Do you have the strength of character to buy a minivan when the neighbors all drive SUVs? If so, the Honda Odyssey checks in as the best of the minivan bunch, with serious doses of technology (and a plethora of cupholders—17 total). The V6 engine shuts down three cylinders on the highway, and active noise cancellation muffles any possible engine roughness. Soccer moms and technologists alike can rejoice in this people-hauler.

While some vehicles offer bleeding-edge technology for advanced driving comfort and safety, comparatively few buyers are going for $2,000 active cruise control and springing for another $2,000 for a lane-departure warning system. The Odyssey offers the technology you want every day: a backup camera, cylinder shutdown, a backseat DVD player, satellite radio, stability control, a rollover sensor, and side-air curtains that cover all three rows. Even if you go all the way to the top of the Odyssey line—the Touring edition I tested—fully equipped, it's barely up to the price of the cheapest Acura MDX, a very nice SUV that can squeeze in seven, admittedly with a more powerful 300-hp Acura/Honda V6 and all-wheel drive. But that's still nearly $40,000.

As the world's biggest and arguably best engine maker outside the costlier boutique automakers (BMW, Mercedes), Honda's 3.5-liter i-VTEC V6 engine with four valves per cylinder and drive-by-wire electronic throttle represents a powerful work of technical art. It produces 244 hp through a Honda technology called variable valve timing and electronic lift control, VTEC (which is far easier to pronounce than if the acronym were VVTELC), and is spreading throughout the auto industry. It precisely controls the opening and duration of the valves that feed fuel and air to the engine.

The "i" in i-VTEC stands for intelligent: It shuts down three of the six cylinders on the highway, which buys the Odyssey an extra mile per gallon on EPA ratings compared to the entry models. It's rated at 18/26 by the EPA; I saw low 20s in a mix of city and interstate driving, and on a highway trip, you might see 450 to 500 miles between fill-ups.

Worried that three-cylinder-mode engine roughness might offend some ears, Honda added active noise cancellation to i-VTEC models, similar to what's on the top-of-the-line Acura RL sport sedan—the best high-end car nobody wants to buy. A microphone and audio processor listen for engine and road noise and play inverse sound waves though the car's audio system. I'm not sure there's a noticeable improvement, but I give Honda credit for trying. It's hard to do noise cancellation throughout the cabin of a car (or airplane), regardless of passenger location. If nothing else, it's good development work for the upcoming Honda business jet.

Another engine concern is that even with 244 hp and a 0-to-60-mph acceleration time of around 9 seconds, you might wish for more. Acura gets 300 hp from a 3.7-liter version of the Honda/Acura V6 engine block. The Odyssey runs through a nice five-speed automatic, but it's still only five speeds, at a time when a lot of automatics are six speeds and showoff automakers are doing seven or eight. (Seriously diminishing mpg gains set in after six gears.) Remember, Honda went to a lot of effort with cylinder shutdown to gain an extra mile per gallon and might have added another mpg with a sixth gear.

The gearshift juts out of the dash at an odd angle, so the top of the lever always appears to be one gear off from the indicator on the dash. Look in the dictionary under "parallax" and you might find a picture of the Odyssey shift lever.

In this generation, which dates to 2005, Honda shortened the Odyssey hood by 2 inches and added it to the third-row area, making the 60/40 foldaway seats most accommodating for kids and even for medium-size adults. Try fitting adults into the very back of nearly any SUV, whether it's the same 201 inches as the Odyssey (such as GM's Suburban/Escalade class SUVs) or 190 inches, as on the MDX or BMW X5.

With the Odyssey Touring, what Honda calls a "plus one" framed cushion provides a smallish third seat in the center of the middle row; folded, it goes into an underfloor area that used to hold Honda's space-saver tire and otherwise serves as a neat storage bin.

This model uses the Michelin PAX run-flat tire system, which works well until you need to find a replacement tire. PAX tires are not cheap, and not all dealers have the necessary changing equipment.

Run-flats are a good idea, and there are more advantages than disadvantages to chucking the spare tire and wheel: You save 75 pounds of weight, versus a full-size tire and wheel; space is freed up for more cargo; and there's one less tire and wheel in the bill of materials. But some people will experience the statistically rare tire failure in a rural area on a holiday weekend and lose use of the vehicle for two or three days, and they'll bend your ear at a party if you say anything positive about run-flats. Just as some people worry incessantly about child-snatching (which is statistically unlikely) yet don't require their kids to wear seatbelts in case of an accident (which is more likely), logic is not going to carry the day with all buyers. They may need to move downmarket to a non-Touring model that has traditional tires and a space-saver spare.

Up front, the leather buckets seats are comfy but could use more side bolstering. The technology package runs a very reasonable $2,200 and comprises a first-rate Alpine touchscreen navigation system, a rear DVD player, and a rear backup camera; separately, on other vehicles, these three features might add up to $3,000. But the center console is a confusing array of 50-plus dials and buttons, some poorly lit. I'd say there'd be less clutter if Honda used a cockpit control knob, but Acura does that on the MDX SUV, and the Acura center console is still pretty cluttered.

If you get the navigation system, Honda doesn't fully integrate the big 8-inch touchscreen LCD. The LCD would benefit from a bigger hood; also, it's a bit far from the driver, so you have to stretch forward from the backrest to reach the controls, and it shows only navigation information or audio information but not both at the same time. More rudimentary audio information always displays on the radio faceplate below, and climate-control information shows on the HVAC panel. That's three places to look (four counting the DVD player down by the floor), as opposed to just one on Infiniti's more integrated cockpit LCD.

Some Honda people privately told me the Honda approach avoids "concentrated-information overload." After chewing on that for a couple months, I think my snap judgment then—"what a crock"—remains my final thought. Honda's solution is the easy way to handle a model with a mix of LCD- and non-LCD equipped cockpits. The smarter (also costlier) solution is to have an LCD in all cars, not just in the nav-equipped models, as BMW does with its new X5.

The backup camera display was not as bright as those on other vehicles I've tested, particularly at night, nd the display lacks the backing path lines and turning path lines others have.

Heading back to the metro New York City area from the Adirondacks of northern New York at the end of a weekend, we stopped outside Albany to buy a couple of loaves of Jewish rye for friends; they swear it's better there than anywhere else. (Like, say, Brooklyn?) While we were stopped, our kids declared they were hungry, so for the heck of it, I punched the press-to-talk button on the steering wheel and said, "Find nearest Thai restaurant." In about 10 seconds, the nav system showed a list, sorted by distance. It was easy to scroll down, press to select, and get directions. For major restaurants (not the local diner converted for takeout curry in a hurry), there are even Zagat ratings. Imagine that: high technology that actually works at the press of a button. It also may make you more inclined to pay up for the annual navigation system update discs (about $185) since there's more updated data.

One other piece of voice input is missing, though; the Odyssey still lacks Bluetooth for cell phones.

The Touring edition has a six-disc CD changer and XM Satellite Radio. Depending on the model, you get from four speakers and 120 watts of amplification to seven speakers (one a subwoofer) and 360 watts. Sound quality was good but not audiophile level. On cheaper models, you can order a la carte upgrades through the dealer, including a one-disk MP3/WMA CD player for a jaw-dropping $530 or a six-disc changer (not MP3) for $739. Plus installation. Ouch!

The DVD player is at the bottom of the front-center console, and at night it's not well lit. Putting the DVD player up front is the right move for parents of young kids and the wrong move if teenagers or adults are in back, because in both cases it's the front seat that's in control. (The back seats can control their own volume and switch audio stations.)

Also, if you incautiously shut off power to the radio or CD player in front, it can power down the rear entertainment. I'm not sure that's a wise design move. The idea that children should be seen (in the rearview mirror) and not heard is lost the first time you inadvertently tap the audio power button.

The middle row of the Touring gets roll-down windows and privacy screens. Side air curtains cover all three rows. So it's still a minivan, but an amazingly good one for a lot of people. At the least, you can carry four adults and two kids in comfort; for short hops, eight can come along.

The third row folds down into the floor in a neat 60-40 configuration. But if you don't want the middle row of seats, you have to remove them, which puts the Odyssey at a disadvantage to the Toyota Sienna; its captain's chairs fold flat.

Configuring an Odyssey online works smoothly, because Honda offers few options: six (for entry models) to nine (Touring) colors and typically one upholstery color per body color, usually ivory or olive. If you want more stuff in the car, you check off a higher trim level: EX, with cloth trim and steel wheels, up through EX-L, LX, and Touring for more paint colors, leather seats, more speakers, XM Radio, a moonroof, power sliding doors, the i-VTEC engine, and run-flat tires.

On the Touring, the only factory option is the technology package. Through the dealer you can get an affordable iPod adapter ($214) and somewhat pricy parking sensors (backup sonar, $598). Strike that; the Touring model includes parking sensors; it turns out that when you shop online, Honda doesn't lock out options that are built in to the base price. The site would benefit from ready access to a grid of features showing what's available, at a glance, on each trim line. The provided bullet lists for each line are hard to cross-compare.

There is such a comparison grid, but it's a PDF download; unless you've got a 21-inch monitor, that's hard on the eyes. In other places, Honda provides an excess of information: Check the XM Satellite Radio option (which already comes built in to the Touring model, so it should be grayed out) and a chatty pop-up informs you you're getting a radio ($171) and the antenna ($43), and is it still okay by you, and if so, click OK to continue.

Minor quirks aside—such as the $530 CD player, absent Bluetooth, and button-heavy console—the Odyssey represents the best choice of a minivan for people who don't tow heavy trailers or who won't be driving in deep snow. Otherwise, you may want to check out the all-wheel-drive Toyota Sienna, which comes close in many aspects, and to some eyes outdoes Honda on interior appointments. The Chrysler/Dodge minivans also have all-wheel-drive offerings. You need the rear wheels driven for best trailer towing and all wheels for best performance in snow, not that front-drive vehicles are bad in snow.

While the entry models aren't badly priced for such desirable minivans (don't expect heavy discounting) the tab rises quickly, from the base LX, $26,240 including $595 freight, through the EX, EX-L, and Touring, which sets you back at least $37,490 or $39,690 for the technology package version. That's a lot for a minivan. On the other hand, the Odyssey has the best resale valueof any minivan, according to Automotive Lease Guide and Kelley Blue Blue Book. That means it's a good deal as a lease car.

My recommended spec sheet—and I've thought about this a lot, as the owner of a previous-generation Odyssey that's been bulletproof, except for sliding power doors whose maladies matched 1970s Triumphs for electrical woes—would be to go right to the top, with the Odyssey Touring with the technology package and the iPod adapter, for a total list price of $39,904. At the least, I'd get a model with i-VTEC and noise cancellation, because the old car seemed a bit noisy by current standards. And I'd probably opt for the tech package, since Honda's Alpine navigation system is among the best (J.D. Power rates the Nissan Quest and Odyssey the two best among minivans in the 2006 Navigation Usage and Satisfaction survey and it's well-priced compared with the competition. It's just not a very good deal if you don't want the DVD player.

Last, minivans look less minivan-like in some darker colors. Order the Odyssey in Nighthawk Black Pearl with black leather (a Touring-only interior color just for that one body color) or Nimbus Gray, and some of the visual heft of a minivan fades away. Such a minivan might even pass muster with your SUV-driving neighbors. Wave when you see them stopped, yet again, at the gas station.

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$25,645.00 - $39,690.00

EPA mileage rating: 19 mpg city, 26 highway

Minivans remain the most space-efficient people haulers, the Honda Odyssey is best of breed, and the Odyssey Touring is the best (also priciest) Odyssey, with a boatload of tech features. You can?t do better for around-town carpooling, regional tailgating, or cross-country vacationing.

Excellent navigation system. Simple options list, particulary the technology package (navigation, DVD player, backup camera). Cylinder de-activation. Active noise cancellation. Real third row. Run-flat tires. Seats eight (comfortable for six). Luxurious interior.

Complex center-console controls. Shifter is confusing, initially. Backseat DVD player is controlled from the front seat. Non-standard wheel and tire system. Dim backup camera. No Bluetooth. No all-wheel-drive option, no stowaway middle row seats.