2021 Toyota Sienna Van Spotted Testing in Death Valley

Another year entered by the Toyota Sienna without a thorough change. It almost feels like forever today, because it has been almost ten years since the current generation was first introduced in 2011. A big change has been made on the structure and interior of the 2015 model. Two years later, Toyota gave the car a new powerplant, which was followed by the arrival of other new features thereafter.

So the current-gen of the Toyota Sienna is pretty old now. Fortunately, we have found spyshots that give us new hope. The minivan we see in the photo is almost certainly a completely new Sienna. You can see that the wing mirrors have been moved to the doors and the little quarter window atop it is now located adjacent to the side front window rather than residing within the A pillar. Also appearing different is the rear quarter, which shows some element looking higher than before. We could be wrong though, as it might just be the copious plastic cover that outwits our eyes.

Lower grille mesh, flared rocker panels, and large wheels are the characteristics of the Sienna SE (the sportier variant that offers steering tuning and stiffer suspension), all of which can be found on the spotted test mule. It seems like the Sienna’s LE and SE trims would be increasingly similar dynamically just like the cases of the recently redesigned Avalon and Camry. That’s because the Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA) that will underpin the new minivan is giving better and better handling effect.

Although riding on the new platform, the Sienna is expected to pack the same powertrain with a little modification to give it a small output bump. It’s also possible that the minivan will come with a hybrid system like most Toyota cars that ride on the TNGA platform.

We have a feeling that the new-gen Sienna is nearing its final stage of development, which is why the test mule wears that complex plastic wrapper. We think the car could break cover at the 2019 Los Angeles Auto Show in November or even sooner than that, and sales may kick off not long after the reveal. Lastly, this may also be the reason why the 2020 Sienna got its early launch.