Road Test: 2009 Toyota Sienna
As those who follow me on Twitter know already, I was all set to take a sporty 2009 Jaguar XKR on a super hip road trip to West Hollywood. But as happens in life, my plans got diverted to a family road trip to Fallbrook (north San Diego) in a 2009 Toyota Sienna minivan.
Was I disappointed? Not at all!
(Okay, I do admit that I did burn with desire to drive up to the swanky new Andaz hotel in a supercharged sparkling burgundy Jag XK with tawny soft top convertible and dine at Kitchen Nightmares’ hard-nosed chef Gordon Ramsay’s new West Hollywood restaurant.)
Still, Fallbrook ended up being a lovely spring green country getaway, especially after an incredibly rainy season here in Southern California. And, in California’s land of wine and food, we also discovered how much we loved the super utilitarian 2009 Toyota Sienna minivan as well as the cafes, restaurants, farms, wineries, arts, accommodations and attractions of north San Diego’s greater Fallbrook region.
We started out from our hometown of Costa Mesa, Calif., on a sunny almost-spring day along Orange County’s scenic and almost incomparable coast. The 2009 Toyota Sienna gracefully powered us over the 73 toll road in Newport Coast and then on the busy I-5 freeway past San Clemente, Camp Pendleton and into Oceanside.
The 2009 Toyota Sienna’s 3.5-liter V6 engine showed its true colors as a truly nimble and fun-to-drive vehicle, let alone a seven-passenger minivan. Everything worked together in a gas engine symphony from the rapid acceleration to the spot-on braking to the responsive handling to the easy-to-see-traffic window and mirror engineering.
We made it to Oceanside and the Highway 76 east right in the middle of Friday evening commuter traffic. Here’s where the 2009 Toyota Sienna shines the best: keeping my hyperactive five-year-old daughter happy and quiet with its comfy bucket seats and kick ass rear entertainment system. Thank you Toyota!!
The DVD rear entertainment system option on the 2009 Toyota Sienna includes a nine-inch screen, wireless headphones, 115-volt power outlets, second- and third-row sunshades. The package also includes Bluetooth connectivity, navigation system with backup camera, upgraded JBL sound system with six-CD changer and 10-speaker surround sound.
So while my 74-year-old mother and I chatted about what year my grandparent’s moved to Fallbrook (1972?), we didn’t hear one word from my daughter. Her eyes were literally transfixed to that screen while wearing a silent (to us) wireless headset and being lulled by the 2009 Toyota’s Sienna’s not-too-springy suspension and by Highway 76’s luscious curves. Fabulous!
We finally made it to Main Street in downtown Fallbrook for some more childhood reminiscing. I do vaguely remember riding in the back seat of my Grandmother Sadie's cherry red Mercury. Now, I can’t remember the year nor the model, but I do remember the brashness and luxury of grandma’s bright white leather seating, plush red carpet mats and bright chrome accents.
We used to drive in style to downtown Fallbrook, which I remember as a vibrant district of shops and businesses. Today, sadly, Fallbrook’s Main Street looks a little dismal. Yet driving my family in the amazing 2009 Toyota Sienna around the greater Fallbrook area’s fertile hills and valleys, I also came to appreciate its agricultural roots again.
Located south of Temecula on the I-15 freeway or along the east-west Highway 76 corridor between Oceanside and the tiny town of Pala, the greater Fallbrook region is still a land of avocadoes, citrus fruits, artisanal farms, horse ranches, tropical nursery farms and, more and more, grape vines and olive groves.
We were staying at the needs-to-be-renovated Pala Mesa Resort, which abuts the gorgeous Pala Mesa Golf Course. After a lovely morning walk with my five-year-old daughter to pick spring wildflowers, we headed out in the 2009 Toyota Sienna on a day’s worth of adventures to Zoofari (a cool exotic animal rescue shelter), Fallbrook School of the Arts (amazing weekend painting classes!) and Rio Rico (try the carnitas fajitas at this delish Mexican restaurant).
The last stop of the day was at Welburn Gourd Farm. We punched this point of interest into the Toyota Sienna’s advanced navigation system for the 12-mile trip. What we didn’t realize was the gourd farm is located at the very end of narrow two-lane De Luz Road that traverses oak tree-filled deep valleys, curving hills and mountain cliffs of Fallbrook’s Santa Margarita River area. What a ride we had in the 2009 Toyota Sienna as it took each curve with grace, ease and power. Total driving fun!
At the end of the two-day trip, I was also terribly impressed with the gas mileage too. We only went through a half tank for this weekend getaway and we did a lot of driving. So, kudos to Toyota engineers for getting this behemoth V6 up to 23 mpg highway and 17 mpg city (AWD models get 21 mpg highway and 16 mpg city).
2009 Toyota Sienna Trims and Features
The 2009 Toyota Sienna is available in four trim levels: CE, LE, XLE and Limited. All four models come standard with front-wheel-drive and the AWD option is available on the LE, XLE and Limited versions only. Both the CE and LE can sit eight passengers while the XLE and Limited models are outfitted for seven passengers.
Standard amenities on all 2009 Toyota Sienna models include power windows, second row captain’s chairs, keyless entry, tilt/telescoping steering column, dual air conditioning, folding tray table, lots of cups and bottle holders, three 12-volt power outlets, heavy-duty rear window defogger and six-speaker audio system with CD player and MP3 connectivity. The LE adds heated power mirrors, cruise control, driver’s side power and audio controls built into the steering wheel, among some other luxurious upgrades. You have to buy the 2009 Toyota Sienna XLE to enjoy the super cool dual sliding doors, power open-and-close rear gate, tri-zone climate control, fog lamps, leather-trimmed upholstery and fog lamps. The fully-loaded Limited edition has even more over-the-top features such as power-folding mirrors, JBL sound system, sunshades, parking sonar, windshield de-icer and a wood grain- and leather-trimmed steering wheel.
2009 Toyota Sienna Safety
The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration awarded the 2009 Toyota Sienna four-star front driver and five-star front passenger safety ratings along with a four-star rollover rating. Autotropolis has also ranked the Toyota Sienna as one of the safest vehicles on the road for 2009.
Sheryll Alexander is a lifestyles writer based in Costa Mesa, Calif.
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