benlee78

Hey guys. My wife and I are expecting our second baby to be born on Mar/Apr and Im thinking about trading my RDX tommorow for an 08 Honda Odyssey Touring because I think I will more space and to save on gas. Does anyone own an Odyssey and would you recommend the trade.

Nintova

Men should not drive minivan's. Period.

benlee78

Nintova, yeah. I hear you. But when you have kids, its another story.

Nintova

It's only your second. If it was your fourth and didn't want to step up to an MDX, I could MAYBE see it. The RDX can fit three in the back if their small or two older ones very easy.

chipt911

I don't think you'll save that much on gas in reality.

Patronus

Don't do it for the gas savings...there will not be any to speak of (the sales tax on the new vehicle will pay for the gas difference for years and years).

benlee78

In regards to saving gas, Ive read some comments of those getting around 27 to 30 mpg hwy. Those numbers all depends on how that individual drives on the hwy only. Heres a link to the odyssey forum titled "Please enter your gas mileage into this tool":

http://www.odyclub.com/forums/showth...&pagenumber=25

But anyways, Im still think about it. Im not sure yet if I will trade it or not tommorow. I will see what they have to offer. Unless you have two kids and own a RDX, please share how its working for you. Currently I have 14 month boy and a baby that will be born in Mar/Apr 09.

mau108

psh only 2 kids and you want to go to a minivan.

If you're ACTUALLY bored of the RDX then go for it (i don't see the minivan being any more fun lol) but versatility wise I think the rdx will do fine.

How old is your first one? Does he/she need a stroller too? If not then the rdx is fine, if they both need strollers I'm sure you can manage with the rdx but you will loose a good chunk of boot space.

benlee78

Mau108, My son is 14 months old. Also, Im never bored with the RDX . I wish I can have both the RDX and Odyssey. For now, Im more concern about the space. Plus my wife is thinking about having a third child 2 years down the road.

I was wondering if anyone can provide their experience with the RDX with two or more kids.

GOTTSPD

i just traded a 415hp sedan for my RDX. We also have a mini-van (and two children). From my perspective the trade depends a lot on how you'll use the vehicles. In any event, if you have only one large vehicle, I'd go with the Ody. Minivan's are great for hauling all of the baby stuff. They make long car trips a pleasure and the sliding doors/tailgate are just wonderful to have. If you don't need a minivan on a regular basis, just keep the RDX and rent one when you need it.

RaffN

benlee78, I dont have kids but like GOTTSPD said make your choice depending on how you use the car. If your wife is planning to have a third child 2 years down the road, that is a long time to go. Maybe you should wait for the FMC since the 3rd gen Odyssey is heading to its 5th year.

mzhao84

i know the price difference is too big of a difference as well as different classes. but how about a MB r63 amg? hehehehehe

why? Well... it'll work for everything. 500hp n/a. 4matic = AWD. capable of hauling 6 (so you can have 2 more babies down the road). you won't sacrifice any performance by switching to a "minivan" looking vechile.

Another reason, RARITY.

Good luck with your decision!

*I too have been thinking of minivans for some reason... perhaps its the automatic sliding doors*

XLR8R

Don't do it for the fuel economy, do it for the performance.

Did we all not just recently learn that a Honda Odyssey will blow the doors off an RDX??? All the way to 120 mph!

benlee78

Im planning to finalize my decision today. Im trying to see which dealership will offer the best price by email. Even if I get a good deal, Im still not sure if I will take the offer. Still thinking.

phoward_15

Now I will preface this e-mail by stating I don't have kids. But I don't get the mini-van approach. I've seen people with mini-vans and the kids and it looks to me as though you lose cargo space when you purchase a mini-van. I understand that it gives you more space for the kids in the back but if you have all of the seats up then the cargo space in the back of the van is almost gone which defeats the whole purpose of getting a bigger vehicle in the first place.

But to get back to your point, like everyone else has said I wouldn't make the change based on mpgs. It should be more for the seating capacity (noticed I didn't say cargo capacity).

mzhao84

r63 AMG FTW!

benlee78

I got one offer for a silver odyssey touring by email from a dealership:

MSRP: $40,680
ePrice: $34,500

Im still waiting to hear from the others (if they have any in stock).

mzhao84, only if I had the $$$, I could by the MB r63 amg.

mzhao84

is that the price for a fully load ody? if it is, that's not bad at all i believe.

benlee78

Another offered $35,390 (white). They didnt have the silver I was looking for. Im waiting for another offer from the third dealership and from there, thats when Ill start negotiating.

btw, heres an interesting article: "Confessions of a car salesman":

mzhao84, the odyssey touring is the highest model. I dont want to get into the full detail but check it out on the honda web site.

buxtons

Odyssey is a decent car

We had an '03(different than the new one) and now I have the RDX.

It was great when my kids were small and the wife drove it. Had lots of room to haul all the crap around in..easy to get the kids in and out. I hated driving it as it was boring as hell and lets face it a minivan. Now my kids are older..9 and 7.. and I do not in any way feel that I am missing anything by not having it. The RDX gives me enough room for them and their stuff.

So..that is my story, ymmv.

benlee78

buxtons,

Let say you had the RDX when they were babies. Do you think it would have worked out to carry everything?

buckeye acura honda

I own both the RDX '08 and Odyssey '07. My kids are 11, 9 and 5. No difference in gas mileage. Van is good for trips (typically 400+ miles each way to see grandparents). The kids are fine in the RDX around town. I would like to ditch the van and put gear on the roof of RDX for long trips, but I am not the driver to school, soccer, etc. Bottom line: My wife is keeping the Odyseey as long as she wants (this is her second Odyssey).

RizzoRDX

DON'T DO IT. I look forward to having babies in a couple year because they WILL fit in my RDX. You will be disappointed, the nicest mini van in the world is never going to have the power and performance of an RDX. I would actually cry if I had to give up my RDX up for a mini van. please dont do it! I really think you will be letting yourself down. If the driver ain't happy, nobody's happy

benlee78

Buckeye, let say your three kids were babies (ages 1, 2, and 3), would you trade the RDX for the van or keep the RDX.

benlee78

Looks like Im not getting it. The dealers in my area didnt have the color.

lexia

I just got a CX9 and my kids love it and so do i. all the space i could ever ask for without stepping foot into one of those nasty minivans.

buxtons

If my kids were younger I would have no problem using the RDX..but I only have 2 kids. If I had 3 then I would look at something bigger. CX-9..Highlander or MDX most likely.

LuvMyTSX

I don't think 2 kids warrants a minivan. The RDX should have no problem hauling 2 kids around. My advice is wait until the 3rd kid is nearly born, then get the minivan. It just doesn't seem necessary right now and would be a waste of money IMO.

metalblaze

Have you considered the '09 Murano? It is bigger & more powerful than RDX, and IMO the '09s are a lot nicer than the 1st gen ones. Plus it is more fun to drive than an Odyssey...my

Fishbulb

WTF? The reason that there's no cargo space when the seats are up is because there's 3 rows of seats. That's 8 passengers! Most people have no need for the back row, so it folds into the floor and you can fit a pet elephant behind the five people in it.

To the OP - you can't beat the utility of a minivan. Period. I have 2 kids under 10, and often find myself eyeing my neighbour's Sienna was a bit of envy. It isn't the space that the kids take up, its all the stuff that comes with them. Hockey practice is an extremely tight squeeze. The fact that many of these vans get better mileage than the RDX is pretty hard to swallow, too.

If I was to do it again, I'd get a Sienna or Odyssey, and a sports car. The crossover segment is pretty overrated in real-world usage, imo.... not very sporty to drive, and not enough utility to make up for it. Jack of all trades = master of none.

mau108

are you shitting me? Murano? dude wants to go to a bigger car not uglier.

metalblaze

No offense my friend...beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder, and so far I am not sure if benlee78 has said that Murano is uglier.

benlee78

Nah, not interested in the Murano.

benlee78

Looks like the dealers informed me that the 2.9apr 37-60 months have been extended. Plus, one dealer said he can contact other dealers out of state to find my color. For now, I have been offered:

MSRP: 40,400
Sale: $34,500
Admin fee: $200

Im going to check if the other dealer finds the Silver Odyssey Touring out of state. If he offers something better, I might go for it.

Here are some pics from the www.odyclub.com:

benlee78

The car is owned by some acura salesman who put on MDX rims with RDX tires. Heres his quote "Replaced the PAX tire/wheel combo on our '07 Touring. Used the '07 Acura MDX Sport package wheels 18"X8". Tires are from an '07 Acura RDX, Michelin 235/55/18. The standard MDX tires are 255/55/18 which are too wide for the fenders on the Odyssey, some rubbing will occur, especially when fully loaded. Tire pressure sensors were also replaced with the correct ones for the Odyssey, part number:06421-S3V-A04."

http://www.odyclub.com/forums/showth...=&pagenumber=1

brizey

I have two little ones (2 1/2 and newborn). RDX works just fine for us. The chances of needing the extra space are just too few and far between to justify driving a van around every day. The RDX has the features I want for the kids - high seating to get them in and out of car seats, enough space for a stroller or two in the back, and a great safety rating.

If we were to have a thrid kid I would go right to a minivan. Three row SUV's are worthless--the rear seat is inaccessible if you have car seats installed in the second row. The only exception is the new GM big crossovers (Enclave, etc.).

For us, cargo space is just not that important. You cannot really do much more than a weekend trip with toddlers anyway, and if you do you are going to fly. There is plenty of cargo space in the RDX for a trip to the airport.

benlee78

Looks like Im not going to move on foward with the trade. They are offering around 24k for my 08 RDX base with 13600 miles.

russianDude

2 kids defiantly OK, some people even manage to put 3 kids. Its not a good idea to trade in 1 year old car, take a huge hit.

benlee78

Thank you for sharing your experience. Good point. 2 kids will be ok in the RDX.

But we are thinking of having a third baby 3-4 years down the road. I currently have a 14mth son and another baby that will be born around Mar/Apr. I dont think 3 kids will work out in the RDX (each being 2 years apart). If I wait to trade the RDX a few years down the road, I will probably get a worse trade in deal from what Im being offered right now which I was offered for around 24k. Im kinda wavering back and forth if I should do it or not. I have until the end of this month to think about it.

russianDude

3 kids should be fine, the oldest sits in a booster, and two car seat can go in. A little tight, but ok.... next thing you know you can put another one in a booster, and its not too big of deal. You guys are spoiled with luxary, get used to European way of living with the gas prices going crazy and sh*ty economy