2006 Honda Odyssey EX Mini-Van - the Perfect Family Mini-Van or Not?

Think you will never drive a mini-van? I swore I wouldn't drive a mini-van either until my son was born earlier this year. I had a perfectly fine mid-size car which I thought would suit our needs, no way would I drive a mini-van. Then when it was time to upgrade my son to a regular car seat instead of an infant carrier and I found that the seat would not fit in the back seat of my car. I even traded the first car seat in for another model thinking it was the car seat. Unfortunately, it ended up that my car was too small. So thus began the search for something that would comfortably fit my son's car seat and the 15,000 other items needed to take care of the little guy. After exhausting all the automobiles available on the market, I kept coming back to the mini-van, specifically the Honda Odyssey mini-van. Nothing could compare to the ease, comfort, and price that the Odyssey could offer my family. Of course, nothing is perfect, so there are a few things that aren't so great about my Honda Odyssey, but all in all, this is one mini-van that you just can't beat.

The Pros

When looking for an automobile car the first thing that makes or breaks what most people are even looking at would have to be the price. If the automobile isn't in your price range then you most likely wouldn't even bother to look at it. Luckily, the Honda Odyssey fits a wide range of price ranges because Honda does a great job at fitting the different models for different lifestyles and price ranges. The Odyssey luckily fit within our price range. The other great thing that Honda does is pretty much makes each of their models - LX, EX, EX-L and Touring - pretty standard across the board. So while there are available add on's - you aren't haggling over the price on standard equipment. We choose the EX model which offers - cruise control, power windows/doors, keyless remote, power sliding doors on BOTH sides, seating for 8 passengers, built in sunshades, 6 disc CD changer, dual zone air conditioner and a rear air conditioner. All Honda Odyssey models offer very easy to use storable rear seats, great interior cloth, plenty of storage, great sound system, and the standard safety and re-assurance that Honda automobiles have gained through the years.

While I quickly went through the list of pro's I wanted to specifically highlight a few features that really make the Honda Odyssey stand out above the rest. After test driving several mini-van's I found that the Odyssey was the only one within my budget that offered dual-sliding power doors. This is a huge benefit to anyone and especially to a mom carrying children, groceries, and the like. Some of the other mini-van's I tested only offered one side, no-sides, or weren't anywhere close to the price range of the Odyssey. Another advantage to the Odyssey is that it not only has the tinted rear windows but built in sun-shades. Again, being a mother who has had to wrestle with the different sun-shades available to only have them continue to fall off or look really tacky, this is a wonderful feature.

The Cons

While the Honda Odyssey is a great automobile, no car is perfect. I absolutely love the multiple air conditioner/heat zones that the Odyssey offers. The driver and the front passenger can have different comfort levels and the rear has a completely different system. While this feature is nice, Honda failed to do something that is so important and that is have temperature control for the rear adjustable in the front. The rear-passengers can adjust the temperature, but the driver cannot reach it or adjust it from the front. Honda did think to include the fan control for the rear but not the temperature. Again, as a mother, it is too dangerous to expect my children to unbuckle themselves out of the car-seat in order to adjust the temperature. It's also dangerous for me to have to try to reach back there to fix it. The only other complaint, I have about the Honda Odyssey is not having a telescoping steering wheel. You can move the wheel up and down but not in and out. Normally, this would not be too much of a problem; however, I feel the Odyssey's steering wheel feels close to the front windshield and would love to be able to pull it closer to the driver's seat.

Overall, the two minor issues I have with the Honda Odyssey do not outweigh what a great convenience and perfect family automobile that the Odyssey offers my family. I do highly recommend it and hope that Honda will fix these two issues in the 2007 or 2008 model so down the road when I buy my next Odyssey I can then say it's perfect mini-van!