2021 Honda Odyssey gets oddly blank facelift

With the 2020 New York Motor Show postponed to August due to the coronavirus pandemic, the launch of the facelifted 2021 Honda Odyssey minivan will be delayed. But the official online reveal shows minimal changes to the Odyssey for the new model year.

The front face of the Odyssey gets a revised set of LED headlights that intrude into the grill, with DRLs position on the outer edges. The previously-attractive grill has been replaced with a big blank gaping maw, as the trim is minimized to the solo chrome strip along the top. A set of vertically stacked fog lights flank the narrow lower grill. It also gets 19-inch wheels, but on the whole, the design is now painfully generic, with the only unique bit being the carried-over uneven side-window line.

In the United States, the 2021 Honda Odyssey gets the brand’s Honda Sensing driver assistance technology suite which has adaptive cruise control with low-speed following and pedestrian emergency braking. A new rear-seat reminder emits an audible alert if a child or pet is left behind in the vehicle. Carried over is the CabinWatch camera for monitoring the rear seats on the infotainment display.

Additionally, some trim-specific minor modifications have been made to the interior in the form of a new design for the climate control settings, piano-black finish on the dashboard, perforated leather seats and more.

Under the hood, nothing changes though. The same 3.5-litre V6 engine does duty with 280 hp while being hooked up to the 10-speed automatic gearbox.

Despite being less physically attractive now, the Odyssey still looks to be the best minivan in this limited niche.