What are your actual needs that made you consider the Sienna?
Do you need all the space that a minivan provides, or do you really just need 5 seats and a good cargo area? Because for that, wagons are great and crossovers are fine (admittedly not that many wagons in the US anymore - Mercedes makes the E450 All-Terrain, but that’s, uh, not exactly a Sienna competitor in terms of pricing).
Do you need the raised ground clearance compared to a wagon or sedan? Maybe look at the Subaru Outback, the 2019-2024 model can still be had certified pre-owned and that one is still a wagon and it’s taller than most other wagons. 2025+ it’s a crossover like everything else.
Mazda has been moving upmarket with their newer crossovers. By upmarket I mean they no longer have tiny undersized engines. The new inline 6 ones don’t QUITE match the German offerings in terms of refinement, but they’re much closer than any 4-banger, while still offering pretty great reliability so far - they’ve only been out a few years, we don’t know yet if they’ll last 20 or 30. Do avoid the very early builds of the new models though, 2025 built ones should be fine already. What I love about Mazda is that several years ago, they announced that they were getting RID of touch screens, for safety. That doesn’t mean they don’t have modern screens, it just means you get controls that are easier to use while driving!
But if you really need the rear rows to have as much space as the front passengers, you need a minivan. They’re just so much more practical than crossovers when you’ve got adults sitting in the back rows, especially the 3rd row. I’ve heard great things about the Honda Odyssey. It also has a V6, so maybe the fuel consumption isn’t the best, but it’s powerful and said to last forever. May need a valve adjustment at over 150k miles, which can be done at home. Of course you should also stay on top of oil changes and timing belt changes (every 10 years or 100k miles, whichever comes first, I’d also do the tensioner and other wearable parts around the timing belt every time the TB is replaced, just for peace of mind)
What are your actual needs that made you consider the Sienna?
Do you need all the space that a minivan provides, or do you really just need 5 seats and a good cargo area? Because for that, wagons are great and crossovers are fine (admittedly not that many wagons in the US anymore - Mercedes makes the E450 All-Terrain, but that’s, uh, not exactly a Sienna competitor in terms of pricing).
Do you need the raised ground clearance compared to a wagon or sedan? Maybe look at the Subaru Outback, the 2019-2024 model can still be had certified pre-owned and that one is still a wagon and it’s taller than most other wagons. 2025+ it’s a crossover like everything else.
Mazda has been moving upmarket with their newer crossovers. By upmarket I mean they no longer have tiny undersized engines. The new inline 6 ones don’t QUITE match the German offerings in terms of refinement, but they’re much closer than any 4-banger, while still offering pretty great reliability so far - they’ve only been out a few years, we don’t know yet if they’ll last 20 or 30. Do avoid the very early builds of the new models though, 2025 built ones should be fine already. What I love about Mazda is that several years ago, they announced that they were getting RID of touch screens, for safety. That doesn’t mean they don’t have modern screens, it just means you get controls that are easier to use while driving!
But if you really need the rear rows to have as much space as the front passengers, you need a minivan. They’re just so much more practical than crossovers when you’ve got adults sitting in the back rows, especially the 3rd row. I’ve heard great things about the Honda Odyssey. It also has a V6, so maybe the fuel consumption isn’t the best, but it’s powerful and said to last forever. May need a valve adjustment at over 150k miles, which can be done at home. Of course you should also stay on top of oil changes and timing belt changes (every 10 years or 100k miles, whichever comes first, I’d also do the tensioner and other wearable parts around the timing belt every time the TB is replaced, just for peace of mind)