MrsRecon’s new family toaster!

I'm an unusual individual... being 6'6" tall comes with its own set of challenges in life. MrsRecon is 5'11"; she's not really a dwarf either.  
   ReconKids #1 and #2 are my boys, aged 16 and 14 respectively... both of them are well over 6' tall already ... ReconKids 3 through 6 (spare me the jokes, I love my large family) are all girls, and the youngest ones are still somewhat normal sized.

    All of this recent growth (vertical, for the most part) has resulted in our 2004 GMC Yukon becoming quite cramped with the whole family loaded up. Between that and the dismal cargo space, My lovely wife and I decided it was time to find something a little larger. We've looked at Expediton ELs, Suburbans, Yukon XLs, and even a 7.3 Diesel Excursion.

The problem is that anything SUV around here commands a price premium on account of the popularity tax. $8-$10K for a vehicle with well north of 100k on the odometer is a bit hard to swallow. The other problem is that my wife does rather a lot of kid hauling, as she is a college student on top of being a mom. 10-13 mpg gets to be hard on the budget after a while... so we started looking at minivans. 
 

After a mere day of searching online, a clean, one-owner Honda Odyssey popped up at the local Subaru dealer. Seats 8? Check. Power Doors and Liftgate? Check. Alloy wheels? Bonus!  
 

So, after work on Friday we popped over to take a look and found a 2013 Odyssey EX-L with 57k on the odometer. Runs, drives, and behaves like a well-maintained Honda should, so we started the paperwork process. Finished everything up this afternoon and we are now the proud owners of a new minivan (That has room for everyone!)!!!

*thumbs up*

6 kids and one of you is in college. We have two and I can't figure out where my days go.

Minivans really are fantastic for families.  Too bad so many people are prejudiced against them.  We have no kids but I'd love a minivan as a utility vehicle instead of our Suburban if we didn't need to to tow race cars around so much.  

In reply to dculberson :

Controlled chaos is a rather apt description of our lives. All but the youngest are in school, which makes quite a difference. Summer break gets interesting...

Sonic said:

Minivans really are fantastic for families.  Too bad so many people are prejudiced against them.  We have no kids but I'd love a minivan as a utility vehicle instead of our Suburban if we didn't need to to tow race cars around so much.  

This will be the third one we've owned. The other two were a Pontiac Montana (ran great, garbage interior quality) and a Nissan Quest ('05, the cool looking ones; but it was before the youngest arrived on scene) . 
 

I've always disliked the style of minivans, because they look weird to me. However, my life has always dictated function over form, and the rampant utilitarianism found in today's minivans carries far more weight than "It looks funny". 
 

Minivan=Mega fun

In reply to Recon1342 :

Odyssey's are great. Congrats on the new family hauler.... 

i just saw this meme on book of faces and was laughing about it cause it was exactly me 12 years ago.. 

In reply to spacecadet :

The oldest has an '04 Escape to drive; no hijinks in the new van allowed...

Also-

1990 Ramcharger- 190hp

2013 Odyssey- 248hp

clearly, I need more powah!!!!

I once put 2 Cadillac 472s in a Odyssey. I'll never look down at them again. 

I put a 6 top thermador range in a 2010 odyssey. Loaded and unloaded by myself somehow. They're versatile. 

In reply to grover :

Not gonna lie, that's impressive...

It's been a few days, and there are some things with the van that continue to astonish me.

1) The active cylinder management mumbo jumbo they use  to improve mileage is seamless on this car. The only way you know is if the little green "eco" light on the dash is on. It's kinda cool. 
2) Drive-by-wire throttle is a strange new world for me... This thing drives best with a feathery touch on the pedals. It doesn't require you to baby it by any means, but it rewards smooth inputs. 
3) Sound deadening, insulation, and interior fit and finish are top-notch. This is the quietest vehicle I've ever driven. 
4) The "Cool Box" is hands down the most awesome factory option ever. It's a small insulated cubby at the base of the center dash console that is cooled by the A/C. Place up to six cold sodas, or refrigerated snacks in the box, push the button, and it keeps them cold! 

5) Whoever traded this in was nice enough to put a brand-new set of 70k warranty Michelins on the rims. I'm grateful... 

So far, the family loves it; the kids all have leg (and head) room, and that's about all I can ask...

So here we are, 7 months in. The Odyssey has been as reliable as gravity. It's only required standard stuff- oil changes, fill it with gas, wash it, etc...  and we had the passenger door latch linkage fail, making it impossible to get out of the van without using the outside handle. New linkage and it's as good as new. The AC works great, which is a blessing in this summertime high-desert heat. Heated seats in the cool mornings are nice as well. So far, I'm pleased!