Not about tundras sorry!! Highlander or sienna for 3 kids / 3rd row???

I just wanted to see if any y’all in my situation. My wife is pregnant with #3. Her current vehicle (Honda crv) can’t fit 3 car seats. Looking to upgrade and want another yota in the garage. Wifey kinda hellbent on good gas mileage. Hybrid highlander and the sienna on our radar. I never thought we’d own a van. Our local dealership was willing to let us take a hybrid highlander demo for the weekend. It’s friggin sweet. But with that 3rd row up there isn’t much room cargo room. They didn’t have a sienna in stock to look at, so we’re going to the next closest dealer to look at them. We’re looking at the xle package. The msrp is basically identical on the sienna and highlander. We live in the boonies where it snows half the year. I didn’t realize the sienna came in AWD. Wondering if any y’all had any inputs on either of these vehicles. ✌️

 

Highlander..

 

Highlander. Or not good gas mileage and more room 3rd row 4runner. But yes, Highlander, but only because I don't like minivans, friend of mine has a Sienna awd and likes it.

 

I just came across this….” Exclusive cement color “. Might look good next to my tundra

 

Neither!
Had both Highlander is a great vehicle just sucks for 3 kids. Our oldest had to climb in and out of the hatch because he could not get around the 2 car seats in the middle row.

The Sienna absolutely sucked in any form or fashion.

Wife now has a Suburban only because they don’t make a long wheel base Sequoia.
Sadly with the 3rd row up there is zero cargo room.

 

What was so bad about the sienna? All the friends of friends etc. that have one seem to really like them?

 

People we’ve talked to with sienna experience all seem to be positive.

side note in reference to your user name - I drew a first rifle bull tag this year unexpectedly. Maybe I’ll see ya out there!

 

Absolutely AWFUL TO DRIVE.
Seating is a gigantic pain with 3 car seats. I ended up taking the passenger side middle seat completely out because I could barely get to the rear to buckle the kids in the back.
And ohh those auto sliding doors, put a teddy bear between them and close the door see what happens. Not a thing the door just keeps on closing.
A couple of occasions the kiddo was climbing in and grabbed the interior C pillar to pull himself in and hit the button. One BOB running stroller took up the entire cargo area.
Kept it a year. Big SUVs are the way to go

 

Highlander.

 

Good points, thanks.

 

Sequoia?

 

No cargo room

 

Congrats! Three here as well along with an '11 Sienna AWD. It has been bombproof for my wife and the kids. I have a second set of wheels for the winter and it has been fine for us on plowed roads. However, its ground clearance is quite low so if you're off the beaten path, that may be a deal-breaker. Ours does not have a spare, either. But overall, I'd say it is great for the kids -- easy in/out, lots of room, the rear seat folds flat, etc. The captain's chairs do come out, too, but it's a hassle.

 

We owned a Sienna for 6 years. One of the most functional vehicles ever. Not super cool but its so nice having all that room for the kids. The 3rd row on the Highlander is like an afterthought. We had 3 young ones at the time and we actually removed two seats in the middle row (they pop out). With the front row having a captain seat, the wife could simply pull over, walk to the back and change a diaper right there in the large open area of the middle row, all within the safety of the vehicle. No needing to find a store, drag all 3 kids in and then get them all back in. This could be a 20 minute ordeal. We carried a small potty with us also for emergencies that we could empty when we get to the destination. Also, with self opening sliding doors she could open them, pile all the kids in and strap them in their car seats with all the doors locked and never needing to get out again. She wouldn't be vulnerable in a dark parking lot trying to buckle in 3 kids, one at a time, with the doors open. The van was the perfect vehicle for a large young family, but you do sacrifice cool factor. YMMV

Large SUV's are cool also if cost isn't an issue but be prepared to tack on 30k to that Sienna

 

Wife & I got our first Sienna in 08. It is absolutely the perfect vehicle when you have little ones. The car seats, strollers, etc. No problem! Wanna take grandma and grandpa with ya, no problem.
She liked it so much that we traded it for another 12 years later! Didn’t want to give up all that space.

 

3 years ago when I had 3 kids (4 now) the highlander didn't cut it for me. The 3rd row is non existence. We ended up with a Honda Pilot instead which has more room for a mid size SUV. Didn't look at Sienna because I am not driving a minivan. With 4 kids the Pilot still has plenty room for us even on long trips. We just fold down half the 3rd row for cargo room.

 

I forgot to mention, I also owned the Highlander before child 3 moved us into the Sienna. If your goal space and a 3rd row, you will regret the Highlander

 

Also, this exists.

Toyota Sienna Lift Kits & Accessories
https://www.journeysoffroad.com/toyota-sienna.html

 

I was really against getting a van because I grew up in one. Figured the Sequoia could wait till the kids got older and honestly she loves the sienna. I throws some nice rims and wheels on it and blacked out all the windows and even the front. She digs it and it does just fine for what she needs. My kids are out of strollers so we do t have to worry about that at all thankfully. Got mine from Carmax. Put $10k down and financed $17k for a 2015 XLE. The kids dig the tv so can’t complain

 

If you want something like the Highlander, I’d actually recommend a Honda Pilot. Better layout, more usable 3rd row. Better handling too. Great family vehicle. Not as reliable as a Toyota, so you’ll want to get the Honda lifetime powertrain warranty. Not the 3rd party warranty the sales guy will try to sell you. There’s actually a dealership in NH that is willing to sell the warranty to anyone with a new Pilot. My buddy just bought a new one and went through all this. His dealership wouldn’t sell him the Honda warranty, so he declined the 3rd party warranty and found this NH dealer on the Pilot forums. Called his dealership back and told them he bought it elsewhere. They were not happy.

My wife would be in a Sequoia except we’d have to use the third row, and there is only cargo room for a couple of backpacks when the 3rd row is up. So she’s in a Yukon XL. Hopefully the new Sequoia in 2023 will have a longer option…

 

If you're considering a minivan anyway, a Kia Sedona is half the price of a Highlander or Sienna. Just saying...

 

We’re getting 34mpg in our 2021 Sienna (hand calculated). Never thought we’d have a van but with little kids, it’s a no brainer. I have a bad ass tundra and a nice family hauler. Sounds like some on this forum are a little insecure. For those who said they suck to drive, I 100% disagree. It drives better than a Yukon/Tahoe, explorer and Flex… I do wish it had at least 1 more inch of ground clearance but it’s not a deal breaker.

 

The Sienna has room for cargo even with the 3rd row up, and you have room to move around inside. Get the Sienna, Highlander doesn’t have much cargo room, especially with 3 kids.

 

We have a 2021 Highlander limited and we love it. It is a very nice vehicle. Ours has the 12” screen with birds eye view it’s pretty cool. We have two children and ours has the bucket seats In the second row. So it’s not too bad for them to get back to the third row if needed. Like mentioned above if the third row seating is in use there is some storage behind the seat but not a ton.

 

A few things I love about the sienna is the fact that we have bucket seats in the middle and the middle can slide way up or way back. We’ve even put the third row down for beach trips and slide that middle row back for more space to for the kids to have more leg room and still had plenty of cargo space in the back for our luggage and stuff. When I’m home I whip that thing around town and give my tundra a break. No shame in my game

 

Nice! Congratulations on your tag! I'm banking points right now (up to 9) for an early rifle tag, so have been on 2nd choice draws for years. Haven't drawn my go-to 1st rifle tag since they changed the draw scheme a few years ago... So I'm hunting E/S archery and have a 3rd rifle cow B tag. All the rain should be good for antler growth, saw a massive 7x7 off 285 on the way to work a few weeks ago, so hope the herds are nice and healthy elsewhere in the state. Good luck!

 

I was not expecting all the response in this thread. Thanks for all the input. Well, we’re van owners. Never thought I’d see the day. We went up to look today at a very large Toyota dealership (I bought my tundra there). They have hardly any new vehicles on the lot. They had one sienna that was “sold” but the deal fell through. It was still all wrapped in plastic when he went to get it. Salesman said he had 3 people that were “in line” ahead of us on a sienna and had to check if they wanted it first. Not sure how much truth vs. sales tactic he was giving us, but we’ve been looking for several months and they don’t ever seem to stick around. The salesman seemed like he wasn’t a bull sh*tter, or maybe he’s just a good salesman. Either way…. He got us. The Toyota dealership that’s closer to our house has one scheduled for delivery end of month, and they said that one is already sold. Anyway, wifey likes it, and she’ll be driving it 90% of the time. Happy wife happy life

 

I would normally say he's full of it but not in this current climate. Vehicles are being sold sight unseen. Congratulations on the new vehicle, you're going to love it. That new interior is really sharp too

 

You made the right decision. We have 3 kids and the versatility of a minivan is unmatched compared to a SUV. Plus getting nearly 40 MPG is pretty awesome. Great for road trips. We love our 21 model.