The Minivan Thread *AKA The Toyota Sienna Thread*

Jondot
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Yes, your parents didn't pay the ransom little girl, so we condemn you to these sheep! May the lord have mercy on your soul.....
 
The Vanishing Boy
^ My question is, which one?
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The only one I've driven is the T5, which is the latest model. It's very good, considering it's essentially just a commercial vehicle. I'd love one as a proper camper van, loads of space, decent performance and certainly built to last. That said, I'd like any of the Volkswagen vans (except the Routan, which isn't really a VW anyway). An old T2 would be just right, I reckon.

Jondot
Personally I've got a lorra love for the Berlingo
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There's an honestness about the Berlingo, the Peugeot version, the Renault Kangoo and all those ones that I really appreciate. They are just vans rather than proper MPVs, but that means there's no pretence about them. I'd go for the Renault myself, as I've always been more of a Renault person.

If we're talking down the bargain-basement end of the market, how about the Daihatsu Hijet? Six seats in something a foot shorter than a Ford Ka.

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Oh, and mid-engined, rear-drive too :D I might get one as a winter hack this year, or at least one of it's equivalents (Bedford Rascal etc).
 
I'm not sure why it's inherently scary for a car to be running on 12" wheels, but yes they probably are...

Jon - I wouldn't be so worried about the car falling over, so much as driving it around Newcastle and some gits pushing it over...
 
As this has transformed into a minivan thread I would like to add the Transit Supervan 1,2 and 3 as possibly the coolest and equally pointless vans ever created IMO.





The first Transit Mk1 ( the normal one, not the supervan ) is one of the coolest European vans ever build IMO, although I have a soft spot for the T2/T3 Volkswagens.
I do occassionally drive a modern Opel Vivaro van ( basically an Opel-badged Renault Traffic ) and often amazed by its car-like handling ( turbodiesel, 6-speed manual, corners quite well considering its height ) as long as you don't have to park it in a crowded carpark which is a pain due to visibility ( closed windows, no rear visibilty apart from mirrors ).:)

Oh and homeforsummer, you're not alone in your appreciation for the Kangoo, I know Gordon Murray bought one years ago to use as transport at his French holiday home.
Remember reading a column written by him where he described the fun he had driving it, and he should know.....
 
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analog
I do occassionally drive a modern Opel Vivaro van ( basically an Opel-badged Renault Traffic ) and often amazed by its car-like handling ( turbodiesel, 6-speed manual, corners quite well considering its height ) as long as you don't have to park it in a crowded carpark which is a pain due to visibility ( closed windows, no rear visibilty apart from mirrors ).:)
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Some of the modern vans are genuinely impressive on the road. I think they're quite appealing, as they give off the impression of being significantly more able to take abuse than normal MPVs and the like. Volkswagen, for example, persisted with the (Ford Galaxy-based) Sharan for years and all the while sold the T4 and T5 along side it. I'm sure some people perfered the more car-like Sharan but it never did particularly well in reliability surveys, wheras people are full of praise for the actual vans. And of course, the passenger versions of the vans have a lot more space too.

Oh and homeforsummer, you're not alone in your appreciation for the Kangoo, I know Gordon Murray bought one years ago to use as transport at his French holiday home.
Remember reading a column written by him where he described the fun he had driving it, and he should know.....
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Gordon Murray also owns a Smart Roadster, another car that I really like. I have a lot of time for his views on cars!
 
I still love this thing...with full, pimp-ed out interior, too

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And it's got a Detroit. A friggin' Detroit Diesel. Second best sounding diesel engine ever created, right after the Napier Deltic.

HFS: I'm reminded of a 5th Gear segment I saw on YouTube involving drifting those Bedford Rascals....and it didn't turn out well.

(Warning, involves injury. Viewer discretion advised.)
 
I take it no one remembers the 230+ Monster of a van(Renault espace F1) from GT2? That's the ultimate van IMO.
 
TorqueHappenS08
I take it no one remembers the 230+ Monster of a van(Renault espace F1) from GT2? That's the ultimate van IMO.
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I take it you haven't looked upwards about 10 posts ;)

EDIT

Hang on, that was you...

Yes, I remember it. And no, just because people don't reply doesn't mean they've forgotten it and need reminding in the space of 24 hours.
 
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Jondot
I take it you haven't looked upwards about 10 posts ;)

EDIT

Hang on, that was you...

Yes, I remember it. And no, just because people don't reply doesn't mean they've forgotten it and need reminding in the space of 24 hours.
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It's worthy of two Mentioning's from the OP. :sly: Amazing that is has yet to make a top gear appearance.. As you would think they would be all over a mid engined rocket of a van.

And sad it never appeared in more GT's..
 
-> ...
homeforsummer
If we're talking down the bargain-basement end of the market, how about the Daihatsu Hijet? Six seats in something a foot shorter than a Ford Ka.

Daihatsu-Hijet_1997_1024x768_wallpa.jpg


Oh, and mid-engined, rear-drive too :D I might get one as a winter hack this year, or at least one of it's equivalents (Bedford Rascal etc).
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^ Oh, I remember seeing those back in the Philippines! We had the older 3-cylinder version thou.

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^ But unfortunately, the more powerful, better-equipped, and better looking Suzuki Super Carry outsells the Hi-Jet 4-to-1!

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^ The best pic I could get from my homeland. :indiff:

-> When I was in high-school (and was 6'0 tall), I tried to fit in with these vans. And I like them a lot, seem like the're street-legal toy carts! :dopey:

Jondot
Oh god you're braver than I am. I'd constantly be terrified it was going to fall over...
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^ I wouldn't mind driving these micro-wonders around town. They're easy to park, easy on the gas, and can pack more people/cargo for the size. As long I won't do like what Hamster had done:

[YOUTUBEHD]DPfvqkXlV70[/YOUTUBEHD]

^ And that was a Suzuki Super Carry!!! :crazy:
 
^ Heh, heh, I remember back in GT2. That van was awesome to go 'round the track!


^ An awesome way of showing off.

:)

-> And a bonus fanservice:


^ I didn't know that there was TWO versions of the F1:
- One was the one featured in GT2 (w/o the side vents).
- And the other one is the prototype track car (w/ side vents).

-> You can tell the GT2 version on the foreground! :boggled:



^ I crapped my pants...

👍
 
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The Vanishing Boy
-> ...

^ Oh, I remember seeing those back in the Philippines! We had the older 3-cylinder version thou.

^ But unfortunately, the more powerful, better-equipped, and better looking Suzuki Super Carry outsells the Hi-Jet 4-to-1!

-> When I was in high-school (and was 6'0 tall), I tried to fit in with these vans. And I like them a lot, seem like the're street-legal toy carts! :dopey:

^ And that was a Suzuki Super Carry!!! :crazy:
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The 3-cyl vans would have presumably been the Japanese market ones. I think size-wise they're small enough to fit into the Kei category, the only difference was that the UK market ones had bigger engines, presumably as they last a bit longer in slightly more favourable UK road conditions.

We got the Supercarry too, and the Carry which came afterwards and has a bit more of a long bonnet. No MPV variant here though so no place in this thread!

I suppose the appeal for me is the "unlikeliness" factor. I love the idea of bombing around in one and never being at any risk of falling foul of the law :D Well, unless I rolled it, of course...

But yeah, 6 people in one would be a laugh. Great for taking a bunch of mates camping.
 
ExigeEvan
Camping!? Where would you carry anything? And if you say on the roof then I'd be wary of all off-camber corners.
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Ah, there'd still be a bit of space behind the rear seats. Or between the seats. Anyway, I don't think I could quite scrape together six mates who'd actually want to set foot in a micro-MPV, let alone do any sort of distance in one :lol:

sumbrownkid
That Sienna Van ain't bad. Guess I'll look into the Sienna when I unfortunately have to buy a minivan.
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Why, is buying a minivan some sort of inevitability?

Oh, and:

homeforsummer
We got the Supercarry too, and the Carry which came afterwards and has a bit more of a long bonnet. No MPV variant here though so no place in this thread!
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I lied. There was a six-seater...

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-> The Super Carry that was featured back in the Philippines was a six-seater! :)

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^ Pinoy-spec right here! (Notice the electric fan!) :sly:
 
I knew the Supercarry seated six as we got that, as well as the Vauxhall/Bedford Rascal in a similar configuration in the UK (as well as the aforementioned Daihatsu). I was just unaware whether the Carry (the model that succeeded the Supercarry) had a six seater. Which apparently it does.
 
homeforsummer
Why, is buying a minivan some sort of inevitability?
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It's a lot more comfortable to take a family around in than in a sedan or SUV. A minivan really shines in the long-distance travel.

My brothers and I used the third row as sleeping quarters when we took shifts driving to Florida in a rented Kia van (don't remember the name.).
 
^ Um, that the Kia Sedona:

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:)

-> I wouldn't mind owning a minivan (in fact I do own one right now), if theres a M/T it would be perfect. Oh, wait! There's the Mazda5!!! :ouch:
 
When we flew to Tallahassee for a state tournament, we had to drive to marianna to get to the host college. We were supposed to rent a Flex but they gave us the most god-awful explorer. I didn't know it was possible to so poorly design an interior. It would have been nice to get the Flex to see how it compares to the standard minivan.
 
Best van ever:
1998 Toyota Sienna LE 3L V6 in Green. Sexiest beast alive. Most reliable too. We've owned it for 10 years now and never has it had a major breakdown. Sure, we had some trouble passing the emissions test due to the Co2 sensor and sure my mom has hit it around, but it is still running like brand new. You rev that V6 and it sounds like well.. a V6. We've taken it up to 160KM/H on the 401, made it climb the steepest hills you've seen and even done some small air-time jumps on a hilly road north of Toronto (near Hockley Valley about 1 hour drive north)!
 

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