Do we need a bigger car?

erniebufflo · October 2011

Hi folks, I'm new! I'm 13 weeks preg with twins, and one thing that has my husband really stressing out is our car situation. We're a one-car family, because my husband is a bicycle commuter, and we have 2 large dogs. We need one car that meets all of our needs, from road trips to hauling dogs around, to hauling kids around. Our Pontiac Vibe has been great with just us and the fur-kids, but we're worried it's just not big enough for twins, particularly since my hubby is quite tall. We're pretty sure he won't be able to scoot his seat back far enough to drive with a car seat behind him.

What do all you Multiples' Mamas drive? I'm wanting to avoid a minivan quite yet, and we're not sure if we can get by with a station wagon or if we need to go full SUV. Hubby has looked at Toyota Rav-4's and Honda CRV's. I'm dreaming of something like an old Subaru Wagon or Volvo XC (I have hippie tendencies). Advice?

allisonmarie22 · October 2011

I'm so glad that you asked this. DH and I have a similar vehicle and I've been wondering the same thing.

OrangeSmoke · October 2011

Do tell, why the minivan hate?

kthappy76 · October 2011

OrangeSmoke:

Do tell, why the minivan hate?

Sounds like this may be what you need, or a big SUV, with two babies and two dogs. I used to have a CRV and they are small, esp if you are tall people. We have a mid-sized SUV (Santa Fe) and may need to upgrade w/twins, since we have no seating for anyone else and the seats have to be moved up for both seats (we are both tall).

TheBachelorette · October 2011

We also looked at the Rav4 and CRV. We ended up purchasing a Pilot and I am so glad we did. I had no idea how much stuff we would need. When we travel to stay overnight with family we bring 2 space saver highchairs, 2 bouncers, and 2 pnps and that is in addition to luggage. Definitely consider what your lifestyle is like. You have 2 larger dogs and they will need to have a place to go in the car. I don't know that the CRV or Rav4 are large enough to accomodate 2 car seats, 2 adult and 2 large dogs. Remember that the seats where the car seats are located need to be further back because the handle of the seat cannot touch the front seat. Maybe take car seats with you when you car shop?

erniebufflo · October 2011

I mostly want to avoid a minivan for aesthetic reasons (shallow, but true), but also because they're just so LARGE. For one, there will still be only 4 of us, but also, I'm afraid I can't drive something that big after having a tiny car for so long. And from what I've seen just looking, their cargo areas aren't actually that big, because they cram the extra row of seats so far back there.

Something that gets decent gas mileage would also be preferred, because of the above-mentioned hippie tendencies.

pea-kay · October 2011

You can put the babies in the middle row and stow the back row of a minivan.

You may not like the looks, but once you are carrying two babies in infant seats and all you have to do is click a button to open the doors, you will thank your lucky stars.

2shihtzus · October 2011

We don't have a mini van and while I do admit that things like remote control doors would be sweeeeet, we have managed fine without one. We have two cars, a Chevy Trailblazer and a Honda Accord. Our stroller can fit into the trunk of both and our Trailblazer has had enough room for us to take enough stuff to last us for a week's vacation. We were packed to the brim but it worked. I do think that a Honda CRV or Rav 4 would be too small, the CRV's seem to have less cargo space than even the Accord to me, the Accord trunk is really big.

hep01 · October 2011

TheBachelorette:
We also looked at the Rav4 and CRV. We ended up purchased a Pilot and I am so glad we did. I had no idea how much stuff we would need. When we travel to stay overnight with family we bring 2 space saver highchairs, 2 bouncers, and 2 pnps and that is in addition to luggage. Definitely consider what your lifestyle is like. You have 2 larger dogs and they will need to have to place to go in the car. I don't know that the CRV or Rav4 is large enough to accomodate 2 car seats, 2 adult and 2 large dogs. Remember that the seats where the car seats are located need to be further back because the handle of the seat cannot touch the front seat. Maybe take car seats with you when you car shop?

I highly recommend taking seats w/ you when you shop. I have a Nissan Pathfinder & my H & I are not tall people but he now refuses to ride in my car b/c he is in the dash when he is in the passenger seat. I am sure it is b/c of the 3rd row but we NEVER would have thought w/ an SUV we would be having this problem.

OrangeSmoke · October 2011

Well, a minivan will actually have more cargo space for you than say a pilot and a LOT more than a CRV.

I was also a small car driver, and the minivan drove far more like a car than the SUVs I test drove.

Considering everything, I would venture to say that my van gets decent milage.

MrsLnt · October 2011

If I were going the SUV route, I would skip over the small SUVs like the Rav4 or CR-V and just go for the Highlander/4Runner or Pilot. The CR-V isn't any bigger than the Accord but I'd bet as an SUV it's more expensive to maintain + worse gase mileage.

We weren't sure if our twins were it, so we wanted something with the option of 3rd row, Plus it's nice to be able to bring passengers with us if we want. It's more than enough space for us. If you've got big dogs, I'd say you need a full size SUV or minivan.

SLPMel · October 2011

We have been having this conversation-since our "newer" car was supposed to be our starter family car. We also thought we'd be having one at a time so we had time before we needed a bigger car.

We have the twins and a large dog-and we have a Hyundai Elantra Touring Edition. As much as I am not looking forward to a minivan for looks, the extra space will be MUCH appreciated! We played around with the idea of a Subaru Outback, and we still may look at it, but you really can't beat what a mini-van can give you-especially with the two big dogs!

We've love to make it work with a smaller car-but we travel a lot to family in other states, and we want to be able to bring the dog as well. This Thanksgiving we'll be boarding him because there isn't any room to bring him AND all of the stuff we need.

everam01 · October 2011

We have 2 cars - Honda Accord and Subaru Outback.

The twins + luggage + us fit fine in the Accord. The back seat and trunk are both huge. HOWEVER, if the dogs go with us anywhere, we will have to put the luggage in one of those roof rack things, dogs in the back and babies in the back seat in the Subaru.

Like you, I have trouble driving larger vehicles, but the Outback drives like a car. Anything older than a 2010 has a very small back seat, but the 2010-12 have really big ones.

sarahjane936 · October 2011

The SUVs you listed will all likely be too small. They are similar in size to my Escape and we just barely fit for basic around stuff. Road trips require a cargo tray attached to the back. I had a hard time finding car seats that would fit behind my seat (I'm also tall) and once the babies and stroller are loaded in, there isn't much room for anything / anyone else.

I'm also thinking about getting a bigger car and have similar mini-van hate. Sadly, I think its the way I'm gonna have to go. What I'm finding, when the SUV is big enough to accommodate everything, the gas mileage suffers - big time. Getting something the size of an Explorer would increase my month gas bill by around $100 per month. Mini-Vans get much better mileage. I still haven't given up SUV hope. I have my eye on a Kia Serento. Still gets pretty good gas mileage and looks bigger than my Escape. I still need to load everything in to see if its going to be big enough.

punkin06 · October 2011

i have a CRV that i'm keeping and i've looked at a RAV-4 too. both are the equivalent of cars ... dont waste your time if you're in need of space!!! we will have to make ours work but we dont have dogs. just twins on the way and a soon to be 5 y.o. ... definitely look into a mini-van or a bigger suv if you expect to haul the twins and animals, and extra stuff.

JosiePosy · October 2011

Twins and a large dog here. Seriously look at the vans. They are damn handy. We get around very well in ours, even in tons of snow. The interior space and sliding doors are worth the look.

AFaul · October 2011

We are making it work with just our cars. We have a Hyundai Sonata and the car seats fit fine even with the drivers seat pushed all the way back (my husband is 6'4"). It would probably be easier with a mini van but we wanted no car payments for a few years so we can adjust/determine how much twins cost. We have packed enough luggage and baby stuff for a 1 week vacation in our car pretty easily. We don't have dogs though... which I'm sure would change the equation. I would definitely try to put the car seats in any car you are thinking of buying to make sure they'll work. Good luck!

koyn · October 2011

SLPMel:
We have been having this conversation-since our "newer" car was supposed to be our starter family car. We also thought we'd be having one at a time so we had time before we needed a bigger car.
We have the twins and a large dog-and we have a Hyundai Elantra Touring Edition. As much as I am not looking forward to a minivan for looks, the extra space will be MUCH appreciated! We played around with the idea of a Subaru Outback, and we still may look at it, but you really can't beat what a mini-van can give you-especially with the two big dogs!
We've love to make it work with a smaller car-but we travel a lot to family in other states, and we want to be able to bring the dog as well. This Thanksgiving we'll be boarding him because there isn't any room to bring him AND all of the stuff we need.

How do you like the touring?

browneyedgrl4282 · October 2011

We started off with Mercury Mariner (smaller SUV) and just wasn't cutting it. My husband's legs were in the dashboard in the passenger seat. Stroller took up the entire trunk. We traded it for Caravan when they were 2 months old. Before Brady was born the twins were in the middle row and the third was folded down unless we had someone with us in the car. Plenty of room even now with the twins in the 3rd with Brady in the middle. Minivan drives a like a car and is much better on gas then full sized SUV!

SLPMel · October 2011

koyn:
SLPMel:
We have been having this conversation-since our "newer" car was supposed to be our starter family car. We also thought we'd be having one at a time so we had time before we needed a bigger car.
We have the twins and a large dog-and we have a Hyundai Elantra Touring Edition. As much as I am not looking forward to a minivan for looks, the extra space will be MUCH appreciated! We played around with the idea of a Subaru Outback, and we still may look at it, but you really can't beat what a mini-van can give you-especially with the two big dogs!
We've love to make it work with a smaller car-but we travel a lot to family in other states, and we want to be able to bring the dog as well. This Thanksgiving we'll be boarding him because there isn't any room to bring him AND all of the stuff we need.
How do you like the touring?

We love it. If we didn't have the dog or if we only had one kid, we'd be great. We also have a 2009-which doesn't have the roof rack, so we can't put something on top. There is a ton of space in the back, and although it's a bit crowded with the car seats, it's not horrible. For the price, we were really happy with our purchase, and would definitely recommend it!

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