New car?

lolapop2005 · July 2017

I was reading the car seat and stroller thread and someone was talking about making sure it fits in your car. Well, we have to buy a new car before this babe comes along but won't be able to until right before birth! Baby will make three kids for us and I'm worried we have to switch to a mini van. I've semi accepted it but would love an SUV. I just think we will get more bang for our buck with a mini van. Is anybody else going to have to upgrade? If so, what are you thinking of getting? And for those that already have 3+ kids, what do you drive? Do you like it? We will probably stick to something like a Honda, Nissan, Kia, Toyota.. not a huge fan of American made vehicles.

smorzandoj · July 2017

We are looking at a Honda Pilot. We need the third row and refuse to opt for a minivan. We are also just considering a second Jeep Grand Cherokee and assuming we won't be going many places as a family of 6.

neener*neener* · July 2017

We have a pilot and love it. Ds 1 will sit in 3rd row and can buckle himself. Ds2 and baby will sit side by side in 2nd row leaving single gold down seat open for ds 1 to get in back.

soulcupcake · July 2017

We have a Chrysler Town & Country. The plan is to have the big three in the third row and little kids in the second row.

Starynightsky24 · July 2017

We are. We are going for the Honda Odyssey. We looked at the pilot too, but it just doesn't compare as far as space and convenience.

We always said we would never get a van but here we are. It just makes the most sense right now and I agree it's a lot more bang for your buck. I like the new one with the adjustable middle row for seat configurations.

Watch some vans as the town and Cherokee that we borrowed didn't have tethers for front facing car seats on the third row except for the middle. I did a lot of research on that after seeing that. I think it's mostly older models but I'm not sure.

TattoosandLace · July 2017

No can here. Looking into SUVs with third row seating. Sad to see my equinox go, but this farm wife isn't doing the minivan life.

chucksmom15 · July 2017

Only on my first but I am actually getting a Highlander in a few weeks. I drive a convertible now which is not baby friendly and we figured might as well plan for the future instead of just this baby. Getting the captains chairs in the middle row so we don't have to remove the car seats for people to sit in the back.

selahluna · July 2017

I didn't want to be a minivan mom, but now I am... and ohhhhh my they sure are nice! ☺️ It took a bruise to my ego to get one, a used one at that, but I don't regret it!

winnie1122 · July 2017

Not getting a new one as I'm only on baby 2, but I cannot wait to get my minivan some day, haha. I don't get the minivan hate, I think they are awesome sauce. All those cup holders? Sliding doors? Big trunk? Aw man. Dream car.

sabriel1 · July 2017

We drive a Chevrolet Tahoe right now with the kids. It it a three row SUV which has 3 top teethers for car seats in the back row (which was essential for us with 4 kids (hopefully soon to be 5) 5 and under. In the SUV market this is harder to find than you think. The thing is shockingly good on gas. Like way better than I expected.

We used to drive a GMC Acadia but that only had 1 tether in the back row and that thing, though smaller, was a gas suck.

As a van I'm certainly partial to the Honda Odyssey especially because it is one of the few cans that have three top teethers in the back row.

As a side note you can still got three across in most sedans as well depending on your car seats. It's always cheaper to upgrade car seats than to upgrade cars

the_other_mother · July 2017

We're gonna be in the market for a mini van. We will probably go for a nice used Honda or Toyota. DH still wants to talk me into an SUV, but I'm a mini van mom all the way. I just can't see myself in an SUV.

meatballs37 · July 2017

Now that we are going from a family of 3 to a family of 5. yikes! We are going to get a mini van. We just paid off my DH's ford escape too! Sigh. Since we want to budget wisely since there are two babies coming, we may have to ditch my honda odyessey dream. Why are cars so damn expensive?! We will probably be looking into a used town and country or a grand caravan. I have also realized there aren't a lot of options for vans these days.

clc515 · July 2017

DH wanted a bigger car than his compact car, so we are getting a Pilot. My brother has one so we know how comfy they are, plus 3rd row seting means we can grow into it!

mrsgunsta · July 2017

We have a Ford Edge and a Dodge Durango with third row so we not have to upgrade with baby#2. We did however, just buy a new house right before I found out I was pregnant. Going from a 3/2 to a 4/3 plus an office and a playroom. Gaining 1,000 sq ft will go a long way with keeping my sanity with all the kid stuff.

catherinekate · July 2017

I will never drive a mini van but may consider an SUV. We have a civic and I know we can fit two dionos in there but I imagine that two kids will force an upgrade sooner than we'd otherwise consider it.

K&Elizabeth · July 2017

This is #3 for us as well and we got a new Kia Sedona. I was very anti-van, but I actually like it. There's so much room. I've had 3 Kias in my driving life. My first drive for 200k miles with no major repairs. My last car was a Kia as well, but we traded it in for the van. It drives really well and doesn't feel van-y if that makes sense. Our soon-to-be 5 year old is still in a 5-point harness and she'll be in the 3rd row. The second row is captain seats so it's easy for me to get to the 3rd row to buckle her in.

K&Elizabeth · July 2017

meatball37 said:

Now that we are going from a family of 3 to a family of 5. yikes! We are going to get a mini van. We just paid off my DH's ford escape too! Sigh. Since we want to budget wisely since there are two babies coming, we may have to ditch my honda odyessey dream. Why are cars so damn expensive?! We will probably be looking into a used town and country or a grand caravan. I have also realized there aren't a lot of options for vans these days.

Look into the Kia Sedona. It was a lot more affordable than the Odyssey.

Ashoes123 · July 2017

I know know a few moms with 3 kids who love the Pilot. They look pretty nice too. However, while on vacation with my friend and both of our toddlers we rented a Chrysler Town and Country minivan with all the bells and whistles. It was amaaaazing. We were making fun of ourselves at the start of our trip with our "mom mobile" and by the end we were both in love with it.

edit: Our favorite feature was the button on the key that opened the side doors. Made it a little easier to load a kid on each side while also holding groceries.

babymakes9 · July 2017

with 3 under 5 i drove an explorer. Went to a minivan with #4. Currently have a suburban, but i loved my minivan it was so easy to get kids in and out, jackets on and off from inside the car etc. Switched after i hit a deer and totaled the car, i needed 4 wheel drive. My suburban holds 8, but i would live to upgrade to an excursion that holds 9, but even the used ones aren't in the budget.

seitzy3 · July 2017

I have an Infiniti and it fits three car seats in the back just fine, and that's one of the smaller suvs out here. The Honda Pilot and toyotas are so roomy and amazing! My MiL has a pilot and it's really nice and has a lot of room in the back. I'm going to have to get a bigger car as well but haven't decided what's best for us yet. With 4 under 5, I will have all four car seats so I might have to go with bucket seats and third row.

GoogleMD · July 2017

When you look at cars make sure your are also looking at things like the number of top tether for forward facing car seats. Town and country mini vans are not really reccomended especially if you are going to have multiple forward facing car seats because they do not have very many/convient tether location.
Overlapping seat belts is something else to think about, you cannot safely sit 3 across (with or without a car seat) safely. The rave 4 and nissan rouge both have overlapping seat belts.

mpp06 · July 2017

I got my Yukon XL when we were having our third and I've loved it since the minute I got it. My husband would actually love a van, I wouldn't mind it but I really like my car. Try your best to look to the future. We had no idea we would be having 6 kids and thankfully we bought a car with 6 seats in the back instead of captains chairs. Vans def have the convenience factor, it's just all in what you want. We farm so I go into fields often and I don't know if the van would've worked for us. Good luck in your search! Car shopping is so fun!

Ashoes123 · July 2017

@GoogleMD were you in Nov 15? I was more of a lurker but I recognize your avatar

GoogleMD · July 2017

Ashoes123 said:

@GoogleMD were you in Nov 15? I was more of a lurker but I recognize your avatar

Yes I was!

mommaSG · July 2017

We have 2 kids and my daughters friend who is always with her so its like 3 so baby will make four and we a have a van. It is a stow and go and at first i was devistated and was just wanting a suv but its worth it. I love bei g able to have room for the kids and be able to hide the seats if room is needed

Ashoes123 · July 2017

@GoogleMD awesome! Hope your little 19 month old is doing great! Mine is a little fireball of energy and I have no idea how I'm going to wrangle her and an infant!

gymmonkey95 · July 2017

I'm looking at upgrading/downgrading all at once. I have a truck but the backseat is very inconvenient as far as one car seat goes let alone two! Does anyone here have a car that can easily fit two rear facing seats at once? I don't know if model helps but I have the extend-2-fit and plan on getting the 4ever version once this peanut is out of the infant seat.

winnie1122 · July 2017

@gymmonkey95 For just two car seats, any small SUV or four door car is super easy, especially if they have the little hooks in the seat. I think for any car seat, the cars that make it most difficult are ones with just two doors simply because it's hard to access. I have always driven a small SUV, though I don't like my current one lol. My DH has a Pontiac Torrent (which is very similar to a Chevy Equinox I believe) and I love his car for the car seats. Back seat is very roomy and the car itself is super affordable and nice. But really any 4 door vehicle should be just fine for 2 car seats! Unless you know you want lots more kids in the near future, then maybe go ahead and plan for that with this car.

BelhurstBride · July 2017

We recently got rid of our Pilot for the Odyssey. Once we had two carseats in the second row the third row was rendered useless; the only way to get to the third row was through the trunk, and that got old fast. Plus, once the third row up there's essentially no storage. I was sad to see it go, but convenience became a priority over my vanity.

I've come around to the van. The sliding doors make dealing with the carseats in parking lots more easier than I could have imagined. Rainy day? So much more space for me to climb in while buckling up the girls. Plus now we actually have room for others while having a large vehicle.

GoogleMD · July 2017

gymmonkey95 said:

I'm looking at upgrading/downgrading all at once. I have a truck but the backseat is very inconvenient as far as one car seat goes let alone two! Does anyone here have a car that can easily fit two rear facing seats at once? I don't know if model helps but I have the extend-2-fit and plan on getting the 4ever version once this peanut is out of the infant seat.

Fwiw there is really no benefit to the 4ever e2f
it is cheaper to buy the regular e2f and a dedicated booster at that time. The 4ever e2f is also not as compact front to back as the standard e2f. Something to consider.

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