In this episode, we dive into the surprising versatility and utility of the 2025 Toyota Sienna Platinum Hybrid. Join us as we explore its family-friendly features like multiple cup holders, innovative storage solutions, and a built-in refrigerator that can make those soccer game days a whole lot easier. We compare the merits of minivans and SUVs, with insights from real-world use that may challenge your assumptions about these vehicles.
All right, and up next, this is a segment that both of us, I mean, we sort of chuckle at, but on the same token, it’s a segment that I think is extremely, extremely versatile. You were able to drive a 2025 Toyota Sienna Platinum Hybrid, I should say, minivan.
SPEAKER 02 :
Dad, it is one of my most… favorite vehicles, and some of you folks are going to laugh at me, and even my wife will laugh at me, but she will be the first to say who she drives a larger SUV of the truck-based variety. that minivans are incredibly hard to beat for their versatility and their use. This thing had, I don’t know how many stinking cup holders this thing had, but for those of you that have kids, you know you always need more cup holders. It’s got storage underneath kind of like the front area, kind of like a lot of these electric cars have, Dad, nowadays, kind of underneath the center console. It has a cooler… for the second-row passengers that can either be cold enough just for drinks or, heck, when you’re going to those soccer games on a hot July day, for popsicles. It will do that. It also now has a vacuum built in, which is a really, really great feature. And, again, that fridge is also now available for this year. That, not to mention, it’s got a standard – you mentioned the hybrid – standard hybrid powertrain, which gives you excellent fuel economy. And I can say, I drove this vehicle up to Fort Collins and back. It averages 35 miles per gallon. Dad, I think we talked about this with hybrids. I feel like it’s like 20% more that you can get in terms of your fuel economy. I can just say this, on a minivan, Dad, it was every bit of 500 miles on a tank of fuel. I can just say that just from the fuel gauge and how it operated. The doors, yes, my kids love the doors, and it just frustrates the living snot out of my wife. Because they’re easy. Because they’re fun, right?
SPEAKER 01 :
They’re easy. Yeah, little kids can open and close them on their own is the cool thing.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yes, my three-year-old daughter, folks, she can push the button on the outside and it opens the door and she doesn’t have to do anything. So for those of you that, and then I had this happen to me as a kid where you get yelled at for slamming the door. You no longer have that problem, right? You just push the button, it does it. It’s got, in the second row, Dad, it’s got little reclining seats. So if you want to do it, my oldest was really enjoying that on the drive to Fort Collins. Oh, Dad, it’s so nice to put my feet up. I think just kind of lots of different things. The third row sort of folds down into the compartment. But if you do want to lay it flat, I was able to go to Home Depot and pick up some parts for a project kind of around the house. I was able to do that.
SPEAKER 01 :
Really quick, they’re the second best thing. I mean, you can own a pickup truck or a minivan. And the reality, Richard, for most people with a pickup truck, they don’t haul any more than they could get in a minivan.
SPEAKER 02 :
They don’t haul any more data in the minivan. We’ll haul more people when they need to.
SPEAKER 01 :
Exactly. That’s my point. Absolutely.
SPEAKER 02 :
And the other thing, again, for folks with car seats, I will say this. It was really great. The third row actually had car latch system, which I know is becoming more and more popular. And for those of you who don’t know, a lot of these car seats nowadays come with these built-in latches. And having that in the third row is great, especially if you’ve got a younger family like mine and you still have some of them that are in there. Some of these other cars, you’re limited. to being able to use those latches in just the second row only not in this car again dad the other piece that i’ll say second row you can move them forward and backwards so you can get in and out with them they slide really easily some people knock it because the second row doesn’t come out in this level wasn’t a huge concern for me that everything else was great about it and folks Some of you are probably sitting in your car laughing. Yes, minivans are one of our favorite because they are super hard to beat when it comes to functionality and utility. And overall, honestly, if you could get kind of over the looks of some of these minivans, which they’re really improving upon that in each generation. And I’ll say this. There’s a reason they’re still selling it.
SPEAKER 01 :
Really quick before you end. I’ve got to throw this in because the boys, our grandsons, when my wife and I were up one day and the minivan happened to be there, they were ranting and raving and actually did their own little mini review of it as grandkids. And they were ranting and raving about all the things, Richard, that you have just said. So Toyota, I will just say this. If you’re listening, you’ve got fans in them at least.
SPEAKER 02 :
Dad, and like you said, it’s the simplicity of it that you can open the doors with one button push. You can recline the seats. You can move them. All the things we just talked about, folks, if you’re in the market at all or you’re like, man, I need to haul people, but I’m not sure what the best way to do it is, what the most cost-effective, Dad, you can get an eight-passenger minivan for $40,000. The one that we test drove. What was up there, yes, it was just under $60,000. It was about $57,000, $58,000. But again, it came with all of those features I listed. But some of the base features, as far as like the power doors and stuff, Dad, comes on those lower levels.
SPEAKER 01 :
There you go.
SPEAKER 02 :
So with that being said, head to your local Toyota dealer, test drive one if you haven’t in a while, and let them know that John and Richard Rush from Drive Radio and Rush to Reason sent you.
SPEAKER 01 :
This is John Rush from Rush to Reason and Drive Radio. Thank you so much for listening. Check out more of our podcasts at RushToReason.com or Drive-Radio.com.
