2005 Honda Odyssey EX review from North America

I previously wrote about my negative experiences with my 2002 Chrysler Town and country. The fact that I had a good experience with my 1999 Toyota Siena and bad experiences with my 2002 Town and Country made me trade in that Van with only a tad over 18,000 miles (I bought it in 2003). This year alone, the Chrysler Town and Country had two recalls. The first was for replacement of the upper power steering hose. The second and most recent is for electrical fires from the rear speakers.

The 2005 Honda Odyssey is the best vehicle I have ever owned (so far)! It's too soon to tell, but the mileage is good even though the engine cranks out 255 HP. The handling is very good, it is more like driving a car then a van until you look around at all of the room you have. An added plus is the removable center middle row seat that makes it an 8 seater rather then a 7 seater. The seat belt for this chair comes down from the roof, brillient!This van has a lot of pep from that 3.5 liter engine and 5 speed transmission. The car is made of 70% American parts and 30% Japanese (mostly the transmission).

Another plus is that they no longer charge over the manufacturers sticker price, you get the colors you want and delivery is only a couple of days (mine took 3 days, it was not in stock). If you are trading in a vehicle, don't settle on the first price, we saved $3,000 on ours by "negotiating".

So far, a real great experience, very happy!