2021 Toyota Sienna Drag Race Honda Odyssey in Minivan Performance War

For the all-new model, Toyota decided to play toward its strengths and offers the Sienna exclusively with a hybrid powertrain. This consists of a 2.5-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine working in concert with two electric motors and a battery charged automatically (not a plug-in). There are four drive modes, including EV and Sport, where the maximum output of 243 horsepower is offered.

Customers can also opt for an AWD system, which is on-demand and has been fitted to the test vehicle in this drag race video by The Fast Lane Car. We've seen that Toyota can make an efficient yet really fast car with the RAV4 Prime, but the Sienna is going to get its butt whopped by the Honda Odyssey.

This is one of the fastest minivans on the market thanks to a 3.5-liter V6 producing 280 horsepower. Also, it's got a normal gearbox, a 10-speed automatic, instead of an e-CVT. Imagine that, first-gen NSX power in a minivan, and people still buy crossovers. The gap isn't huge, though, and most minivan drivers probably aren't going to be interested in drag racing.

What they will like is that the 2021 Sienna looks new. The TNGA-based minivan has a bold (but fake) front grille that makes it looks sporty, a bit like the Highlander, as well as sides that the reviewers call "curvacious." At the back, you get giant versions of the features on the Avalon. Meanwhile, the Odyssey just received 2021 updates but looks largely the same as it did in 2018.

Toyota engineers are experts in fuel economy, and the hybrid Sienna achieves up to 35 mpg combined. That's amazing for something that may hold six or seven people at a time. By comparison, the Odyssey gets about 22 mpg combined, but the Sienna's main mpg rival is going to be the Chrysler Pacifica.