We currently have a Nissan Murano and a Volkswagen Passat. Both have pros and cons, but have suited us well with our one child. Now that #2 is on the way, we are looking for something bigger. We take a lot of trips with friends, so third row would be ideal. The trunk space in both current vehicles has been plenty and neither have had major problems. We both LOVE our VW and if they made an SUV with third row seating, we would buy it!
I drive a fiat 500! I love love love my car but the backseat is tiny & there is almost no trunk. I'm thinking we will probably look to trade up to something bigger, but not huge just after the holidays. It's been great for the past 2.5 years with just me, DH and the (very small) dogs. But I doubt it will fit all the baby gear & seats.
We have a 2013 Toyota Sienna and love it. We got it right before we had DS, and this is #2 on the way. We test drove most of the major SUVs and minivans, and a minivan was a better fit for us. My DH is big on leg room, and the Sienna had the most (although the Honda Odyssey was about the same). For now, we have the 3rd row folded down, and there is a TON of storage in the back. Even with the 3rd row up, the back had more room than a lot of the SUVs. It also had better gas mileage than the larger SUVs. Honestly it might be bigger than what we need, especially when we only had 1 kid, but our intention is to have it for a long time so we wanted the extra space.
Our close second choice was an Odyssey, it was just a personal preference to go with the Sienna. We've ended up being a Toyota family.
What make/model/year of car do you have? 2014 Mercedes Benz M- Class
What do you like/dislike about it? I love everything about my car. The safety features are amazing with blind spot assist and it even applies the breaks for you if someone stops short and you dont notice. The steering wheel will vibrate if your drifting out of your lane as well. I feel like this will be a reliable car for having a baby in the back. The only thing I dislike is it takes premium fuel, but the take lasts a while.
How big is your family? Is it too big, too small, just right? The family right now is just us and our two dogs. its a good size SUV with plenty of cargo space for us, our two dogs, and soon to be baby. We plan on trying to have another baby within 2 years of this one and it will still be enough room. However this is a 3 year lease so by then I will either buy it or re lease. We got a deal on it because my husband works for the company and they had a month long special or else no way in hell I could afford it, but with his deal I'm paying the same as if I had leased a jeep which worked well for us. If you have the budget I highly recommend this vehicle or even an older model.
2014 Subaru Forester Premium with all weather package (leased). LOVE IT! What's great: Spacious even in the back seats. How wide all the doors open. Giant sunroof gives open feeling for back passengers. Excellent visibility. Lots of trunk space; back seats easily fold down flat. Size of car is easy to drive, not too long for me. Backup camera shows a lot. Driver seat adjustments are great (I'm 5'1" and hubs is 6' so these controls were important to us). Awesome gas mileage; over Labor Day we got 37mpg over ~45mi (mostly highway). Excellent safety rating. Wishes: Driver 1 & 2 seat position memory (maybe that's an upgrade?).
Currently our family is me, hubs and 2 dogs; baby due this spring. We chose the Forester in anticipation/preparation of starting a family.
We had a toyota matrix when it was just the four of us and it worked out great. Now, with 3 active boys, we have a honda pilot, as well as a toyota camera that I drive to work. Once baby gets here, my hubby and I will trade vehicles and I will drive the pilot. It works much better with four kids, although the trunk is tiny with the 3rd row up. Taking strollers and pack and plays on vacation will mean needing to either put luggage on top of the car or between seats.
I love the Mazda 5. I don't own one, but I've test driven a couple. It's like a mini minivan. Right now I have a Mazda 2 - teeny tiny but so zippy! I love it, but we might have to go to at least the 3 in the not-so-distant future. I'm Mazda-obsessed.
This is us right here!!! We also have the Mazda 2! Supper cute and zippy. Buuuut way too small!!! We are actually looking into the Mazda 5! Mazda 4 life! Zoom zoom!!!!
H has the Mazda 3 hatchback. He loves it! He's always been a Mazda guy, this is his 3rd Mazda 3. We'll likely upgrade my car to a CX-9 at some point, but not yet. I have a 2008 Hyundai Elantra. It has 110,000 miles on it (all mine!), and I paid it off in July. I actually have more legroom/space in my backseat than he does, and the trunk fits everything I could ever need at this point, so I'll continue to drive it until it dies on me, probably. I've never had any problems with it and that's saying something for the mileage!
In June I got a new 2014 Hyundai Tucson and I love it. I think it will suit just fine when #2 arrives. It gets great gas mileage and has a good space in the back. It's great for trips too, my parents, nephew, DS and I took a trip to New England right after I got it and it fit us all just fine.
DH has a 2000 ford f250 Diesel which we usually use for trips to the beach and such.
We have a F-150 4 door truck. When this baby is born we'll have 3 kids 3 and under. The truck is perfect for everything we need it for, it fits 3 carseats comfortably in the backseat, has lots of room for luggage and gear in the backseat and the bed. We can go off road, pull trailers, really do whatever we want with it. The only thing I don't like about it is that it doesn't have a bench seat in the front, so when #3 arrives nobody will be able to ride with us.
We have a F-150 4 door truck. When this baby is born we'll have 3 kids 3 and under. The truck is perfect for everything we need it for, it fits 3 carseats comfortably in the backseat, has lots of room for luggage and gear in the backseat and the bed. We can go off road, pull trailers, really do whatever we want with it. The only thing I don't like about it is that it doesn't have a bench seat in the front, so when #3 arrives nobody will be able to ride with us.
Same boat... It's going to suck not having an extra seat for anyone else... But I love my truck
DH has a Tahoe and I have an Infiniti G37. We love the Tahoe and take it everywhere on weekends. The third row is super convenient when we have family in town. The Infiniti is small in the backseat and once we have a second one, no one will be able to ride in the back. That's fine since I just use it for work anyway. I'll most likely get rid of it in a few years for a mid sized SUV, but we'll see.
What make/model/year of car do you have? 2012 Ford Escape
What do you like/dislike about it? I honestly am not really a fan. I went in wanting the new Explorer but had to get the escape due to the negative equity I had with my previous car and would not be able to afford the Explorer with the negative equity I had to cover. Not to mention, we have quickly outgrown it and once this lease is up we are going bigger (Yukon XL or Suburban is on the radar)...see below for family size
How big is your family? Is it too big, too small, just right? As mentioned above the Ford escape has become too small. Only have 1 now, but #2 is on the way, but I have my fur baby who is a 90lb golden retriever. With the (now) 1 car seat and the dog it is right and then if we go away and have luggage (and everything that comes with a 16mo) it is insanely tight!!! We get some things on the roof, but only so much. I would say the escape would work with one child (maybe two) but no dog lol. However, I have the model before it was changed and the newer escape seems smaller than mine so I cannot speak to that.
What make/model/year of car do you have? 2011 KIA Forte & 2007 Dodge Dakota - Quad Cab
What do you like/dislike about it? LOVE the price and gas mileage on our KIA. We can do one more in that car but for any Disneyland trips our trunk will be packed full. The Dodge is really roomy and would be perfect for our future family of four to go hiking/camping in. They are both comfortable as well.
How big is your family? Is it too big, too small, just right? We will be upgrading our car. We are sold on the Honda Pilots so that will most likely be my next vehicle. Right now, our vehicles work for us. If we have any more we will definitely have to upgrade.
Haven't seen this mentioned yet, so I'll just throw it out there. DH had a Mazda 5, and with just DD, the dog, and baby gear, it just wasn't big enough for us. We traded it in for a Ford Flex about a year ago and we LOVE our Flex. So roomy and comfortable. DH can comfortably fit himself and 6 of his high school basketball players in it.
We have a Jeep Grand Cherokee, and I love it! I can't believe we'll have two carseats in the back seat soon! The storage is huge, and it has rear heat and AC controls which I think is so important for babes in the back seat. Especially rear facing. Without rear AC vents, it would take forever to cool off back there. Especially for people in southern states or or other really hot climates. So that's my one suggestion to anyone shopping around for SUV's. you'd be surprised to see how many cars don't have rear controls/vents!
We have a Hyundai Santa Fe and I really love it. I wouldn't mind having something a little bigger, but the Santa Fe will be just fine for the four of us.
2014 Kia Sorento. I love almost everything about my car - the price, gas mileage, and all the room I have. Currently it's just me, FI, and our 2 dogs, so there will be plenty of room. The only thing I don't have is AWD/4WD which I regret. It's a great vehicle but if you consider getting one, go for the AWD!
I have a 2012 Hyundai Tucson and I absolutely love it. I'll be upgrading to the Santa Fe with the third row seating once this lease is up in about a year.
Wow, everyone seems to have fairly new cars. We have a 2003 Hyundai Santa Fe. We love it. There is so much space in the back for cargo. Also, the carseat fits rear facing with the front seat all the way back which is awesome. We had a VW Golf when our daughter was born and it was way too small. The passenger seat had to be almost all the way forward to fit the rear facing carseat so my knees were resting against the glove box all the time which was super annoying. And the stroller just BARELY fit into the trunk. If we had the stroller we couldn't put anything else in the trunk and vice versa... If we had anything in trunk the stroller wouldn't fit. Ugh! However, now that we're expecting our second we're looking at getting a used minivan. Not that we really need one for two children but we like to carpool with friends (and friends who also have children) so I don't like the idea of not being able to have anyone else in the car with us.
@spectacularfailure how many miles are on your car? Mine is a 2008 with 85,000, I'm just curious as to how long these last and keep going strong! I love mine so much, I'm about to have it paid off, I want it to last awhile!
We have the Jeep Cherokee and absolutely love it. It's a smaller SUV so I would recommend looking at the bigger model which is the Grand Cherokee. Right now it's just us and then the baby coming in March. I am surprised how roomie our car is for a small SUV.
I have a 2003 Chevy Cavalier, 4 door and its a hoopty. Her name is Callie and she's still going strong after the almost 4 years I've had her. She's been through a lot. My ex brother in law got drunk one night and stole my keys while I was sleeping and took off in it ans wrecked her so the front end is missing a piece on the left side. Last Summer I had her parked on the street and some asshole hit and run her and smashed all my back end. $2000 later she's fixed. She runs great but everything on the inside is falling apart. My gear shift broke, my driver side mirror adjustment button is breaking off, and drove when I try to roll down my window it gets stuck. A straight up hoopty! BUT a paid off one. The only reason why I haven't gotten a new car is cause I can't afford a car payment right now. I think im going to need one though because its gonna be a tight squeeze to fit 2 carseats in my tiny backseat
@spectacularfailure how many miles are on your car? Mine is a 2008 with 85,000, I'm just curious as to how long these last and keep going strong! I love mine so much, I'm about to have it paid off, I want it to last awhile!
Mine's a 2008 with 110,000! And we're trying to get awhile out of it still!
2014 Subaru Forester Premium with all weather package (leased). LOVE IT! What's great: Spacious even in the back seats. How wide all the doors open. Giant sunroof gives open feeling for back passengers. Excellent visibility. Lots of trunk space; back seats easily fold down flat. Size of car is easy to drive, not too long for me. Backup camera shows a lot. Driver seat adjustments are great (I'm 5'1" and hubs is 6' so these controls were important to us). Awesome gas mileage; over Labor Day we got 37mpg over ~45mi (mostly highway). Excellent safety rating. Wishes: Driver 1 & 2 seat position memory (maybe that's an upgrade?).
Currently our family is me, hubs and 2 dogs; baby due this spring. We chose the Forester in anticipation/preparation of starting a family.
This! Almost to a T, number of dogs and all. Only exceptions is I have the 2015 premium and we own instead of lease. We also have a 2013 Legacy. I love them both so much! Just sold my corolla in the Forester you have sooo much space, biggest sun roof on earth, most comfortable thing I've ever sat in. As a short person I'm so happy with how adjustable the seats are and that I can make them higher. That's a big problem for me in most cars. OP, where do you live? If it's somewhere that gets a decent amount of snow it may be worth piece of mind to get something 4wd. I'm in Minnesota, hence the absolute need for 4wd and Subarus are hands down the best in that category.
@spectacularfailure how many miles are on your car? Mine is a 2008 with 85,000, I'm just curious as to how long these last and keep going strong! I love mine so much, I'm about to have it paid off, I want it to last awhile!
I hope I quoted right! I'm new! Our Santa Fe has about 185,000 and is still going strong!
We have a Scion xB and I love that thing. It has a very roomy back seat and tons of storage in the back. I love that's it's a hatchback so it has room, but it's not quite an SUV so the gas mileage is great. We've gone on quite a few road trips with DS and all of our stuff comfortably. Might get a bit tight with baby #2 but it'll work. If we have a #3 I want a van with a third row.
B born 7/15/13, C born 3/2/15, #3 on the way May '17
I’m a modern man, a man for the millennium. Digital and smoke free. A diversified multi-cultural, post-modern deconstruction that is anatomically and ecologically incorrect. I’ve been up linked and downloaded, I’ve been inputted and outsourced, I know the upside of downsizing, I know the downside of upgrading. I’m a high-tech low-life. A cutting edge, state-of-the-art bi-coastal multi-tasker and I can give you a gigabyte in a nanosecond! I’m new wave, but I’m old school and my inner child is outward bound. I’m a hot-wired, heat seeking, warm-hearted cool customer, voice activated and bio-degradable. I interface with my database, my database is in cyberspace, so I’m interactive, I’m hyperactive and from time to time I’m radioactive.
We are a four runner family! We have two models, mine is a 2012 limited edition. My dad owned different Toyotas when I was growing up, so from my experience they have all been pretty reliable. In my car we have the optional third row seating, which will come in handy soon. It drives really smooth, and handles great. It also has full time four wheel drive (though I guess it doesn't do us much good in Hawaii).
Even though it is a little larger then SUVs in it's class, it's still a v6, so that is great for gas vs. a v8. Since we have the limited edition it has most of the bells and whistles, including a sunroof. My only complaints are that it doesn't have some of the sensors I would like. For example, the blind spot indicator. It does have a back up camera though, which is great.
All in all it is a great family car, with plenty of space for a family to grow. I highly recommend it.
I love my 2014 Subaru Forester. It is larger than the earlier models. Right now it is just my husband and me, but we are planning on adding to the family after this baby. It wouldn't fit three car seats, but would comfortably have room for 2 plus luggage. We filled it up to the gills for camping this year, so I think we may need to bring a trailer and possibly roof rack next year, but for smaller trips it's definitely large enough for baby gear and luggage. I love Subaru's overall reliability and the ratings cannot be beat for this year's model. Plus, it handles wonderfully in foul weather. Very versatile in terms of add-ons with a hitch option. I would hate to have to give mine up... Ever.
Edit: Forgot to mention that I get between 30-32 mpg highway and usually 25 or so city. A tank lasts roughly 400 miles. Another perk!
We bought a 2014 Chrysler Town & Country a few months ago. We freaking LOVE it. The sliding doors and lift gate are awesome, it is so easy for the kids (ages 5 & 2.5) to get into their seats by themselves. It's got a DVD player. And it is such a smooth, comfortable ride. It is perfect.
How big is my family? It's DH and I, and soon to be 3 kids.
Re: Let's talk CARS....
I love love love my car but the backseat is tiny & there is almost no trunk. I'm thinking we will probably look to trade up to something bigger, but not huge just after the holidays. It's been great for the past 2.5 years with just me, DH and the (very small) dogs. But I doubt it will fit all the baby gear & seats.
Our close second choice was an Odyssey, it was just a personal preference to go with the Sienna. We've ended up being a Toyota family.
Currently our family is me, hubs and 2 dogs; baby due this spring. We chose the Forester in anticipation/preparation of starting a family.
DH has a 2000 ford f250 Diesel which we usually use for trips to the beach and such.
DD 12.2010
Piper, 4/10/10
Connor, 3/16/15
Morgan, EDD 9/22/16
Surprise! Baby #2 EDD 7/28/17
OP, where do you live? If it's somewhere that gets a decent amount of snow it may be worth piece of mind to get something 4wd.
I'm in Minnesota, hence the absolute need for 4wd and Subarus are hands down the best in that category.
The only issue is that there are a few blind spots that I cannot see around. Then again, I'm 5'3" and my husband is 6'2". He says he can see, haha.
B born 7/15/13, C born 3/2/15, #3 on the way May '17
I’m a modern man, a man for the millennium. Digital and smoke free. A diversified multi-cultural, post-modern deconstruction that is anatomically and ecologically incorrect. I’ve been up linked and downloaded, I’ve been inputted and outsourced, I know the upside of downsizing, I know the downside of upgrading. I’m a high-tech low-life. A cutting edge, state-of-the-art bi-coastal multi-tasker and I can give you a gigabyte in a nanosecond! I’m new wave, but I’m old school and my inner child is outward bound. I’m a hot-wired, heat seeking, warm-hearted cool customer, voice activated and bio-degradable. I interface with my database, my database is in cyberspace, so I’m interactive, I’m hyperactive and from time to time I’m radioactive.
Even though it is a little larger then SUVs in it's class, it's still a v6, so that is great for gas vs. a v8. Since we have the limited edition it has most of the bells and whistles, including a sunroof. My only complaints are that it doesn't have some of the sensors I would like. For example, the blind spot indicator. It does have a back up camera though, which is great.
All in all it is a great family car, with plenty of space for a family to grow. I highly recommend it.
Edit: Forgot to mention that I get between 30-32 mpg highway and usually 25 or so city. A tank lasts roughly 400 miles. Another perk!
How big is my family? It's DH and I, and soon to be 3 kids.