Of course, you may have noticed at this point that we’ve not made any mention of the Nissan Quest, save for saying it wasn’t available at the time of the comparison drive. We did drive the 2013 Nissan Quest late last year, and so put together a short sidebar on it to round out the minivan lineup currently available in North America:
N/A – Nissan Quest
Although not an obvious choice as a minivan, the Quest has been around for 20 years, and Nissan has been a part of the minivan business for over 30 years if you include the compact Multi, introduced in 1982.
With this in mind, Nissan should be a front-runner in the minivan race. However, the fact of the matter is that it is not. Up until the 1993-2002 Quest (and its twin, the Mercury Villager), all was well. Then, for the 2004 model year, Nissan took a turn for the worse. Sales dropped based in part on design, but also reliability early on. The Quest never recovered.
If the 2011 Quest was to help improve its lot in the segment, it has not done so. In all of 2012, only 640 new units were delivered. Here’s a stat: 82.6 times more Grand Caravans and Town & Countries were sold in the same period.
The current Nissan Quest is not a bad vehicle. Actually, we quite liked it as our ride to-and-from AJAC’s annual TestFest in Niagara Falls last fall. It is surprisingly comfortable, smooth, and refined. The long 1,500 km road trip went by relatively well. Our only complaint was the lackluster support to passengers in the 2nd row seats. They were, however, no worse than those in the Grand Caravan.
The Nissan Quest’s polarizing style seems to be, once more, responsible for poor sales. Its price range is on par with the other Japanese offerings, but clearly consumers want nothing to do with it. The Odyssey, the next “worst” selling minivan, sold over 13 times more units…
The bottom line on the 2013 Nissan Quest is if you and your family are looking for an original way to get around, this would be it.
The mighty minivan for the masses
If we learned one thing on this minivan comparison drive it’s that there truly is no substitute for a minivan. If you need the space and place for seven or more, you’d be silly not to consider a minivan. Shortly after this drive, we had a three-row Toyota Highlander Hybrid, and the third row was laughable compared to those in the minivans. And cargo space and access to it? Again, laughable in any SUV when compared to the cavernous space in a minivan.
The mighty minivan exists for a reason: to be a spacious, easy-to-use, easy-to-drive people carrier. And when you’re in the market for a minivan there are three important boxes you, as the consumer, want to check: value, space and comfort. If we throw in the drive aspect, the 2013 Honda Odyssey comes closest to checking all the necessary boxes. While the Sienna and Grand Caravan boast space and value respectively, they don’t quite do it all as well as the Honda Odyssey.
*Prices exclude sales taxes, A/C tax as well as freight and delivery charges.
* For comparison purposes
N/A – Nissan Quest
Although not an obvious choice as a minivan, the Quest has been around for 20 years, and Nissan has been a part of the minivan business for over 30 years if you include the compact Multi, introduced in 1982.
With this in mind, Nissan should be a front-runner in the minivan race. However, the fact of the matter is that it is not. Up until the 1993-2002 Quest (and its twin, the Mercury Villager), all was well. Then, for the 2004 model year, Nissan took a turn for the worse. Sales dropped based in part on design, but also reliability early on. The Quest never recovered.
If the 2011 Quest was to help improve its lot in the segment, it has not done so. In all of 2012, only 640 new units were delivered. Here’s a stat: 82.6 times more Grand Caravans and Town & Countries were sold in the same period.
The current Nissan Quest is not a bad vehicle. Actually, we quite liked it as our ride to-and-from AJAC’s annual TestFest in Niagara Falls last fall. It is surprisingly comfortable, smooth, and refined. The long 1,500 km road trip went by relatively well. Our only complaint was the lackluster support to passengers in the 2nd row seats. They were, however, no worse than those in the Grand Caravan.
The Nissan Quest’s polarizing style seems to be, once more, responsible for poor sales. Its price range is on par with the other Japanese offerings, but clearly consumers want nothing to do with it. The Odyssey, the next “worst” selling minivan, sold over 13 times more units…
The bottom line on the 2013 Nissan Quest is if you and your family are looking for an original way to get around, this would be it.
The mighty minivan for the masses
If we learned one thing on this minivan comparison drive it’s that there truly is no substitute for a minivan. If you need the space and place for seven or more, you’d be silly not to consider a minivan. Shortly after this drive, we had a three-row Toyota Highlander Hybrid, and the third row was laughable compared to those in the minivans. And cargo space and access to it? Again, laughable in any SUV when compared to the cavernous space in a minivan.
The mighty minivan exists for a reason: to be a spacious, easy-to-use, easy-to-drive people carrier. And when you’re in the market for a minivan there are three important boxes you, as the consumer, want to check: value, space and comfort. If we throw in the drive aspect, the 2013 Honda Odyssey comes closest to checking all the necessary boxes. While the Sienna and Grand Caravan boast space and value respectively, they don’t quite do it all as well as the Honda Odyssey.
| 2013 Dodge Grand Caravan CREW Plus | 2013 Honda Odyssey Touring | 2013 Toyota Sienna SE | 2013 Nissan Quest | |
| Base Price* | $27 995 | $29 990 | $28 140 | $29 998 |
| Price as tested* | $37 995 | $47 190 | $37 205 | $38 898 |
| 2013 Dodge Grand Caravan CREW Plus | 2013 Honda Odyssey Touring | 2013 Toyota Sienna SE | 2013 Nissan Quest | |
| Engine | V6 3,6L | V6 3,5L | V6 3,5L | V6 3,5L |
| Transmission | 6-speed automatic | 6-speed automatic | 6-speed automatic | CVT |
| Power (hp @ rpm) | 283 @ 6 400 | 248 @ 5700 | 266 @ 6200 | 260 @ 6000 |
| Torque (lb-ft @ rpm) | 260 @ 4 400 | 250 @ 4 800 | 245 @ 4 700 | 240 @ 4 400 |
| Curb weight (lbs/kg) | 4 510 / 2 050 | 4 554 / 2 070 | 4 376 / 1 985 | 4 504 / 2 043 |
| Tire size | P225/65R17 | P235/60R18 | P235/50R19 | P235/55R18 |
2013 Toyota Sienna SE V6 8-Passenger
2013 Toyota Sienna SE V6 8-Passenger
2013 Dodge Grand Caravan CREW Plus
2013 Dodge Grand Caravan CREW Plus
Article Gallery