Minivans

First Drive: 2011 Toyota Sienna

Family Friendliness: 9.5

Recommended: Yes

Specificatons apply to Sienna LE 4-Cylinder

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By Keith Buglewicz

The 2011 Toyota Sienna is all new this year, and a lot more has changed than just the styling. For starters, Toyota now offers more standard equipment on all models, and introduces a new model, the sporty SE. New features like eight-passenger seating are sure to excite family-oriented buyers, and a new four-cylinder engine instantly appeals to anybody who wants to avoid the gas pumps. In addition, the Sienna remains the only minivan in the U.S. that's available with all-wheel drive. It all sounds good, but the previous Sienna was already state-of-the-art, and we wondered: Is Toyota adding more substance, or do the new features and styling detract from the core minivan needs of families who just need to carry their kids in comfort? Toyota invited us to be one of the first to drive the 2011 Sienna, and we have the answers.

What's New

The 2011 Toyota Sienna is within an inch of its predecessor in most dimensions, but that styling hides a host of other changes. The new four-cylinder engine is unique to the full-size minivan class, and the 10 percent improvement in combined fuel economy over the V-6 (22 mpg vs. 20 mpg) is a difference you'll notice at the pumps. The V-6 is redesigned for more power and improved economy, and both engines are mated to a six-speed automatic transmission to further reduce fuel consumption. The new Sienna also boasts more safety features on all models, such as standard stability control, and seven standard airbags that includes a driver-side knee airbag.

Toyota has worked to improve the passenger-hauling capabilities of the new Sienna with multiple second-row configurations. A new long-slide mechanism gives the second row 25.6 inches of travel. This combines with a seat bottom that flips up, compacting the seat when in its forward-most position. Not only does this make getting into the third row easier, it locks in place to enhance cargo room without removing the heavy seats. The Sienna also offers eight passenger seating thanks to a jump seat between the second row captains chairs, which easily removes and stows in the rear cargo area. Finally, Limited models can get Lounge Seating, essentially a recliner in the second row, complete with a footrest. Also available is a wide-screen video system that not only plays widescreen movies, but separate standard-format video side by side.

Models

The base Sienna is seven-passengers only and available with either the four-cylinder or V-6 engine, but no all-wheel drive. Standard equipment includes three-zone manual air conditioning, one-touch up or down windows (with anti-pinch), cruise control and keyless entry.

The LE adds standard eight-passenger seating and available all-wheel drive with the V-6 engine. It's also the only Sienna model with the combination of eight seats and the four-cylinder engine. In addition, LE models get a multi-information display that, among other things, shows open door, cruise and fuel economy information. If you opt for the V-6, you also get power sliding doors with buttons on the remote, Bluetooth phone integration with steering-wheel mounted controls, and a back-up camera that displays in the multi-info display, all of which is available as an option package on four-cylinder models. All-wheel drive is available on V-6 models, but only with seven-passenger seating.

The new eight-passenger SE model comes only with a V-6 engine, but adds a sporty suspension and a more aggressive exterior appearance. Inside, the seats are covered in a leatherette-cloth combination unique this model, and there's a leather-wrapped steering wheel as well as a unique gauge cluster.

The XLE is the near-luxury model, and it adds a leather interior, power rear hatch, sonar backup sensors, a sunroof, three-zone automatic climate control, and upgraded gauges to the eight-passenger interior. A navigation system is also available, as is the wide-screen entertainment system. The V-6 only XLE is also available with all-wheel drive, albeit with only seven-passenger seating.

The luxurious Limited comes with a V-6 engine and optional all-wheel drive. It adds wood-grain trim, automatic door lock/unlock and push-button start, the Lounge Seat in the second row, and parking sensors in the front and rear. The third row also boasts a power folding function. In addition, you can get active cruise control with collision avoidance, making the Sienna Limited the only minivan in the U.S. with this technology.

First Impression

We spent the better part of a morning and afternoon sampling four-cylinder and V-6 models of the 2011 Toyota Sienna. The four-cylinder was a surprise; we thought it would make the Sienna feel slow, but instead we found little difference in acceleration between it and the V-6 models on hand. Although it was noisy under full throttle, such as getting on the freeway, it was no louder when cruising than the V-6. It should be noted that the V-6 has a larger towing capacity though, so if you plan to do so with your minivan then the V-6 is the way to go. The Sienna's ride quality was very good, even in the sporty SE model.

We found the Sienna's interior to be comfortable and functional. An extended ride in the second and third rows showed that there was plenty of space for an adult male in the second row, and enough in the third row for a shorter journey. As for the new second row arrangement, overall it fulfills its promise of a comfortable second row with wide-ranging travel and ease of access to the third row. However, there are a couple of things that prevent us from falling completely in love. First, the deep tracks in the floor are likely to accumulate small items (think Cheerios or small toys) that could impede the sliding function. One of the women in attendance noted that it would be all too easy to get a high-heel stuck in the track, too. In addition, the seat doesn't remember its previous position after sliding to its forwardmost position. The LATCH points were also deep between the seatback and bottom cushion, although this isn't unique to Toyota. If you have to remove the seats, watch your back; while the standard seat only weighs 47 pounds, the lounge seats weigh 75 each, and the captain's chair with the jump seat mounts is more than 80 pounds. Finally, the seats mount to a rack that's permanently attached to the tracks, which means that even when the seats are removed you don't have a totally flat floor. They are covered in plastic shields, however, and even though it's not totally flat, it's certainly good enough for the vast majority of cases, we think.

On the Limited, we found that while the Lounge seat is undeniably comfortable, reclining it means that anybody in the third row loses leg room. In addition, anybody taller than about 5 feet 8 inches probably won't get much use out of the recliner, since his or her feet won't have any room. The power third row is billed as an added convenience, but the one-handed manual folding mechanism was twice as fast as pushing and holding the ceiling-mounted power folding buttons. On the other hand, the active cruise control is terrific on long trips, the collision avoidance system could just save your life, and the wide-screen entertainment system is irresistible to technology lovers.

Family Friendliness Potential

The 2011 Toyota Sienna will score high on Family Friendliness for a couple of obvious reasons. First, it's a minivan, which are generally the highest-scoring vehicles out there. Second, it offers plenty of standard safety features. The fuel efficient engines -- especially the four cylinder -- also add to its score. The Sienna's prices cover a wide range, but even the Limited isn't terribly extravagant, with a price only slightly more than $40,000. The only unknowns are the crash test scores. NHTSA and IIHS crash test scores aren't yet available, but if we assume it meets the average of other minivans, it should be one of the highest-scoring vehicles on Family Car Review. In fact, based on this assumption, the eight-passenger four-cylinder LE gets a score of 9.5, the highest of any vehicle we've seen. Even V-6 models with all-wheel drive -- an expensive and fuel-economy crippling combination in most vehicles -- still managed a very respectable 8.9.

Update: On May 25, 2010, the IIHS published crash test scores for the Toyota Sienna, giving it Good ratings in all categories, earning the 2011 Toyota Sienna a Top Safety Pick designation. The Family Friendliness rating remained the same across the board for all models, meeting our predictions for this minivan.

Conclusion

It's not too surprising that the 2011 Toyota Sienna hits all the right buttons. It's comfortable, can carry plenty of people and cargo, and covers a wide enough price range that virtually anybody in the family-hauler market could get into one. It also tackles the fuel economy problem head on with the four-cylinder model; if we had one wish, it would be that we could get the luxury features of the XLE with a four-cylinder engine. We're left wondering whether the new second-row mechanism causes as many problems as it solves, but even as it stands it's not a deal killer, and we have no problem recommending the 2011 Toyota Sienna to all family car shoppers.

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