Honda Odyssey Luxury 2008 Review

Road Test

RRP: $45,790
Price as tested: $45,790
Crash rating: four-star ANCAP
Fuel: 91RON ULP
Claimed fuel economy (L/100km): 9.4
CO2 emissions (g/km): TBA
Also consider: Citroen C4 Picasso (more here), Kia Rondo (more here), Toyota Avensis, Volkswagen Caddy Life (more here)

Overall rating: 2.5/5.0
Engine/Drivetrain/Chassis: 2.5/5.0
Price, Packaging and Practicality: 2.5/5.0
Safety: 3.0/5.0
Behind the wheel: 2.5/5.0
X-factor: 2.5/5.0

About our ratings

For some reason, we never quite got around to reviewing Honda's peoplemover when it was first released in Australia -- about four years ago. With so many new models released since then, the Odyssey is more than overdue for a once-over.

With its age against it, the Odyssey suffers in comparison with very recent releases such as the Citroen C4 Picasso. While the Odyssey was good (virtually state of the art) four years ago, it is increasingly in need of a refresh now.

The seven-seat Honda shows all the design hallmarks of a car developed and refined for the American market (even though it wasn't - the US market Odyssey is a different V6-powered beast). In other words, it rides softly -- at the expense of cornering -- and steering is light and lacking feel. Dynamically, it doesn't fill the driver with as much confidence as more modern designs from Europe would.

Packaging is where the Odyssey reigns supreme. With its seven seats, it's capable of carting around seven adults in a comfortable environment. Odyssey's ride height allows easy access to the cabin and the roofline is not appreciably higher than conventional sedans and hatches -- so it's the best of both worlds, really.

The second-row seat offers plenty of head and legroom. Kneeroom in the third row is almost overkill, although conversely, there's not much room under the second-row for feet and and headroom is at a premium for adults of average or above average height.

There are HVAC outlets servicing both rear rows of seats (mounted in the headlining for further space efficiency) and the climate control system provides two zones for the front and rear of the car, as a fuel-saving measure.

The third-row seat is quite easy to use and can fold forward either through use of power switches in the load section or with hand-pull releases on the rear of each 50/50 split-folding section. As a bonus, the electric switches will also pull the third-row seat back and bundle it up in the floor behind for a flat rear load section. It's neat and nifty the way it works.

If only the same could be said for the second-row seat. It's easier to gain access to the third row from the side rear doors than is often the case, but there's no memory return function, which means that the seat has to be manually returned to a position previously selected for the optimum comfort of both second and third-row occupants.

The headrests of both rows fold forward easily, to assist with folding up the seating to carry extra payload, but frankly, successfully folding the second-row seat flat eluded this reviewer. It was possible to get as far as having the seat base folded forward against the rear of the front seats, and the backrests half-way lowered -- but no further.

Presuming it is actually possible to lower both rows flat, there's a fold-out floor that can be unclipped from the backrests of the second-row to reverse the carpet backing so that detritus left by the payload is on the inverted and concealed side of the floor when it's clipped back into place with the seat raised. It's a good idea and will save third-row occupants staring at scuff marks, mud, grass seeds and all the other crap that falls or is rubbed off.

With both rows of seats raised, there's precious little room for luggage, but it would take one large suitcase and some other bags, so probably barely enough for the whole family on a weekend away. The Odyssey would probably handle enough sports equipment for the kids in a typical day, so therein lies its forte: more Mum or Dad's taxi than a shuttle bus for the annual recreational sojourn north.

The Odyssey proved quiet as far as drivetrain and wind noise were concerned, but tyres were an incessant presence, even on freeways.

Other noises included a loose sunvisor -- which was resecured -- the screw-in towing eyelet in the glovebox which, over bumps and under brakes, provided a continuous staccato rhythm worthy of John Bonham until it was jammed in hard against the owner's manual; seatbelt buckles rapping against the hard plastic interior trim and leather squeaks. There were other noises that we never did quite get around to tracing. For a car that is fundamentally quiet, it is let down by the detail stuff.

We've already commented that the engine is quiet, but whilst it's refined enough, it's no melody on wheels. It's also tuned more for economy than grunt, so while the powerplant will reach redline eventually, it takes a while. There's more of the typical Honda peakiness about the engine than you might expect from one powering an MPV with an automatic transmission.

At freeway speeds, the engine is revving at around 2000rpm, so it's bound to be pretty frugal on the open road. We weren't able to check this, as there's no facility for doing so in the Odyssey -- yet another point that shows up the car's age.

The problem of power-to-weight is exacerbated by the high and widely-spaced ratios in the five-speed automatic transmission, so the engine falls in a hole between the shift from first to second -- and it's not like the first gear is so low that the car blasts off the line like a rocket ship anyway.

This five-speeder is operated from a sequential-shift selector almost immediately left of the steering wheel. The lever and the sequential-shift facility are easy to use, work the way they should and the lever presents well, finished as it is with its chrome lever and satin-look knob.

As a bonus, shifting is consistently smoother when lever is used sequentially to shift manually! The box can be occasionally caught out with a sudden prod of the accelerator from low speeds in higher gears. Five-speed automatic transmissions like the one recently sampled in Ford's new FG Falcon are generally more adept than the Honda's, in this regard.

Seats are comfortable, but the driving position is not right for all. There's a clear view of the highly colourful but practical instruments, which is definitely a good thing, but there's no reach adjustment for the steering wheel and the seat base feels just a little too close to the pedals for comfort. The footrest is good, though.

As for the Mazda6 wagon we tested not long ago, the Odyssey doesn't have two-stage indicators and this is a minor shortcoming, but will be noticed by owners of other MPVs with this function.

Where a centre console would be in other vehicles (but not necessarily other MPVs!), there's a folding table which pivots down flat against the side of the driver's seat, allowing a basic walk-through space from the front to rear seats. This is something we could see kids using -- it's a bit tight for adults.

The console integrates two cupholders, a flat storage tray and a bin beneath it, with two sliding covers. At the rear, there's an auxiliary audio input jack -- although the audio system won't play MP3 music -- and there's a power outlet as well.

In the centre fascia, the audio system is angled towards the front seat passenger, although the driver can easily enough change stations and volume settings from the steering wheel.

The vehicle on test was trimmed in cream leather with a light-coloured woodgrain veneer for the dashboard, folding centre console and steering wheel. That same woodgrain trim was applied in combination with grey leather to the steering wheel rim, more or less coordinating with the grey plastic of the dash top. Overall, the colour scheme was on the chintzy side and we personally wouldn't opt for that kind of look. But the only alternative available is grey, which can only be had with the Satin Silver metallic exterior colour selection.

Although the Odyssey is not large, it is long for its size. Park distance sensors would be a welcome addition to the car's standard specification. Much of the length lies between the wheels. With what seems like a lot of steering lock, the Odyssey can negotiate a pretty tight turn, but with the long wheelbase, first-time drivers will find the inside rear wheel initially collecting gutters and kerbs.

So, with all that, how does the Honda rate? It's showing signs of resting on its laurels and although the Kia Rondo recently reviewed is a smaller car, it's also more practical for many buyers than the Odyssey.

We still like the Honda and it's both stylish and comfortable, but this is a car that doesn't need a style upgrade as much as a torquier engine to match the transmission, European suspension tune and some of the knick-knacks that people have come to expect in similarly priced MPVs these days -- things like four-zone climate control and trip computer, to name two.

We're convinced that the Odyssey is as much in need of a new model as the Accord was until the introduction of the new car. The Odyssey is a fundamentally good car, but it has fallen behind the pack.

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