So we bought a new van back in the summer. It’s a Honda Odyssey 2018 LX, which we selected because it was the only minivan on the market that had a viable eighth seat.

People ask me all the time how I like it, so I thought I’d write it down so I don’t forget.

Some good stuff about it:

• It has a workable eighth seat.
• The seats are also super flexible – the rear seats fold down flat with ease and simplicity, and the middle row of seats slides forward, back, and side to side as needed, which is cool.
• The LX model, which is the most base model, comes with tons of bells and whistles and fancy safety features that you might think would only come with a high-end model. Stuff like adaptive cruise control (SO AWESOME, I will never go back), lane control stuff, adaptive headlights, and traction control.
• It has the world’s best heater – despite the size of the interior, you will not be cold. And, even in the base model, it comes with a remote starter. And, the remote starter automatically turns on the heated seats. So you will NOT be cold. It’s also equally as good at cooling off in the summer.
• It drives really nice, smooth, like a fancy car. It’s really pleasant to ride in.
• My husband wanted to add that the touch screen controls are very big and bright, and that the system manages different kinds of inputs really well, and it’s better than a lot of other cars.

But of course, there’s some bad stuff too:

• The engine does this weird powerless/transmission-shifting-fail thing every so often. I notice it when I am slowing down, but not stopping, like for a yield, or approaching a red light that suddenly turns green. When I change my mind from braking and hit the gas, the van kind of says, “Hmmmmmm. Let me think about that and get back to you.” And you have to wait a few moments for it to grudgingly kick in. I used to think that this was due to running the engine on ECO mode, but even with it turned off, this happens.
• It has a huuuuuuge turning circle, and parking it is tough. I find that unlike with our old Toyota Sienna, I am now seeking out those far-away, drive-through style parking spots so I don’t have to try to ease it in between two other cars. I can’t even imagine trying to parallel park it.
• The radio does not tell you the names of the songs it plays. This sounds minor, but it was LITERALLY the one thing I wanted in a new car. Almost every other car on the market does this now. Almost every other car on the market does this in its lowest model. But despite giving you all the cool safety stuff, with the Odyssey, you have to buy the very top model – the EX-L – with its leather seats and sunroof and nonsense – just to get a radio that tells you the names of the songs it plays. THAT SUCKS.
• There’s not enough cup holders for my liking.

And there you have it.