2024 Toyota Sienna Interior Review: Who Needs an SUV?
Pay special attention to the long-travel second-row seats—they offer a first-class experience.
In case you needed a reminder, alternatives to frowny SUVsdoexist in the form of minivans. Sure, they may lack some ground clearance, but if you're on the hunt for unparalleled interior volume and relative comfort, the humble minivan is hard to beat. Especially if the minivan in question is the 2024 Toyota Sienna.
Thanks to a cavernous cabin that happily swallows everything and everyone who needs a ride, the Sienna is like a funhouse vehicle—bigger on the inside than the outside. The addition of the new XSE Premium package for the 2024 Sienna also means power, heated, and ventilated seats with leather trim, which lends it more of an upscale quality.
Look, we'll be straight with you: This isn't a vehicle you'll be rolling in to the Oscars. (Or maybe it is if you're awesome!) But anyone who gives you grief about a minivan being "uncool" fundamentally misunderstands the power of its utility. Them's the uncool ones.
Room for You, Your Friends, Your Stuff, and Then Some
Working from front to back, sitting in the driver's seat of the Sienna is sort of like being at an L-desk. Your steering wheel and driver controls are all laid out neatly before you, but you also have that raised bit of console running down between the seats with plenty of cupholders and cubby spaces. There's ample room to rest your elbows. Plus, the front passenger has access to a handy little storage tray we love so much. Below the center console is another storage area good for bulkier items like purses, though they're harder to reach for quick access.
The only beef I had behind the wheel was with the Sienna's front seat cushions. They're rather stiff, and I found I needed to shift my weight a lot on long drives as different parts of my gluteus maximus kept falling asleep.
As for the second row, the XSE's captain's chairs feature Toyota's super-long slide seating (up to 25 inches!). The resulting legroom is out of control; it's more like a first-class airline seat than any minivan seat has a right to be. The only bummer is you can't slide the second row all the way back if you want to get any use out of the third row.
Other than the sliding second-row issue, the third row itself is incredibly spacious for being, well, a third row. In fact, the current Sienna has more third-row legroom than the 2024 Kia Carnival or the 2024 Honda Odyssey, and the seats themselves are well-cushioned for, yes, a third row. Having spent multiple hours back there, I can attest to their comfort.
Add it all up, and for passengers, the Sienna is a brilliant long-distance cruiser no matter which seat you're in, with plenty of room to stretch out. Its big windows let in tons of light, and there are copious cupholders for all.
As for the Sienna's trunk space, though it isn't as big as that of the Kia or the Honda, its overall shape is highly useful. Its depth means your cargo won't tip over as easily, and if you're transporting boxy items like suitcases, the trunk layout makes them easy to stack.
