What We Learned After Testing a Hybrid Toyota Sienna Over 40,000 Miles | Car and Driver

❤as a car enthusiast, I can state unequivocally that having a minivan is one if the most positive and useful experiences I’ve had. A good minivan can do it all .

I love my 2005 Toyota Sienna. I bought it because I have 4 toddlers needed to be hauled around to schools to daycares and soccer practice/games. The Sienna delivered first class seatings, good fuel economy and vehicle long range up 500+ miles and never give me any issues except maintenance due to mileage (timing belt, brakes, light bulbs, alternator, starter, filters etc Besides being everyday shuttling duty, the Toyota Sienna is the main family tour bus taking kids to one national park to another all over the US and Canada driving to the East Coast, Midwest, the South, North East and Canada and never broke down. The Toyota Sienna is still running excellent with iced cold AC and smooth ride with original shock absorbers, struts, engine mounts, AC compressor, electric windows, upholstery, paint, fuel pump. The 2095 Sienna still runs great and strong at 322,390 miles and is still main vehicle for long road trips except now just two of us because kids have graduated, have jobs and their own cars 😂. I definitely buy Sienna again next time when I need a new vehicle. The Sienna is so cool, so reliable and so cheap to keep, parts and insurance. Today I couldn’t move the gear selector out of P. I traced it to the blown 10 mini fuse but after replacing the fuse, it blew again when I applied brake. I traced to the shorted out brake light bulbs. I replaced both brake light bulbs for $6 plus a 10A fuse. The stuck gear selector at P problem resolved for around $7. 😅

I'm not even a mini-van type but a week long rental with a 2021 Sienna Hybrid in Arizona proved me wrong. Loaded up with family and gear with AWD in Sport mode and full blast AC, speeds reaching triple digits on sections where speed limit was 75, it still returned 30.3 MPG. I'm impressed this is the top minivan.

I've owned a 2021 hybrid for a year and a half. You're right: the engine sounds like CRAP under load. Also, the third row seats will flop up when you go over bumps. Outside of that, this car has been AWESOME and we're pulling 33 MPG without even trying and usually have a range of around 500 miles per tank. It's the ultimate long-haul road tripper. We've driven coast to coast and lots of one-day there and one-day back trips. Zero regrets.

A few weeks ago, I went to my local Toyota dealer to check these out. The salesperson said actual availability of the Sienna has been a problem all year. There was a production shut down due to a supplier, and said there was about a year backlog in orders. There was one used one that just sold for $10k more than its new price. I'm glad I don't "need" a new vehicle right now. The market is still a mess.

I can't give you anything close to what this video provided, however that won't stop me. Just returned from a two-week trip out west with my family of five. Rented a 2022 XLE hybrid. We put on about 3000 miles. We own a 19 Honda Odyssey touring and have put 100k on the odometer. I would buy a Sienna in a heartbeat. We got over 30mpg average driving 85mph plus for hours. The van was comfortable, drove very well and had all the bells and whistles. I also really like the all-electric startup mode. Again just my two cents

I got a 2013 XLE. 500,000 miles. No problems so far! Just regular things. Brakes, shocks,struts , front end things. No weird stuff. No engine or transmission issues. It’s a taxi. Sometimes I sleep in the back. I’m 6”1” very comfortable, roomy. I could go on.. got to get another one someday

13 years of owning an Odyssey. Best bang for your buck. I used it comfortably on road trips & camping. I used it a lot as my Home Depot hauler. It can do it all! I might get this Sienna for our next one.

I love this minivan, I am from Mexico but I live in Delaware and I decided to take my family on a long trip from Delaware to Mexico City last July 2022 about 4000 miles and then travel to Acapulco, ixtapan zihuataneho , taxco, Michoacán, Toluca , and many other states, I have the 2021 xse we traveled 6 adults and five kids and tons of bags on the roof with no problems at all , but from Toluca to Acapulco was extremely to much up hills and down hills for a moment I thought the engine will blow up on a very long up hills and 80 degrees I was so scared also because no spin tire , but definitely I would say that I took this minivan to the extreme road conditions but never fail, when I started driving from Delaware was 19,000 miles and we comeback last month with 33,000 miles on it , everything was fantastic

My understanding is that hybrids like the Sienna don't get the rated MPG in colder climates. I'm in AZ and have only seen 33.5 on the worst tank. Typically, I see well above the EPA rating on every tank, with the last tank at 28,000 miles coming in at 39.5 calculated. Range is generally well over 600 miles. I have the FWD Limited and that gets the second row ottomans, which was a huge selling point for my wife!

I just hit 13 months (and 16k miles) with my 2022 Sienna XLE (8 seats), and I have only two complaints: the "chip shortage" caused them to leave out the "Driver Easy Speak" feature, and the dealer refused to order me the version that includes a spare tire. Yes, the engine is a bit buzzy under high load, but I don't care about this. I've been getting 33-34 MPG, fully loaded with four kids and all their stuff.

In a world of never ending supply chain issues with batteries, and increased focus on their environmental and supply chain (human cost) issues, Toyota "hybrid all the things" approach seems well considered for the average person.

the intro statement is pure facts. I have a 2017 Toyota Sienna and it's honestly the best car I use! I love my old 70s, 80s, and 90s cars and drive so many unique cars from a 77 porsche 911, a 75 VW bus or a Subaru brat. It's reassuring for me to know that if any of them break down, I have a good trusty toyota minivan I can use to haul people, inventory for my restaurants, or take it to long distances across the US as a camper. It's so comfortable and it has enough power to comfortably cruise around 80-90mph while still giving me around 20-25 mpg. My sports cars can only haul 2 to 3 girls at a time but the sienna lets me comfortably seat 7 more female friends around too. It's secretly my favorite modern car of all time.

Great review. Love minivans for all the reasons in the review. After owning two for 19 years, it almost makes me want to have kids again :) But they cost less than $25K each back then! (The minivans, not the kids. Kids are more like $250K each!)

I've had mini vans for 23 years and there is no way I would buy one where the middle row is not easily removable. Everything fits in my minivan. From a full size mattress when moving my daughter to a ton of Ikea stuff to, one time, two pieces of a sectional couch on the way to the dump. Everything fits

I have owned a Sienna minivan for many years and never had any problems until I recently bought one about 2 years ago. It was a hybrid, and the gas tank developed cracks all across the top of it and was causing Vape leaks. Then, the next thing that happened to the thing was the sending unit fell apart, and I was stranded on the road for 3 hours on a weekend in a small town and could not get a tow. I got rid of it, and it made me sick. I almost had it paid for, but I could not live with the unreliability of that vehicle. I hope that Toyota has solved these issues because they were a game-changer for me to let the Sienna go

thanks for the very thoughtful and thorough review. I've owned minivans since the original Dodge Caravan came out in the 80s. They're the most useful vehicle one can ever own. For my mid age crisis era I had 2 doors like a 911 and a TT. You are right though, for what it was designed to do, the minivan is unbeatable!

We did quite a bit of camping and traveling in our 2011 Sienna over its lifetime. We have a hitch just like shown in this video and can attest that the rear departure angle being low and gets even lower with the hitch and loaded with people and gear. However, after installing an Air Lift 1000 system on the back springs it improved the sag issue considerably and also stiffened up the rear for a more stable ride when under load. My wife loves driving the van daily and I am blown away how well it still rides after 12 years.

Small point, the Michelin Cross Climate 2 tires they installed are NOT a traditional winter tire. They can be kept on year round and are more accurately described as an "all WEATHER" tire. That is they both have the 3 Mountain Peak snow certification, meaning they will stay soft and grippy when it drops below 40 degrees, but can also be run in the summer. But yeah, I installed similar tires on my vehicle and noticed I lost 1-2 mpg versus a traditional "all season" tire.

The back up collision avoidance stays off once set in the 2022. No need to shut off every time.