By: Joshua Lee
September 11, 2023
Bear Mountain, New York – Going on a road trip is fun, and counting the days until you actually depart is exciting. There is a bit of planning on what to do while you’re there, but you want to make sure you can be alert and as comfortable as you can during the drive. So, what did we take on our trip to New York? Honda Canada let us drive the 2023 Honda Odyssey Touring. While that might be too much of a car for two people, we were curious what this family hauler could do.
The Honda Odyssey is powered by a 3.5-litre V6 engine producing 280 horsepower and 262 lb-ft of torque. A ten-speed automatic transmission is paired with this front-wheel-drive minivan, which has a towing capacity of 3500 pounds (1587 kilograms). The Odyssey wasn’t boring to drive, as the engine is strong and provides lots of power when passing on the highway. It’s easy to operate, with a light steering feel and smooth shifts from the transmission.
It wasn’t hard to identify which minivan was the most popular, as we could see an Odyssey in our vicinity at every traffic light. The fifth-generation Odyssey received a facelift back in 2021 with a redesigned front grille, front bumper fascia, new LED lighting, and a gloss black trim under the rear window. Our Touring model came in the Modern Steel Metallic paint finish, two-tone 19-inch alloy wheels, chrome door handles, power-folding mirrors, power sliding doors, a hands-free power tailgate with programmable height, a body-coloured roofline spoiler, and a power moonroof.
On the inside, the Odyssey Touring can seat eight passengers comfortably. In the front, both seats feature 4-way power lumbar support; the driver gets 12-way power adjustable while the front passenger gets 8-way. We like that there are adjustable armrests to add to the comfort on our road trip, but we would’ve liked more support for the bottom cushion as we started feeling sore later on the drive. The seats are still very comfortable to be in for extended drives and feature heated and ventilated options. An eight-inch infotainment system sits in the centre and is easy to use. The interior is outdated when you compare it to newer Honda models, but there’s not much to complain about when everything is within reach. Tri-zone climate control, wireless charging, Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, three 12V outlets, and a 115-volt outlet are standard.
With one person driving in the front, the other can relax in the second row. Sunshades are fitted for both the second and third rows to keep the cabin cool and help darken the interior if we wanted to watch something on the 10.2-inch rear entertainment system. A 550-watt, 11-speaker sound system is fitted on the Touring model, which provides relatively good audio quality. We didn’t load a lot of things on our trip, but the Odyssey has 929L of cargo space behind the third row and expands up to 3973L behind the front seats.
The Odyssey provides a very smooth ride, and we feel confident behind the wheel at all times. Reverse parking is easy with a standard backup camera and parking sensors. We relied on the adaptive cruise control for most of the journey, and the system worked perfectly. It kept a safe distance between us and the car in front of us and stayed in between the lanes. The Odyssey also has blind spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and forward collision warning as standard. While returning to Toronto, we made a quick pitstop for a bite to eat and noticed that the weather was getting cold. The Odyssey has remote engine start, so we were able to start driving and be warm as soon as we stepped in.
Honda Canada rates the Odyssey’s fuel economy as 12.2L/100KM city, 8.5L/100KM highway, for a combined 10.6L/100KM. Our 2500KM road trip gave us 9.0L/100KM. The engine features cylinder deactivation, which aids in fuel efficiency, especially when most of our driving was on the highway. The Odyssey also runs on 87-octane, so it didn’t hurt too much for our wallets.
The Odyssey EX starts at $47,721, the EX-L at $52,721, the Touring at $58,921, and the Black Edition at $60,721.
Did we need a minivan for our two-day trip? Not necessarily, but the Honda Odyssey is certainly a great option and does the job well. The standard equipment is generous, and we didn’t find many downsides to this minivan. For a vehicle this big, visibility wasn’t a concern either, and it was easy to navigate through congested parts of the trip. The Odyssey is fuel efficient, provides lots of space for cargo, and kept us comfortable through the entire journey. With a sophisticated exterior, a premium-feeling interior, and loads of functionality, the Honda Odyssey promises great memories on any adventure you go on.
