2005 Honda Odyssey Touring
When Honda introduced its second generation Odyssey minivan in 1999 it was an instant success. Powerful comfortable and spacious it was lightyears ahead of its Accordbased predecessor and the company routinely sold every single one they produced out of their plant in Alliston Ontario.
But all things must change and in late 2004 Honda brought out a new revised Odyssey for the 2005 model year. Unsurprisingly perhaps it had gone upmarket but nothing drastic. According to Hondas Yutaka Fujiwara who was project leader at the time the company wanted to shed the Odysseys “soccer mom” image and transform it into a “premium adventure vehicle”. To quote Fujiwara the new Odyssey had an interior that “reminds its occupants of a firstclass lounge.”
One of the ways Honda accomplished the Odysseys makeover was by giving it more power. The 05 version was propelled by a tweaked version of Hondas 3.5 litre V6 engine and developed 255 horsepower at 5750 rpm and 250 footpounds of torque at 5000 rpm. This was 15 more horses than the previous model and the upgraded engine was mated to a fivespeed automatic transmission. Honda designers also relocated the shift lever from the steering column to the dashboard.
What was really intriguing about the new powerplant was the introduction of Hondas Variable Cylinder Management system or VCM. In a nutshell this arrangement shuts down the rear cylinder bank during certain driving conditions highway cruising for example and as a result gave the Odyssey considerably better fuel economy than its predecessor. In operation it was virtually seamless and returned 12.0 L/100 km in town and a thrifty 7.7 L/100 km on the highway. It also conformed to 05 Ultra Low Emission Vehicle ULEV standards.
Combine the VCM feature with Hondas patented VTEC variable valve management system and you had a powerplant that seemed to accomplish the impossible: competitive fuel economy low emissions and classleading performance all at the same time. The VCM feature did not come with the entrylevel LX model however but was standard issue on the upscale EX.
But there was more here than a fancy powertrain. The new Odyssey had a slightly restyled body and came with all kinds of interesting little features including a refined version of Hondas third row seat apparatus that disappears into the floor a second row seat that slides sideways for easier access a removable second row centre console a convex “conversational” mirror that allows you to maintain eye contact with rear seat passengers and my personal favourite an infloor storage bin with a removable lazy Susan rotating tray that is accessible from both the front and secondrow seats. Despite Hondas new marketing strategy soccer moms loved the Odyssey even more.
Nor did it hurt that Honda beefed up the safety side of things. With dual front airbags side curtain airbags for all three rows of seats reengineered front rear and side impact zones and a rollover sensor that deploys the airbags if the vehicle turns turtle the new Odyssey led the pack for occupant safety. Needless to say antilocking brakes were standard equipment as was a vehicle stability assist program and a traction control system.
Offered in four trim levels LX EX EXL and Touring the new Odyssey was loaded with optional luxury and convenience features. Depending upon which model you chose you could order things like power sliding side doors with an antipinch feature a power rear tailgate power adjustable pedals a rearview camera leather interior and of course a rear DVD entertainment system that came with wireless headphones and a popdown nineinch screen. Step up to the topoftheline Touring model and you got a bilingual DVDbased navigation system.
All of these features were nice no question but what has always separated the Odyssey from the rest of the pack is its performance. Although it now has more competitors than ever its still a frontrunner when it comes to reserve power and flatout acceleration. It also came with a level of refinement and build quality that is still the benchmark in this market segment.
2005 also marked the end of Alliston Ontario as the Odysseys place of origin. Henceforth they were and still are manufactured at Hondas facility in Lincoln Alabama.
Three safety recalls to report with Transport Canada. One involves a possibly faulty fuel pump relay another is concerned with a glitch in front air bag deployment and the third involves a suspect sensor in the ABS control unit.
The National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration NHTSA has the same recalls on file as well as two more: one concerns a possibly flawed steering column assembly and the second another fuel system delivery malfunction. According to NHTSA however these two contretemps involve comparatively small numbers of vehicles: 203 and 1923 respectively. NHTSA also has 133 service bulletins for the 05 Odyssey covering just about every aspect of the vehicles makeup. Lots of structural issues often involving obstinate or faulty side doors. Nonetheless Consumer Reports gave the 2005 Odyssey its top ranking in that year placing it above the Toyota Sienna Dodge Grand Caravan and Saturn Relay.
If youre in the market for a threeyear old Odyssey expect to pay from about 22000 to 30000 depending upon trim level and equipment. Considering its 32700 base price in 2005 its held onto its value well.
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