What do you recommend? Baby #3 will be here in a couple of days and we have not decided what direction to go with our main vehicle. We have a Toyota Camry that does not fit three carseats in the back because of the design of the seat. My husband has a newer Ford truck and that is more than spacious for the seats, but obviously doesn't have the cargo space if we go shopping, etc. We want to have something by the time I go back to work .. so what do you have that you would recommend?
thanks!
Re: If you have 3rd row SUV or minivan ...
Another Sienna owner here. We're actually on our 3rd Toyota van (in 11 years....) We have a philosophy of only buying the body style before the current new one, if that makes sense. Saves a ton of money. We also tend to buy around 100,000 miles and go cheap because we've always been able to easily get 250,000 miles out of them without any major repairs. Our current van is a 1999, fully loaded, leather, etc. We've had it 4 years, I think. It currently has 170,000 miles on it and we figure we can get another 4 or 5 years out of it. (I'm a SAHM so these are the sacrifices we make
Personally, I wouldn't buy an SUV with young children because of the swinging doors. I HATE driving my kiddos around in our other car (a Toyota Matrix) because I worry so much about them swinging the door open too far and wacking other cars. Seems like a minor thing, but I LOVE having sliding doors... with a 6, 5, and 3 year old, it's just one less thing to worry about.
We went with a Mazda CX-9 and LOVE it. The third row seats normal sized adults too. You don't have to be a toddler to fit back there. It has great safety ratings and we are extremely happy with our purchase.
You can't beat a mini-van for the accessibility to the third row (for buckling in kids), the features (sliding doors - come on, those things are awesome!), potential stow 'n go for extra storage, and cargo space. We have 3 kids and a Dodge Grand Caravan. I recommend that whatever you get, get bucket seats in the second row - it makes it so easy to get to the third row. It's also handy having the space in the middle to change diapers on the road (while the vehicle is stopped, of course). We paid about the same as a base model of Honda or Toyota mini-van, but ours is loaded.
I cried the day we ordered it, because I was one of those who thought I would NEVER drive a mini-van. But, I'm reformed and revolutionizing cool.
We bought a used van (2003 Ford Windstar...I don't even know if they make them anymore!) and I'd say it has enough room for a 3rd row carseat. I wouldn't try to get the rear-facing back there, but there'd be room.
One thing that you have to consider is, if you have a double-stroller, a lot of vans won't have enough 'trunk' space to fit it unless the 3rd row is stowed, which you obviously can't do if you're using it. I have a friend who never considered this, and she has a lot of trouble with it, and wishes she had have bought an extended version of her minivan instead. The Ford Windstar is big enough for our double without doing anything to the 3rd row.
I like our mini-van Dodge Grand Caravan) because it fits our double stroller plus cargo space. Our third row fits DD#1's carseat and then part of the bench folds down. That's wear the double stroller goes and the rest of the trunk has loads of room for cargo - it's also a deep trunk...... So, OP if you have a double stroller, try to find a vehicle where the third row can be split.....
Really? I have a sienna and can easily fit three Britax carsets in my middle row... hmmm
Malakai - 8.3.09
Ezra - 12.1.11 ASD
This. We love our honda pilot too!