Mom cars

ashie0610

Both of our cars are approaching 200k miles so we are starting to research cars in order to figure out which ones are going to buy next. Our larger car is a Honda CRV which we loved when we only had one child but is way too cramped now that we have two. DH is ready for a minivan but I'm not convinced.

So tell me, what family friendly cars do you love? Is my fate sealed that I will have to drive a minivan if we have a third someday or should I be looking at minivans next anyway?

swise22

I have no recommendations as I only have one child right now but DH is already looking into minivans. He's obsessed. I on the other hand am happy with my SUV. I'm not sure if it would be big enough with multiple children though.

golfingdarwinfish

Not sure your budget. But with 1 I don't mind my sedan, but I'm hoping to get a ML if we decide to have another of when he's a bit older and we have things and other people to ferry around.

Leysin97

I have a Subaru outback. It's great for 1 kid
Not sure how it would work for more as I only have one. I love that it has lots of space for stroller and stuff. With the car seat however it limits the back passenger room and makes it a little snug for an adult on either side.

MrMrsandBaby

bazingabee said:

I just got a Chevy Traverse. Looks like a SUV, has 3rd row seating like a mini van. Not much storage room in the back, but I fold my 3rd row down when I need the space and my stroller folds up and fits back there when I'm using all the seats.

Same but we have the Acadia. Same car...different badge. We love it.

MrMrsandBaby

Also have a Malibu which is good for me! The trunk is big and my 3 yo and baby fit in the back. DH is tall though and leg room with two car seats is tight.

beachbumsc

I have a Honda Accord and it works fine with the one LO, but I am hoping to upgrade in a couple of years to a Expedition EL.  I want captain's chairs in the second row so it is easy to get to the third row and there is plenty of trunk space with the third row seats up

Raesofsunshine1

We love our van. We have a Grand Caravan. It has bucket seats, the doors that open with a remote or button inside, a DVD player and we love that the seats fold flat into the floor. We take a lot of trips and so these options are awesome. The doors opening/closing with remote is great with kids since most of the times you have your hands full.

MrsSinner402

I just got a 2014 Ford Escape. So far I love it for one LO. And it looks like it could comfortably fit two, if you don't want something too big.

MrMrsandBaby

I have always said no to a minivan but damn they are tempting!

BreandMikewedding

Raesofsunshine1 said:

We love our van. We have a Grand Caravan. It has bucket seats, the doors that open with a remote or button inside, a DVD player and we love that the seats fold flat into the floor. We take a lot of trips and so these options are awesome. The doors opening/closing with remote is great with kids since most of the times you have your hands full.

I totally agree with this. We got a dodge caravan when we had our second and it was fantastic. We bought it used and it had been driven rough so it started having problems recently. We just got a Nissan quest and it is not nearly as functional as the Dodge was.

[Deleted User]

I have a Toyota Corolla. I've always loved my car. I bought it new in 2011 and it drives well with fantastic gas mileage. Now that I have a baby though, I often think about getting something bigger, maybe a crossover SUV like the Chevy Equinox. Not because I need the extra space, but because I think it would be safer to be in a larger vehicle.

Klavanga74

I had a minivan for 7 years when my older two were small.  We FINALLY got rid of it about a year ago and then I got pregnant!  It was SOOOOO convenient with the little ones, especially because I have to drive them to and from school and it meant I could carpool and drive less.  Plus when we go on trips we had plenty of room for kids, dog, etc.  We replaced with and Acura MDX, which was always my dream car.  It has a third row, some safety features and convenience features I loved.  However, the back storage is really small and now that we have three we probably won't be able to travel in it.  We were just talking the other day about whether we should get something bigger, or just rent a van for trips.  The latter is actually cheaper, so we're going with that.

victoria+james

I have a Ford Edge now which wouldn't be big enough for you... but next on my list is a GMC Acadia. Love it! Gives you all the extra space but so not a minivan. It's at least worth giving a test drive.

JJsMum

I always said NO to minivans. Yeah, I now drive the Toyota Sienna. I have to say, love, love, love the space and conveniences it offers! Before the van, we had the Toyota Highlander. It was great for 2 kids, wasn't going to work for 3. It had the 3rd row, but you had to choose between trunk space or the 3rd Rd row. Once the older boys are out of the 5 point harness, we are going to look at getting a Suburban or something similar. We prefer driving over flying, and we want to do some camping, so we need a third row AND trunk space, but I refuse to drive a minivan for the next 20 years.

ashie0610

I am with most of you in that I always said NO WAY to a minivan. @swise22‌ my H is he same way and is suddenly pushing for one. He sends me stuff all the time. I'll have to look at the Traverse and the Acadia to see how it would work for us so I have a few other options to show him.

Good to know that those of you who do have minivans love them though! He's slowly starting to break me so we will see...

pnwlover12

I have an older (2002) Tahoe and love it. I feel a little embarassed to say this but I hope we get a Kia Sorento for our next new car. It has a third row and fully loaded it's cheaper than a lot of other stock SUVs.

bumpuser10309732

Nicb13 said:

We have a GMC Acadia (Denali) that has 2 captain seats in the second row which makes it super easy to get to the optional 3rd row. With 2 kids and a SS that visits often, it's the best car for our family. I love it so much.

I'll take one of these please! I have the Ford Edge too and there's a lot more space in my backseat than MIL's escape. I think it's the shape, more head room etc. DH and I sat in the back of the escape with the baby seat and it was kind of smashed feeling. I'm not knocking the escape though I love the new ones! I just didn't think it had enough room to fit my baby seat, and my 6'3" dad. Yeah I constantly think about how a tall person will fit in my car. Lol

mamamurphy

Minivans have come a long way... We had a dodge caravan and recently upgraded to the Honda Odyssey... I love it... It has all the bells and whistles. It's comfortable to drive.

angeltennis3

JJsMum said:

I always said NO to minivans. Yeah, I now drive the Toyota Sienna. I have to say, love, love, love the space and conveniences it offers! Before the van, we had the Toyota Highlander. It was great for 2 kids, wasn't going to work for 3. It had the 3rd row, but you had to choose between trunk space or the 3rd Rd row. Once the older boys are out of the 5 point harness, we are going to look at getting a Suburban or something similar. We prefer driving over flying, and we want to do some camping, so we need a third row AND trunk space, but I refuse to drive a minivan for the next 20 years.

I was going to say, we just bought s new SUV (Nissan Murano) which is great, but we only have 1. We test drove a highlander and I really liked it, so I think that is what I will get in a few more years after we have baby #2.

If we were considering a third (which we aren't) I would go straight to a minivan.

rosalie12

We have a GMC Terrain Denali. I absolutely love it. But once we have #2, we might upgrade to an Acadia Denali. I just don't like the bucket seats (not as comfortable for adults), but for kids it will probably be way easier than bench seats. My mom has an Acadia too and loves it.

andrieya

pnwlover12 said:

I have an older (2002) Tahoe and love it. I feel a little embarassed to say this but I hope we get a Kia Sorento for our next new car. It has a third row and fully loaded it's cheaper than a lot of other stock SUVs.

Ugh Tahoes. My friend in high school had a 99 (in 2002) and it was ALWaYS braking down on the I-10 which was 45 min from our town. Maybe it was the dust is the desert?

Out of the few moms I know two have Toyota highlander and love it--the other has a ford escape and loves it.

BreandMikewedding

andrieya said:

pnwlover12 said:

I have an older (2002) Tahoe and love it. I feel a little embarassed to say this but I hope we get a Kia Sorento for our next new car. It has a third row and fully loaded it's cheaper than a lot of other stock SUVs.

Ugh Tahoes. My friend in high school had a 99 (in 2002) and it was ALWaYS braking down on the I-10 which was 45 min from our town. Maybe it was the dust is the desert?

Out of the few moms I know two have Toyota highlander and love it--the other has a ford escape and loves it.

Where did you live?

BreandMikewedding

pnwlover12 said:

I have an older (2002) Tahoe and love it. I feel a little embarassed to say this but I hope we get a Kia Sorento for our next new car. It has a third row and fully loaded it's cheaper than a lot of other stock SUVs.

I had a Kia when dd was little and my parents had a Kia sorento. We both had lots of seat belt issues. They were constantly breaking. I kept moving dd's car seat every time one broke and ended up with all three broken in the matter of months. They had to replace them all. My parents had the same problem with theirs. Just wanted to give you a heads up.

andrieya

@BreandMikewedding‌ Arizona

ashie0610

So for all the SUVs with third rows, does using them totally negate the trunk space?

starla487 said:

Have you considered a crossover? (Minivan/SUV mix.) I like Mazda's version and considered it briefly, but I just can't drive huge cars! They freak me out. So I got a Mazda3 hatchback. The trunk is a bit tight, but it works for one and can fit two car seats eventually.

I really would like to do a crossover but MH doesn't think they are big enough.

We were pretty set on the Toyota highlander but when we looked at it, it wasn't really mich bigger than the CRV we have now. Plus if we did end up needing the third row seating, we'd have no storage space and the third car seat (if we need one eventually) wouldn't work because we'd have to fold the second row down to get back there. Which means taking another car seat in and out every time and that is not happening. I'd rather get a car that suits our family now and then trade it in for something bigger if/when we need it, but he's back to the minivan.

angeltennis3

ashie0610 said:

So for all the SUVs with third rows, does using them totally negate the truck space?

starla487 said:

Have you considered a crossover? (Minivan/SUV mix.) I like Mazda's version and considered it briefly, but I just can't drive huge cars! They freak me out. So I got a Mazda3 hatchback. The trunk is a bit tight, but it works for one and can fit two car seats eventually.

I really would like to do a crossover but MH doesn't think they are big enough.

We were pretty set on the Toyota highlander but when we looked at it, it wasn't really mich bigger than the CRV we have now. Plus if we did end up needing the third row seating, we'd have no storage space and the third car seat (if we need one eventually) wouldn't work because we'd have to fold the second row down to get back there. Which means taking another car seat in and out every time and that is not happening. I'd rather get a car that suits our family now and then trade it in for something bigger if/when we need it, but he's back to the minivan.

Most SUVs with the "optional third row" will be like what you described (eliminates trunk space and is cramped to get to). There are full size SUVs with a built in third row (but I am not familiar with the make and models). We only plan on two kids so it would work well for us (we would only need the third row once we are driving their friends around, too).

Lindzoid

With 3 kids I love my ford explorer, the 3rd row seat is comfy and I can fit everything I need.

Unknown

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Kelsbells6

We have the lexus GX. We only have one child right now but it is big enough to have 2 car seats. It has 2 additional seas folded into the trunk if we need them. I love the height of the trunk. I can fit everything.

slsl509

I love my Town and Country. We bought it before I knew I was pregnant with DS and it's wonderful! IDGAF if I'm uncool to anyone because of what I drive. We have a ton of room with the third row up, which isn't the case in any of the SUVs we saw. The stow and go seats are awesome. Now we can drive with other people and the kids in their carseats although my 6'4" dad struggles to climb into the third row. The cargo space is awesome, the DVD, leather, all of the cup holders and outlets... I love it.

It's not great on gas mileage but it is a big vehicle. It's also not the best for poor snowy road conditions. My cousin has a Sienna and he says putting snow tires on makes all the difference. This is the second winter driving it and I haven't been stranded yet. 

The biggest pro is that with all the features it is still 10-15k less than a similar SUV. Practicality wins. We hadn't had any car payments in years so having one for less than $400 made it more palatable.

Kelsbells6

MrsCunningham22 said:

I will hold on to my SUV until I can, I prefer them than mini vans. I have a Lexus RX350 and I love love love the trunk space I can do groceries and have LO stroller in there no problem. 

I had the RX before the GX and loved it too.

Jennyc00

I wanted safety to be priority so I drive a Chevy silverado 4 door truck. It's a bit of a pain to haul the carrier up high to get it in the back seat... But I feel like if we are hit we can't be much safer especially rear or front end collision. I'm from TX so it's more normal for a lady to drive a truck here.

MuffinMom14

I drive an XTerra, and am I delusional to think that 3 would fit across the back if needed?

ashie0610

SPurp13 said:

I drive an XTerra, and am I delusional to think that 3 would fit across the back if needed?

From the research I've done online there are few, if any, that can fit three across and still be within the car seat manufacturer safety guidelines. Exception is if we were to trade in our car seats for the Diono brand which I guess are meant to fit three across in most vehicles, however that would cost us a fortune since we already have our car seats which were not cheap to begin with.

MuffinMom14

ashie0610 said:

I drive an XTerra, and am I delusional to think that 3 would fit across the back if needed?

From the research I've done online there are few, if any, that can fit three across and still be within the car seat manufacturer safety guidelines. Exception is if we were to trade in our car seats for the Diono brand which I guess are meant to fit three across in most vehicles, however that would cost us a fortune since we already have our car seats which were not cheap to begin with.

Well, the good news is that I'm only on Number 1, and the XTerra is a 2005. This is a problem we won't need to think about for a while, or, if ever. UNLESS I HAVE TWINS NEXT. OMG the horror.

ashie0610

SPurp13 said:

ashie0610 said:

SPurp13 said:

I drive an XTerra, and am I delusional to think that 3 would fit across the back if needed?

From the research I've done online there are few, if any, that can fit three across and still be within the car seat manufacturer safety guidelines. Exception is if we were to trade in our car seats for the Diono brand which I guess are meant to fit three across in most vehicles, however that would cost us a fortune since we already have our car seats which were not cheap to begin with.

Well, the good news is that I'm only on Number 1, and the XTerra is a 2005. This is a problem we won't need to think about for a while, or, if ever. UNLESS I HAVE TWINS NEXT. OMG the horror.

Seriously. The thought of twins is terrifying.

The thing is, we aren't even 100% sure on a future third child yet. After the disaster of a night we had last night it is looking unlikely. Ha. Still, he is all about the minivan so that we could fit a hypothetical third car seat. I get that he doesn't want car payments for a car we may never own outright, but I'd rather just buy another SUV in the meantime and trade it in if and when we have to. It sounds like lots of moms of two on here do like their minivans though so maybe I will give it a shot and at least be cooperative.

MuffinMom14

Down with the minivan. 

bumpuser10309732

Jennyc00 said:

I wanted safety to be priority so I drive a Chevy silverado 4 door truck. It's a bit of a pain to haul the carrier up high to get it in the back seat... But I feel like if we are hit we can't be much safer especially rear or front end collision. I'm from TX so it's more normal for a lady to drive a truck here.

bigger doesn't necessarily mean safer FYI I'm assuming you read crash tests etc. I've seen a head on collision with a F350 and a ford fusion. The fusion driver had to have the jaws of life but she was basically cuts/bruises. The F350, not so lucky. At lot of the cars today are as safe as a larger vehicle.

pnwlover12

BreandMikewedding said:

I have an older (2002) Tahoe and love it. I feel a little embarassed to say this but I hope we get a Kia Sorento for our next new car. It has a third row and fully loaded it's cheaper than a lot of other stock SUVs.

I had a Kia when dd was little and my parents had a Kia sorento. We both had lots of seat belt issues. They were constantly breaking. I kept moving dd's car seat every time one broke and ended up with all three broken in the matter of months. They had to replace them all. My parents had the same problem with theirs. Just wanted to give you a heads up.

How long ago was that? KIA has come a really long way in the past 5-10 years. H bought a 2012 Kia Rio because he needed a really good commuter car (he drives sometimes up to 2 hours each way) and we have had absolutely no problems with it the past 3 years. It runs great, gets close to 30mpg, has a really good warranty and it was cheap. We got it for like 14k brand new. I also have two friends that have the newer sorentos and they love it.

BreandMikewedding

andrieya said:

@BreandMikewedding‌ Arizona

I wondered. It sounded like this area.