2020 Honda Odyssey- Superb quality and utility
- Seats up to 8 comfortably
- Refined driving manners
- Loaded with safety features
- Excellent resale values
- Pricing starts at $31,785 (including $1,095 destination charge) | Price yours
- On sale now | See Odyssey models for sale near you
The Odyssey: Still the Best Family Hauler
For the third year in a row (and the fifth time in the past six years), the Honda Odyssey has claimed the coveted KBB Minivan Best Buy Award.
That’s quite a run for Honda’s family hauler. At the risk of sounding like a broken record (remember those?), let’s remind everybody of why the Odyssey has been so perpetually dominant in the minivan category.
Simply put, this Honda van shines in all areas. As a family hauler, the well-built Odyssey seats up to eight people in a 2-3-3 configuration, and it’s roomy enough to accommodate actual adults inside, not just kids. What’s more, the center row of Magic Slide seats can be moved every which way to meet various needs, while the split-folding rearmost bench continues to flip and disappear into a rear floor that serves as a super deep cargo hold when it’s not occupied by the folded seat.
As you’d expect, our KBB Minivan Best Buy winner of 2020 also drives well. While the Odyssey suspension is tuned for supple ride comfort about town, this Honda also is a genuine pleasure to drive on those twisty sections of road that lead, say, into the local mountains. Natural-effort steering and brakes make the Odyssey feel smaller than it actually is.
Abundant Safety Features
The 2020 Honda Odyssey also is loaded with the types of safety features you want in a family hauler. There are eight standard airbags, including knee airbags for the front occupants and side-impact curtain protection for all three rows of seats. Moreover, there are LATCH accommodations for up to five child safety seats.
Occupant protection of a more modern nature is found in Honda Sensing, the Odyssey’s multifaceted standard safety suite. Besides active cruise control and a forward collision warning system, the 2020 Honda Odyssey is equipped with automatic emergency braking (what Honda calls the Collision Mitigating Braking System), lane-departure warning, lane-keep assist and Road Departure Mitigation, the last doing its best to keep the Alabama-built front-wheel-drive minivan from leaving the road.
Comfort and Convenience
Nor has Honda forgotten about the creature comforts and convenience items so crucial to capturing minivan buyers. The 2020 Odyssey Elite we tested featured multiple cupholders, a heated tilt/telescope steering wheel, an onboard vacuum and a premium audio system featuring navigation, voice recognition and a multiview rear camera. The Elite also had a DVD player, tri-zone climate control and a power rear hatch, plus rear privacy glass and power sliding doors. Welcome features, all.
Other pleasantries on the 2020 Honda Odyssey Elite include an interior camera that helps parents keep an eye on their kids in back, plus a CabinTalk communications system that lets the driver talk with the folks in back through the rear speakers and DVD headphones. While CabinTalk may seem unnecessary at first, it’s super effective in reaching kids totally engrossed in “Frozen” or “Moana” for the 88th time.
Calm, Cool and Connected
In connectivity, Honda’s minivan also delivers. In addition to having Sirius/XM satellite radio and wireless smartphone charging, the Odyssey Elite boasts Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, which brings all the capabilities of your smartphone onto the Odyssey’s large color touch screen. If you haven’t tried CarPlay or Android Auto yet, it’s a super handy way to play your tunes or use Apps like Waze. And should you decide to pay for a monthly cellular data connection in your Odyssey, you’ll be able to stream live video content on the fold-down 10.2-inch rear screen.
The Odyssey: A Repeat 5-Year Cost to Own Winner
Smart shoppers should always consult KBB’s 5-Year Cost to Own data when considering a new vehicle. This data — which accurately reflects what consumers can expect to experience in terms of ownership costs over 5 years — shows that the Honda Odyssey was the Best Minivan in the 2018 and 2019 KBB 5-Year Cost to Own awards. In other words, over the last two years, the Honda Odyssey has been the least expensive minivan to own. Yes, you will pay less up front for a Chrysler Pacifica or a Kia Sedona, but when you factor in depreciation, maintenance and other miscellaneous costs, the Honda comes through with a lower total ownership cost.
One other thing: If you’d like your Odyssey to look a little out of the ordinary, consider ordering it with the new 25th Anniversary Package, which includes chrome accents, special badges and 19-inch wheels. While that’s mostly an appearance package, all 2020 Odysseys now come standard with fuel-saving stop/start technology and a 10-speed automatic transmission formerly reserved for the Touring and Elite models.
Given its enviable refinement, exemplary build quality and class-leading low total ownership cost, the Honda Odyssey should be near the top of your minivan list. Although it’s not available as a hybrid (Chrysler Pacifica) or with all-wheel drive (Toyota Sienna), the Odyssey’s broad-spectrum excellence gives it the win in our book. When you also consider its abundant safety and convenience features, together with its rewarding driving manners and interior conveniences like the onboard vacuum, it’s easy to see why the 2020 Honda Odyssey has claimed yet another KBB Minivan Best Buy Award.
Photo Tour: 2020 Honda Odyssey
More 2020 Honda Odyssey
Build and price your own 2020 Honda Odyssey to see this week’s Fair Purchase Price, 5-Year Cost to Own and more, or check out the Odysseys for sale today at dealers near you.
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