Recs for a used family vehicle w/ extra seating in back and AWD?

[ang79]

We may be looking for a replacement for my car. I currently have a Ford Taurus X, which is like a cross-over SUV. It has 2 bucket seats in the middle, which my girls sit in, and then there is a large cargo area in the back, but I can fold up 2 extra seats if needed. I sometimes drive girls in my daughter's girl scout troop to outtings, so its nice having those extra seats. And I also love the extra cargo area for when we travel, and for carting around Girl Scout cookies for our troop. I've always owned Fords because of the price factor, but I'm thinking maybe now we can invest in something that will last a little longer. DH has a Honda CRV that he really likes (its his second used Honda). But that doesn't have the spare seating. Oh, it also needs to have AWD, as we live on a hill and get a decent amount of snow in the winter.

[SnuggleBuggles]

Any model year 2013+ of Mazda5 would be good. They made a much needed suspension improvement in either 2012 or 2013. It's a very handy car.
ETA- not AWD but we live on a big hill too and snow tires help a lot.

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[SummerBaby]

I have had two Honda Pilots and they were great.

[AnnieW625]

Honda Pilot, Toyota Highlander, or Toyota 4 Runner would be my suggestion. We know lots of people with Volvo XC90s who love them and all bought them used, but you may not get much 3 Rd row space.

My Pilot is almost 10 yrs. old and has 160k miles on it and we hope it will (and it should) make it to 200k miles. It has been a great car for us. Other than the brakes needing a brake job every 40k-50k miles and tires at about the same intervals the most we have put into to the car has been in the last year when it needed all new plugs, and four new valves, total for both was about $1100.

I do however wish I would've looked at the 4Runner though because I love the sliding rear window, but DH had been having some issues with local Toyota dealers and the Toyota prices were always higher as well so we just avoided Toyota all together then.

Check out the Ford Explorer as well. It has some nice amenities like mini van like well storage behind the third row. It isn't that much bigger than the Pilot/Highlander/4Runner.

A used Acadia/Traverse/Enclave might also fit the bill.

[WatchingThemGrow]

We got (for DH) a used Acura MDX that has 4wd and 7 seats. If you've always driven Fords it may feel insane cost and fun-wise.


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[trcy]

Hyundai Santa Fe Limited


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[KrisM]

The Ford Flex is not much different than Taurus X.

[acmom]

I have had two Honda Pilots and they were great.

Yes, I loved my Honda Pilot and it went 10 years with no repairs outside of normal maintenance, tires, etc. We have an Acadia now that we love too, so the Acadia/Traverse/Enclave might be good options too, but I can't vouch for their longevity the same way as I could with my honda.

[ang79]

Thanks for the recs. I've been looking around online to see what is in our price range. Thought I found a great deal on a '13 Mazda5 but turns out it wasn't AWD, and with our neighborhood and driveway in the snow, that is a must. I might have to go without the third row seating though, not finding many with that option.

[nfowife]

Toyota Sienna awd

[Momit]

We are very happy with our Ford Explorer. Before that, we drove a Ford Flex. I loved that one because it sits a little lower to the ground and was easier for kids (and me!) to get in and out of.

[scriptkitten]

The xc90 has way more 3rd space than a 4 runner. It also has an actual usable trunk space with the 3rd row up

I was shopping xc90s and 4 runners and ended up with a used Lexus GX for the same price as a 4Runner. The pre-2016 volvos are way underpowered

[scriptkitten]

Another great vehicle is the Mazda CX-9. Had one of those for 6 years until we totaled it in December. Great 3rd row and cargo space

[rds97]

Acura MDX or Honda Pilot. Awesome cars, last forever. Has AWD (not sure if it's standard or an option, but mine has it).

[AnnieW625]

If you decide to give up the 3rd row check out the Lexus RX series. My grandma has had two over the last 12 yrs and lives in the snow. She drove the first one to 135k miles and sold it running and just bought a 2015 and is very happy with it. I am happy because my grandma is 85 and has no problem driving it.

[ang79]

Dh wants me to get it checked out first, so taking it in to a Ford Dealer next week for diagnostics. My regular mechanic thinks it is something to do with the transmission and it has 132,000 miles on it, so I was thinking maybe we would be better off trading it in for a Honda or something that will last a long time. Maybe it will not be a huge fix and it will last me awhile longer, but hearing transmission problem just made me think huge expense, get a new car instead :) I will keep the above recs in mind though if I get bad news from the dealership.

[AnnieW625]

So how come your independent mechanic can't figure out what is wrong with it?

[ang79]

So how come your independent mechanic can't figure out what is wrong with it?

They don't do transmission work. They are just a small family run local business that do inspections and general work, but nothing big like transmissions, alignments, etc. He said everything else looks fine, but he doesn't do transmissions, so he suggested taking it to a transmission specialist, or a Ford Dealership.

[firstbaby]

We just ordered a 4Runner with the 3rd row seat for us. We are going from a Sienna to the 4Runner. I have LOVED the Sienna, but with my kids getting older (12, 10 and 5), we were ready for something different but I wanted the extra seating a la minivan. The 4Runner was a great option for us - similar in price to the Sienna (minus the DVD player). I'm sure the kids will miss the captain's chairs a little, but all three can fit across in one row plus with the 3rd row I can add in 2 more kids. The Highlander would have been way too small for us - my oldest was hunched down sitting in the 3rd row of the Highlander. I didn't look at the XC90 bc it would have been about $9k+ more.

[AnnieW625]

They don't do transmission work. They are just a small family run local business that do inspections and general work, but nothing big like transmissions, alignments, etc. He said everything else looks fine, but he doesn't do transmissions, so he suggested taking it to a transmission specialist, or a Ford Dealership.
Do you have an Aamco? They supposedly diagnose for free.

[ang79]

Ugh, got back the report from the dealership, over $7,000 worth in repairs needed :( So now we are officially car shopping. Are there any major differences between the Toyota Highlander and Honda Pilot as far as size, leg room in second/third row, cargo space, gas milage, etc.?

[Kindra178]

Ugh, got back the report from the dealership, over $7,000 worth in repairs needed :( So now we are officially car shopping. Are there any major differences between the Toyota Highlander and Honda Pilot as far as size, leg room in second/third row, cargo space, gas milage, etc.?

The 2016 Pilot has more cargo space as compared to the highlander. The U.S. News site does a nice job examining cargo space and leg room so you can compare cars.

[acmom]

The 2016 Pilot has more cargo space as compared to the highlander. The U.S. News site does a nice job examining cargo space and leg room so you can compare cars.

I know when we looked over the summer, the 3rd row (and space between the captain's seats) felt really tight to us on the highlander. I'm small (with size 5 feet) and I got my foot stuck between the captains seats trying to walk into the 3rd row! We felt like that 3rd row wouldn't be comfortable even for kids once they reached a certain age, so that ruled it out for us. We liked it a lot other than that, but for us, that 3rd row and cargo space was important. We would have looked at the Pilot (as I loved my old one) bc the specs looked bigger but our dealership didn't have the new ones in yet. We ended up with an Acadia and love it. The cargo space and 3rd row def. felt much bigger on the Acadia/Traverse/Enclave than the Highlander.

[Zukini]

We have a 2015 Highlander and like it so far. It's very good on gas and has a real smooth ride (we also have a 2012 Lexus RX and consider the Toyota ride to be comparable, if not better). The big caveat, that I only discovered after we brought it home, is with the bench seat model, that you are not supposed to seat 3 across if those 3 passengers are all in car seats. The manual has it buried deep in there :( And car seat techs online have picked up on it and documented it on blogs etc. Toyota has unfortunately used an overlapping seat belt set up for their back rows that can cause an issue in a crash re belt tightening and car seats. Same with their new RAV4s. We have our one and only, so not an issue with adult family members sitting back there with him. But when my nephews come to visit (FF and booster age) we will have to configure carefully to fit everyone. Only one tether anchor on 3rd row too, which makes it trickier, so take note.

Plus the seat belt stalks are buried in the seat bights (worst one is the 2nd row passenger spot), and we purchased and use a seat belt extender for the adult sitting there to be able to buckle up next to DS who is RF in the middle seat.

The Car Seat lady explains it here and offers a good analysis of which 3-row vehicles are car seat friendly - latch, tether anchors, etc.
http://thecarseatlady.com/latch3rowvehicle/

ETA - 3rd row is tight in the Highlander, the fact that the 2nd row seats slide forward helps with legroom. I believe the new Honda Pilot has more legroom and headroom for older children and adults back there. That said, I am 5'5" and can sit back there for a short ride without feeling too claustrophobic. But I wouldn't do it with 1 or 2 other passengers back there. No way, no how.

[WatchingThemGrow]

We found the 3rd row of the Pilot (new one) to be more comfy than the Highlander, although you ask about gas mileage...and the Highlander has a Hybrid model that should be better on gas mileage. I would love the new Pilot if it had sliding doors ;)

[ang79]

We have a 2015 Highlander and like it so far. It's very good on gas and has a real smooth ride (we also have a 2012 Lexus RX and consider the Toyota ride to be comparable, if not better). The big caveat, that I only discovered after we brought it home, is with the bench seat model, that you are not supposed to seat 3 across if those 3 passengers are all in car seats. The manual has it buried deep in there :( And car seat techs online have picked up on it and documented it on blogs etc. Toyota has unfortunately used an overlapping seat belt set up for their back rows that can cause an issue in a crash re belt tightening and car seats. Same with their new RAV4s. We have our one and only, so not an issue with adult family members sitting back there with him. But when my nephews come to visit (FF and booster age) we will have to configure carefully to fit everyone. Only one tether anchor on 3rd row too, which makes it trickier, so take note.

Plus the seat belt stalks are buried in the seat bights (worst one is the 2nd row passenger spot), and we purchased and use a seat belt extender for the adult sitting there to be able to buckle up next to DS who is RF in the middle seat.

The Car Seat lady explains it here and offers a good analysis of which 3-row vehicles are car seat friendly - latch, tether anchors, etc.
http://thecarseatlady.com/latch3rowvehicle/

ETA - 3rd row is tight in the Highlander, the fact that the 2nd row seats slide forward helps with legroom. I believe the new Honda Pilot has more legroom and headroom for older children and adults back there. That said, I am 5'5" and can sit back there for a short ride without feeling too claustrophobic. But I wouldn't do it with 1 or 2 other passengers back there. No way, no how.

Thanks for the input on carseats. My kids are now in boosters (they prefer high back ones), and most friends I would be transporting are also booster age. We have two Britax Parkways with the LATCH. Since the LATCH is just to keep the seat from moving, and not used as the main restraint, would I still be able to sit a third person between those boosters in the Highlander? I can't see needing to do that, unless it is a lowback booster (would that even fit?), or an older child not in a carseat.