mmarshall

Dunno...I can't fully answer that. See my answer to bizzy928 above.

Thist was not the first time Honda got in trouble using non-Honda sources.

The Honda Passport SUV was merely a rebadged Isuzu Rodeo...a rather mediocre and poorly-finished mid-sized truck-based SUV that was OK off-road but otherwise not highly regarded and unreliable to boot.
The Acura SLX was a rebadged Isuzu Trooper that was reliable mechanically and well-built and finished but had too-high a center of gravity and a classic case of the tipsies....so much so that Consumer Reports rated the 1995 version they tested Not Acceptable.
Since then Honda/Acura has dumped the Isuzu products and replaced the Passport with the Honda-designed CRV and Pilot and the SLX with the MDX. However, unlike the previous Isuzus, ALL of the newer Honda / Acura-designed SUV's are car-based and unibody.

mmarshall

We may have gotten a little off-topic with SUV's...the main question here is which vehicle is best suited for lexusk8's needs. As I stated earlier, my vote is for a new Sienna.

lexusk8

Thank you all for your responses everyone

We went to the Central FL Toyota dealership in Orlando today (never realized before that all dealerships in FL open on Sundays ), and discovered ourselves in a brand-new '05 top of the line Sienna. It has all the options you can think of... leather seating, wood steering wheel, HID's, running boards, rear spoiler, etc. (except for DVD and navigation, we don't care much for that). After a couple hours there, we landed a deal: a 2005 XLE Limited Sienna, in mint condition, priced out the door for $35K, with everything included such as factory warranty (3 yr/36K basic, 5 yr/60K powertrain). The color of the car is Phantom Gray Pearl, which is almost like the Flint Mica in the Lexus GS and LS (very nice color) Best of all, the driving difference between this '05 and our previous '01 is like night and day, and is an immense improvement in terms of smoothness and handling. We love it

We'll be picking up the new Sienna within the next couple of days, and hope to put up some pics of the van soon

Gojirra99

Great choice Congratulations !

mmarshall

Congragulations. You made the right choice.
I'm sure you know the standard break-in rules for a new vehicle. If not, PM me and I'll give them to you.

TheRupp

..and GM gets praised for using Honda parts on the Saturn Vue

anyway, congrats Lexusk8, can't wait to see this

lexusk8

And boy, is she a beauty! Never looked back at the former '01 Sienna we sold a few days ago

Here are some shots I took:




Ahem, that's my ES parked in front of the Sienna



The spoiler option makes the van stand out from the crowd, and I especially like the chrome lines of the rear

lexusk8

And now we step into the interior. Holy moly, do we have a Lexus-like minivan in our hands!


The center console controls setup is truly an upgrade compared to the '01 predecessor. The JBL sound system is amazing, and there are plenty of compartments besides your cupholders and ashtray to store your misc. items. The wood trim does look nice, but doesn't feel nice (it's made of plastic, boo!)


The wood steering wheel is certainly a great touch, esp. for a minivan. Another feature we received with this XLE Limited van is the dynamic laser cruise control, which I've yet to test out, but I sure will soon

lexusk8

As you can see, there is plenty of room to sit up to 5 passengers in the rear, with the comfortable leather seats to keep company.


The color of the van is Phantom Gray Pearl, which we thought is a nice classy color for this car. Love it!



One more feature we discovered is the factory HID headlights. Kinda puts the cherry on top of the cake. Very cool



At nighttime, the gauge cluster lights up a faint blue. Better than the ugly pukish green from the '01 Sienna


That's all folks. We're extremely happy with our new Sienna purchase, and hope to encourage others thinking of transporting large items and/or persons to move into the minivan stage. Can't beat the quality of a Toyota, that's for sure