I am looking to buy a Sienna minivan with AWD. The only problem is they only come with run flat tires because of the hardware taking up space so there's no place for a spare tire.

I'm wondering what people think about run flat's. I hear they are not giving as smooth a ride as regular tires.

Does anyone have them? If you had a choice between regular OR run flat's what would you choose?

My point is that once I get the van with AWD there is no going back to regular tires because I'm not going to drive without a spare tire if I'm not running run flats.

I can just as easily get the FWD minivan without runflats, but I was leaning towards the AWD. The cost is more for the AWD, but the biggest thing I have against it is the run flats.

Also I know you will say test drive the AWD first, but I've heard the problems with the run flats are not apparent at first but may be down the road after a few thousand miles.

 

I have Bridgestone potenza RE040 RFT on my car, the ride is harsh but still in a reasonable level IMO. RFT also make the car handling worst than regular tires. but I will still choose the RFT just for the trunk space on my car and I don't want to change tire on the road. I recommend you order the AWD with RFT unless you really want the best ride quality and handling out of the car. If you don't like the RFT afterword you can still buy a spare tire and change to regular tires. I know some ppl had done that. Also FYI, you need to replace the tire after it run-flat, you can't repair and reuse the broken tire again.

 

Positives: "In-destructo", puncture resistant, drive for 100miles at 0 psi, stiff sidewalls = sharp turn-in
Negatives: More expensive than regular tires, rougher ride

Generally the ride will be more harsh because run-flats have very stiff sidewalls, but I would test drive the van with AWD and see what you think. If it's acceptable to you then stick with the run-flats.

I have 16" run-flats on my MINI Cooper. So far 17,000 miles and they feel bulletproof with no problems. WIth them the turn-in is ultra sharp (well, the handling is awesome on the MINI anyway) but I don't think as much ultimate grip is there, versus say the S-02s on the S2000. While the ride is a little more rough with them versus a non run-flat, I feel much more confident with them on the car because my 30-mile commute to work contains all kinds of roads from bumpy, construction areas to smooth interstate and everything in between.

 

Thank's for the advice. My thought is that there will not be room for a spare because of the AWD hardware. At least that's what I read.


I guess a minivan is a better platform for runflats because they can have a softer suspension than a sports car to begin with so they may be less harsh. Also I don't drive a minivan at the limit like I drive my S2000.


How much is a replacement set of RFT's vs regular tires?

 

Rai,

Though I've never driven run-flats, I think your thoughts are sound. I agree that since you're not driving like Mario in the minivan, you should do well with the run-flats. Keep us posted, rai. I haven't seen this topic discussed recently around here.

I wonder if any S owners have run-flats (I doubt it).

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by rai
[B]

Thank's for the advice.

 

Another thing to think about: how easy is it to change a flat tire on the 2004 Sienna minivan? In my experience, it looks very difficult to get the spare tire out from underneath the chassis. And if you have a flat tire on the passenger side, it may cause the van to list sufficiently that it is physically impossible to pull the spare tire out. Now imagine if your significant other is driving the minivan with a load of screaming children and he/she gets a flat on a lonely dark road in a bad neighborhood in the middle of a rain storm.... Are they really going to be able to pull out the spare and change the flat under that kind of stress? We asked the Toyota saleman to demonstrate in the showroom and he couldn't even get the spare tire out. He called over his manager and the manager couldn't do it either. Exact same thing happened with the 2003 Odyssey at the Honda dealer: even though the spare is inside the Odyssey, the entire sales staff couldn't pull it out. My own conclusion was that it was somewhere between impratical and impossible to expect my spouse to change the flat tire on either the Sienna or Odyssey minivan, even under the best of conditions. So if the run-flats work, then I would highly recommend using the run-flats even if you get 2WD and the minivan has a spare tire, because the spare tire on those minivans is essentially useless.

 

Hatchback,

That's a good point. I have an odyssey now, I never change anything because I have AAA. But it's always in the back of your mind if for some reason you get a flat and you don't have time to wait for the tow truck.

Also the odyssey had these high mileage tires (I have 46K miles) and they are not exactly the best riding tires. I think the run flat's are sounding good.

 

Rai,

My wife and I test-drove the 2004 Sienna and the 2003 Odyssey. We both preferred the Odyssey because it was cheaper, handled better, and had much better visibility to the sides and rear. (See http://www.vtec.net/forums/one-message?mes...sage%5fid=84401)

Why are you planning to switch from an Odyssey to the Sienna?

 

Well we love the odyssey, but when we got ours there was no DVD entertainment system. We need/want a DVD entertainment system. Our odyssey is comming up on 50K miles where it'll need tires, maybe brakes after that. So we we're just going to get a new van with the entertainment system.

Things we like about the 2004 sienna:

1) split rear folding seat. This would come in handy. Also the rear seats are much easier to open close than the large odyssey's. This in no problem at all for me, and in fact my wife can do the odyssey seat no problem. But she thinks the split feature is a BIG thing.

2) the power sliding rear doors on the odyssey are hard to get to reverse. i mean if you put your hand out to stop it it takes a lot of force. The Sienna I can stop with one finger. This is a BIG deal for me. My kids are getting in/out of the back, I'm afraid they can get crushed by the door in the odyssey.

3) AWD is a feature on the Sienna not available on the Odyssey.

4) side air bags on the Sienna (I'm not sure if they are out on the Odyssey).


I love my Odyssey it's my most trouble free car I ever had. The ONLY problem I have had is the power sliding doors have gone haywire on me a couple times. Usually I just switch them to manual for a while and they get better. It never stranded me or anything because of the doors, but it's a little chink in the otherwise perfect vehicle.

Also I think it will have a lot of resale value. I may look at a Odyssey with the entertainment system, ot the new nissan Quest, but the Sienna looks like the best out there.

I test drove the FWD 04 Sienna. It felt just as good as the odyssey (to me). The steering is a little light. The turning radius is better in the sienna.


Basically both are great vans, neither is "fun to drive". If the Sienna is as well put together as the Honda I'll be a happy camper.