Mini Van or SUV ????

As far as gas is concerned, the Ford Escape hybrid gets 35 miles per gallon which is great for a SUV. And it's tall so you dont have to bend over to get kids in and out. It only holds 5 people though.

BMW X5 is the way to go. There are air bags all over this thing. One in the back for the hound even. High off the ground, smooth driving, there is nothing better bar-none.

I am not talking about something brand new. I just bought a 5 yr-old off eBay for 18k. By far the best car I have ever owned, and I am kinda a car geek. It is almost sensual.

I am 28 years old and was absolutely dead set against getting a minivan, BUT... my husband talked me into driving a Kia Sedona. It is the closest thing to an SUV, still being in the minivan category! My favorite part is that it's so sporty... the shifter is on the middle colomn, etc. rather than the old "granny car" style automatic!
I'm not sure I would give it up for and SUV, and I"m a hardcore... country... truck lovin' kinda girl!

I am definitely one of those moms who does not want to drive a mini-van, nothing againstthose who do, I wish I could be more open to it, they are full of features! My husband works for Ford, so it helped that we got a discount on the car, but we have an Expedition. We had an Explorer that was totalled last year but held up really well considering, and my daughter wasn't hurt at all. But after that I wanted something bigger for safety reasons. I love love love the cargo space and room for people as well. It's loaded with features and also cool to look at. And I saw a minivan owner mention it costs up to $60 to fill up, I filled up the other day at $3.33/gallon and it was only $70, not much higher! And if you want to look at or consider a Ford or a used vehicle, my husband has access to five car lots with his dealership, he's a manager not a salesman so he can get you a good deal on a new or used van or suv, they have all makes and models! Good luck!

Hello
I am in the same type of situation and would like to keep up on what the better deal will be. I have looked at mini and suvs and I have a mini utility now. I would like to move to any car that will accomidate 7 or more! I have looked at the passort but have not drove anything yet. I will keep u updated.

I have a 2004 Dodge Durango w/ the 3rd row seat! I LOVE it, but it is hard with little ones & carseats, booster seats, etc. It's high off the ground, so a little rough for the 3 year old to get in & out of. The 3rd row doesn't fit booster seats & only fits 2. :-) Good Luck!!!!

I bought a honda pilot 2 months ago and love it. The 3rd row seat is really easy to put up and down which is great when I need the room for kids or I need the room for putting stuff in the back. It seems like I am only spending about $10 more every two weeeks for gas compared to my Dodge stratus I owned. I do like some of the crossovers but they didn't have the room. Since the Pilot isn't as big as some suv's I think it makes it more economical for gas. I have heard minivans aren't as fuel efficient.

I swore up and down I would never be a minivan mama! BUT here I am, 24 years old and I just got a brand new Honda Odyssey for Mother's Day. We had been shopping around for a while and everything from crash test ratings to consumer reports and words from other mom's drove me back to the minivan. I previously drove a Ford Explorer and even with the 2nd row of seats down there wasn't enough trunk room for the stroller and the groceries and all the other stuff you lug around as a mom. I loved that the Honda has remote control sliding doors on both sides and that it was low to the ground. I can stand on the porch and open the doors and my son climbs right into the car at 19 months. There are soooo many mom friendly features in it too.
1)I have a built in mirror that allows me to see straight to the back seat
2) the kids have a DVD player that has a disc loader in the FRONT Seat so I can change the movie easily
3)wireless head phones so no more listening to Elmo every trip
4)the back has it's own heat/ac controlls that you can turn off if you want to
5)the middle seat in the first row comes out so you can slide the two chairs together for easy access
6)the third seat folds right into the floor for extra cargo space super easily
7)the captians chair in the first row allows my 6'4 teenager to have leg room and relax on long trips
8)navigation system
9)heated mirrors and seats
10)back up camera

I could go on and on and on. I LOVE my minivan and my son's enjoy the ride too. We took a 3 hour (each way) road trip and my littlest son still cried when we got home. He kept saying "car, car", go". The crash test rating for both the Honda Odyssey and the Toyota Sienna are great, the Sienna tends to be a bit more expnsive for the additional features when all is said and done though. I don't know much about the Pilot, I have a girlfriend that loves her Pilot though.

Good Luck with you purchase!

I would recommend a mini-van. I had one a few years ago & loved it. Mine had the two back seats. At one point we had 9 people in it. (It had enough buckles for 7 but we doubled up the little guys)

At that point, my kids were out of car seats but my sister-in-law was with me a few times. My nephew was in a car seat & it was so much easier getting him in & out! I wished I had one when my kids were at that stage.

I own a Jeep SUV at present. I love it. I have a car seat installed for my granddaughter & it's a pretty snug fit to get 2 more people in the back seat. Of course, I'm talking adult size people, not little kids.

Another plus about a mini van is that if the kids are fighting, you can separate them further apart. You probably haven't experienced the fighting yet & hopefully won't but it normally happens & it doesn't matter the age span. This is off the subject but some advice on that is to put in some music that you all enjoy & sing! It helped with my kids!

Good luck to you.

G.

I've had a Pilot for 2+ years and still love it as much as Day 1! It feels like driving a car and has always fit everything I need. To be fair, if hauling a bunch of children is your main reason for buying a new vehicle, maybe a mini-van is the way to go. For me I have 1.5 kids and know I won't be having any more and plan to keep my Pilot for a few more years, then buying the next model of Pilot down the road. I've never had ANY problems with it and it makes me feel safe. Hope this helps.

I have a 1.5 year old, 2.5 year old and a 12 year old.

we went through the same argument when the youngest was about to be born.

something to keep in mind: when you have a carseat in, you can't fold the seat down to get a child in the third row. Only the minivan allows room to get to the back, around the 2 giant Britax seats in the middle row. We went with honda because it felt just a smidge better than the toyota, drops down to 3 cylinders on the hwy, is beefy otherwise and no tune up for 100,000 miles on our model - and sliding doors windows roll down. I'm now 32, and will admit it's not sexy, but the "milf" thing is soooo over-rated. :) just play some van-rock and you'll feel good again.

PS, I traded in my hot V6 Honda Accord...so I know where you're coming from. plus, we have a Tundra - so 2 V8s was not an ecologically sound solution.

I used to drive a cute little sports car for years until I had 2 kids and it was just impossible to do anything! I got a minivan and although I never could handle the thought before it is so amazing to have one. I feel like it has so much more room with the third seat. If it just has two seats even if its higher off the ground its still the same as a car but just usses more gas. I think anything that has a third seat is worth it but I really like the openness of the van and it just makes sense.

Hey H.! I am a 28 year old SAHM and just bought a 2007 Pilot about a month ago. I feel the same way about the whole minivan thing. I just can't get my head around the idea. I love Love LOVE my Pilot!!!!! The only thing that is kind of a pain is the fact that you have to fold down the 2nd row to get into the 3rd, but if you don't have carseats, I guess it's not so bad (mine are in full boosters). As far as gas mileage goes......it IS a Honda.

I tend to be the type of person who hate minivans, will never drive one, etc, and like SUV's, but I can tell you this...first, I'm not exactly a typical (or steriotypical if you will) woman. However; If I were deciding which to choose based on the fact that I were going to be driving lots of children around, I would get a minivan because they have far superior crash test ratings than SUV's do and far fewer roll-over accidents. Their stability is much better than that of SUV's. They normally are pretty comfy, they seat lots of people, come with lots of luxuries, etc...(I just don't want the minivan mom label I guess). I think (although this one I have not actually checked my facts on) that minivans get better mileage than SUV's also. Good luck to you. I would go with the minivan. Hope this helps.

The best way to figure out what you want is to go rent a van for a few days or a weekend and then rent a suv for the same amount of time and see what you liked better and what worked for your kids, in and out of the car and what-not...
I bought my first minivan when I was 21 and have loved having one ever since. ( I had 3 kids by the time I was 22 ).
I'm not 31 and just had baby #4.
The biggest difference in an SUV and Minivan is the gas. A lot depends on how much you drive!

We just bought a Pilot in December and I love it. We have heated leather seats which are great for winter. There is a mirror that pops down that's designed for you to see in the back seat so you don't have to turn around. There are controls on the steering wheel for the stereo. It is a comfortable ride and roomy enough for extra passengers. There are side curtain airbags in the back for safety in case of a wreck. I get about 20 or 21 miles to the gallon on in town driving. I would buy another one. I am 31 and didn't want to cross over to the minivan quite yet. There are so many more great features......too many to list.

Hi H.-

If you are worried about gas prices (who isn't!) then I would suggest comparing the fuel economy of each of your top 5 favorite models before choosing - regardless of the type of car. I personally have a Dodge Minivan and we are looking to trade it in as soon as possible...the fuel consumption isn't even that good! That said, if you can swing it, you may also try going for a hybrid SUV which can still be stylish as well as fuel efficient.

Good luck-
A.

Well as for gas prices, heres an example. I own a 2005 Chrysler town and Country (which I absolutely love) and my best friend has a Dodge durrango (dont know what year). at the pump I only pay on average of 40 to 45 dollars everytime I fill up. My friend however pays anywhere between 75 to 90 dollars depending on where she fills up at. Suvs I imagine are nice, but they do make some really nice minivans. Have fun car shopping. Oh and I dont know if your looking at new or not, but We went to hertz and got a really good deal on our van, and it still had the manufactuers warranty on it for half the price of a brand new van. Just an idea.

We are on our 4th minivan and even when all of our kids are out of the house, I think I'll still own at least one! I don't identify myself by what I drive and was even further affirmed when I met a couple in their 70's who feel the same way!!! What's not to like? Passengers when you need to, seats out and haul when you need to and easier to drive than SUV's...Get what feels good, and as a twice a day carpooler, the automatic doors are a real saver. Nothing like having to stop in the drop off lane and get out in the rain to close a door that didn't quite latch...Signed: PROUD SOCCER MOM

I'm 30 as well and I got my minivan at age 27. I love it. It was difficult taking the plunge, and my friends still tease me, but we have four kids and have no other choice. I refused to get a gas guzziling suv, and that's back when gas was only 2.20 a gallon. I'm so glad I didn't. Anyway, the minivan drives just like a car. It cost us right now about 55-60 dollars to fill up. We've had it for 2 years and have only put breaks and tires on it, so it's very little maintainance. I highly recomend it. And hey when all your freinds are trying to cram there cars full or trying to figure out how they will car a bunch of kids up to the mountain, they'll be asking you to borrow you minivan. (this has happened several times) Good luck.

Mini vans are really nice to have. So are SUVs but they eat up the gas alot faster. When we first got our mini van, I thought that it was a good thing but there was still a slight resistance for me to drive it. I had driven a Honda Accord (and other hondas) for years and it just felt kinda weird to drive a mini van. but after just a week or so, i started to love it and I'm so glad that we got it. For one, it's got a ton of room and if need be I can climb from the drivers seat and go directly into the back seat with no problems. You definantly can't do that in an Accord. :) The extra room throughout the whole van makes a huge difference. You'll love it. Plus if you keep your Honda then you will still get to drive it if you just need to go to the store or if you only have 3 or less people with you.

Have fun

there was a request for this before. (i remember because i responded to it.) check out:

http://www.mamasource.com/request/8648053187607003137

also, i've heard good things about the new mazda mini-van.

I don't really care about status of mini van or suv, personally suv don't have alot of room, leg room or storage. If you are gonna have more kids soon suv will get cramped quick. We have 4 kids in car seats so minivan was what we needed. We tried to fit 3 car seats in the back row of an intrepid and that was no fun for the 6 mos we did that for. Also think about what do you want out of your vechical ??? Make a list of the must have's what are things you can't live with out?? Is style important to you or fuctionality. Test drive all the ones on your top 5 list and see how it is to drive.
My brother will not for the life of him own a mini van ( he is also 6'4") and SO he has a gas gusseling Expedition and they only have 2 kids.
So basically what I'm saying is that your gonna get what you want and need for you and your family. You could have the safest car available but if you can't stand driving it, your not gonna like it.
We got our van off craigslist and had the warrenty put in our name was a good deal, saved $500 off blue book value even.
Good luck there is a lot to think about!
L.

Hi H.,

My hubby and I recently bought a Toyota Sienna. It is the nicest family vehicle! We absolutely love it. It has the DVD player and auto-sliding doors, all kinds of options. Before I had kids, I thought minivans were dumb, but I quickly changed my mind after I drove one. I have the captain chairs in the second row, and it makes it so easy to get to the back row. With SUV's, you have to fold the seats down, and climb over them...more of a pain than I wanted to endure. Also, with the minivans, it's much easier to fit into tight spots, because the doors that the kids get out of are sliders, and there's absolutely no risk of them slamming it into the car next to us. Overall, there's just more room in the vans, I think, and we get pretty decent gas mileage too. About 29 MPG. Not bad when you consider the power under the hood! It makes passing other cars a breeze! And I love the feel of the Sienna. It is actually built on a truck platform, so it is a solid piece of machinery. I had a Dodge Caravan before this, and it just felt cheap. Anyway, of course my opinion is biased, because I like what I like. Only you can make this decision based on what works best for you and your family. Hope this helps some. Talk to you later!

K.