Chrysler, Dodge, VW Minivans Earn IIHS Top Safety Pick

Chrysler’s pair of near-identical minivans — the 2012 Chrysler Town & Country and Dodge Grand Caravan — as well as the Chrysler-built but Volkswagen-branded 2012 Routan have been named Top Safety Picks in the minivan category by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The trio join the Honda Odyssey and Toyota Sienna.

To earn the award, a vehicle must earn the top rating of Good in front, side, rear and rollover crash tests. The vehicle also must be equipped with electronic stability control, which is standard on all 2012 vehicles.

The vehicle also must pass the institute’s roof-strength test. To pass, the roof must withstand a force equal to four times the vehicle's weight before it caves in five inches. Ratings for the Town & Country, Grand Caravan and Routan are based on a roof-strength test conducted for the Town & Country alone. The Town & Country can withstand 4.51 times its own weight.

Reader Review of the Week: 2012 Kia Sedona

“ClaytonS” from Cheyenne, Wyo., so far has no regrets with his 1-month-old 2012 Kia Sedona EX minivan. The reader gives kudos to the Sedona for its powerful engine and quiet ride, as well as its unexpected convenience and safety features for the price, like a backup camera. Continue reading the full review to find out more. Once you’re done, write a review about your own car here.

What's the Most Affordable Minivan?

The minivan market has seen a surprising resurgence, with every model on the market receiving a full redesign or significant upgrades over the past two model years:  

• The significantly refreshed 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Town & Country have new interiors and powertrains. Both models have reformulated their trims and features to stay competitive. 
• The completely redesigned 2011 Honda Odyssey improves its gas mileage and has a new look, too. 
• The 2011 Toyota Sienna, now the oldest model in the segment, was completely redesigned and features the only four-cylinder engine option among minivans and a new low entry price. 
• After a two-year hiatus, Nissan reintroduced the Quest to the U.S. market for the 2011 model year. 

So which new minivan offers the best deal in terms of features for the money? We’ll take a look at the Sienna, Grand Caravan, Odyssey and Quest and judge them on how much they cost — not at the bare-bones MSRP, but when they’re well-equipped. The Volkswagen Routan and the Kia Sedona are modest sellers that are addressed in our chart below.

Kia Pushes Incentives on Old Models

Kia seems to be playing second fiddle in the U.S. to its Korean cousin, Hyundai, which sells nearly 50% more vehicles in America than Kia, and the automaker is growing more quickly. So it’s not surprising to see Kia offer plenty of incentives compared with Hyundai’s offers, which we detailed Tuesday.

Kia is offering either big cash or low financing deals across its entire lineup. New vehicles — like the Forte and the Soul, two relatively affordable compacts we’ve praised — see a combination of both. There’s $1,000 cash back on the 2010 Forte, which hasn’t been a sales success. The 2010 Sedona has $3,000 cash back, the largest discount for any minivan right now. Even the revised 2011 Sedona gets up to $2,500 cash back.

2011 Kia Sedona: Up Close

Updated lightly for 2011, the Kia Sedona sat amid Sorentos, Sportages and Fortes at the brand's display at the Los Angeles Auto Show. The Sedona is a besieged warrior: All of its competitors - from the Chrysler Town & Country and Dodge Grand Caravan to the Toyota Sienna, Honda Odyssey and Nissan Quest - have been redesigned or heavily reworked.

More L.A. Auto Show Coverage

The 2011 Sedona gets a new drivetrain and some slight styling updates. It's competent in certain areas, but the competition is stronger than ever. Aside from pricing incentives -Kia already is offering $2,000 on the 2011 model in most regions - the Sedona's draw is hard to find.

The Top 10 Least and Most Expensive Cars to Insure

What makes a car cheap or expensive to insure? It all comes down to what insurers call “loss history,” which is the total amount of money that an insurance company will have to pay out in the advent of a totaled vehicle.

It’s not surprising then to see more affordable family haulers on the least-expensive-to-insure list and, conversely, expensive SUVs, luxury cars and sports cars on the most-expensive rankings.

However, that’s not the whole story. According to InsWeb, an online insurance comparison provider, a model’s loss behavior doesn’t only have to do with how much it cost to repair a given model. It also has to do with the likelihood that the given model will be involved in an accident. InsWeb says model loss formulations factor in the history of past individuals who’ve driven the given model and have been involved in accidents. Again, it’s not surprising that cars like the Chevrolet Corvette and Cadillac Escalade are more prone to accidents due to their owners.

This does explain, however, why inexpensive subcompacts such as the Chevrolet Aveo or Nissan Versa aren’t on the least-expensive-to-insure list. Cheaper economy cars tend to be purchased by young drivers, who statistically are involved in more accidents thus increasing loss history.

Continue reading below to find out the top 10 least and most expensive cars to insure. 

2011 Kia Sedona: First Look

• Competes with: 2011 Honda Odyssey, 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan and 2011 Toyota Sienna 
• Looks like: Yep, that’s a new grille 
• Drivetrain: 271-hp, 3.5-liter V-6 with a six-speed automatic transmission 
• Hits dealerships: On sale now 

For the 2011 model year, Kia refreshed its Sedona minivan by slightly updating its exterior, adding some new content, introducing a new powertrain and discontinuing the short-wheelbase base trim.

The big news here is the new powertrain. All Sedonas now get a new 271-horsepower, 3.5-liter V-6 engine that’s 27 more ponies than last year’s 3.8-liter. To top it off, all Sedonas are mated to a new six-speed automatic transmission, one more cog than the automatic in the 2010 model. All of this improves the Sedona’s once-mediocre fuel economy ratings. The 2011 Sedona is rated at 18/25 mpg city/highway (up from 17/23 mpg in 2010), which is better than the Toyota Sienna with a V-6 (18/24 mpg), but still worse than the Honda Odyssey (18/27 mpg).

On the outside, the 2011 Sedona sports a new grille, standard LED turn signals in the side mirrors, and new wheel designs. Inside, all Sedonas get Bluetooth connectivity standard.

Minivan Segment Swaggers Back To Life

Everyone is familiar with the minivan stigma: The cliché that minivans are for the unhip, banal and suburban unwashed masses. Nothing really says “soccer mom” any more than the words “Sienna,” “Town & Country,” “Grand Caravan” or “Odyssey.” 

The social stigma of being branded uncool a bit too early in one’s adult life has driven potential minivan shoppers toward crossovers in the past, and it’s a reason why General Motors and Ford abandoned the segment altogether. 

Hypercharged crossover sales — and before that, SUVs — hollowed out what was once a vibrant minivan market. We’ve lost 14 minivan nameplates since 2002. 

But there are some signs of life. Total minivan sales are up 3.4% for the year, but that’s compared against total industrywide sales gains of 17% year-to-date. 

Weekend Athlete Hits the Elkhart Lake Triathlon in a 2009 Kia Sedona

It’s summer, and that means it’s time to switch to triathlons, camping and trail-running. The Weekend Athlete feature is also changing things up, adding a more real-life, real-use look at whatever car — sometimes, gasp! rentals — I’m taking on my adventures.

Destination: Racing the Elkhart Lake Triathlon

Car: 2009 Kia Sedona

Distance: About 338 miles

The Trip: I’ve done this triathlon several times over the past few years, and it might just be my favorite because it gives me an excuse to take a long drive in the country on one or two lightly traveled roads. The racecourse is also super-fun, with good hills.

My bike obviously comes along, and because it’s early in the year the wetsuit does too. I like to stay up in Wisconsin the night before, so I bring more gear than normal: Food, extra clothes, etc. To my mind, all of this means that it’s the best triathlon to test a car. (In a weird coincidence, the first time I did this race I had a Kia Optima sedan.)

Recall Alert: Nearly 140,000 Kia Vehicles

Kia has issued a recall for 139,844 Kia vehicles from the 2006 and 2007 models years, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Affected models include the Amanti, Rondo, Sedona, Sorento and Sportage, all of which could potentially have been built with damaged stop-lamp switches.

This could result in the brake lights not illuminating during braking, or continuing to illuminate after the brake pedal has been released. Also, the shifter may jam in the Park position, the electronic stability control light may illuminate the “ESC Off” indicator, and depressing the brake may not deactivate the cruise control. Any of these malfunctions could create a dangerous driving situation.

Dealers will replace the stop-lamp switch free of charge. Owners can contact Kia’s customer center at 800-333-4542 or the NHTSA Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236.