Toyota minivan Sienna

more about this model

Quick Summary
This mid-cycle refresh includes substantial improvements to the interior's quality, ergonomics and design. Taken together this round of upgrades to the 2015 Toyota Sienna further elevates its position as one of our top-recommended minivans.

What Is It?
The 2015 Toyota Sienna represents a mid-generation refresh of this popular minivan that has previously impressed with its versatile seven- or eight-passenger cabin, smooth and powerful V6 engine, segment-exclusive all-wheel-drive system, and abundant family-friendly features. Previous complaints that largely centered on interior materials quality and the placement of commonly used controls have been addressed with this update.

Is It Me, or Does It Look Exactly the Same?
If you're looking at the pictures of the updated 2015 Toyota Sienna above and wondering whether we accidentally posted photos of last year's model instead, rest assured those are the correct photos.

Indeed, very little has changed with its exterior apart from slimmer headlight units with LED accents and certain trims getting slightly redesigned grilles or taillights. The old aerial antenna has also been replaced by a diversity antenna embedded in the rear window. According to Toyota, styling was not an area of concern for customers so it didn't try to fix what wasn't broken.

How Has the Interior Changed?
While the Sienna's interior wasn't broken, it certainly stood to be significantly improved. Flimsy, oddly textured plastics abounded, fake wood trim looked fake, and controls for the climate and entertainment system were too far away from the driver. The infotainment interface also wasn't exactly state-of-the-art, and in general, the cabin was the area in which the Sienna most clearly trailed its principal competitor, the Honda Odyssey.

That all changes for the 2015 Toyota Sienna. The materials have been greatly improved, with richer plastics and padded upper door trim. The dash is also padded and covered with stitched simulated leather, while the available wood trim is considerably more convincing and premium in appearance. The result is arguably the nicest interior look and feel in the segment, especially in the sport-themed SE trim and luxury-lined XLE and Limited.

More notably, however, those previously far-flung controls have been placed into a tidy, more sensibly designed and prominently placed cluster within easier reach of the driver. Some climate controls are a whopping 3 inches closer, which is a huge distance in automotive design terms.

The climate controls themselves are also more sensibly designed, with easily decipherable buttons, three large knobs for each climate zone (which can all be synced together now) and its own large display that liberates climate readouts from their previous spot high atop the dash. As an added bonus, it all looks much nicer.

Above the climate controls sits an audio and navigation interface offered in two different designs. The standard setup is similar to the one found in the Toyota Highlander, with either a 6.1-inch (L trim only) or 8-inch touchscreen bordered by touch-operated buttons in a matte black surround. The same basic layout of those buttons exists in the higher-end Entune system, but it features a snazzier gloss black surround as well as two levels of additional feature content.

Unlike the touch-operated buttons included with other electronics interfaces, such as MyFord Touch and Chevrolet MyLink, Entune's buttons respond consistently and are big enough and spaced apart enough to be functional at a glance. The menus and functionality of the touchscreen itself is also quite good and user-friendly, at least in the top-of-the-line unit tested. The ability to "swipe scroll" should be a welcome addition for those used to smartphones, while the redundant control knob remains for those who prefer to wheel through playlists or phonebook entries.

The gauges received an overhaul as well, with two unique designs (one for the sport-themed SE and another for everything else) that both have a classier and more premium look than the rather downmarket collection of dials they replace. The previous trip computer display on top of the dash has been relocated in between those gauges. In the upper trims, it's a larger color display that also shows redundant information from the audio and available navigation systems.

Are There Any Changes to the Interior Space and Its Functionality?
While the interior has been redecorated, the furniture remains the same. The Sienna seats seven in trims that come with second-row captain's chairs, including those in the Limited trims that feature the "Lounge Seating" extending leg and foot support. Eight-passenger capacity is achieved by a small jump seat of sorts that installs in between those two jump seats. It's less comfortable than its counterpart in the Honda Odyssey, but also stowable when not in use.

The Sienna's versatility also remains intact with second-row seats that slide further forward than most of its competitor's setups, making third-row access and storing long cargo items easier. The second row slides further rearward, too, creating an unparalleled amount of sprawl space and comfort for those in Row 2. As for Row 3, it still folds flat, which in the Limited, can be accomplished by pressing a button just under the open liftgate.

With all seats in place, Toyota says there is still enough room for five golf bags or four large suitcases. In total, there is 150 cubic feet of space in the event you lower and/or remove all seats.

Are There Other New Features Available?
Besides the Entune touchscreen interfaces, a rearview camera and three-zone automatic climate control being standard on all 2015 Sienna models, there are other noteworthy new features, especially those on upper trims.

The Limited can be equipped with a heated steering wheel, while the rear-seat entertainment system that comes standard on all "Premium" trims now comes with a Blu-ray player and an HDMI port to go with its ultra-wide screen that can display two things at once. Arguments over whether to watch Frozen or Cars should be a thing of the past.

The SE Premium, XLE Premium and both Limited trims also come with Toyota's Driver Easy Speak system. It uses the Bluetooth phone system microphone to pipe voices from the front seat back to the speakers located in the third row. It's subtle, and not indicative of the booming voice of god you may hope it to be, but it should at least aid in any declaration of "Don't make me stop this car!"