Honda Odyssey 2018 supposedly quieter

by philg

The revamped Honda Odyssey (2018) has been announced: Automobile. Here’s the part that caught my eye:

Honda claims the new minivan will also be quietest in class, with triple door seals, acoustic glass, and generous noise attenuation. This makes for easy conversation between first, second, and third rows, says Andrea Martin, principal engineer and lead for noise, vibration, and harshness for the Odyssey.

I would have preferred to see Ms. Martin quoted with a dBA number. Successive generations of minivans are touted as “quiet” and “library-like” but don’t seem to be any quieter inside than my 1998 Toyota Sienna was. Maybe this time the improvement will be real?

Another fun part of the article:

Cabin Watch is fed through a new, 8-inch high-resolution (720P) audio screen, which also features customizable app titles and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

A connected rear entertainment system offers streaming video on a ceiling-mounted, 10.2-inch WSVGA Rear Entertainment System…

WSVGA is 1024×576 pixels. 720P is 1280×720 pixels (as featured on this $60 unlocked mobile phone and also used as a resolution for some baby monitors). Where is Honda finding these absurdly low-res screens? Is there some kind of vintage LCD factory run by Korean hipsters who spend half the day brewing craft beer?

Separately, would it be wise to lease any car acquired in 2017? If electric cars or self-driving cars are perfected the value of a used conventional car will plummet, right? This possibility doesn’t seem to be priced into lease residual values.

Related:

8 thoughts on “Honda Odyssey 2018 supposedly quieter”

  1. Re: the lcd screens

    Could it be that they have to be more shockproof than regular high resolution screens? They also have to work (or at least remain functional at pretty wild temperature extremes.

    Leave your minivan in a Dallas parking lot in July, and the dash can probably reach 70 or 80 degrees Celsius. I assume that the owner would expect the screen to not delaminate.

    iPhones are only specced to 45 celcius, for example.

  2. Why spend millions of dollars on a spec almost no one will notice much less influence their buy decision? Why shut down a profitable fab if you can still sell its product just because newer fabs can create stuff with better specs?

  3. I think Andrea may have hit it.

    http://www.sharpsma.com/lcds/2-4-inch-5-12-cm/LQ042T5DZ13K

    says the OPERATING temp range is -30 to 85C. Storage is -40/+95.

    Surfing around one this site finds

    http://www.sharpsma.com/lcds/5-9-inch-13-25-cm/LQ090Y3DG01

    with operating -20/75 and storage -30/80. Also

    http://www.sharpsma.com/lcds/16-24-inch-41-63-cm/LQ201U1LW32

    with operating 0/60 and storage -25/60.

    http://www.fujitsu.com/downloads/MICRO/fma/pdf/LCD_Backgrounder.pdf

    says “Sharp also offers the LCD modules with extended temperature range for automotive applications”

    http://www.digikey.com/en/articles/techzone/2014/dec/selecting-lcd-modules-for-extreme-temperatures

    says standard operating range is 0/50.

  4. Between the extended environment specs Andrea pointed out and the relatively low production run, the screens for the Honda likely cost a fortune compared to the sharper one on your phone.

    We got a good deal on our van because it had a rear entertainment system. Customers wouldn’t spend the extra $2K for the RES when they could just buy an iPad for $500. So the dealer eventually had to discount the price of the RES and then some to move it off the lot.

  6. I only thought of this because a few days back I read on Ken Rockwell’s site that the drivers for automotive stereos have to be more expensive because of the temperature range.

  7. As far as residuals go, personally I don’t care because I drive cars until they are basically worthless. Cars lose, on average maybe 50% of their value in the 1st 4 years (and some even more) so at 8 years the car is depreciated to zero and every year you keep the car after 8 the car is “free” except for whatever repairs that it needs. I currently have a 2009 VW (actually relabeled Chrysler) minivan with less than 60,000 miles on the clock so this year is the year the car becomes “free”. I usually get around 13 or 14 years out of a car so the next 5 or 6 years are free except for whatever breaks. Click and Clack said that it’s ALWAYS cheaper to fix your car than to buy a new one, but as a rule of thumb I get rid of my cars at the point where the repair that is needed costs more than the value of the car after repair – for example when a $2,000 car needs a $3,000 transmission. Even if electrics or self-driving vehicles come in, there will surely be a (long) transition period where older vehicles will still be permitted on the road.

  8. Thoughtful analysis . BTW , if anyone wants a NY Standard Form of Apartment Lease , my company filled out and esigned a fillable document here https://goo.gl/QwchCZ

Comments are closed.