I am constantly surprised by the capacity and versatility of our Honda Odyssey. Normally when people need to haul something, they think of using a truck or a large van like a Dodge Sprinter or Nissan NV. Surprisingly enough, I have found that most of our hauling needs are easily taken care of by the Odyssey.
Recently we had a photo shoot for Motor Trend Classic that featured oodles of sports clothes and equipment. Our stylists were able to bring about 90% of what we needed, hauling the bags and boxes in the back of their small SUV. When it came time to pick up the larger items, we summoned the Odyssey for duty. With 148.5 cubic feet of cargo capacity (with the second row seats removed, and the third row tucked into the floor), we were able to fit a bicycle, a locker room bench, and a full size locker! This was more than the stylists' SUV could handle.
Aside from how much stuff we can haul with our hard-working minivan, the interior features tend to impress each passenger that climbs inside. I took a few colleagues from another department out to lunch the other day, and they were all "ooh"-ing and "ahh"-ing over the luxurious interior. "Wow, this Odyssey almost makes me want a minivan!" said one colleague. "This actually makes minivans cool!" said another enthusiastically, while investigating each button and feature. Considering these are young, unmarried adults, without any kids, they were completely blown away by the Odyssey.
Just goes to show you that the minivan stereotype can be shaken when it hauls like a truck and pampers like a limo.
| Our Car |
| Service life | 11 months/24,341 miles |
| Average fuel economy | 21.7 mpg |
| CO2 emissions | 0.89 lb/mi |
| Energy consumption | 115 kW-hr/100mi |
| Unresolved problems | None |
| Maintenance cost | $187.82 (2 x oil change, tire rotation, inspection) |
| Normal-wear cost | $0 |