The XSE Toyota Sienna:
Reason for Purchase.
Our old 2010 Mazda CX7 was slowly dying on us, it served us well for about 10 years. Issues like random sudden uncontrolled accelerations especially at low speeds in parking lots and a defective fuel gauge that left us stranded made us feel that the car was not safe for us anymore. There were also other little issues here and there. I had to replace three power window motors and one power window mechanism. One day the door handle just fell off the car. It was not built to last 10 years. Very disappointing quality Mazda.
I was hesitant to let the Mazda go because I thought it was still a usable car, and I was able to handle the sudden acceleration fairly well, but my wife kept reminding me that she felt that the Mazda was not safe for her to drive anymore. She had the most issues with the sudden accelerations in parking lots. She says she might run over a pedestrian by accident one day.
This was around the time Toyota launched the new 4th Gen Hybrid Sienna. Timing, marketing, aggressive looks, the 2 1500-watt 110-volt inverters (25 AMP), and the incredible fuel efficiency got me sold on the car. She was also considering getting a van because we would typically run out of space in the CX7 on our road trips and the Toyota seemed to fit the bill.
I was very well aware of Toyota's reliability, and having owned a Prius gave me the confidence that Toyota Hybrids are very reliable cars. The Prius had a brake failure recall that took care of an issue in our Prius after more than 9 years and 100,000 miles of ownership. Toyota’s not just known to be reliable but Toyota in my experience takes care of its customers. I even recently got an email stating that they would repaint our now 11-year-old Prius because they had some models where the paint was flaking off. Unfortunately, the Prius was totaled in 2022. Thankfully my wife was safe because the Prius also has great crash safety features.
Why I Chose the black front wheel drive XSE.
- I thought it was the best color for the new Sienna outside of pearl white which was not available on the XSE trim at that time
- The 2-wheel drive version has 20" rims, making the van look even more aggressive.
- 36 MPG and carries 50% more people than a Prius? Its cost per 50 miles per person is better than any Prius if you're carrying 8 people on some trims.
- The XSE sport-tuned suspension.
- To me, a black XSE Sienna was the best-looking van out there.
How I found the exact model I wanted:
As of this writing, there is an 18-month wait for orders of the new Sienna. I don't think it was that hard to order in 2021 but prices were incredibly high and no one was selling cars without a markup. The closest one I could find was 4 states away from me. There were 2 ways to get my hands on it fly there and drive it back or get some service to deliver the car to us. I decided to make it a family vacation road trip! Bought one from Chicago and drove the van back to Georgia.
"Anakin" on the dealer lot of Chicago's Toyota on Western
While I had never seen a black XSE in real life before, when I saw it in person It was even better than what I Imagined. It was beautiful! Our 1400-mile Journey back brought the van through its paces. When we drove over the winding roads of the St. Francis Ozark Mountains the handling of the XSE on 20" rims was on par with a good handling car. I daresay it was enjoyable.
880.34 KBFeatures Enjoyed in Long-Term Use:
These are a few surprisingly helpful features of the XSE Sienna that I have loved through the 2 years
- The kick to open side doors is more useful than I thought. Because my daughter loves to always get carried, and they are very convenient in these situations.
- The 1500-watt 110v power outlet. I originally thought I could use it as a backup generator in case of emergencies. I also imagined plugging in a microwave to warm up food while we were camping. So far none of that has happened in 2 years. Instead, my wife uses it to plug in her laptop to do work during long road trips.
- On the back of the center console, there is a protrusion that looks like a place to hang your grocery bags. I use it a lot and love that it's there. Especially useful if you want to make sure liquids in plastic bags are safe and won't spill.
- For long road trips, the lane-keep assist is amazing!
-
Wireless* Carplay. With a $60.00 dongle, I can use wireless CarPlay instead of having to plug the darn phone.
- Parking Sensors, This awesome feature is perfect for ensuring you don't hit things in the parking lot.
- If you know how to "hypermile" you can get more than 36mpg on the highway even on the XSE model.
Things that annoyed the heck out of me in the XSE Sienna:
- The "voice projection" feature is supposed to help you communicate with the people in the back. But there is a bug when you turn it on. Doing this kills your navigation voice prompts. I only realized this a year into the ownership. I had to move the voice projection toggle switch to the home screen through the radio customization settings.(FIXED)
- The wireless charger is very flaky it fails on my iPhone 13 max.(IGNORED)
- The turn signals are not visible on the side of the car. (FIXED)
- There is no wireless CarPlay (FIXED)
Final Thoughts:
My Toyota Sienna is not great at any one thing. I feel like it is a great all around Vehicle. It is not shabby looking, it's a great handling car for a van, it is very economical, can carry lots of stuff. I am a proud owner of this cool "dad" mobile.