Comfort is a key ingredient of a minivan, which is designed to move lots of people over long distances. Seat shape and padding, the amount of legroom, the ease of entering and exiting, and how quiet the passenger cabin is on the freeway all contribute to a sense of comfort, allowing occupants to emerge from a lengthy trip fresh and ready to go. The point spread between the domestics and the imports in this category wasn’t as wide as some others, but it seems that the Japanese manufacturers have not only distilled the essence of a uniquely American vehicle type, but have improved upon the recipe – leaving the Dodge and Pontiac tied in last place.

3rd Place – 2005 Pontiac Montana SV6 (tie)
A decade ago, GM worked together with Europe’s Opel division to create a minivan that would serve the needs of both geographic regions, to disastrous results. The Opel version wound up being too large for Europe’s narrow streets and tight parking areas, while the American models were too narrow and small for overfed bodies and weekend do-it-yourselfers. Unfortunately, the 2005 Pontiac Montana SV6 is a reskinned version of that old model, and so it retains its narrow width, crowding occupants onto small seats, and cramming them in with little space for legs in front of hard plastic seatback storage bins. Comfort is better in the rear seats than up front. Odd, bubbled front seat bottom bolsters make you feel like you’re sitting on the van instead of in it. To GM’s credit, the seat fabric looks rugged and feels durable, like it came out of a Nissan Xterra. And the front door windowsills are padded in a plush vinyl that is supposed to simulate leather. But the Montana SV6’s inboard armrests aren’t height-adjustable, the pedals cannot be adjusted, and the steering wheel is too close even for people with short limbs, which means that many drivers are likely to find themselves uncomfortably intimate with the driver’s airbag cover. Plus, the Montana SV6 is loud inside, where wind and road noise are strongly evident on the highway. Finally, riders relegated to the third row of seats won’t be happy about contorting their bodies to get in and out, even with the tilt-and-slide second row seats.

3rd Place – 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan (tie)
Space-saving, super high-density foam padding originally developed for NASA is used in the 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan’s seats so that they can tightly collapse for storage in the floor wells. Unfortunately, the result is an oddly shaped bottom cushion equipped with extreme thigh support. One test driver said that sitting in the rear seats felt like lounging in a beach chair with the rear legs buried in the sand. This reclined body positioning makes it harder for rear occupants to climb in and out, and also places the head restraint too far away in a rear impact crash. Furthermore, there’s no foot space under the seats. But hey, the seats fold into the floor, so shut-yer-piehole. Up front, the captain’s chairs are plush and supportive but lack lumbar adjustment. The windowsills are hard plastic – unfriendly to elbows that might rest there – and the steering wheel rim is shaped in a way that can be uncomfortable to hold. The single-setting armrest worked for our group of test drivers, so we didn’t miss an adjustment feature here, and optional power adjustable pedals improve legroom for the driver. Rear passengers get decent legroom, but little foot room, and clearance space to get into and out of the third-row seat was the best of the bunch. Wind, engine, and road noise are clearly evident inside the Grand Caravan, but our test van suffered no rattles or squeaks.

2nd Place – 2005 Honda Odyssey
Rattles and squeaks were the 2005 Honda Odyssey’s undoing in this category. When underway, our sample van sounded like a family of rodents had moved in. Add the din from the run-flat Michelin tires coupled with excessive suspension noise, and the Honda was the second most aurally annoying van in the test. That could get tiring on a long road trip. Fortunately for Honda, occupant comfort makes up for lost ground, the only other complaints being hard plastic front windowsills where people might rest an elbow, slightly tight clearance to the third-row of seats, and second-row seats that sit too low and don’t offer enough thigh support. Maybe Dodge could trim some of that high-density foam out of the Grand Caravan and send it to the Honda plant in Alabama. Our test van came equipped with power adjustable pedals, but lacked a telescoping steering wheel that would have helped to create an optimum seating position. Every chair in the house is firm but comfortable, providing good support over the long haul. Legroom, headroom, shoulder room, hip room, foot room – it’s all good. Everybody is comfortable in a 2005 Honda Odyssey, it’s just that they might not be able to have a conversation with all the racket inside the cabin.

1st Place – 2005 Toyota Sienna
Toyota stacked the deck by sending us a fully loaded, $42,000 Sienna XLE Limited AWD for this test. Soft, supple leather seats complemented by fake wood trim lent the Toyota a decidedly luxurious and upscale feel, but the bottom line is that even with a cloth interior and fewer bells-and-whistles, the Sienna is the most comfortable minivan on the market today – for everyone but the driver. Though a huge improvement over the original Sienna, today’s version still lacks adequate seat track travel. And while our van did have a telescopic steering wheel, power adjustable foot pedals were not on the menu and they could have helped our lankiest drivers get more comfortable behind the wheel. Speaking of which, the wood-and-leather steering wheel rim on our test van gets extremely hot in sunshine, so be forewarned. At least you can rest your left elbow on the nicely padded windowsill and your right arm on the adjustable inboard armrest while waiting for the wheel rim to cool off. In the second-row captain’s chairs, passengers ride in first-class comfort with lots of leg, head, foot, shoulder, and hip room. The seats are wide and plush, like those in front, but prove supportive for long trips. Our test model even had side window shades to keep glare to a minimum. With those second-row seats moved all the way back in the track, third-row leg space suffers, but it’s relatively simple to climb aboard even if the side doors don’t create as large a portal as expected. But one of our favorite things about the Toyota Sienna was how quiet the interior was when riding down the highway. There’s barely any wind noise, and though the suspension delivers a bit of racket on larger bumps and the engine is audible when introduced to the region approaching redline, the Sienna is silent in comparison to the Dodge, Honda, and Pontiac. And everybody knows silence is golden.