking lots as well.

Unfortunately, my entire family is deaf, so we can't really comment on the sound system. All I can tell you is that when I crank it up, it sounds good. The Odyssey rides so smoothly that the outside noise is kept to a minimum compared to our 2001 Accord.

It's Too Hot! It's Too Cold. It's Just Right!
The Odyssey EX-L comes equipped with heated leather seats. For the purpose of this Epinion, I tried it out in 90 degree weather. Quite an interesting sensation to have the AC at full blast and a hot seat below. The temperature controls include a three zone heating/cooling feature, with a lock so that the kids can't play with the rear controls when you don't want them to. The best part of all is that I no longer have to fight with the hubby over the temperature dial. The driver and passenger have separate controls, so for once, there is peace and harmony when it comes to hot flashes on the road. Can't put a price on that.

Is That All?
The 9-inch DVD player is another extra that I am thankful for. We travel frequently to Michigan and it is pure bliss when there is quiet in the van for two full hours. This is an extra that is well worth the money. One of these days, I'm going to jump in the back with the kids and actually see a movie from beginning to end. Someday...

All in all, we've been extremely pleased with this van. My major complaint is that there is no, and I repeat, no coin holder. What were the designers thinking?