The 2021 Toyota Sienna vs. The 2022 Honda Odyssey

Before the SUV became the modern people mover, it was the minivan that led the pack. Early SUVs were looked at as rough, truck-based work and off-road vehicles. The minivans were tame, easy-driving, and perfect for moving large families with plenty of space.

Maybe tastes have changed in the last few decades, but vehicles like the 2021 Toyota Sienna and the 2022 Honda Odyssey demonstrate that the minivan still has a spot in the market today.

Performance

You’re not getting a minivan for the power numbers, but that doesn’t mean you should settle for slow and boring. Both the 2021 Toyota Sienna and 2022 Honda Odyssey offer different takes on what a minivan should offer.

The Odyssey opts for raw power with a 3.5-liter V6 engine, getting 280 horsepower and 262 lb-ft of torque. Combined with a 10-speed automatic transmission, it gets confident acceleration around town, and is a cruiser on the highways. It suffers from V6 fuel economy though – at 19 MPG city and 28 MPG highway it is easily outperformed by compact and many mid-size SUVs. Light steering and a great center of gravity that eliminates body roll makes the Odyssey an excellent performer, even in turns.

Toyota goes a different route with the Sienna. The hybrid drivetrain pairs a 2.5-liter four-cylinder with a pair of electric motors, for 245 horsepower flowing through a Continuously Variable Transmission. However, the hybrid drivetrain provides instant torque for snappy acceleration around town. On the highway, the gasoline-powered engine takes over and it is hampered slightly – but the tradeoff for that is incredible fuel economy. Two-wheel drive versions get 36 MPG city and 36 MPG highway. Unlike the Odyssey, you can get the Toyota with all-wheel drive, and this offers 35 MPG city and 36 MPG highway. Steering is responsive and handling is stable.

Design & Comfort

The main reason most drivers opt for a minivan is the space – you want room for passengers, pets, cargo, and more! Both the 2021 Toyota Sienna and 2022 Honda Odyssey offer expansive cabins. The Sienna has seating for seven or eight passengers depending on the layout you choose. Interior space overall is slightly limited – there is 33.5 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third row, but due to second-row seats that don’t fold flat, cargo space overall is limited to 101 cubic feet. The Odyssey also offers seating for seven or eight passengers, but has a larger overall cabin – there is 38.6 cubic feet of storage space behind the third row, and 158 cubic feet overall.

Technology

Modern headaches require modern solutions, which is why the 2021 Toyota Sienna and the 2022 Honda Odyssey both feature high levels of integration of technology. The base Odyssey is fairly sparse however – a 5-inch infotainment display with dual USB ports, Bluetooth, and a seven-speaker stereo is standard. Over on the Sienna, it’s a very different story, as every model comes with a 9-inch touch screen infotainment display featuring Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and Amazon Alexa integration, Bluetooth, seven USB ports, six speakers, and a WiFi hotspot. You can get that smartphone integration, additional USB ports, and an 8-inch touch screen on the Honda as an upgrade though.

Safety

Every vehicle on the road sports a wide array of safety features these days, and minivans go above and beyond many of them! The 2022 Honda Odyssey features the Honda Sensing Suite of systems that includes forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, a rearview camera, traffic sign recognition, stop-and-go adaptive cruise control, road departure mitigation and automatic high-beam headlights. Independent from the suite but still standard is the rear-seat reminder system that makes sure you don’t leave a child or pet behind! Optional safety features include front and rear parking sensors, blind spot monitoring, and rain-sensing windshield wipers.

Toyota also offers a similar package, with rearview camera, forward collision warning, adaptive cruise control, collision mitigation braking, road departure mitigation, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, rear cross traffic alert, road sign recognition, and automatic emergency braking all standard. A surround-view parking system and hands-free park assist are optional, along with front and rear parking sensors.

If you’re going for a minivan, both of these are solid choices. The 2021 Toyota Sienna offers all-wheel drive and fuel economy, along with more standard technology. The 2022 Odyssey provides a larger cabin and more standard safety features. The choice is yours, but one thing is for sure, the minivan is still a solid choice in the people-mover category!