New 2026 Honda Odyssey Redesign, Interior, Review – With the minivan segment whittled down to just a handful of players in Canada, Honda’s Odyssey has carved out a comfortable niche as a refined choice with better-than-average driving dynamics, properly comfortable second- and third row seats, and some unique family-friendly features. The New 2026 Honda Odyssey remains essentially unchanged from 2019, with the exception of a switch to a 10-speed automatic transmission throughout the lineup (lower trim levels previously had a nine-speed).
New 2026 Honda Odyssey Redesign and Update Plan
Exterior and Interior
Where it counts, the Odyssey is every bit as user-friendly as a family conveyance should be. The third-row seats stow and deploy in the blink of an eye with almost no effort. A power tailgate and sliding doors make loading cargo and passengers alike a breeze, the second-row seats are easy enough to tilt forward, and there’s even a built-in vacuum cleaner in all but the lowest trim levels, allowing easy clean-up of cracker crumbs and other random messes.
There are a few quirks, however. The push-button shifter takes a little getting used to if you aren’t familiar with it (although it does free up a bunch of console space); the infotainment system has a volume knob but no tuner knob, so changing stations has to be done through the touchscreen interface; and while there are a multitude of options for opening the rear sliding doors, all the possible buttons and levers left my middle-row passengers amusingly confused and unable to exit (hint: whichever button or lever you use, you first need to unlock the door). New 2026 Honda Odyssey Redesign
New 2026 Honda Odyssey Specs
Even in base trim, the Honda Odyssey is a well-appointed family-hauler. All Odysseys get dual-zone climate control (tri-zone in higher trim levels), power locks with proximity entry, push-button start, heated power-adjustable front seats, one-touch power windows in the front (higher trims get one-touch all around), a multi-angle rearview camera, a seven-speaker stereo system, and a bevy of connectivity features (Bluetooth, built-in Wi-Fi, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity). There’s also about 15 beverage holders and at least a handful of various charging ports. All but the base trim get a power sunroof, integrated second-row sunshades, a built-in vacuum, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, and a host of other features.
My tester’s Touring trim added features including a rich-sounding upgraded 11-speaker audio system with satellite radio, heated and ventilated front seats, satellite navigation, ambient lighting, wireless phone charging, a rear entertainment system with a neat trip-mapping app for the kids to follow along on the journey, integrated third-row sunshades, and the list goes on.
Perhaps the most interesting and unique feature in the Touring trim is the CabinWatch rear-seat monitor, which displays an adjustable view of the rear passenger compartment onto the infotainment screen. Intended to allow easy monitoring of wee tykes, the Cash Cab viewpoint also provides great entertainment when chatting with rear-seat passengers – and it can amplify voices to better reach those in the third row.
Engine and Performance
Power for the Odyssey is from a 3.5L V6, working through a 10-speed automatic transmission. It’s a smooth, quiet powertrain, and with 280 hp and 262 lb-ft of torque on tap that make the Odyssey surprisingly quick. It’ll sprint from zero to 100 km/h in about seven seconds flat and has plenty of reserve power for highway passing, even with four adults aboard. Paddle shifters allow you to take control of the action if you so desire. New 2026 Honda Odyssey Redesign
New 2026 Honda Odyssey Fuel Economy
Official fuel consumption ratings for the Honda Odyssey are 12.2/8.5/10.6 L/100 km city/highway/combined. My real-world consumption was somewhat higher than this, and over the course of the week I averaged 13.5 L/100 km with a 50/50 mix of city and highway driving. I did manage to match the city number over the course of one 13-km trip across town, but it required a light touch on the throttle (there’s an Eco mode that helps in this regard, although it does make the van feel rather sluggish off the line). New 2026 Honda Odyssey Redesign
New 2026 Honda Odyssey Safety Features
The Odyssey doesn’t skimp on safety gear, with across-the-range forward collision warning, collision-mitigation braking system, lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assist, automatic high-beams, adaptive cruise control, and road-departure mitigation. All of this is backstopped by a solid structure that scores well in crash tests, earning the Odyssey a Top Safety Pick rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). New 2026 Honda Odyssey Redesign
Optional safety equipment on the Touring trim includes a blind-spot monitoring system with rear cross-traffic alert (lower trims get Honda’s LaneWatch blind spot display). As with previous Hondas I’ve driven, I found active safety warnings a little oversensitive for cut-and-thrust city driving (especially the blind spot warning system), but taken as a whole the various systems make driving the Odyssey not just safer, but easier and more relaxing, too.
New 2026 Honda Odyssey Price and Release Date
Starting at $38,230 (before freight and taxes) for the base LX trim, and with my fully loaded Touring trim tester topping out at $52,390, the Odyssey is priced a bit higher than the competition. It rewards with a touch more refinement and better driving dynamics than most, and represents solid value. (For comparison, Toyota’s Sienna ranges from $35,750 to $51,865; Kia’s Sedona from $31,995 to $41,695; Chrysler’s Pacifica from $34,045 to $49,095; and Dodge’s Grand Caravan from $32,595 to $47,595.) New 2026 Honda Odyssey Redesign
In today’s minivan segment, each of the available offerings has their own advantages. The Pacifica and Grand Caravan offer superior flexibility thanks to their Stow-and-Go seating, the Sienna stands out as the only minivan available with all-wheel drive, and the Sedona offers what’s perhaps the best bang for the buck. Where the Odyssey stands out is its overall refinement, unique family-friendly features and superior driving dynamics. If this sounds appealing to you, you’ll want to put it on your list of contenders.