2011 Honda Odyssey officially revealed--and it's not boring-looking?

Mitlov

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Location
Medford, Oregon, USA
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Yes, minivans are family-mobiles. That's a total insult until you, y'know, have a family. Then, all of a sudden, their massive practicality starts to be pretty damn appealing. Too bad they all look like bread-boxes on wheels, or worse, bloated bread-boxes on wheels.

The 2011 Odyssey, though, honestly looks awesome. Honda's sci-fi styling works with a minivan in a way it just doesn't with a compact hatch or a midsize family sedan.

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Full gallery:
http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2011-honda-odyssey/full/#3092353

In motion:
[video=youtube;sB8ViL0Rz-Y]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sB8ViL0Rz-Y&feature=player_embedded[/video]

Press release:
http://www.autoblog.com/2010/06/17/2011-honda-odyssey-revealed-gallery-minivan-video/

The 19 mpg city, 28 mpg highway for a 3.5L V6 in a vehicle this large is pretty impressive. The three-mode cylinder shutoff system must work decently, or maybe it just games the system well. Otherwise, it's mechanically unremarkable.
 
WTF?????????? The rear end looks like it was from a completely different design! That is just horrific, and now I must go elsewhere to get over it.
 
some designer must have mixed up the cad drawings in the office and now it has got the wrong rear end. :D
 
It's still a box on wheels. It doesn't look bad, and it's easily recognizable as an Odyssey, so I guess it does the job. The kink is a little weird, but it probably is nice to have a larger window in the third row.
 
It's still a box on wheels. It doesn't look bad, and it's easily recognizable as an Odyssey, so I guess it does the job. The kink is a little weird, but it probably is nice to have a larger window in the third row.

You can't get away from being a box on wheels without losing the functionality of a minivan. What I like is that they've made an honest effort to make it interesting and good-looking as it can be while still being a box on wheels.

The last Odyssey, for example, didn't even TRY to be interesting:

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I prefer the looks of the old one :dunno:

I'll always commend an effort to make a car look unusual, but that doesn't mean the result will always look good. The bottom windowline of the new one has such a sharp angle that they ran out of room for the third window and had to restart it :?

I always think a minivan looks funny without roof racks, for some reason, so that could be part of it.
 
It looks like they plonked the JDM front onto the USDM body, hence the mismatch. I saw a JDM Odyssey in China a few years ago and it looked a bit like this from the front.
 
id buy it
 
Well, I'm glad Australia gets the JDM, this American one is awfully hideous!!!
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Trying too hard, but I kinda like it. It's not boring, and that's a feat for a minivan.

I wish they didn't show the interior in mild depression grey though.
 
This new one is insanely ugly.
 
They really should offer one version of the new Odyssey which has the wipe-clean interior of the Element (rubberized flooring, water-resistant upholstery). Call it the "Odyssey Barfer Edition" or the "Odyssey Potty-Training-Still-Ongoing Edition" or whatever. Come on, it'd make too much sense not to.
 
Again, the Odyssey hasn't really done anything innovative with its interior packaging, but new features like a chilled cool box in the front center console, HDMI (high-definition multimedia interface) input, 16.2-inch widescreen entertainment system, 15 upholders and a trash bag holder (yep!) will make the cabin more attractive to consumers who need one heck of an all-around family hauler.

People who have never had kids don't get how awesome details like this are. Every "family-hauler" vehicle should have one.
 
What is it with designers sneezing in the middle of the design. I still sort of want though.
 
This is definitely one of the better looking minivans. It's funny how in their bid to keep things fresh, manufacturers often take giant leaps backwards.

The one downside in the US market is that the JDM Odyssey is too small. The first-gen Odyssey failed for exactly that reason, and it's about the size and shape of that good-looking one. This is one market segment where size >>>> style.
 
Well, I'm glad Australia gets the JDM, this American one is awfully hideous!!!
8782b_i.honda.odyssey.modulo.05oct.jpg

We had the first gen of the Odyssey the rest of the world has, but it was lambasted for being "underpowered" due to only having a 4 cylinder here, and was criticized for being a tad small inside. Sales reflected this, trick "Magic Seat" and all.

What is it with designers sneezing in the middle of the design. I still sort of want though.

Ha! That was my thought after seeing the kinda bad pic Autoblog used on their post. However, it's growing on me, weird third row window kink and all. The interior looks leagues above the 2011 Sienna in terms of quality, even though it might still be hard plastic like the current model. It'll probably drive well too and I wish/hope a magazine or something will do a comparo of a Odyssey, a Sienna SE, and a Sedona as they are currently the most sporty (yes relative term I know) minivan's out now in terms of handling.

It's interesting that they haven't chosen to put a 4 Cylinder in it like Toyota, but the est. gas mileage with the V6 sounds like one isn't necessary. I'm espcially happy that the second row center seat is a bit larger, so that it's not only more comfortable but a child seat can easily fit in the middle. With the Sienna disappointingly going with a "Mini seat" like the current and 4th gen US Odyssey, there's no real space for one. Only the Sedona could potentially have three full size second row seats across a la old Sienna and older GM vans, as they have this modular seating option available in other markets.
 
The one downside in the US market is that the JDM Odyssey is too small. The first-gen Odyssey failed for exactly that reason, and it's about the size and shape of that good-looking one. This is one market segment where size >>>> style.

Good point. Although just because it's bigger doesn't mean it has to be uglier.

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