thinking about getting a new car

foreverapartofme

Right now I have a little Hyundia Elentra and I have loved it for the past 7 years.  However, with all of the baby equipment in my trunk (carriage, pack 'n' play) and the back seat has been taken over by my DD's car seat and diaper bag, I am starting to feel cramped!  Does anyone have any suggestions as to what kind of car I should look at?  I was thinking maybe a van? I know nothing about cars so any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

CowgirlK39

So you definitely want something with storage space and room... I suggest a crossover, like the Chevy traverse/GMC Acadia. Everyone I know who has owned one has loved them. Not as dorky as a minivan, but not a small SUV. My DH and I are taking delivery of our Chevy Tahoe in a few days. That's a pretty big SUV but that's what we want for the future. If you don't want something that big try the Traverse. My company just bought Ford Escapes for some of the salesmen and I gotta say I think those are too small. They would be a step below a minivan in the scheme of things. So that kind of gives you a size scale.

rjeller32

I am always a Jeep and Subarau fan. Specifically new body style Subaru Foresters and mid-2000's Jeep Cherokees. The new Liberty is really pretty though. But, do you want the low mpg that comes with an SUV? That's the main downfall.

I personally am anti van. They are ugly. They may hold more people than most cars, but there are more options like a three row Explorer.

Avoid 90's and early 2000 Subaru's, BMW's and VW's. They are notorious for transmission issues, vaporlocking or entire engine swaps. I would even buy a brand new VW because of it.

As for safety ratings, Subaru really has the best safety features. Hatchbacks have tons of room for storage and seating.

I know these random things because DH is a mechanic, and has been for almost 10 years now. The most common car he worked on was a Jetta, and it was always an engine rebuild or transmission replacement, even with owners who changed oil and checked fluids at the recommended time. We are going to be getting a Subaru Forester as soon as we pay off our Nissan Senta.

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CowgirlK39

I agree with pp about the minivans. I have I drive one for work and I can't even imagine trying to get a family in there. It just seems really impractical but it must not be since they are so popular.

annibes

I made the switch from my little Subaru Impreza hatchback, which I absolutely loved, to a more family friendly Ford Explorer. It's a really nice vehicle and I can deal with driving it as a ma-mobile for the next several years. Lots of room for cargo or 3rd row, smooth ride, decent bang for your buck.

MrsWiseone

I love the idea of a mini van...im definitely in the minority. As a teacher and on car duty, I love the moms that hit a button and the door opens and the kid jumps out. That might be the laziness in me, but if your hands are full and you can touch a button on you car keys to open the side door so you can put your baby or toddler in.. I'm there!

foreverapartofme

We are hoping to have three kids actually! However we only have one now though. Since I have Fridays off during the summer, I have been caring for my niece who is 9 months old. When I have double the car seats and double the diaper bags I feel like my car is closing in around me. Lol. 

MrsWiseone

I just saw a commercial for the new honda odessey and it has a built in vacuum. ..not sure if this is stupid or amazing!

JemmaWRX

I have a VW Touareg and love it.  Really horrible fuel economy but the thing is a beast in snow and rain.  If you don't have to worry about snow a crossover SUV is a good option and you will certainly get better fuel economy.  If you get snow, I wouldn't recommend a crossover.  I find their 4WD/AWD capabilities are incomparable to a true SUV (crossovers are built on a car chassis while an SUV is built on a truck chassis making an SUV much more rugged and efficient in bad weather).

I also love Subarus, had an Outback wagon when I was younger, then got a WRX after college.  Really great cars - they're reliable, easy/cheap to maintain.  Plus totally affordable but also hold value.

Good luck!

ETA words

CowgirlK39

This is off topic but I thought of this post today when i showed some coworkers a pic of the Tahoe I'm buying this weekend. This was the convo: Me: check it out, I can't wait to pick it up Monday! Coworker #1: we wow huge gas guzzler! What do the two of you need one that big for? Me: well, for future use. Coworker 1: *blank stare* Coworker 2: OMG are you having a BABY?!?! Me: no no no, not yet I mean for the future, eventually... Both: *blank stares* Some people feel the need to comment on everything. Go test drive, shop around and see for yourself what you like.

KMB611

foreverapartofme said:

Right now I have a little Hyundia Elentra and I have loved it for the past 7 years.  However, with all of the baby equipment in my trunk (carriage, pack 'n' play) and the back seat has been taken over by my DD's car seat and diaper bag, I am starting to feel cramped!  Does anyone have any suggestions as to what kind of car I should look at?  I was thinking maybe a van? I know nothing about cars so any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

The Ford Edge and Explorer are very nice. I'm not much of a mini van person either, but if I had to get one, a Honda Odyssey is my first choice. Subarus are good because they come standard with All Wheel Drive. My friends have a Toyota Sequoia and it's amazing. They can fit so much in there and still have a decent amount of space left.

ho11yday

DH just sold his project car to buy a minivan and he's in love.  Ended up with a 2005 Chevy Venture--no frills, but it was what I asked for.

At first, I was put off with his suggestion of a minivan, because, well, my image and it not being very fun. But as we talked about it, I realized that our cars just weren't meeting all of our needs: we needed something that would carry the dog without us worrying about dog hair, hold at least 2 rear-facing car seats for as long as we can, hold 5+ passengers comfortably, and could haul more crap than my hatch.  Two reasons (other than cost) we ended up with a minivan vs an SUV was that we wanted a third row of seats without having to climb over the second row of seats and there was more leg room.

Do we still drive fun cars? Of course, but now we also have a vehicle that fits another part of our lifestyle.