TrueDelta Reviews the Seat Room and Comfort of the 2013 Honda Odyssey
2013 Honda Odyssey Seat Room and Comfort: Pros
Year
Comment
2014
I test a large crossover and think, "This third-row seat isn't bad." Then I drive a minivan and marvel at home much roomier it is inside than even the roomiest crossovers. This advantage increases the farther back in the vehicle you sit. Back in the third row, it's simply no contest.
Among minivans, the Odyssey is the roomiest of the bunch. It's the only minivan with over 40 inches of legroom in each of its three rows. Total up the differences in the official specs, and the Toyota Sienna comes up nearly ten inches short (though the difference doesn't seem nearly so large in reality, maybe an inch or two). A Chrysler Town & Country? Over fourteen inches. A Toyota Highlander crossover has legroom specs similar to the Chrysler minivan, but its third row feels much more cramped. Moral of the story: don't trust the specs, sit in the cars yourself.
In cabin breadth, the official specs have the Odyssey about equal to the Town & Country and a little narrower than the Sienna, but subjectively both the Honda and the Toyota feel broader and more open than the Chrysler.
Then there's access to the rear rows. The feature most associated with minivans, their sliding side doors, are easier to open in tight parking spaces and provide a much larger opening.
In terms of seat comfort, the Odyssey falls a little short of the Sienna, if only because it doesn't offer lounge chair-like legrests in the second row. Then again, for anyone over five feet tall to use these in the Toyota the second row seat must be slid back so far as to render the third row unusable. Either minivan has more comfortable second-row seats than most crossovers, including the Highlander, and third-row comfort is simply no contest. The Chrysler's second row seats aren't as comfortable, as they are more thinly constructed to enable them to fold beneath the floor.
The Odyssey, Sienna, and Highlander can each be equipped to carry eight passengers (though the lounge seats in the Sienna eliminate one spot, and the three in the third row of the Highlander best have short legs). The Chrysler minivans can only seat seven.
see full Honda Odyssey review
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TrueDelta Reviews the Seat Room and Comfort of the 2014 Chevrolet Malibu
2014 Chevrolet Malibu Seat Room and Comfort: Cons
Year
Comment
On paper, the Malibu's rear seat is only a little tighter than those in the 2008-2012 sedan and in competing cars. In person, rear knee room would only be marginally competitive in the compact sedan segment. Sitting behind my 5-9 self, my shins graze the front seatbacks. GM is rushing some revised seats to market. But if past attempts to fix a cramped rear seat are any indication, this won't make a substantial difference. The rear seat in the Ford Fusion is roomier, if also short of the segment's quasi-limos.
see full Chevrolet Malibu review
What Our Members Are Saying about the Seat Room and Comfort of the 2014 Chevrolet Malibu
2014 Chevrolet Malibu Seat Room and Comfort: Pros
Year
Body/Powertrain
Comment
2014
4dr Sedan 196-horsepower 2.5L I4 6-speed shiftable automatic FWD
Both front & rear compartments very roomy & comfortable. Again, this is noted improvement over our 2009 Malibu.
see full Chevrolet Malibu review
2014 Chevrolet Malibu Seat Room and Comfort: Cons
Year
Body/Powertrain
Comment
2013
4dr Sedan 182-horsepower 2.4L I4 Hybrid 6-speed shiftable automatic FWD
This is tight if front seats are postioned at or close to the back of their range; shorter wheelbase in this model compared to prior version. Rear seat access is excellent (i.e, for infant car seats, small item transport).
see full Chevrolet Malibu review
