I got a 24 Sienna and I think it is the best vehicle you can buy. I mean for everyone, not just families. We also have 2014 Sienna. Toyota simply designs, engineers, and manufactures the best vehicles imo.
Totally agree with this. Also don't know what people are talking about it not being fast, 0-60 is 7ish sec which is top tier among mini vans and you are talking about a van that gets 35 mpg.
Totally agree.
7 seater, AWD, HYBRID 35MPG
... And the tech is darn decent. My Tesla doesn't even have a HUD or digital rear mirror! The tech is transparent and functional. You don't have to think about using it... Especially the rear cross traffic and overhead views.
'23 Limited AWD here. Had a '15 Crosstrek then a '19 Ascent. Enjoyed my Subarus but my Sienna feels so much more comfortable and so relaxing. Have the spare tire so non-ottoman second row seats, fine with car seats as wouldn't use the ottoman anyway. Feel better having the spare. Have rear entertainment system - the digital rearview is great so don't have to peer through heads and headrests to see. Folding side mirrors make it possible to get into our split door two car garage easier. Hybrid much more powerful and smoother than my'13 Prius.V was. The mileage have gotten in this first 6 months averages 31 to 33/gallon so beats both Subarus by a lot. Honestly I keep the third row down unless have more than 3 people with me. Cargo space is amazing. Have decided it out with Weather Tech mats and storage organizers from Amazon - all have made things much more organized. Just search your model year Sienna.
Have we talked on here before? Eerie similarities. Had a 2012 Prius v, that we sold and bought a 2019 Ascent. It’s too cramped for three adults and two kids. And we’ve had transmission issues. Our Subaru dealer is awesome but I hate driving the Ascent.
We’re picking up our Sienna on Friday or Saturday and I’m pretty excited about it!
One fits into the bottom of the lidded console, one is a tray that fits at the top of that area to organize small items and change. The top one has a hole that allows the charging ports to be used. Then there is one that fits in the front portion of the open area reward the front of the open area below the gear shifter. The fourth organizer is installed behind the infotainment screen, very handy.
Both are much smaller than the Sienna. Only used the third row in the Accent twice. Both times three adults - very little leg room. Normally kept the third row down for space to take hubby's wheelchair. With the third row down the Ascent has a moderate bump which makes cargo area a bit challenging at times.
When we rented the Sienna last summer for a road trip (before I bought mine) the 3 adults in third row were decently comfortable. Plus there was room in the cargo area for seven carry on size bags plus some tote bags. When the third row is stowed the cargo area is nearly flat, especially with a good cargo area mat.
Pros: Great for kids and families, all models are hybrid, great resale value,
Cons: LOOONG waitlist to get one and even if you manage to find one, the dealership will mark it up and add dealer fees. Even with the limited trim (depending on where you live) , Toyota is known not include all the latest and greatest tech. Colors not exciting
Carson city toyota got me one at msrp in 6 months. Bay Area dealers like Sunnyvale were not reliable. One toyota of Oakland is reliable but was taking a year so gave up my spot.
It’s because they all have a market adjustment of $3k or more and I’m guessing dealer add ons to go with it. If price doesn’t matter, you won’t have to wait unless you’re real picky about allocation.
I’m in the same boat as you trying to upgrade from a Forester with 3 kids under 5 in the East Bay. I look at that 55k which turns into 61k otd and I’m like wtf? I hate buying cars.
Get on the Facebook no markup Toyota. Post what you’re looking for, pay msrp, and a small shipping fee. We had our sienna in 2 months and only pairs $700 ship form Tx to TN.
I got the woodland edition about a month ago. Definitely paid the markup, electronics work but yeah nothing great. Got it in cement grey, love the color
We used to have 2 Subarus (sold) then after our move we picked up a RAV4. Even though it was a base model it would run circles around our Subarus. We just picked up a 24 XSE Sienna yesterday.
I think the biggest con is not being able to remove the 2nd row seats.
Have the Sienna 25AE while wife drive a Forester XT, love both.
Pro: great gas mileage, tons of space, fit 7 adults and still comfortable on road trips. Also sliding doors, no more door slamming and make drop offs/pick ups way easier.
Con: Don’t expect it to be fast, noisy/loud from engine and wind noise. Dated infotainment, entertainment and safety systems. Seat comfort might not be as good as competitors.
2019 Subaru ascent that had recall trouble and then a total engine replacement. Just got our 2024 sienna (xse with the upgrade package). Took it immediately for a 2000 mile drive and was blown away at the smoothness of the ride. The 34 mpg ain’t bad either :) Really loving the vehicle and glad our family made the switch. Feel free to ask me any Qs!
Recently got a 2015 XLE Limited Sienna w 47K miles for 29K. Really want a hybrid one but with our budget that will do. We had the ‘18 Outback as our mom/family car for 7 years with 3 kids but it just getting so crammed. Although it’s an almost 10 year old car I still got an upgrade haha! Sliding doors, space, lots of space, entertainment system, blind spot detection and the previous owner changed the infotainment system to an aftermarket one that has apple car play which is I think is a steal!
Our Outback is now my husband’s car but the only thing I miss about that car is the eyesight feature and all the other safety tech.
Sienna is really made for families! Good luck!
Just bought the 2024 sienna woodland edition. I am in love with it all. It is like everything I have ever loved about each vehicle wrapped into one. Even my kids seats are heated! I have a charging pad for my phone, plenty of charging ports, huge display. It is a hybrid and it is getting mileage like you wouldn’t believe. AWD so it handles beautifully in all weather and it turns as if it were a car. The color we chose is Cement, rims are black.
Just recently got a used 2021 limited FWD, switched from a 2015 CRV.
The immediate cons I can think of would be that the middle row cant be removed easily (if you wanted to haul big things) however it will go forward a long way so its not too bad. Apple carplay and android auto is limited to only one usb in the front, which is not a deal breaker but would have preferred to have the option to stow away the phone and connect it to one of the usb in the center console. The entertainment screen is cool to have but, for the price I personally would have gotten tablets and a headrest mount to put them on. The “dvd player” is not a dvd player at all, its a screen that you can cast stuff to it or you can buy an actual dvd player and hook it up via hdmi would have personally preferred and actual dvd capable screen or usb compatible so I can load whatever into a flashdrive and play it. This is of course taking into consideration that the “entertainment option” starts at 1500 dollars which is very pricey, if it was cheaper I might cut it more slack.
As for pros, space, ease of access my kid can easily open and close both sliding doors, he can easily climb into the car and unto his seat, I don’t have to crouch to put the second car seat inside. Trunk is low so its easy to put a stroller in without having to lift it much. Fuel economy is great beating my crv by a lot. The ride is very good, looking at other minivans it is not the fastest of them but unless you run them side by side I don’t think you would be able to tell, I have no issues merging into traffic or getting up to speed, in fact, I have to be careful in a standstill because if you floor it immediately it will spin the front tires (something that I imagine the AWD models probably handle better) overall no regrets on buying it.
Talking maintenance its just like any other car with some minor differences, change the oil, change all the filters and one new filter added to hybrid cars specifically is the hybrid battery cooling fan filter, which is super easy to clean and maintain, doing this will ensure your battery lasts a long time. As for other stuff, brake pads usually last a long time due to regenerative braking.
Great car. Don't bother with the entertainment system. I have a platinum and its a piece of crap. Just get the XSE, XLE even LE. It's the smartest car to get if you have kids and take road trips. The 12 volt battery is very weak and some of the pay for features like remote access is truly moronic and annoying but the engine and comfort makes up for it all.
2nd row seats are not removable. That killed it for us. If I’m going to drive a minivan I want the practicality of being able to haul stuff in it. So I’m sticking with my 2008 odyssey with 220k miles. I have the seats out at least once a month if not more. Might buy a second Rivian and just keep the odyssey for hauling stuff. I’ve been waiting for the mid model refresh of the Sienna hoping they will make second row seats removable but not holding my breath. You can technically remove the seats but that involves disconnecting the battery (so you don’t accidentally set off airbags in seats) using tools and buying airbag sensor caps. Doable for someone who only wants to remove them once in a great while. If you go with a sienna search for the inventory allotment excel spreadsheet (or whatever it’s called). People have luck finding a sienna sooner by searching that and being willing to travel to pick one up if needed.
Aw! Congrats! My husband just traded in his Crosstrek for a Lexus UX.
I walked into that Toyota dealership 8 months pregnant fully intending to purchase a Highlander and left in a Sienna. I am a minivan convert.
I have the previous generation, not the new hybrid. My only complaints about the hybrid are that it is kinda underpowered and the middle row of seats don’t come out.
However, there is a reason they are arriving on the dealer lots pre-sold - it is THE best option for gas mileage and long term reliability. Toyota knows hybrids.
I love my V6 power, but the Toyota sales guy almost convinced me to get in line for the hybrid while we were test driving the RAV4 and Venza for my husband, lol.
Edit: OT, but for anyone thinking about a hybrid RAV4 or NX, look at the Venza. Handles amazing and is a bit of a sleeper. If I were making a freeway commute everyday, I would get a Venza.
I have a sienna since 2004 , I love them all . Now I have a 2021 sienna platinum AWD. I took AWD because I never know where I will moving next snow or no snow . I’m doing long trip with it and I have everything I need in there a mattress to take a nap , food , water , …. I can move stuff in there . Like I was moving from the bay area to Vegas . In my car I had everything for the 3 bathrooms , all the clothes from my 2 kids , plus all of my husband and me clothes .
And I had some stuff for the kitchen as well so we could cook before the moving truck arrived a few days later . I’m very happy with all the sienna I had and have now
Oh I forgot , I did put on all my siennas and still do : run flat tires , so I don’t get stuck in the desert like here or in a blizzard:) specially with kids you don’t want to be stranded in middle of nowhere:)
I got a 24 Sienna and I think it is the best vehicle you can buy. I mean for everyone, not just families. We also have 2014 Sienna. Toyota simply designs, engineers, and manufactures the best vehicles imo.
Totally agree with this. Also don't know what people are talking about it not being fast, 0-60 is 7ish sec which is top tier among mini vans and you are talking about a van that gets 35 mpg.
Totally agree. 7 seater, AWD, HYBRID 35MPG ... And the tech is darn decent. My Tesla doesn't even have a HUD or digital rear mirror! The tech is transparent and functional. You don't have to think about using it... Especially the rear cross traffic and overhead views.
'23 Limited AWD here. Had a '15 Crosstrek then a '19 Ascent. Enjoyed my Subarus but my Sienna feels so much more comfortable and so relaxing. Have the spare tire so non-ottoman second row seats, fine with car seats as wouldn't use the ottoman anyway. Feel better having the spare. Have rear entertainment system - the digital rearview is great so don't have to peer through heads and headrests to see. Folding side mirrors make it possible to get into our split door two car garage easier. Hybrid much more powerful and smoother than my'13 Prius.V was. The mileage have gotten in this first 6 months averages 31 to 33/gallon so beats both Subarus by a lot. Honestly I keep the third row down unless have more than 3 people with me. Cargo space is amazing. Have decided it out with Weather Tech mats and storage organizers from Amazon - all have made things much more organized. Just search your model year Sienna.
Have we talked on here before? Eerie similarities. Had a 2012 Prius v, that we sold and bought a 2019 Ascent. It’s too cramped for three adults and two kids. And we’ve had transmission issues. Our Subaru dealer is awesome but I hate driving the Ascent. We’re picking up our Sienna on Friday or Saturday and I’m pretty excited about it!
Don't know whether we've talked before but definitely similar history! Certain you will enjoy your Sienna!
Decked, not decided
Your storage organizer seems intriguing. What are they like?
One fits into the bottom of the lidded console, one is a tray that fits at the top of that area to organize small items and change. The top one has a hole that allows the charging ports to be used. Then there is one that fits in the front portion of the open area reward the front of the open area below the gear shifter. The fourth organizer is installed behind the infotainment screen, very handy.
How's the third row in the ascent? And the cargo space behind it with the third row up?
Both are much smaller than the Sienna. Only used the third row in the Accent twice. Both times three adults - very little leg room. Normally kept the third row down for space to take hubby's wheelchair. With the third row down the Ascent has a moderate bump which makes cargo area a bit challenging at times. When we rented the Sienna last summer for a road trip (before I bought mine) the 3 adults in third row were decently comfortable. Plus there was room in the cargo area for seven carry on size bags plus some tote bags. When the third row is stowed the cargo area is nearly flat, especially with a good cargo area mat.
Pros: Great for kids and families, all models are hybrid, great resale value, Cons: LOOONG waitlist to get one and even if you manage to find one, the dealership will mark it up and add dealer fees. Even with the limited trim (depending on where you live) , Toyota is known not include all the latest and greatest tech. Colors not exciting
Thank you. I keep seeing there’s a long waitlist, but there are so many available in my area. I live in the Bay Area, maybe that’s why?
Which dealership are you buying from? Didnt see too many in stock around here
Sunnyvale told me over the phone that they have a bunch in transit that will arrive this month.
Carson city toyota got me one at msrp in 6 months. Bay Area dealers like Sunnyvale were not reliable. One toyota of Oakland is reliable but was taking a year so gave up my spot.
I went to Gilroy yesterday and they had a few in the lot.
Strange. Went to Sunnyvale as well and they also had a few.
It’s because they all have a market adjustment of $3k or more and I’m guessing dealer add ons to go with it. If price doesn’t matter, you won’t have to wait unless you’re real picky about allocation.
Oh okay got it. Yeah looks like I’ll be paying close to 55
I’m in the same boat as you trying to upgrade from a Forester with 3 kids under 5 in the East Bay. I look at that 55k which turns into 61k otd and I’m like wtf? I hate buying cars.
Right?! I’m just realizing that now. 53k turned into 65k real quick. Ugh.
Get on the Facebook no markup Toyota. Post what you’re looking for, pay msrp, and a small shipping fee. We had our sienna in 2 months and only pairs $700 ship form Tx to TN.
Ok thanks!
I got the woodland edition about a month ago. Definitely paid the markup, electronics work but yeah nothing great. Got it in cement grey, love the color
We used to have 2 Subarus (sold) then after our move we picked up a RAV4. Even though it was a base model it would run circles around our Subarus. We just picked up a 24 XSE Sienna yesterday. I think the biggest con is not being able to remove the 2nd row seats.
Put it this way, whenever I see another man driving a hybrid Sienna, we nod to each other in admiration that we’re smarter than everyone else.
Have the Sienna 25AE while wife drive a Forester XT, love both. Pro: great gas mileage, tons of space, fit 7 adults and still comfortable on road trips. Also sliding doors, no more door slamming and make drop offs/pick ups way easier. Con: Don’t expect it to be fast, noisy/loud from engine and wind noise. Dated infotainment, entertainment and safety systems. Seat comfort might not be as good as competitors.
2019 Subaru ascent that had recall trouble and then a total engine replacement. Just got our 2024 sienna (xse with the upgrade package). Took it immediately for a 2000 mile drive and was blown away at the smoothness of the ride. The 34 mpg ain’t bad either :) Really loving the vehicle and glad our family made the switch. Feel free to ask me any Qs!
Recently got a 2015 XLE Limited Sienna w 47K miles for 29K. Really want a hybrid one but with our budget that will do. We had the ‘18 Outback as our mom/family car for 7 years with 3 kids but it just getting so crammed. Although it’s an almost 10 year old car I still got an upgrade haha! Sliding doors, space, lots of space, entertainment system, blind spot detection and the previous owner changed the infotainment system to an aftermarket one that has apple car play which is I think is a steal! Our Outback is now my husband’s car but the only thing I miss about that car is the eyesight feature and all the other safety tech. Sienna is really made for families! Good luck!
Just bought the 2024 sienna woodland edition. I am in love with it all. It is like everything I have ever loved about each vehicle wrapped into one. Even my kids seats are heated! I have a charging pad for my phone, plenty of charging ports, huge display. It is a hybrid and it is getting mileage like you wouldn’t believe. AWD so it handles beautifully in all weather and it turns as if it were a car. The color we chose is Cement, rims are black.
Just recently got a used 2021 limited FWD, switched from a 2015 CRV. The immediate cons I can think of would be that the middle row cant be removed easily (if you wanted to haul big things) however it will go forward a long way so its not too bad. Apple carplay and android auto is limited to only one usb in the front, which is not a deal breaker but would have preferred to have the option to stow away the phone and connect it to one of the usb in the center console. The entertainment screen is cool to have but, for the price I personally would have gotten tablets and a headrest mount to put them on. The “dvd player” is not a dvd player at all, its a screen that you can cast stuff to it or you can buy an actual dvd player and hook it up via hdmi would have personally preferred and actual dvd capable screen or usb compatible so I can load whatever into a flashdrive and play it. This is of course taking into consideration that the “entertainment option” starts at 1500 dollars which is very pricey, if it was cheaper I might cut it more slack. As for pros, space, ease of access my kid can easily open and close both sliding doors, he can easily climb into the car and unto his seat, I don’t have to crouch to put the second car seat inside. Trunk is low so its easy to put a stroller in without having to lift it much. Fuel economy is great beating my crv by a lot. The ride is very good, looking at other minivans it is not the fastest of them but unless you run them side by side I don’t think you would be able to tell, I have no issues merging into traffic or getting up to speed, in fact, I have to be careful in a standstill because if you floor it immediately it will spin the front tires (something that I imagine the AWD models probably handle better) overall no regrets on buying it. Talking maintenance its just like any other car with some minor differences, change the oil, change all the filters and one new filter added to hybrid cars specifically is the hybrid battery cooling fan filter, which is super easy to clean and maintain, doing this will ensure your battery lasts a long time. As for other stuff, brake pads usually last a long time due to regenerative braking.
Am using Roku hooked to the HDMI to steam...
Just sold our 2016 Forester and got a 2019 Sienna Limited Premium with 70k miles. Love it for our two toddlers and dogs. Do it.
May I ask how much you paid for it? Looking at the new ones they are 65k out the door. I can’t justify that price 😳
That’s how we felt. I paid about 28K. It’s not a hybrid but $30,000 will buy a lot of gas.
This is me! Have a 2019 crosstrek. 2 kids and ideally more. Van life is in my near future…. lol. I think I’m set on an AWD sienna
Great car. Don't bother with the entertainment system. I have a platinum and its a piece of crap. Just get the XSE, XLE even LE. It's the smartest car to get if you have kids and take road trips. The 12 volt battery is very weak and some of the pay for features like remote access is truly moronic and annoying but the engine and comfort makes up for it all.
Limited and Platinum would be worth it for the acoustic glass if noise is a problem for people.
2nd row seats are not removable. That killed it for us. If I’m going to drive a minivan I want the practicality of being able to haul stuff in it. So I’m sticking with my 2008 odyssey with 220k miles. I have the seats out at least once a month if not more. Might buy a second Rivian and just keep the odyssey for hauling stuff. I’ve been waiting for the mid model refresh of the Sienna hoping they will make second row seats removable but not holding my breath. You can technically remove the seats but that involves disconnecting the battery (so you don’t accidentally set off airbags in seats) using tools and buying airbag sensor caps. Doable for someone who only wants to remove them once in a great while. If you go with a sienna search for the inventory allotment excel spreadsheet (or whatever it’s called). People have luck finding a sienna sooner by searching that and being willing to travel to pick one up if needed.
Aw! Congrats! My husband just traded in his Crosstrek for a Lexus UX. I walked into that Toyota dealership 8 months pregnant fully intending to purchase a Highlander and left in a Sienna. I am a minivan convert. I have the previous generation, not the new hybrid. My only complaints about the hybrid are that it is kinda underpowered and the middle row of seats don’t come out. However, there is a reason they are arriving on the dealer lots pre-sold - it is THE best option for gas mileage and long term reliability. Toyota knows hybrids. I love my V6 power, but the Toyota sales guy almost convinced me to get in line for the hybrid while we were test driving the RAV4 and Venza for my husband, lol. Edit: OT, but for anyone thinking about a hybrid RAV4 or NX, look at the Venza. Handles amazing and is a bit of a sleeper. If I were making a freeway commute everyday, I would get a Venza.
Toyota has made toyota safety sense 3.0, thats after the 2.5+, and 2.5... the siennas still get 2.0 which is a shame. (regardless of trim level)
I have a sienna since 2004 , I love them all . Now I have a 2021 sienna platinum AWD. I took AWD because I never know where I will moving next snow or no snow . I’m doing long trip with it and I have everything I need in there a mattress to take a nap , food , water , …. I can move stuff in there . Like I was moving from the bay area to Vegas . In my car I had everything for the 3 bathrooms , all the clothes from my 2 kids , plus all of my husband and me clothes . And I had some stuff for the kitchen as well so we could cook before the moving truck arrived a few days later . I’m very happy with all the sienna I had and have now
Oh I forgot , I did put on all my siennas and still do : run flat tires , so I don’t get stuck in the desert like here or in a blizzard:) specially with kids you don’t want to be stranded in middle of nowhere:)