car, small suv or minivan?

[jhaud]

okay... what do you moms of 2 or more like? i have a 4 door saturn with mucho miles currently. we have one dd but will hopefully have 2 dc in the next year. what do you like or what works/doesn't work for you with your sedan, small suv or mini-van? i've never been into cars, except for functionality, so when dh asks me what i would like/prefer i stare blankly back!! and he really does want my opinion as it will be my primary vehicle!

thanks for any input!
jennifer

[starrynight]

We have 3 kids and a minivan, we bought it when our 2nd was a few months old. I don't like suvs personally but I know some people here love them.

[jhaud]

so, you like your minivan? what about it works for you/doesn't work for you? can you get from the front seat to the kids if dh is driving? do you think it has definite advantages over sedan or suv?

thanks for your help
jennifer

[starrynight]

Over a sedan the advantage is more seating and some what more leg room /space but you lose a trunk and that stinks but newer minivans have more cargo space or stow n go seats so that helps a lot.

Yes I can get from the front seat to the back if I have to, I can either reach behind and hand the baby a toy or I can climb back there if needed. I don't like to do this while he is driving but I have and can if necessary.

I just personally don't like suvs in general. I don't like them for environmental reasons and I don't like the look of them or the higher prices we would have to pay in insurance. It was cheaper to insure the van and we get much better gas mileage.

Really small suvs don't have any better seating than sedans, you get a bit more cargo room though. Unless you want to buy a very large suv like a suburban or similar you end up having the same 5 seats as a car!

[kelly ann]

2 kids here and a minivan. It is so much easier to get the kids in the car now. I also like that we can travel with both kids and a set of grandparents. It felt really big to drive just for the first week.

[RwnMayfair]

We're expecting our second in August, and traded in our sedan for a minivan a few months ago. We could have survived in the car, but this way we have room for the grandparents or other people who might be with us. My father lives nearby, so we see him and my stepmother at least once a week generally.

We went with a minivan over an SUV because you don't lose the cargo room to get the extra seating. (SUVs that have third rows you can pull out generally take up the cargo space in the process.) That, and we're not huge into SUVs for the most part for various reasons.

I have no complaints about our van - we're really pleased with it. About the only thing I miss compared to our sedan is the standard trasmission, but that's not something you can get on a minivan in the US. ;) (Plus, I'm not sure it'd be as much fun on a minivan as it was on our sedan anyway.) And I can always get my standard transmission fix with my husband's car, though it's still not the same as the turbo engine was on the sedan. (Alas, we bought his car with good gas milage and commuting in mind, so no turbo on it.) But anyway, like I said, we're really pleased with our minivan. :)

-Melissa

Taran, November 20, 2003

http://www.gynosaur.com/assets/ribbons/ribbon_emerald_18m.gif - Eighteen months!
http://lilypie.com/baby2/031120/0/5/0/-5/.png
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[jfmiller]

I have two kids (3 1/2 and 15 months) and a van AND station wagon. LOVE the van for the kids (our primary vehicle). What I love:

- EASY to get children in and out (much easier than car or former SUV). My older child gets in and out himself. That rocks!

- MORE ROOM!!! I can't imagine going back to a car after the van.

- Kids can see out windows of the van much easier. When we first rode in the van I could tell immediately, it was a vehicle made for children.

- CONS: It's big and sometimes hard to park (Honda Odyssey).

If you are considering a car, I would seriously think of a station wagon (we have a VW Passat). The extra room in the hatch/trunk is invalulable with more than one child.

HTH!

Jennifer
Proud SAHM to Graham (1/02) and Genevieve (4/04)

[almostamom]

I had a 1998 Toyota 4-Runner that I LOVED when DS was born. Because of a previous neck injury it became more difficult/painful to lift DS into the 4-Runner as he got bigger. I also really wanted to have a/c vents in the back seat as we live in a VERY hot climate and the 4-Runner didn't have those. We bought a mini-van about 3 mos. ago to solve those problems. Other things I like about it:

-easier to get DS and nephews in/out of carseats
-I can get to DS from the front if I have to (center console folds down)
-LOTS of room for stuff
-Remote control doors (incredibly convenient!)

I never, never, never wanted a minivan (just didn't think it was me), but now that I have one I think it's perfect.

Good luck
~Linda~
DS 11/04

[thomma]

My dh pushed for a minivan while I was pregnant (with twins). I was adamant about not driving a mini-van. I loved my subaru forester and didn't want to part with it. My twins came early, before we could get the van, and my son came home before my daughter. After a week of fitting the stuff in the forester for one baby it became evident that, yes, we would need the mini-van.

As much as it pains me to say it, I love my mini-van. It's easy. Getting the kids in their carseats has always been easy. There's plenty of room. We have two captain's chairs for them and a bench seat behind them. We take the bench seat out a lot and, man, there's a ton of room!

Kim
t&e 5/03

[peasprout]

We had all three at some point. The 4 door sedan was too crowded with two kids (esp for roadtrips), the SUV just didn't seem as safe (rollover risk) and it wasn't big enough to carry more than one extra passenger. We traded it in for a minivan and that's all I drive now. I LOVE our minivan for the same reason as everyone else. I love the added room and it makes staying with the kids when they're sleeping in the car a lot more comfy(wish I had it when the kids were younger and nursing!). I can't wait to do roadtrips in it and we can even carry three extra people.
JP

[MichelleRC]

I drive a Mazda MPV minivan. I LOVE this car. I have never been into cars, but am so happy with it. It is a little narrower than the other minivans so it feels like you are driving a car and it is easy to park. I usually keep the third row stowed so I can keep the strollers in the back and still go grocery shopping.
No complaints at all. I would highly recommend it.

[tina-t]

Used to resist the idea of a minivan but we did buy one when ds was born. Dh was adamant about it. I initially refused to drive it, but now, I don't even want to drive the car. It is so comfortable. It is easy to get ds in and out of the minivan. We now have enough space for when my in-laws come in for a visit.