I (heart) Honda Odyssey

August 12, 2005 · Comments

This is the first brand new car that I have ever owned in my name. It is one amazing vehicle. The ride is incredibly smooth, just as it was when I test drove it a few months ago. The only time I feel its size is when I pull into a parking spot. Not so much for the width, but the height.

There are so many dials and buttons. It will take me a while to figure out what everything does. It doesn’t appear to have daytime running lights. That means I have to ::shudder:: turn the headlights on at night. I got very used to the headlights being on automatically that I admit to backing out of my driveway and pulling away down the street (at dawn, so there was some light) before realizing that my headlights were not on. Likewise, I’ve had the warning beep reminding me to turn them off before exiting the car.

Also, I haven’t figured out how to have the interior lights go on only when the door is open. The other night, after we got home I went to get something out of the freezer in the garage and I noticed the interior lights were on. This was a couple of hours after we got home. I turned off the interior lights, saving the battery but now in order to get interior lights I have to turn them on manually. Not a big deal, just a little annoying. I know it has to be possible, just haven’t figured it out.

Honda’s Navigation screen is fantastic for learning a new neighborhood. The kids have enjoyed learning the street names as we drive around, even if we’re not using the guided directions. The screen is that big and legible that the kids can see it easily from the second row.

Here’s a picture of it…no little PDA-sized screens to squint at. And yes, it’s voice activated but I haven’t tried that yet.

Hondanav

The 6 disc CD changer is located behind the navigation screen.

I started reading through the manual and the front passenger side airbags have a nice feature. They won’t work if there’s something on the seat and it’s less than 65 lbs. A light goes on warning you that the air bag is disabled. So if your child is less than 65 lbs., they can sit in the front seat and you don’t have to worry about the air bag hurting them. Still, children will sit in the back when I’m driving thankyouverymuch but it’s good to know. That also means that if I don’t want to see that warning light I better keep my purse on the center console instead of the passenger seat.

We’re also enjoying the free [XM Radio](http://www.xmradio.com) trial. I don’t see how we’re going to be able to give it up at the end of the trial. The radio stations around here are pretty bad…unless you’re into college radio, I guess (we’re 10 minutes away from Princeton University). The girls listened to Radio Disney on the way to camp this morning and noticed that the radio tells them the song that is playing. Me, I found a channel of [movie soundtracks](http://www.xmradio.com/programming/channel_page.jsp?ch=27) and a channel of [show tunes](http://www.xmradio.com/programming/channel_page.jsp?ch=28). I’m also loving [XM Cafe](http://www.xmradio.com/programming/channel_page.jsp?ch=45) which is kind of folksy-rock. I’m happy.

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