The Chronicle Herald (Provincial)
WHEELS: Sienna a sensible choice for families
The 2021 Toyota Sienna is on the verge of being released here in Canada, and if it’s information you’re looking for then we’ve got you covered: we’ve already taken a deep dive into the redesigned interior, and we’ve also looked at some of the new model’s standout features like available all-wheel drive and kickactivated power sliding side doors.
Why give so much airtime to a minivan when Canadians are buying SUVS in droves? Because for the savvy family minded buyers who are paying attention, we think the new Sienna might finally put forward a value proposition they can’t refuse.
And now that we’ve taken it out on the road for the first time, the last thing left to look at is how well the new Sienna drives and performs, and how much it will cost.
Take the powertrain, for example. Toyota has skipped gas-only models entirely and is selling the 2021 Sienna exclusively as what the brand calls a self-charging hybrid. This means that the Sienna is electrified but recovers its charge on its own through everyday driving as opposed to needing a plug.
The disadvantage is that a plug-in hybrid would be able to go significantly further on electric power than the Sienna can, which does have a button to force electric-only driving but isn’t intended to last very long.
But the advantage is that the Sienna’s benefits don’t require any special effort from the driver, and while plug-in hybrids tend to be significantly more expensive because of their larger batteries, the new Sienna uses less fuel while being roughly equivalent in price to the outgoing model.
There’s a catch, of course: the previous-generation Sienna had an entry-level CE trim priced at $35,750, and that’s not carrying over into 2021.
That means you’ll need to spend a little more than $4,000 to get into a base Sienna than you used to. But if you look at the 2020 equivalent to the new entry-level grade, which is a front-wheeldrive LE, the difference in price for the 2021 model, at $39,990, is $840.
Adding all-wheel drive to any grade costs $2,000 more, making the price difference on an LE AWD only $40 over the outgoing model. That includes standard equipment like heated front seats, a heated steering wheel, and power side doors.
When considering those prices, factor in the fuel efficiency improvements. FWD models average 6.5 L/100 kilometres combined versus the 11.0 of the previous generation for an improvement of 41 per cent, and AWD models average 6.7 versus 11.7 for a 43 per cent improvement. Based on 20,000 kilometres of driving annually at a cost of $1.00 per litre, in your first year of ownership alone you’re saving $900 on fuel in FWD or $1,000 in AWD, if you match the Natural Resources Canada estimates.
Our brief initial test drive returned consumption figures of 7.7 L/100 kilometres with no special effort and on winter tires, which is higher than the estimates but still excellent for a vehicle of this size. While the calculations aren’t perfect, it’s clear that by choosing the 2021’s hybrid powertrain you’d recover the up-front cost difference in no time while creating fewer emissions and with zero changes to your lifestyle or driving habits. It makes an enormous amount of sense.
And how does it feel on the road? For the most part, the new Sienna is enjoyable. The hit of early torque from the electric motor goes a long way in eliminating the heavy and sluggish feel one typically finds in a minivan in lower speeds as it combines with the internal combustion engine to create 245 combined horsepower.
Plus, there’s little noise transfer in city driving, which shows off the Sienna’s quiet interior. The one time when the powertrain becomes impossible to ignore is in higher-input situations like merging onto the highway, when the 2.5-litre fourcylinder engine doesn’t create a satisfying amount of power on its own and works with the CVT to create quite a racket.
The new Sienna’s handling is significantly improved thanks to a few points: the rear suspension has gone from torsion beam to a multi-link setup, and placing the battery under the frontrow seats gives the Sienna a lower centre of gravity and a planted feel on the road.
A few more significant figures: every Sienna has a towing capacity of 3,500 pounds, making it the only hybrid minivan with a tow rating. Cargo capacity is also a fair bit lower in the new model at 949 litres behind the third row, 2,129 litres behind the second, and 2,860 litres with the second-row seats pushed all the way forward.
And although the 2021 version has a 20-millimetre lower roof and a 30-mm lower load floor, it keeps a nearly identical ground clearance of 162 mm.
Finally, in eight-passenger models, the second row has three independent LATCH positions, meaning these Siennas can hold up to five Latch-equipped car seats if you can find any that are narrow enough to fit side by side.
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: minivans make a great deal of sense for families, and adding the fuel efficiency of a hybrid powertrain to the mix ups the ante for eco-conscious buyers who need a great deal of space.
Early adopters of the 2021 Sienna could end up being a new breed of automotive hipster, the ones who were the first to notice that there are plenty of good reasons to bring the minivan back into fashion.