Performance is defined differently for minivans than it is for other types of vehicles. With a minivan, you need enough horsepower and torque to haul a seven-passenger load up a hill and over a dale, to carry a dorm room’s worth of detritus across the state, and to handle unexpected finds at country antique shops. Just because acceleration is a secondary concern, however, there’s no need to settle for an agrarian powertrain. The engine should be refined and quiet, and the transmission should shift smoothly and quickly. As we discovered during our test, General Motors and DaimlerChrysler are behind the times on this front.

4th Place – 2005 Pontiac Montana SV6
Thrashing under the hood of the 2005 Pontiac Montana SV6 is a 3.5-liter V6 engine. Equipped with an archaic overhead valve design as opposed to modern overhead cam construction, this motor is more powerful than the V6 that propelled Pontiac’s minivan last year, but is distinctly lacking compared to the other models in this test. It musters 200 horsepower and 220 lb.-ft. of torque, making it the weakest engine of the bunch. However, the Pontiac Montana SV6 did boast the lightest curb weight of our quartet of family haulers, and returned the best average fuel economy of the test, at 16.6 mpg. Our test drivers agreed that the Pontiac’s V6 was lackluster, noting that the driver really needed to get a foot into the throttle to spark a downshift for more power, and that what power the engine could deliver was elusive. We also commented on how the four-speed transmission was constantly hunting for gears to make the best of the meager powerband, and that in traffic, the Montana SV6 sometimes produced unexpected bursts of acceleration because of the tranny’s indecisive nature.

3rd Place – 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan
Scoring a few notches better than the Pontiac, the 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan’s rapidly aging 3.8-liter V6 is getting close to retirement age. Like the Montana’s V6, this Dodge motor is an overhead valve design, making it less sophisticated than the hearts of the Honda and Toyota. With 215 horsepower and 245 lb.-ft. of torque made at lower engine speeds than the Pontiac, the Dodge feels more lively, despite its slight weight penalty. Nevertheless, the Grand Caravan’s V6 possesses a grainy, coarse character and the transmission is slow to downshift, making lane changes in traffic or passing on the highway a challenge. When plodding along in traffic, the four-speed transmission also clunks when shifting, which doesn’t inspire much confidence despite the standard seven-year/70,000-mile powertrain warranty – the best of the group. What helps the Grand Caravan’s engine rank higher than the Pontiac is strong mid-range response. On the highway, the Dodge is more fleet of foot. But, according to our testing, fuel economy is lower than the Montana SV6. We averaged just 16.2 mpg.

2nd Place – 2005 Toyota Sienna
More power would have tied the 2005 Toyota Sienna with the stronger Honda Odyssey, or perhaps even have clinched a lead. Toyota’s 3.3-liter dual overhead cam V6 is a paragon of refinement, making a respectable 230 horsepower in a minivan that weighs within 100 pounds of the Dodge and Pontiac. But where the motor really shines is low-end torque, providing 242 lb.-ft. at just 3,600 rpm. However, our test van, a well-equipped all-wheel-drive model, scored the worst fuel economy rating of the test at an unimpressive 15.2 mpg. Regardless, the Sienna’s V6 is quiet when cruising and emits a sporty note when revved, while the five-speed automatic transmission – with one extra cog over the Dodge and Pontiac – is responsive and refined in operation. We all agreed that the Toyota Sienna had plenty of power for a minivan.

1st Place – 2005 Honda Odyssey
Honda’s new Variable Cylinder Management (VCM) technology did not affect the voting for best minivan powertrain. Designed to improve fuel economy by shutting off half the V6 engine’s cylinders when cruising on the highway, VCM helped our Odyssey return an average of just 16.2 mpg during testing, tying the Dodge and coming in lower than the Pontiac. Plus, one of our test drivers didn’t like VCM because he could feel it working. Rather, gobs of seamless power, a smooth shifting five-speed automatic transmission, and a pleasing engine note at high engine revs contributed to the somewhat portly 4,634-pound Honda Odyssey’s one-point win over the Toyota. Indeed, the Odyssey will please even those who enjoy driving, which might explain the poor fuel economy showing – we had a good time driving this van.