Oddyssey VS Suburban?

[Stayseeliz]

We currently have a 2003 Oddyssey with 160k miles on it. It's in good working order and we've rebuilt the transmission and replaced all the locks when they messed up. It's paid for. A friend of mine is selling their 2005 Suburban with 125k miles on it for $9000. I'm tempted.

 

We are a family of six. My two big kids (almost 12 and 9) sit in the bench seat in the back. It's fairly comfortable but it's a bit cramped. When I sit back there I'm miserable and I'm average height for a woman. We have no luggage rack and no hitch on our van. Those two things make things incredibly cramped on long trips as the van is stuffed to the gills. We have thought about getting a hitch and putting a small storage trailer on the car for long trips when we'll have lots of stuff. Looking into safety ratings the Oddyssey wins hands down. It also has slightly better gas mileage but not by much. We don't really haul others around often so that's not an issue.

 

The Suburban seems like it would give us much more room but I'm not sure when we'll actually NEED that room. I grew up roaming around a station wagon without seatbelts so I'm not sure when the kids will get super cramped. I'm afraid the Suburban might be too much car for us right now. The gas mileage is a factor since the kids will be doing activities 30 miles away 2-3 days a week in the fall. We'll also have to take out a loan for the difference between the price of the Suburban and what we can sell our van for (looks like around $6k). We normally pay cash for cars but I'm thinking about this since a friend is selling.

 

Thanks for any advice. Sorry about the rambling. Just trying to think this through. I'm leaning toward keeping the van at least for now. Car payments stink.

[mamakelly]

We have an 07 Suburban and are considering downsizing to a mini-van. My gas mileage is terrible, I average 15 mpg. I thought Sienna and Oddyssey were better!? LOL!

[KungFuPanda]

I'd make the decision based upon how you use the vehicle 70-80% of the time. If camping or long trips happen only once or twice a season, the roomier vehicle wouldn't be worth it to me. In your situation, I'd decide what's best asked upon those twice weekly, 30 minute trips and learn to pack lighter :-)

[RemsMom]

I have a Sienna and get 20 MPG. My Suburban got about 15 MPG. I drove my Suburban for 11 years and put 260,000 miles on it before DH insisted that it was getting too old and I needed a new vehicle. We sold my Suburban to a friend and he gave it to his adult daughter who drives it long distances with her small children and loves it.

 

The Suburban is a larger vehicle. My Sienna will fit seven passengers and a ton of luggage. My Suburban would seat eight and hold more luggage. The Sienna is much easier to park. When I first got it I felt like I was driving a sports car it felt so small! OP, am I reading correctly that you have four children and the oldest is 12? One of the reasons that we didn't purchase a new Suburban was because the year we got the Sienna DD22 was in her senior year of high school and was planning to go out of state for college, DS was in 8th grade, and our youngest was in kindergarten. We decided that we didn't need a Suburban. So far the Sienna has been great for us (it even fits my 100 lbs. German Shepherd). My Sienna is my second favorite vehicle that I have ever had, the Suburban was the favorite.

 

I know I have not helped much in your decision. I just thought I would give you the perspective of someone who had a lot of years driving a Suburban and a mini-van.

[coffeegal]

:auto: Mom had a minivan when I was in high school. My 2 middle siblings sat in the back, while I sat in the middle row next to my baby sister. Could you rearrange the sitting assignments similarly in a year or two? Move #3 into the back while moving your oldest forward? Rearranging seat assignments is much easier than figuring out car payments. ;)

[kitten18]

Have you been in/ridden in the suburban? Before I bought my 2005 odyssey, I looked at/test drove every large suv on the market. None of them had as much room in back as the odyssey.

[Pawz4me]

There is no way on earth I'd trade an Odyssey for a used Surburban with that many miles and pay $3K to boot (I hope I figured that amount right). I believe if you check most ratings they'll say that the Odyssey wins on safety, gas mileage and reliability. I suspect it's more comfortable, but that's subjective of course.

[bettyandbob]

You don't NEED to haul anything,although you'd like to.

Your gas mileage will significantly change and this will affect your budget since you have a 30 mile commute to activities.

You have to take out a loan.

 

These are big negatives that would not be overcome to me.

[LaxMom]

We traded our Suburban for an Odyssey in 2005. It's much more comfortable and gets much better gas mileage.

 

And, quite frankly, after a string of absolutely horrible GM vehicles, including the Suburban, we will never own another.

[AdventureMoms]

I have a odyssey and get 22mpg driving in town (stop and go). I think you'll be paying a lot more for gas with the suburban, plus the loan. A family of 6 should fit comfortably - you could put the bigger kids up front for longer rides.

 

If cargo room is the issue, how much would it cost to install a roof rack? Or a hitch? I know the hitch is pricey (we're considering one) but maybe worth it if you need to haul large things often enough.

[Night Elf]

I cannot compare the two because I've only driven an Odyssey, but thought I'd throw in some comments about the value of the SUV.

 

I like to use Edmunds.com to give me a rough appraisal of the car's worth. I put in just a little information for you, assuming trim, color and condition, and the suggested sale price was $6100. You would have to know the particulars such as trim level, features like dvd player, power seats, etc., mileage, color and condition to get a better idea though. That $9000 may be an overinflated price.

 

I've used it to appraise cars on a car lot and they weren't too far off the mark. I think it gives three prices, one for trade-in value, one for dealership sale, and one for private sale.

 

Then there is carfax which will tell you whether the vehicle has been in any accidents, but if you're buying from a trusted friend, you could probably skip that part. If you wanted to do it though, you would need the VIN number.

[Stayseeliz]

Thanks for the advice! I think I'm over the Suburban. We do have to do something about the cargo issue since we regularly make 9 hour trips to see my family. I think we're going to look into getting a luggage rack installed. We don't want to tow anything heavy given the fact that we rebuilt the transmission. But we were thinking about getting a small luggage carrier for the back that would use a hitch.

 

I could probably move my 5 year old to the backseat if my oldest starts complaining about leg room. My 2yo is still rear facing so she has to stay in the middle seats since I can't get her buckled in if she's in the back.

 

Thanks for helping me think it through!!

[DawnM]

Good thinking.

 

I too vote to keep the Odyssey. I really don't like Suburbans. Poor gas mileage and lower ratings, etc....

 

 

Thanks for the advice! I think I'm over the Suburban. We do have to do something about the cargo issue since we regularly make 9 hour trips to see my family. I think we're going to look into getting a luggage rack installed. We don't want to tow anything heavy given the fact that we rebuilt the transmission. But we were thinking about getting a small luggage carrier for the back that would use a hitch.

 

I could probably move my 5 year old to the backseat if my oldest starts complaining about leg room. My 2yo is still rear facing so she has to stay in the middle seats since I can't get her buckled in if she's in the back.

 

Thanks for helping me think it through!!

[Miss Marple]

If the Odyssey is in good working condition, keep it. It sounds like the Suburban isn't offering you anything other than perhaps some longevity. Honda's are known to go a long time as are Suburbans. No payments, better gas mileage, and room for all - I don't see the Suburban giving you any advantage. FWIW we own both a Suburban (2003) and an Odyssey (2006). It is really a trade-off in terms of space, IMO. The boys prefer the Suburban seats for comfort for long trips. We like the 4 wheel drive for those few time a year we need it and when we go skiing. I find the Odyssey will carry more stuff because the seats fold down into the floor and remove completely. This has been handy moving our sons back and forth from college. I can definitely fit more in the Honda. The Suburban gets about 15 mpg and the Odyssey about 20-22. The Honda is easier to park and maneuver. I would question the safety issue because the Suburban is just so much heavier and substantial. Out here we have a lot of roll overs - people speed down our country roads which are narrow. They catch the edge with a wheel and, oops!, over they go. I'd rather be in the Suburban any day in an accident. The Honda is easier to get in an out of particularly the backseat. If you need more room on trips, I would suggest a car top carrier. We purchased a Yakima (I believe that's the brand) on Craigslist. We use it on both vehicles. I, personally, find the Honda to be the most boring, vanilla vehicle I've ever driven - but at this point in my life, I really don't care anymore :)

 

In this economy, keep what you have as long as it's reliable.

[catz]

For much less than 9K, you could outfit your Odyssey with a roof rack/box that could carry over to your next vehicle as well if you need more cargo space for trips. We have a yakima system that has been used on at least 3 vehicles, including a rocket box.

[KrissiK]

One thing to consider, too, though you may not have this problem with your children, is that a mini-van's doors slide, an SUV's doors open out. Think dings on your doors and on the doors of the poor saps who park next to you, depending on how your children open car doors. Someone pointed that out to me when we were considering buying a new car years ago, and with my boys, I am so glad we went with the mini-van.

[Alessandra]

I'd make the decision based upon how you use the vehicle 70-80% of the time. If camping or long trips happen only once or twice a season, the roomier vehicle wouldn't be worth it to me. In your situation, I'd decide what's best asked upon those twice weekly, 30 minute trips and learn to pack lighter :-)

 

 

I went through a similar decision process when I bought my last car. I realized that I could RENT a large vehicle for the few times I needed one, and renting would cost much less than maintaining a larger vehicle day in and day out.

 

Also, did anyone mention checking into how comparing insurance costs for the two vehicles?

[Stayseeliz]

Oh I'm sure my kids would swing the door out fast and hit someone else's car. They do that in my husband's Nissan sometimes. I'm always having to tell them to be careful with the doors. That would be stressful to have to do all the time. The safety ratings I found were on Motortrend's website. It was hands down more favorable for the Honda. I'm going to email her and tell her that we're staying with the Honda for now. It does seem to be in good working order and I think we can make it work for a good long while if we just rearrange seating as needed and add more room for luggage. I try to pack light but when we go down for Christmas, etc it gets SUPER packed.